eBay sends out incorrect delivery notifications
Summary: itec-systems raises concerns about eBay sending inaccurate delivery notifications for items shipped via basic postal services, causing buyers to prematurely think there are delivery issues. kenn-i-di-1 and murmu67 discuss the limitations of tracking systems and suggest better communication with buyers as a solution. Multiple participants call for eBay's intervention and improvement, while murmu67 shares their practice of ensuring transparent shipping updates to avoid misunderstandings. miriam@ebay reassures that adjustments are in progress. However, frustration persists as instances of incorrect statuses continue, and there are doubts about eBay's intentions and technological hurdles.
Over the last few days, I’ve been getting more and more customer messages that eBay is sending buyers a notification saying the item has been delivered, even though with letter shipping eBay can’t track that at all.
As we all know, there’s only basic shipment tracking for that.
Because of this, buyers keep thinking there’s a problem, but in reality the shipment is just still on its way. This could be avoided if eBay didn’t simply send a delivery confirmation for letters!
It becomes really critical when, on that basis, a buyer then opens a case for “item not received.”
Is this issue known? Will anything change here? @miriam@ebay @verena@ebay
virgofilia
·1 week agoIt can get even better. Today, Ebay informed me that a DHL package had been delivered to me today at 14:22. It was delivered. Just not to me, but to the sender. He had sent it in via a box with incorrect postage and got it back from DHL. But for Ebay, I have it. There’s probably even more that needs correcting at Ebay.
petersmodellbahnstuebchen
·1 week agoHi @virgofilia
Please once share the order number, then an eBay employee here in the forum can check the case tomorrow.
Whether the seller selected the wrong delivery address or you selected the wrong delivery address when paying can certainly be checked in the order and payment data.
schnuersenkelde
·5 months agoProblem still seems to persist.
imperial-modellbau
·5 months agoHello @schnuersenkelde
yes, and as you can see, @miriam@ebay hasn't said anything more on the topic either! ☹️
By now, I guess everyone assumes this is intentional on Ebay's part, that they knowingly accept the sellers' problems (or even create them in the first place) and that we have to keep living with this nonsense! 🙄
miriam@ebay
Hello @imperial-modellbau - so far we don't have any further updates, but I can draw attention to this thread and the ongoing criticism once again.
Thanks for your further reports on this, we see them.
Best regards
Miriam
schnuersenkelde
·5 months agoI wrote to eBay Support about this just a few weeks ago, and they’re already aware of the issue there, because not only sellers but customers are reporting it too. So it’s a loose-loose-loose situation.
imperial-modellbau
·7 months agoYes, it’s exhausting and really needs to be changed - as we’ve been asking Ebay for for over a year now.
I think it’s about time to bug dear Miriam again! 😁 😉
Hello @miriam@ebay
What do you think, will Ebay finally do something about this or not???
You once wrote to us that you’d gotten feedback from IT saying it wasn’t quite as easy as we imagine!
Just as a reminder:
My suggestion was to change the term "delivered" to "out for delivery"!
I once talked to an IT guy at a big company here nearby - he nearly died laughing and said that was probably the stupidest excuse he’d ever come across!
Such a change would be done in less than 5 minutes, because it’s only a text field and the text itself obviously has no interaction with other systems!
So that leaves only the inverse conclusion that Ebay doesn’t want to change it - or what do you think, Miriam?
pixelwalter
·7 months agoExactly the same problem here. Customer receives a delivery notification as soon as the letter arrives at Deutsche Post's destination sorting center.
3 inquiries about an item not received in the last 24 hours. It's really exhausting.
leri99_9
·9 months agoThat just happened to me too. I was just about to file a missing person report. Good thing I saw this post. Ebay really needs to fix this.
kaninchen123
·9 months agoI’ve received such "Delivered" messages twice as a buyer. After that, I searched all possible places where an overworked parcel carrier might have left something. Of course you start worrying about where the shipment has gone, you consider whether to place a replacement order because you urgently need the item, etc.
