Customer says the item has not arrived, although it is marked as delivered
Summary: mmstore74 reported a dispute with a buyer on eBay who claimed an item marked as delivered was not received. Despite being under the Seller Protection, mmstore74 was unsure how to proceed and asked for guidance. verena@ebay and melina@ebay explained that Seller Protection applied, and advised waiting for the buyer to escalate after three days. However, mmstore74 experienced multiple similar cases and was frustrated when negative feedback was left despite efforts to resolve the issue. Discussions with eBay representatives like melina@ebay and miriam@ebay highlighted the difficulties of removing negative feedback when no delivery evidence is provided.
Good morning everyone, could a mentor please tag an Ebay MA for me?
A customer says the item has not arrived, even though it was marked as delivered, how should I handle this and how does seller protection work
( small amount under €20 ), the stamp was bought directly through Ebay.
“The buyer also wants a refund directly”
Wishing everyone a nice Sunday and thank you very much in advance
mmstore74
OP1 week agoHello @miriam@ebay and thank you again, but why should I file a request for a feedback revision if the buyer doesn’t even have the decency to reply to any question/answer — do you think he’d get back to me about it?
Even in the open case, he absolutely did not respond to my answer and apology and completely ignored me.
So a buyer who is very, very happy to leave negative feedback is believed more than a commercial seller who has sold here for 19 years and up to now has always stood at 100%.
Here it’s not decided based on proof of delivery, but on what the buyer says, and I think that’s a shame.
Kind regards
Marc
miriam@ebay
Hello @mmstore74 - since I was asked by @petersmodellbahnstuebchen and @perfect-sally to contribute one last time here, I’m happy to do that.
I looked at the case again based on the thread and our exchange. I also checked whether there is a basis for removing the rating.
Unfortunately, I can no longer trace the original shipment history today. The replacement shipment also shows no scan. I understand that this is especially annoying for you, because you have no influence over how the shipment data is displayed. For our review, however, we can only use the data that can currently be verified in the system. As a result, unfortunately, we do not have the basis to contest the rating.
Regardless of that, I would like to emphasize once again that Seller Protection and rating removal are two separate reviews. In your case, the refund was made as part of Seller Protection (see Internet stamps with Deutsche Post matrix code). However, to remove a rating, we additionally need a basis under our feedback guidelines. I know that this does not feel fair from your perspective, especially since you contacted your customer multiple times and even sent a replacement item. I have passed on your feedback about the shipment data and the interaction between seller protection and ratings internally.
It may still be possible to clarify the situation via a request to change the rating?
Kind regards
Miriam
mmstore74
OP2 weeks agoAh ok, now I understand, many thanks @petersmodellbahnstuebchen & @perfect-sally 😊👍😊👍
Best regards
Marc
mmstore74
OP2 weeks agoHello @verena@ebay
I can’t get this case out of my head and have one more thing to say.
I’ve been operating commercially here for 19 years, have always been at 100%, and now a buyer comes along, claims that within a few days the same item didn’t arrive twice, gets his money back from eBay and leaves me a negative rating, even though it seems like he has given out more negative ratings than positive ones so far over time, and you’re still protecting buyers like that?
And even if it had said "Delivered" there and he had claimed something else, I’d be the sucker, because even that wouldn’t be proof of delivery, since there isn’t any, and for that reason it’s not right either.
Best regards
perfect-sally
·2 weeks ago@mmstore74
we're on it. Unfortunately, there's nothing more to report so far.
petersmodellbahnstuebchen
·2 weeks ago · Edited@mmstore74
Hi Marc,
"Patience you must have, young Jedi".
As @perfect-sally already wrote to you, things are moving forward in the background, but we don't write about eggs before they're hatched here.
Best regards from the Baltic Sea to the old homeland
Peter
mmstore74
OP2 weeks agoGood morning @petersmodellbahnstuebchen ,nice to read from you again 😊
As already written, you do everything to do everything right, even deliver 2x, report/react immediately to everything, and then it can't be that you are so helpless against such buyers.
