Help! Customer says she never received package but tracking confirms it was delivered

[Former_Member]

Hi Everyone, I'm in a state of panic at the moment and not sure what to do. I shipped out some ornaments on the 8th from Massachusetts to Florida. The tracking number shows that it was delivered on the 14th but the customer is saying she never received it. I now have a case against me and she wants a full refund. I put hours into making these and took special care to package them to arrive safely (and not to mention undersold them for time put into them). I'm wondering if she's just trying to get her purchase for free.

So at this point, what do I do if the post office is telling me it was delivered but she says she doesn't have it? If I don't issue a refund I'm so afraid I'm going to receive negative feedback for the first time...and I don't want my shop to be shut down!!!

[StuckOnSilver]

I suggest that you talk with your nearest post office staff about this. So sorry this happened!

[rusticcraftdesign]

This has happened to me twice...once by a customer----it ended up that FedEx delivered to the wrong address and i got my package back a month later--filed a claim and they paid it.

and the other time i ordered from an Etsy seller---marked as delivered but I never received it........honestly i never even mentioned it because it was such a small dollar item....but i do regret never saying anything....they probably delivered to the wrong address as well. =(

[TerraRhapsody]

Oh no- I'm so sorry to hear that. I would call your post office help line and see if they can shed some light on the problem. Ask her to do the same, as if it says the item has been delivered, one would assume it has indeed been delivered- they won't add that for no reason. I've seen items just stop in a random place before, but not get marked as delivered when they have not. Have you confirmed the address it was sent to with them? Have they added an incorrect address to their purchase, or is there a discrepancy between etsy and paypal addresses?
I would perhaps speak to etsy and paypal (if it was a paypal transaction) and highlight the tracking information. I would have thought that etsy would be unable to penalise you when the tracking has confirmed the item as delivered. I can understand their frustration if it is a genuine problem, but I would be taking to the local postal service instead of taking it out on you.
I do wonder if you would be able to get money back from your postal service, as if the tracking states the item has been delivered, they are unlikely to reimburse you for the cost of the items, I would have thought.
I have my fingers crossed for you

[Former_Member]

Not sure if you insured it but if you did I would look into filing a claim.Since Etsy, started offering insurance with their labels I've been insuring everything over $20.00.

[PrayerNotes]

Offer to replace the items or refund her/his money. Your peace of mind and business reputation is more important than the negative feedback a few dollars that you will lose. Next time, when a customer let's you know that they haven't received their product and you get a funny feeling about the situation, let etsy know right away and make sure you placate the customer by refunding or replacing. This is just my two cents. Many blessings and sales! ~Cynthia

[Former_Member]

That is the worse when it says it has been delivered first of all do not freak I have had two cases open for international orders one got there a few days after it opened it is now really easy to open a non delivered case. Tell the buyer it says it has been delivered so have her look as neighbors talk to the post man. You contact the PO and then go from there sometimes it shows up either in the mail or it is found.

PS. There have been cases were is says delivered and then it shows up more times then I can count.

[Former_Member]

was insurance included on the shipping of the package? could you file it with that and get money back? I'd say it would be worth you and her talking to her postal carrier/local office- if you have the tracking- plus they'd know who would have been the carrier to deliver- perhaps there is a reason.

sometimes their records aren't right-

[Former_Member]

So sorry that happened to you .I agreed with all the above. I also insure my packages because I have never had an insured package go missing. I only ship international by registered mail except to Canada for items over $10 because I can not afford to lose the item plus postage when they go missing. I have lost a few packages international.

[Former_Member]

I did insure this one, thankfully! It was the first time I felt the need for insurance because the items were glass ornaments, and my concern was getting them to her unbroken. I never thought of the fact that they may not make it to her at all! I'm so concerned about my shop's reputation so I hope to resolve this asap. I"m running to the post office at lunch time. Hopefully I can get this all worked out! Thank you everyone for your input. I'm feeling a little more at ease now.

[Spellbinderie]

Did you enter the tracking info for your case? That should close it and then you can deal with your client without that red banner hanging over your head. All the advice that's been given is good, re: having the customer ask around and doing some investigation of your own. Let your customer know you will be reporting the package as stolen to the Post Office and opening an official police investigation if needed. I've read in the forums that others have done that and it either suddenly appears or the post office locates it. There is a number to call for this but I don't know it. Maybe someone will pop in with that info, otherwise google it or ask your post office.

Sometimes packages do get delivered to the wrong person and so it's best to give your customer the benefit of the doubt while also investigating. After a reasonable time and no answers, no package, refund or replace the item.
I do not believe insurance will cover a package that has delivery confirmed so you might just need to eat the loss, worse come to worse.

[DeerGirlDesigns]

I think advising a customer to do anything inconvenient- like calling post offices or talking to neighbors or anything like that is a bad, bad, bad idea. Refund the money and call it a loss. It's the professional thing to do. I've had to do it and it burns like hell, but sometimes it's what we have to do...

[lipmeister]

davkadeergirl from DeerGirlDesigns says
I think advising a customer to do anything inconvenient- like calling post offices or talking to neighbors or anything like that is a bad, bad, bad idea. Refund the money and call it a loss. It's the professional thing to do. I've had to do it and it burns like hell, but sometimes it's what we have to do...
_________________________________________________________________I don't agree that it is bad to ask them to check with a neighbor. I had something that said delivered and the person never got it. When I gave them the address I was told to send it to, the person said she had moved and paypal didnt put the right address. I told her to maybe check with her neighbor at the old address and it was there. It's not our fault as the seller if the item says delivered and the buyer didnt get it. I am not saying we should't refund, I just mean sometimes it is so out of our hands. We did all the right things getting the delivery confirmation and the po screws up.

I hope it all works out!!

[FromJeanne]

I had the same problem, cliënt told she didn't get the item. I asked her to check the neigbours and yes the package arrived there. So ask her. Good luck!

[BrushStrokeOrnaments]

I'm surprised no one addressed it, but the package could have been stolen off your customer's doorstep. I ship hundreds a packages a year...a few go missing. Sometimes they are lost in the postal service (and turn up weeks later), some get delivered to the wrong address (mostly the fault of an address inaccuracy), one recently ended up in a customer's neighbor's bushes, and on very rare occasion, yes, something is just stolen.

You should treat your customer as you would wish to be treated. I recommend asking your customer if they would prefer a refund or for you to replace the ornaments. I hate it when things like this happen to me (and grumble about it for days, lol!). But it is the cost of doing business. As my husband always tells me, at least I do not have a brick and mortar store with overhead, breakage, and stolen merchandise to contend with.

Use this occasion to review your business practices. Since you insured the items, you are certainly on the right track. But you indicate that, with all the time involoved, you did not make as much as you would have liked off the transaction. That's a sign for you to revise your prices.

[Former_Member]

Oh Cheryl, sorry this has happened to you, I can appreciate it must be stressing you out big time.

Try not to worry. (Easier said than done - I know!) If you can prove the item was delivered then Etsy will not pursue the case/close it.

Obviously this doesn't help your customer though. Is it possible you can find out the signatory and see if your customer knows who it is - maybe a neighbour?

Definately check with the mail carrier and see if they can provide any more information.

Good luck!