In short: as a buyer, this nonsense really causes stress, and then I’m seriously considering switching to **bleep** after all.
voli-maus
·9 months agoHello @kaninchen123 ,
even the delivery drivers from "bleeb" can leave the packages in front of your front door or apartment door.
That’s not up to the seller, it’s up to the shipping company.
gebraucht-ist-gut
·9 months agoSo sorry @kaninchen123 , I just can't understand that.
If I'm told that something has been delivered and I can't find it, the first thing I do is check the tracking information. If necessary, directly with the shipping service provider.
And then you can also see all the info about this delivery method - namely: it goes out for delivery the next day.
And by the way, these shipments are delivered by the mail carrier, not the parcel courier.
doofyduck
·9 months agoIt's Black Week right now, so package transit times are pretty unpredictable. If I know in the morning that the package still has 500 km to go, then I don't need to factor in a delivery for that day. Then I'm out and about that day and stay home the next day instead, when the package has arrived at the parcel center in my area and, around 9 a.m., I can see in tracking that the package intended for me has been loaded into the delivery vehicle.
At worst, I can then postpone delivery to the next working day if I do have to leave. But for all of this I need to know the DHL tracking number - I don't have an app; I use the DHL website and then enter the tracking number there, which was sent directly through eBay or provided by the seller.
Actually, the eBay function should already rule out a shipping label marked "without tracking" based on the shipping method "DHL parcel" from the outset!? Because shipping without tracking only exists for a small parcel, but not for a parcel. On top of that, it's the bad-weather season now - if the package were lying in snow and rain for hours, that wouldn't be great for books or stamps either, for example ...
edv-hosting
·9 months agoBecause sellers are usually not required to upload a tracking number. And instead of laboriously looking up the tracking numbers in the DHL portal and entering them, the order is simply marked as shipped really quickly. And then there are some again who only actually ship days later, but with the shipped mark, the system doesn’t penalize you for it.
Only a few “have” to enter the numbers for real in order to get their money paid out. If you have the DHL app: there the shipments are usually shown automatically anyway, as long as they’re addressed to you.
Using a shipping service other than the one specified is already difficult; sometimes there are reasons behind wanting to have only that one provider. I always quickly ask the customers again whether it’s okay with, for example, DPD too, if I can save 15 euros in shipping costs that way. But not everyone does that either.
doofyduck
·9 months agoWhether it's a large letter without registered mail or a small parcel - there is no tracking for that.
But if “DHL Paket” is entered as the shipping service, then it is not a small parcel, but a parcel that can be tracked in the shipment history.
How can it then be that a delivery information ends with “Shipped (without tracking)” ? After all, it is a parcel, because otherwise the shipping method “DHL small parcel” would already have had to be shown in the purchase process - so that a buyer could still cancel this purchase. Relying on the fact that the shipment is sent as a parcel and is therefore always assigned a tracking number by DHL, this should actually be automatically visible in the shipment progress. Then, as a buyer, you wouldn't have to ask separately and wouldn't be irritated by a delivery information that would only apply to small parcels.
itec-systems
OP11 months ago@miriam@ebay Hi Miriam, somehow nothing has happened at all. Once again, an invalid case was opened for item not received because ebay shows "delivered" for the shipment, but when you click the tracking it says it will be delivered today במהלך the day.
Super annoying and frustrating that Ebay can't get this right and this absolutely stupid service metric is being made even worse by another completely unfounded defect.
servander-51
·11 months agoUnder this unfortunate Ebay 'information practice', the hopeful customer is left to wonder whether the supposedly 'delivered letter(s)', delivered via the local distribution system, will ultimately reach the customer ... Info & question directed at Ebay once again: since when is the local distribution system of a waiting customer (recipient) to be equated with the authorization notice *delivered* ??? If this highly questionable practice point were to be included in the routine customer surveys repeatedly conducted by Ebay, I think that perhaps 'positive reactions' should then rather be given for corresponding accumulating negative reactions ?!? ...
flamme887
·1 year agoToday a case was opened after the large letter still hadn't arrived after 1 week, now during the holidays. Ebay shows delivered, but the Post tracking says the letter has been out for delivery for 2 days...