If something actually doesn't arrive for whatever reason and you have left a
" tracking number " ,you can't really hold the seller responsible for that, because after handing it over they no longer have any influence on it, and if you then at least get your money back, you don't actually have any damage.
Things like that really make me think, and this person doesn't respond to anything I write to him.
It's like in football, that's where a feel for the situation is missing
Kind regards and a good start to the new week from the Ruhr area
Marc
mmstore74
OP2 weeks ago · EditedHello @verena@ebay ,@melina@ebay
even though I absolutely can’t understand this, not least because I also sent a follow-up shipment directly and that didn’t arrive either, it’s already very, very questionable.
If you were as ruthless with real fundamental violations and enforced them as consistently as you could do nothing in this case, that would be something.
I keep wondering why there is actually the function " send message to buyer/seller " if dissatisfied buyers don’t have to stick to it to clarify something, but instead just have to sit back and wait until someone pays the money back.
According to the tracking number, I sent the item today, which also says a lot about the system
I’m really pissed off
petersmodellbahnstuebchen
·2 weeks ago@mmstore74
Hi Marc,
I completely understand that you're furious. I would be too.
However, I’m wondering whether eBay seller protection really applies to undelivered items. According to the help, it only applies to shipments delivered late.
Please give us a little more time to clarify such fundamental questions internally with the eBay team.
Best regards from the Baltic Sea
Peter
mmstore74
OP2 weeks ago@perfect-sally decisions like these really leave me speechless, you bust your ass to do everything as well as possible and the thanks you get is a slap in the face
mmstore74
OP2 weeks ago@perfect-sally ,Thanks a lot for marking it 😊👍
perfect-sally
·2 weeks agoNo problem, but as usual eBay got it wrong again.
mmstore74
OP2 weeks ago · EditedHello @melina@ebay
Thanks for your reply, and to be honest I completely disagree with decisions like this.
1. I contacted you right after the case was opened to clarify this, and also sent the customer new goods again the same day.
2. Right after the 4 days had expired, the customer wrote "I don't know how much longer I have to wait" and apparently involved eBay directly.
3. So Delivery 1 and Delivery 2 did not reach the customer.
4. eBay then wrote......
5. eBay then refunded the buyer the money as a gesture of goodwill " Thanks for that "
6. And as a thank-you the buyer leaves me a negative review, even though I sent him goods twice and they didn't arrive twice; that has never happened in 19 years, and if you read the negative reviews he has left so far, you can see how angry and dissatisfied this person is with everything.
At best, the customer now has 2x goods + 1x money + and was still allowed to leave a negative review, well, that's what I call justice on a very high level
Kind regards
melina@ebay
·2 weeks agoHello @mmstore74
Thanks for your feedback.
I can very well understand your frustration, especially when you made an effort and attempted delivery. We still ask for your understanding that, according to the eBay guidelines, we have no basis to remove the rating. There is no proof of delivery and no violation of policy. We can neither refute the rating nor do we have any justification toward the buyer for devaluing their experience.
Even if the buyer received a refund as a gesture of goodwill, most buyers stand by the item they originally purchased and have the freedom to share their experience if it doesn’t arrive. We do our best to help you within our means. In this case, however, the decision is the right one. I’m confident that you can look at it more clearly from this perspective, and I wish you continued success on eBay.
Kind regards
Melina
mmstore74
OP2 weeks ago · EditedHello @verena@ebay ,I have another case like this again,the amount was refunded by Ebay because everything went through seller protection and the buyer never got in touch with me,didn't respond to any message and then thanked me by leaving a negative rating,could you please help me with this,because I find something like that more than unfair.
P.S: This buyer really, really likes leaving negative ratings
Thanks in advance.
