Possibly being scammed on ebay--- any advice?

[Anjelica]

I am really sorry about your situation.

Not that it helps now but everytime I sell on ebay I ONLY ship within the States and I always include insurance with the shipping costs (and state so in the posting). I do these two items to cover my butt as I think there are people out there who will take advantage of folks.

 

[JB2K]

The buyer who purchased the iphone is in Azerbaijan and he has opened a dispute against me. I don't know if he is trying to scam me or if the iphone has genuinely not arrived. I shipped it 3 weeks ago, but if he is not trying to scam me, the item is most likely still stuck in customs. And, even more stupidly, I threw away my receipt for this one!

Not exactly the way I would've done it -- personally, I have major issues with selling certain types of merchandise (cell phones, high-end electronics) to the far-flung corners of the world. Without getting into specifics, I generally limit those sales to the U.S. and Canada, only.

And for those selling on eBay, you must always save your shipping receipts/tracking number (until, at least, you receive positive feedback from the buyer).

Advice? You have been most likely been scammed, and through your own admissions, you have no way to prove anything, which means you're going to have to eat this loss...

 

[JB2K]

where is Azerbaijan?

It's on the Caspian Sea and borders Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Iran.

Enough said.

 

[DoomBuggy0922]

Thank you for the hugs and advice! I realize I am most likely going to end up eating the $230 for the iphone--- such an expensive lesson to learn!

I haven't heard anything from the blackberry buyer after I replied to his message (offering to call the post office and so on and so forth.) At least I know for next time!

 

[PatriciaH]

There is a way to ship overseas with tracking at the USPS but it is much more expensive than regular shipping. For a light item like a Disney pin or Vinylmation it would normally cost around $10 or so to ship to UK, France, Australia, etc. but with the tracking it is about $28. Most buyers do not want to pay that but if someone really wants an item from overseas I require the tracking. I usually do not sell to anyone out of the US though.

 

[SandrA9810]

First off, shipping international isn't that hard. Just about learning the rules of the Post Office.

The number one rule is to ship Registered mail any package that has a value. Our limit is roughly $20 (meaning if the package is lost, we can eat $20 bucks on it). It cost $12 and can have insurance up to $10,000. All seams on the box must be sealed with brown shipping tape, the post office can provide this if you don't have it. It is also stamped with the PO stamp across all of it. With a registered piece of mail, they are not allowed to open it (unless deemed necessary by customs), and this provides tracking from the post office to the person. As well as it has to be signed for each time it changes hands.
You know how when you ship FedEx or UPS, you can watch as your package travels across the US, as it's scanned in at each location? Well at the USPS, they scan it when it's shipped, scan it when it arrives at it's destination city, then scanned when it is delivered. Well Registered mail, it shows every stop/person along way it is handled by.

Now on International Priority First Class, it automatically provides tracking, but only to the destination city, not to the person. Insurance can also be purchased, but you have to go through the Post Office to purchase insurance. Ebay now allows international shipping labels to be printed at home, but not insurance.

And according to the post office, you must allow up to 30 days for the package to go through customs. We recently had a problem with Canada, the person emailed us after 6 weeks. We talked to the post office, and magically in a few days it finally arrived at it's destination. But it sat in customs for way too long. It was a $30 item registered, so we had recourse if it did not reach it's destination.

If the value of the item is greater than the cost you're willing to eat, then buy insurance for your package. And on international, registered is the best way to go. Although we had one post office try to tell us shipping first class priority was the same thing. It's not, and that's why it costs more.

Sorry you got burned, but there are safe ways to protect yourself. And because it is part of shipping, you can include it in your shipping charges. If the person doesn't want to accept the higher cost, then they don't need to buy from you. There are a few countries with high mail theft rate, that no matter the value, Registered is always placed upon those packages. As well as buyers from Africa are blocked from purchasing, too many countries with scams and horrible postal service, like Customs stealing items from packages. Plus you could be missing out on a lot of money by not shipping international, there's people in other countries willing to pay a pretty penny for things people wouldn't here pay for. I think roughly 25% or more of sales are dealt with international buyers.

PM if you have any questions about shipping. I've been learning the ins and outs of it, and it's not that hard when it comes to going International.

 

[starry_solo]

I learned about the brown shipping tape a few days ago (registered mail) when I tried to mail a package with the regular clear heavy-duty tape. The post office lady (she's mean) said it had to be done in brown tape and gave me some. Of course, the tape didn't completely stick on (well, stay on). It was weird (the kind where you have to moisten it).

So, I went back to the office, got some brown packing paper and used that with glue...

 

[SandrA9810]

Brown tape works good, but it can't be to wet. It takes practice, it sticks good once it dries.