I thought with a large letter you had seller protection...
perfect-sally
·1 year agoBuyer protection up to max. €20 incl. shipping costs. If the total value is above that, there's no seller protection.
miriam@ebay
Hello @flamme887 - I looked into that, and as soon as the clarification phase has expired, you can involve us so that we can sort it out. You are entitled to seller protection for this transaction, should the item still not arrive at your customer, as @perfect-sally writes 🙂.
Kind regards
Miriam
imperial-modellbau
·1 year agoMaybe @miriam@ebay can enlighten us on how eBay wants to make that work - precisely because this shipping method simply doesn’t allow for a delivery scan? ? ?
miriam@ebay
Hello @imperial-modellbau - happy to! There are customers who send matrix code with registered mail including return receipt, and with several million shipments that can happen, and at its core these are also matrix codes with a delivery confirmation feature from Deutsche Post.
To put it more clearly: We have deactivated the notifications, so buyers are not notified when the shipment has arrived at the logistics center in the destination area and goes out for delivery the next day. Further improvements in this area are planned.
Kind regards
Miriam
kosthaus
·1 year agoI have no idea what you mean by notifications
(email ? )
the problem has still changed 0 to this day and it's been like this for almost a year now
and so that ebay understands the impact
here's an up-to-date exchange with a customer
https://community.ebay.de/t5/Private-Verk%C3%A4ufer-innen/im-mom-ein-leidiges-thema-mit-der-post-amp-kunden-mit/m-p/4976374#M45876
based on the conversation (that never happened) and the feedback plus threats of reporting and suing
maybe ebay should finally realize how much they're hurting themselves
from both the seller and customer side
the customers get worked up
and as a seller you have to keep calming people down all the time
it's always great when you come off a 24-hour shift (escort for NATO and explosive transport) and then check ebay to see if you have to do something and then something like this gets thrown at you and you risk your job legally
as an armed carrier, getting reported for fraud etc. can cost you your permit to carry weapons in public and all because ebay makes false reports ?
(yes, that's something they ask about in the annual review)
fortunately only 1% of customers live in a parallel world and can be calmed down
otherwise, for professional reasons alone, I would already have disposed of the still-existing goods in the trash
but that's not the end of the story by a long shot
every case opened (canceled or not) goes into your algorithm
which means in plain English that visibility keeps getting restricted more and more
I don't think ebay is even remotely aware of what they set in motion with the false report
and that doesn't even address the "time spent" explaining to customers what's going on
if you were to calculate that at 20€ an hour, ebay wouldn't be allowed to charge fees or generate advertising revenue, but would have to pay the seller three times that amount
(just to illustrate it)
I hope ebay becomes aware of the whole thing at some point, because from what I see in the thread (and how long it's been going on), ebay doesn't seem to be aware of it yet
I'd also bet that I'm speaking here for many private as well as commercial sellers
olivia_and_dean
·1 year agoSame here, extremely annoying and requiring explanation. Why do I even have to explain this to the customer? Then just disable this super feature and keep the link to shipment tracking.
imperial-modellbau
·1 year agoLet me put it this way - I never enter the tracking numbers, and I’ve been doing that for many years!
Except of course where Ebay forces you to, namely with US buyers - but that’s been taken care of for now! 🙄
And so far I’m doing fine with it!
Every now and then something arrives late or doesn’t arrive at all - then I just upload the number and sort out everything else.
