Well, I Don't Have To Check Ebay For A While !!

Well I guess I don't have to check ebay for a while..i had a better registered cover from 1950 India to New Zealand on ebay on the winning bidder was from India...i was a bit nervous about it but I shipped it International first class on 12/14 ! The buyer says he should have received it by now and opened a case against me..so paypal took back the $16.50 plus $1.50 shipping..if I resolve it and pay the guy I will get a 9 percent fee back from ebay...but to me that would be like admitting I did something wrong ..i did something wrong..i shipped to India...i will let ebay and paypal do what they have to do...Never again another shipment to India !

Very frustrating, indeed! I see shipping restrictions all the time, and I know it's because of things like this.

philb,

As much as I hate to say it... I will not do business with anyone in India, Turkey, Italy, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Greece, (Israel ... Unless I know the seller/buyer) and many of the ex-Russian states. The postal laws and services are rather wacky and every single time I have bought/sold/traded in these areas I have had either super long ship times, lost items, or no shipment at all. E-bay 99.9% of the time will side with the buyer regardless... (unless you have shipping and tracking documentation to prove otherwise).... I have never had a problem with anywhere in Europe really with the exception of the listed countries above. Mostly with the Middle East and areas in Asia. With the exception of Mongolia... That was by far the best shipping of all times from overseas. I bought some topicals for an art project my daughter was doing for school. I made the purchase on a Saturday evening and the package was here in Louisiana by Thursday. Even my German contacts can't get me stuff here that quick. The package even had mud on it due to the rural location of the seller. I think I have pictures on my phone and will see if I can post them. I hope it all works out for you philb...

Chief

Thanks Guys, I was hoping ebay would give some leeway on delivery time..but I guess once a case is opened thats it ! Well as usual when I get a lesson I pay for it...it aint gonna bankrupt me ..thats for sure..but it leaves a sour taste for those involved..the wife and I probably do 80 percent buying on ebay to mabe 20 percent selling..she doesnt sell at all..i am pretty sure that ebay is cut and dried...a buyer opens a case and I am guilty until proven innocent !!

Yep. My blacklist: China, Italy, Greece, Mexico. I did buy something from India once from another stamp message board, registered 1st class took over a month for it to get from India to me in the corner of Montana.

Until you can prove your self innocent with delivery confirmation.

And you don't even know if India Post communicates with the USPS regards registered mail or such things. Some countries do not communicate such data, so you are stuck if the buyer has the misfortune to not receive your item.

India may be a special case even as people pay people to go to the post office and mail things there still. Perhaps the delivery aspect is also a bit askew.

I have had registered and regular #10 letters go through OK without a hitch to Bombay (Mumbai) to spock1k but that may be a case of he knows his stuff there and knows what to do and say to get the proper service.

You can, in future make your shipping include registered mail so it would be perhaps too high to even be considered by some buyers. Although, as I mentioned above, even that might not do you any good, depending on the laws of the land the item travels to.

Or you could just change your shipping parameters to not allow shipping to certain countries, although I find that tedious myself and I think it gives a bad taste to other potential buyers.

It might just be your loss for the year. Take the loss out of your insurance pickle jar.

I know sometimes pieces of mail don't arrive because they are addressed for the senders country and not like the receives country likes to see and thus gets misdirected or sent to the dead letter office or is still on that camel train crossing the Gobi desert in Upper Mongolia, where some postal clerk thought it should go.

You never know. You do your best and it's still not enough. What if the receiving country lost the world cup or some such thing and all the clerks are in a bad mood because of that?

It's hard to include that sometimes needed baksheesh one needs to grease the palms from far away and if the receiver doesn't want to do that either you are hanging by a fingernail.

Good Luck!

India is slow to come and go from for mail. 3-4 weeks is standard and they have just had a holiday there Diwali so that could affect things also.

A best advise would be to go to Post Office with the mail bound to foreign countries. They will give you a receipt with some indication of destination area. You can use this as evidence. Also, you can make a note in the listings that this receipt will be used as a proof of shipment.

I was looking at an ebay sale listing the other day and under the "Terms and Conditions" section was this reference:

"IF YOU DON'T TRUST YOUR OWN POSTAL SERVICE -- DON'T BID!"

Phil: Aaah ebay! Fuggitaboutit! I'd still buy from you!! You could always make India one of the countries you will only send to registered or something like that. I'm just surprised that the guy
from India was so intolerant and wouldn't wait a little while.

Good Advice..but they would not listen...i trust my postal service..since trading in the 1970s via the Linns Posthorn ads..they never lost a piece of mail coming or going (In the USA)

Unless they've changed policies in the very recent past, having proof of mailing on your end doesn't stop ebay from taking back the money. Language to the contrary in your own listing doesn't trump the ebay requirement to prove you got it into the hands of your buyer.

That's pretty expensive to do for an international shipment, and apparently impossible in some cases.

JUST A NOTE -------Years ago I ran adds in LINNS stamp news .The ads were for a cigar box of W.W. stamps ,my record was I lost on one out of 25 orders .It was due to N.S.F checks or people claiming they mailed me cash but I never received it, or customers would order a box and then return it for a full refund because it was junk,after they removed better stamps and mailing back the "dogs". This went on for years until some guy started a club and cost about $20.00 a year and each club member got a list of customers each quarter that listed all the customers that each club member had problems with and what the problem was .I was surprised with the first listing I received ,there was many of my former customers with the same problem with other dealers that I had . THIS IS WHAT ebay STAMP SELLERS NEED .--A off ebay listing ,so they can hold or cancel any bidding offers

Philb, Yes, certain collector or more accurate the 'freeloader' collector from INDIA going under a range of identities and professions.

Sounds like the same howdy Dody man/woman (thing) that was found out and exposed on another stamp forum in Australia early last year.

Floortrader is spot on, 'Certain Individuals' around that area should be avoided. A thread with particulars would help cut those individuals off at the neck.

You fellows make a lot of sense...i found little fault with ebay and paypal until its my neck on the block !

I was following your tread about the letter you sent to India ,I Just mailed stamps to India a few days ago and decided to reg the letter, at least I have proof I sent it .

I sent a reg letter to a member of this forum just after the holidays,to the USA and was informed by him that his stamps arrived safe and sound. This letter was just dropped in his letter box in between flyer etc and he DID NOT SIGN FOR IT . And that from Canada to the States, so I don't have any faith with the post office in India he might receive the letter and not sign for it then say he did not receive it hopefully the chap is a good guy.