Kind regards
Marc
perfect-sally
·2 weeks agoHello @melina@ebay could you please take a look at this? Many thanks
melina@ebay
·2 weeks agoHello @mmstore74
Thanks for reaching out to us. I’ve checked the details. The buyer says that the item did not arrive. There is no proof of delivery. We made the decision on the buyer protection case as a goodwill gesture, so it is not a basis for removing feedback. We are not allowed to invalidate a buyer’s purchase experience, and we generally only remove feedback if there is a violation of our policies. You’re welcome to write a reply under the feedback or ask the buyer to revise it. You can find out how here. Good luck and have a lovely Sunday.
@perfect-sally Thanks for the support.
Kind regards
Melina
mmstore74
OP3 weeks agoHello @verena@ebay,
today I have exactly the same problem again, and once again the item hasn't arrived.
Been here for 19 years and have never had so many problems with items that apparently don't arrive as in recent times, and they always open cases straight away instead of asking first.
I don't know if it's a new sport, since they know you'll get your money back?
mmstore74
OP3 weeks agoI got this as a response, and the buyer has not responded to any further questions/answers from one moment to the next.
This case is now closed. You do not need to issue a refund to either the buyer or eBay, and the case will also not be taken into account when determining your service status.
sunrise1605
·3 weeks agoHey @mmstore74
I'm a bit surprised now, because you are GVK and are liable until delivery to the customer.
If he says he didn't receive anything, then you have to deliver again or refund it or prove beyond doubt that the goods were delivered.
You can't prove actual delivery via basic tracking.
mmstore74
OP3 weeks agoHello @verena@ebay ,here's a quick update.
after the buyer stopped responding altogether,I then involved Ebay for clarification and the case was decided in my favor,thanks again and also thanks again to you @perfect-sally 👍
Wishing you all a lovely Sunday
hasjana
·3 weeks ago@mmstore74
You're aware, though, that eBay is one thing and the applicable legal situation is another, right?
basic shipment tracking does not have any binding delivery confirmation
mmstore74
OP1 month agoMany thanks @verena@ebay and then I’ll wait and see for now.
Wishing you a lovely Sunday and I’ll get back to you again if needed, if I need any further help from you ( all )
Kind regards 🌷
verena@ebay
·1 month agoThat's how we'll do it. I wish you a lovely Sunday too. ❤
Best wishes
Verena
mmstore74
OP1 month ago@verena@ebay ,the reply came promptly from the buyer.
Hello, our mailbox is big enough. We also have a parcel box, there’s nothing there. Best regards ............
verena@ebay
·1 month agoOkay, then feel free to point out to him that after the 3 working days in the request have elapsed, he can involve us. Unfortunately, the deadline has to be waited out here, as we can’t take action before then.
I’ve already left a note internally in the case with a reference to seller protection. 😊
Best regards
Verena
mmstore74
OP1 month agoHello @verena@ebay ,thanks again and I have now done it exactly as you wrote and will see what happens.
I’ll be happy to get back here again once it’s been clarified or if there are still any problems.
@perfect-sally ,thanks again to you too for marking it 👍
Kind regards
Marc
perfect-sally
·1 month ago@mmstore74
no problem :)
mmstore74
OP1 month agoHello @verena@ebay ,many thanks, but what do I need to do next
( How do I react to the case now ) ?
Kind regards
Marc
verena@ebay
·1 month agoYou can, for example, point your buyer to the successful delivery and recommend that they check their mailbox or ask their neighbors whether the package was left there.
Once the deadline has passed, they can simply involve us. In this case, that won’t have any disadvantages for you, since you’re covered by seller protection. 😊
Best regards
Verena
verena@ebay
·1 month agoHello @mmstore74 ,
Thank you very much for your post!
All conditions for seller protection are met for the order. So you don't need to worry, and a refund to your buyer is not necessary in this case either. 😊
Thanks for the tag, @perfect-sally ! ❤
Best regards
Verena
mmstore74
OP1 month agoHello @perfect-sally and many, many thanks👍👍👍
Here's the
eBay item no.: 222274188287
Best regards
Marc
perfect-sally
·1 month agoPlease give the item number and an eBay employee will take a look at it. Basically, you have seller protection if the price and label didn’t cost €20.
@verena@ebay could you please take a look? Thanks