BenDMitchell
New Member, Must Send First,
I recently sold a card to Canada and it has been about a month and he has yet to get the card. As the seller, what should I do?
buyer never got card question
- Thread starter BenDMitchell
- Start date
echoi69
Verified Trader,
Prepare to be hit for a refund unless you have tracking to prove the card's eventual delivery. But a month?!? That definitely does not bode well I'm afraid
BenDMitchell
New Member, Must Send First,
Unfortunately I ship first class international so there is no tracking number. This is the first time this has happened to me. So, my only option is a refund?
echoi69
Verified Trader,
For now, just continue to wait until the card hopefully arrives or he files a paypal claim. Which he'll have to do prior before the 45th day in order to qualify.
dgarwood
Verified Trader,
I'm in the same boat with a buyer from Ontario. The card was around $30 so it wasn't enough to pay for tracking but just enough to be annoying.
habsheaven
Verified Trader,
Cards can take longer and a month to cross the border at times, I would just ask the buyer to give you a few more weeks before filing for a refund.
GoJetsGo9
New Member, Must Send First
I remember waiting for about a month for a card and when the seller offered to refund, I said wait until the end of the week and it did show up, so all hope is not lost!
Q
quincy
Guest
A month is usually the limit, but I've been finding delivery extra slow lately. Ask if he'll give it another couple of weeks.
BostonBruinsFan
Banned
I find that most buyers are willing to be more patient as long as you keep in touch often. Sometimes, kissing a little arse can go a long way.
Frendo
Banned User
Yes at lately a 1 1/2 month long delivery just seems like a regular...
I don't understand why it's so awfully slow in nowadays, only for just 1-2 years ago it was quite speedy with some very few execptions...
I don't understand why it's so awfully slow in nowadays, only for just 1-2 years ago it was quite speedy with some very few execptions...
breakawaysc
LCS Sponsor,
Most buyers are great and extremely patient. Keep the channel of communication open with the buyer in question. If it has been over a month I usually suggest that the buyer waits till the end of the week and if the card doesn't arrive then I will offer a refund. I have seen it in the past where I ship a card in the same province and it takes up to 3 weeks to arrive, while I ship to the U.S. and the buyer gets the card within a week. At the end of the day it is hard to explain how the postal system works sometimes.
If the card is over a certain amount (usually $40 to $50) I will ship it using Small Packets Air to the U.S. It doesn't have tracking, but it does have $100 of insurance that the post office will reimburse if the package does not arrive. I am not too sure what UPS and such offers to those of you in the U.S.
At the end of the day sometimes you just have to take a hit. 99.9% of the time the card arrives even if it takes a month.
If the card is over a certain amount (usually $40 to $50) I will ship it using Small Packets Air to the U.S. It doesn't have tracking, but it does have $100 of insurance that the post office will reimburse if the package does not arrive. I am not too sure what UPS and such offers to those of you in the U.S.
At the end of the day sometimes you just have to take a hit. 99.9% of the time the card arrives even if it takes a month.
bamlinden
Upstanding Member,
What should you do?
Two words........respectful communication.
If you show genuine concern for the buyer and the predicament you guys are in, I think there is a much better chance of both sides coming out of this as unscathed as possible.
As mentioned earlier, give it a couple weeks. See what happens. I know I've had cards take longer than expected.
Be the initiator. Don't wait for the buyer to take the next step. Showing that you are willing to take action shows that you give a crap about the situation.
Just my thoughts.
Two words........respectful communication.
If you show genuine concern for the buyer and the predicament you guys are in, I think there is a much better chance of both sides coming out of this as unscathed as possible.
As mentioned earlier, give it a couple weeks. See what happens. I know I've had cards take longer than expected.
Be the initiator. Don't wait for the buyer to take the next step. Showing that you are willing to take action shows that you give a crap about the situation.
Just my thoughts.
Q
quincy
Guest
What Brett said.
Superdoup
Verified Trader,
I had the same issue but as a buyer. 2 months later, the guy got the card back...return to sender. so if you refund, you might have the card back later.