But that saves me all the hassle of follow-up questions and the nonsense with the incorrect delivery details from Ebay.
miriam@ebay
Hello @olivia_and_dean and everyone! Since we also gave an update on this here, I’d like to share it again with you in the related topic: the responsible department has implemented a suggestion from the community, and buyers now only receive delivery info for letters with matrix codes when the shipment has actually been delivered and not already when the shipment is still in the logistics center. That should reduce follow-up questions, and you will continue to be offered a secure and exclusive solution for shipment tracking in the low-cost shipping segment - this is currently unique among online marketplaces.
Best regards
Miriam
annemarie--strassemeyer
·1 month agoHello Miriam, this morning I got the info that the goods ordered about 12 hours ago have arrived with me. Except with drone delivery (which does NOT exist), that is IMPOSSIBLE at more than 100 km distance. Please change that, because I'm tired of being bothered by false information from eBay and in future I do NOT want to buy from eBay anymore.
petersmodellbahnstuebchen
·1 month agoHi @annemarie--strassemeyer
if you want to reach @miriam@ebay here in the forum, you have to tag her correctly too.
And please stay in the thread you just opened.
Best regards from the Baltic Sea
Peter
emporio-de-luca
·1 year agoI agree. I constantly receive messages from customers in an aggressive tone – and all because eBay is giving out false info. What’s even worse is that I’m simultaneously being forced by eBay to provide the almost unnecessary basic shipment tracking from €10! I’ve also noticed that a conspicuous number of items supposedly don’t arrive when the basic shipment tracking doesn’t work (very often it shows “open”), even though the goods were delivered long ago. Some customers then take advantage of that and feel encouraged to cheat. They keep the goods and still try to get their money refunded, because according to the tracking number they didn’t receive anything.
VG
Gio
gebraucht-ist-gut
·1 year agoHello @emporio-de-luca ,
I do understand the frustration to some extent, which is why I hardly use it either.
But if you’re going to complain about this shipping method, then you should also know what kind of “service” it offers.
Tracked from the drop-off depot to the delivery depot. When it arrives at the delivery depot, a delivery note is added. So according to the tracking, it was delivered there, which is also the point it was promised to reach, and the delivered scan there confirms that.
When it actually ends up being delivered to the customer is not included in the service.
At least there is a notice saying that it will then (usually) be delivered on the next business day.
eBay is not forcing you to use this shipping method. That is your free choice.
I simply don’t use it and therefore don’t get constant follow-up questions from customers.
As a commercial seller, you actually can’t prove delivery with this shipping method anyway.
The buyer protection doesn’t help either. The customer would still have the right to insist on a refund, since you have no proof of delivery.
Just don’t use it, that’s it - and then you won’t have any more customers asking questions and complaining.
The “motivation” to report non-receipt also disappears.
I ship without adding a tracking number and almost never have problems - maybe 1 out of 100 where the shipment goes missing. So everything is within reason.
petersmodellbahnstuebchen
·1 year ago@itec-systems
Hi Simon,
I know that the current situation is extremely unsatisfying for you as a seller.
However, you could either point out in your listing descriptions how the basic shipment tracking works, or create a seller note for it and assign it to your active listings.
golf005
·1 year agoeBay shows that there was a delivery attempt. Complete nonsense!
DHL status says that it could not be delivered today because there were problems due to exceeding working hours, illness, or similar.
Better to show nothing at all than to shift the blame onto the customer (wasn't there).
sunrise1605
·1 year agoOr assign blame to the seller in the form of an appropriate rating.
supremechaosrecords
·1 year agoThat’s been the case for a long time already and is standard with German Warenpost and large-letter shipping. If the circle in the tracking is full but the shipment is still in the delivery center, eBay shows it as delivered. We now always get the standard response that eBay is interpreting the status incorrectly.
It’s not an isolated case but can be reproduced exactly whenever the shipment arrives at the delivery center responsible for the recipient. Then it affects all shipments with A...., meaning a Matrix code is stored behind them.
I’ve also brought this up several times with eBay Support / Concierge Service (if that’s still what it’s called) there, and they referred me to Deutsche Post. But it does show the status correctly 😉
murmu67
·1 year agoHello to everyone who has already replied here.