 

[feezle]

Unfortunately the system works this way: once the bidder opens a dispute, it is up to YOU to PROVE you sent the item out---it is NOT up to the BIDDER to prove he/she didn't receive it. It's a very crappy system, and one that works to a scammer's advantage.

How would you prove that you didn't receive an item?

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

How would you prove that you didn't receive an item?

Simple. If the seller was foolish enough to ship without any type of delivery confirmation, then there is no way for the seller to prove the item was delivered. A buyer doesn't have to prove an item wasn't delivered; it's up to the seller to prove that it was. No delivery confirmation? Then if a claim is filed, the buyer will win every time.

 

[lori123]

First off, shipping international isn't that hard. Just about learning the rules of the Post Office.

The number one rule is to ship Registered mail any package that has a value. Our limit is roughly $20 (meaning if the package is lost, we can eat $20 bucks on it). It cost $12 and can have insurance up to $10,000. All seams on the box must be sealed with brown shipping tape, the post office can provide this if you don't have it. It is also stamped with the PO stamp across all of it. With a registered piece of mail, they are not allowed to open it (unless deemed necessary by customs), and this provides tracking from the post office to the person. As well as it has to be signed for each time it changes hands.
You know how when you ship FedEx or UPS, you can watch as your package travels across the US, as it's scanned in at each location? Well at the USPS, they scan it when it's shipped, scan it when it arrives at it's destination city, then scanned when it is delivered. Well Registered mail, it shows every stop/person along way it is handled by.

Now on International Priority First Class, it automatically provides tracking, but only to the destination city, not to the person. Insurance can also be purchased, but you have to go through the Post Office to purchase insurance. Ebay now allows international shipping labels to be printed at home, but not insurance.

And according to the post office, you must allow up to 30 days for the package to go through customs. We recently had a problem with Canada, the person emailed us after 6 weeks. We talked to the post office, and magically in a few days it finally arrived at it's destination. But it sat in customs for way too long. It was a $30 item registered, so we had recourse if it did not reach it's destination.

If the value of the item is greater than the cost you're willing to eat, then buy insurance for your package. And on international, registered is the best way to go. Although we had one post office try to tell us shipping first class priority was the same thing. It's not, and that's why it costs more.

Sorry you got burned, but there are safe ways to protect yourself. And because it is part of shipping, you can include it in your shipping charges. If the person doesn't want to accept the higher cost, then they don't need to buy from you. There are a few countries with high mail theft rate, that no matter the value, Registered is always placed upon those packages. As well as buyers from Africa are blocked from purchasing, too many countries with scams and horrible postal service, like Customs stealing items from packages. Plus you could be missing out on a lot of money by not shipping international, there's people in other countries willing to pay a pretty penny for things people wouldn't here pay for. I think roughly 25% or more of sales are dealt with international buyers.

PM if you have any questions about shipping. I've been learning the ins and outs of it, and it's not that hard when it comes to going International.

I just shipped a package to Japan two weeks ago and used my plain old clear packing tape. No one had me fix it......

 

[feezle]

Simple. If the seller was foolish enough to ship without any type of delivery confirmation, then there is no way for the seller to prove the item was delivered. A buyer doesn't have to prove an item wasn't delivered; it's up to the seller to prove that it was. No delivery confirmation? Then if a claim is filed, the buyer will win every time.

Which is why I was questioning the poster I quoted. They felt it was unfair that the burden of proof was on the seller.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Paypal protection means only that "paypal got thier fee" If you expect anything else then you failed to understand the system.

Ebay's requirement for Paypal is why I am gone!

 

[SandrA9810]

I just shipped a package to Japan two weeks ago and used my plain old clear packing tape. No one had me fix it......

Shipping first class international/parcel post does not require you to register a piece of mail. For the added security and protection, most items shipped internationally are registered, for us. Ebay only requires you to provide tracking, not insurance. That is up to the seller to add to the shipping fee.

Registered is just a bit more secured as the packaged is signed for as it change hands. The insurance limit is also significantly higher than regular insurance.

First Class International does not have insurance, only Priority International and Express International, these allow for insurance up to about $500.00 to be purchased. On just First Class International (any package up to 4 pounds internationally), the only way to insure it is by Registered. This also requires a signature upon delivery, so you have proof the item was received by the buyer.

Like I said before, Registered can not be opened or tampered with. Most packages that go through customs are opened and inspected before being sent on to the recipient. Here's a Wiki Article and a Post Office article (in section 2.0).

While registered is a bit more expensive, it's there for the added safety and protection of both the buyer and seller. Next time we send a registered package I'll take a picture to show the difference in how it is boxed up. It's also labeled with a red barcode at the post office, and the teller will keep it in their possession until they take it to the back to begin the sorting. Some postal workers have an issue with the "added" work of Registered pieces.