Need advice on a lost pin from ebay

I'm in a bit of a pickle with a seller on ebay and need some advice on what to do. I had two transactions with them, only a few days apart and I payed immediately. Almost a month went by and I didn't receive any tracking information or even an update saying the pins had shipped, and when I went onto their store again none of their items were listed anymore. So I contacted them and asked for an update or some information. They replied and said they were on Holiday and that they had just shipped the items and gave me a tracking number. I assumed that since so much time had passed that they would group the two orders (4 pins in total). I received the item a couple days ago and only 3 of the 4 pins were included (the missing pin was the first transaction). At this point I was pretty frustrated so I opened a case with eBay and told the seller that I hadn't received the item and it hasn't even been marked as shipped yet. The seller then promptly responded with tracking information that said the pin had shipped on the 9th of April, and said that I had already received the item, and that they were faxing the proof to PayPal.

However, the tracking information clearly said Out For Delivery, and then "Delivery Status Not Updated", which I have come to learn means that USPS probably lost it.

I responded to the seller saying that, and told them that if I had been told the item was shipped almost a month ago, that I maybe could have resolved this, and they haven't responded yet.

What does the seller mean that they're going to fax proof to PayPal? Are they going to be able to claim that I received the item and not get me a refund? Does the ebay buyer protection cover me in this instance? Please help

Thank you!

Have you actually contacted your local post office? Because "Delivery Status Not Updated" is really vague. There is always the chance (however slim) that for some reason the package was not left at your residence and went back to the PO, where it could be waiting for you to come and pick it up. I've even had instances where a package required a signature and for whatever reason (usually because it's a sub who does not feel like getting out of the truck and walking up to the house) the package is not actually delivered. The USPS employee will mark it as "Notice Left" even though no notice was left, and they just expect you to magically know to go to the PO for the package.

Even if the seller "faxes the info to PayPal," I would say that unless he/she has something that actually says "Delivered," PayPal should give you a refund. Good luck!

If the items shows as "delivered" you will lose with PayPal even if you didn't get the information.

But right now, you're okay as long as it doesn't say "delivered" I have checked tracking before on USPS and it says "out for delivery" when it's at my PO Box (it should say "notice left"). I've also had packages say "delivered" when I never got it and the post office can't find it.

You're still good now.

BUT, what the seller could do is give PayPal the tracking # from the item that WAS delivered and thwart it that way...

I haven't contacted the post office yet, I just received the tracking info this morning. The tracking info says that on April 14 is when it was out for delivery, which is over 15 days ago, and I was under the assumption that any packages that aren't delivered within 15 days are returned to the sender.

I will try to contact the post office today or tomorrow, but I don't have high hopes. Most of the time they don't even answer the phone... lol

Why would they say they contacted PayPal though? The sale happened through ebay and the communication is happening through the ebay resolution center. I'm just confused as to why they would say that.

Ebay has a resolution section but so do PayPal I believe.. If you have no luck with the post office I suggest contacting PayPal or Ebay to see where you stand. Sorry that this has happened

Since so much time has passed, you might want to begin the dispute process on ebay AND paypal. If you wait longer, you may not get your money back (because there's a time limit - 30 days? 45 days? 60 days? I'm not sure which...) so start it ASAP.

I recently bought a pin from Ebay, pricey pin ($335 & $12.35 for shipping) Seller sent the package with tracking & 2 day delivery, after several days went by & no pin, I checked the tracking & it said "Business closed, left notice", no notice was ever left & I am not business but a private residence, I kept checking the tracking & the postal employee kept marking it the same way, 2nd notice & so on.

Finally I waited for the mailman , armed with my tracking info & the claims of attempts to deliver & the notices left, & asked him where my package was that he claimed he was leaving notices for. He looked in his truck & there it was!!!
He said he did not know why or what happened...............USPS sucks!!!
If I were you, I would try to take your tracking number & info that claims it is out for delivery directly to the post office, not over the phone, it works better in person.
That being said if they can't find it, go directly thru Ebay & get your money back, if they don't find in your favor, CALL Ebay & argue your claim, I had that happen too, & they reversed their original decision to my favor. Good luck & sorry this happened to you, I know how frustrating that can be.

Thanks everyone for the replies and advice! I'm planning to go to the post office tomorrow and see if they have it there. I've already opened a case with eBay and am planning to elevate it if the pin is not at the post office. These situations are just so frustrating. :\
USPS does suck! I was just there the other day to pick up the first set of pins. I had scheduled a redelivery with them and they just outright didn't even show up. So ya...

Thanks again everyone for all the support!

So I went to the post office today and they didn't have the pin. Too much time had passed and they said that it probably got returned to the sender.

I asked the seller for a refund so we'll see what they say. They're still trying to say that I already received the pin.

It's such a bummer because the pin is really hard to find in the US. It's only available in Paris right now and I can't find it anywhere on eBay. :/

What is the pin you want? I have friends in Paris & can check for you, you can send me a PM if you prefer

It's this one: Pin PD78078: Princess Jeweled Crest - Belle.

Thank you!

Did the post office have any documentation that it was sent back to the seller? That would be helpful. But, as others have said, as long as your tracking information does not specify "Delivered," there should be a provision for getting your money refunded. Ugh, so sorry this happened to you. Hope you are able to get the pin (AND your $$$)!

I hope you get this sorted out xxxxx

My mother worked for the postal service for years as a manager and she could tell you some stories! I'm so sorry this happened to you. I too have had shipping errors (marked as attempted delivered when I was home ALL day, head broken off of a collectible, delivered to neighbor, etc.) Even with family in the biz, we were not immune! Sometimes it's genuine human error, often times it is laziness. I hope everything works out with your pin.

As to the seller contacting Paypal, they almost always override eBay authority when it comes to money. Ebay is the trading hub, but Paypal is the money hub. Paypal has yanked my money back from ebay many times when they charged me fees I didn't earn, refunded fraudulent charges on my account, etc. Paypal exists on its good name and credibility, they play no games about taking ebay down a notch in favor of their customers, who use the Pyapal service outside of ebay. The seller is probably trying to beat you to Paypal in hopes of keeping the money. (Which as an infrequent seller of other collectibles myself, I can understand the impulse. I sent the package, I did my job, why should I loose out when the post office should really pay? But that is what insurance is for. It's not the buyers fault certainly, not really the sellers, but the shipping's fault.) Paypal and Ebay will almost certainly side with you and the seller will get their money though the insurance they had on the shipment (if they had the good sense to insure it.)

Thanks everyone for the feedback. The seller stopped responding to me after I asked for a refund, so I escalated the case to eBay. They decided in my favor and I got a full refund plus shipping. The pin is still no where to be found tho. :/ Hopefully it really did get returned to the sender.

Does anyone think that I should leave negative feedback for the seller? It was mostly USPS's fault, but they did send one of my packages a month late, and never even marked the first package as shipped.

Glad to see it has been sorted. If it were mostly USPS's fault then how about a neutral feedback and mention about there lack of communication after asking for a refund?

Congrats on getting your refund!
I think I would just move on & forget the entire bad experience.

I'd agree about neutral feedback. They could have handled it better, but they also didn't swindle, scam, or sell you a fake. Neutral doesn't really harm them but lets others know your experience.