Hello , @miriam@ebay
The issue that keeps being brought up by @itec-systems has actually existed for years, hasn’t it?
I solve this problem very simply myself and so far without any bitter aftertaste or a buyer opening a case.
I ship my items worldwide, from Switzerland with Swiss Post.
The items are shipped only as "registered with tracking".
Here, the post office has two rates; one applies to countries in Europe, the other to the rest of the world, up to a package weight / large letter of 500 g. If the package is heavier, it also gets more expensive, which I would always mention in my listings.
If I ship within Switzerland, there is only one rate, also "registered with tracking", up to a weight of 2kg.
So, now comes a bit of customer contact care: once the package has been sent, I inform the buyer of the date it was handed over. At the same time, I send the tracking number and the corresponding website for the shipping provider’s tracking, in my case Swiss Post, regardless of whether the shipment is on its way within Switzerland, Europe, or the world.
If the package is on its way to a country that currently has political or environmental problems, I already make the buyer aware of possible delivery delays. I also inform the buyer that if the package should arrive with them, they must confirm receipt with a signature. If the buyer is not at home, a pickup notice is left, usually with a deadline of 15 days.
Only now is the information entered on the sold item on the eBay page.
If the package is not collected, it is returned to my address.
If that happens, which has never happened so far, I would have the advantage of reporting it to eBay immediately and would already have an edge over the buyer. At the same time, I can download the complete shipment history to the buyer and the return of the package to my address from the shipping provider and make it available to eBay.
I have never heard from my customers that eBay sends them info regarding a delivered item.
Could it be that this only happens with letter mail?
In addition, one should keep in mind that eBay can only make tracking updates if they are also available.
Maybe the update is being handled by AI; has anyone else already thought of that?
( AI= No Individual 😁 )
Conclusion:
Good customer communication can prevent a lot of trouble, and let’s be honest, well-informed customers keep coming back, because that’s where the customer feels comfortable. It doesn’t help to bet everything on the "quick money" card.
*sweet-melody*
·1 year agoHello everyone!
That just happened to me too.
murmu67
·1 year agoHello @*sweet-melody*
That’s interesting. I’ve never seen anything like that before.
Is this a letter delivery or a package?
If I now look at the lower printout, I understand it as follows:
The letter or package has been at the logistics center since 23.05.2025 and is being processed there.
That clearly and understandably means the item is still in the logistics center, doesn’t it?
Why then does Ebay declare this as "Delivered"?
I’d really like to see a clear answer from Ebay here!
@miriam@ebay,a well-founded answer would help here.
Delivery to the end customer took place from the logistics center, or am I mistaken here?
I strongly assume that the information on Ebay here is clearly wrong, and this issue should be corrected immediately. After all, the end customer has not yet received the item.
*sweet-melody*
·1 year agoHello @murmu67 !
The item was sent as a large letter. You understood that exactly right.
The item was delivered normally on 24.5.2025.
eBay's claim that the item had already arrived with me on 23.5.2025 does
not correspond to the facts.
But I've already heard here that with large letters it is apparently common
for arrival at the logistics center to already count as *DELIVERED *.
But that wasn't the case. Then it should also be communicated that way.
Otherwise, it is misleading.
miriam@ebay
Hello @murmu67 and everyone! We’re continuing to follow your discussion here, and medium- and long-term adjustments are being discussed to improve the user experience with letters with basic tracking for everyone. In the short term, I can only say that the delivery event is important for buyer protection, and we are continuously passing your feedback on this topic on to the relevant teams at eBay.
Thanks and kind regards
Miriam
horst-holz
·1 year agoWhen will this nonsense finally stop? Every day at least "one case" and a few justifications that cost a hell of a lot of time and nerves!
Honestly, it's a disgrace.
Micha
wernervierundsechzig
·1 year agoHi everyone,
I’m writing here as a buyer.
Today I also received such a message. It concerns a shipment with
Basic tracking (large letter). The seller had already allowed a delivery window of 6 - 8 days. So I was skeptical that the shipment would already be here after 3 days. Of course it isn’t. So I checked the DHL tracking and found that eBay is displaying the tracking status completely incorrectly. Over many years, I’ve been able to gain experience with modern technology and first try to find out for myself what the actual situation is. So far I’ve been able to clarify everything myself. Still, it leaves me with a brief uneasy feeling. I also think eBay should refrain from sending such messages.
langfingaz
·1 year agoGood day,
on Monday I posted and shipped an item as "DP Großbrief up to 500g" with basic tracking via eBay. Here too there is now confusion on the buyer’s side, because a message has already come through about the alleged delivery. In the postal tracking, it only says that the shipment "is going out for delivery".
Kind regards
itec-systems
OP1 year agoYou just need to write him that the eBay statement is wrong because it's a known issue and he has to check the tracking manually.
And hope that he doesn't open a case "where is my shipment?!?!?!??!"
itec-systems
OP1 year agoHello @miriam@ebay
Customer messages are piling up because Ebay is still sending out incorrect delivery notifications!
Here’s what Ebay shows
And what the tracking says
miriam@ebay
Hello @itec-systems and thank you for bringing this topic to attention again.
Our shipping teams are now aware of this request, and they are currently checking behind the scenes to what extent changes can be made here in order to set the expectations of your customers accordingly. Bringing about a change in this area is much more complex than you may imagine, and I can only ask you to be patient once again.
Kind regards
Miriam
wa_21620
·3 months agoI’ve experienced that very often too and constantly have to inform customers about the actual status and the expected delivery time. But that’s not even the worst part: I’ve noticed that when creating shipping labels through eBay’s function, errors keep occurring with the delivery address. The addresses are printed incompletely or incorrectly, so the shipments can’t be delivered and ultimately come back to me. Then I have to buy a new shipping label every time and send the goods again. Will eBay actually reimburse me for the damage that has been caused?
itec-systems
OP1 year agoHello @miriam@ebay
The problem is still the same. Had 2 cases over the weekend for "not received" exactly because eBay confirmed delivery prematurely even though the basic shipment tracking still shows no delivery. Thanks for 2 more unjustified entries in the service statistics!
miriam@ebay
Hello @itec-systems - your feedback, which we keep seeing from time to time in the community, has just been shared again with the shipping team and they thank you for highlighting it.
We were assured that they will take another look at the "delivery notification" for letter mail - thanks for that! 🙂
Best regards
Miriam
itec-systems
OP1 year agoHello Miriam,
Any news yet?
Ebay is a major contributor to my service stats getting messed up like this because buyers complain and think the item has been delivered, and that’s only because Ebay mistakenly communicates it that way to the buyer!
itec-systems
OP1 year agoHello Miriam,
some time has passed and, of course, nothing has improved with the problem. So nothing has been done about it yet?
kenn-i-di-1
·1 year agoYou wrote yourself that with letters with a Matrix code there is only basic shipment tracking.
That means:
Basic shipment tracking documents the processing of the shipment at the origin and destination letter center.
How is eBay supposed to know when it was actually delivered.
That’s why I was already very surprised by the statement from
@miriam@ebay, who wrote:
"The responsible department has implemented a suggestion from the community and buyers now only receive delivery information for letters with a Matrix code when the shipment has really been delivered and not already when the shipment is still in the logistics center. That should prevent follow-up questions....."
imperial-modellbau
·1 year agoHello @kenn-i-di-1
yes, that statement seems a little strange, given the possibilities of this shipping method!
But maybe Ebay has a special arrangement with the post office/DHL - we don't know that, of course!
kenn-i-di-1
·1 year agoI had considered that, but I think it's rather unlikely.
itec-systems
OP1 year agoOops, 2 days before my question, Miriam apparently replied. I didn’t see that. Then everything’s fine 🙂