No No No.....The other Steve
Pageant Queen ,
I've got a card I shipped to the US with tracking and it's just over a month now. It tracked as far as the airport in TO then stopped. Canada Post says it left the country and USPS says it's still at the airport. Guess customs decided that it should remain in limbo for ever. Regular contact helps a lot. I always suggest the buyer open a paypal claim before the 45 day limit just to protect themselves. If it still doesn't arrive within 2 weeks of that I refund them (happened only once and I got paid when it did arrive). If the buyer is communicating with you then that's a huge step in the right direction as they are most likely aware of the longer than usual wait times crossing the border.
helmetsrgreat
Verified Trader,
I have the same problem and the buyer has filed the Paypal claim and the only proof that I have this the tracking that was on the customs form. Card was shipped on August 20th and filed the claim a week ago. I think i am going to have to start shipping with registered with any sales over $50 from now on.
Edit:
To add to what others have said I have responded to all questions from buyer but then heard nothing back, claim filed. Once claim filed I added the customs number and then claim was escalated with no verbal response from said buyer.
Edit:
To add to what others have said I have responded to all questions from buyer but then heard nothing back, claim filed. Once claim filed I added the customs number and then claim was escalated with no verbal response from said buyer.
Last edited:
Leafsfan1967
Disgruntled Leafs Fan,
I guess my post office must be on a direct line? I bought a card that ended just before midnight on September 11th from a guy in California, and I got it yesterday September 20th, and I live an hour north of Toronto. I think that return time is pretty freakin good. It always helps to pay right away, and hit a seller who appreciates that, and mails next day after payment. I think a lot of the time it takes so long, because the seller takes their sweet arse time mailing it. Check the date stamp on the packages.
FuriousD82
Verified Trader,
I don't think you realize how much of a pain in the *** the US Postal Service is. I live in a big city and waiting in the line usually takes 30 minutes at least. THE USPS is downsizing and it makes everything move a lot slower when only one teller is open but there are 15 people waiting in line. When you have a job, taking 30 plus minutes out of a workday to stand at the post office isn't reasonable.
Further, at least 12 of those people in line don't have a clue how to mail their packages so they need to fill out forms while at the teller, or get extra packaging or seal envelopes or something else that experienced sellers don't know what to do.
THis is why I let international buyers know it sometimes takes 6 to 8 weeks to get their items. I wait until I have at least 3-5 international pieces before I ship from the US because of the USPS problems. (I usually keep these packages ready to go in my car just in case an opportunity to mail comes up out of nowhere).
But this is the reality. Most people have lives. They can't spend them at the USPS waiting to ship your $5 matt frattin auto (example).
timber09
www.lumberjackcards.com,
I can tell you from a significant amount of personal experience that delivery time between US and Canada is wildly unpredictable and seems to be more a product of Customs than anything that the seller can do.
I ship 60-80 packages to Canada in a given month and 95% of them are going out within 24 hours of receipt of payment and the delivery time varies from under a week to six weeks depending on the continental drift, solar flares, recession of the polar caps...who knows...it's a crap shoot.
As mentioned by many here - be the initiator of communication and check back in to see if the buyer has received the card often - good will and being easy to deal with go a long way in these problems. Should it not end up making the trip north, be prepared to offer a full refund though - just the way of the world with eBay and international shipments.
I ship 60-80 packages to Canada in a given month and 95% of them are going out within 24 hours of receipt of payment and the delivery time varies from under a week to six weeks depending on the continental drift, solar flares, recession of the polar caps...who knows...it's a crap shoot.
As mentioned by many here - be the initiator of communication and check back in to see if the buyer has received the card often - good will and being easy to deal with go a long way in these problems. Should it not end up making the trip north, be prepared to offer a full refund though - just the way of the world with eBay and international shipments.
bamlinden
Upstanding Member,
If I bought the Frattin auto off ebay, I'd expect that information to be included in the body of the description.
If I did a deal on HI for the card, I'd expect a simple e-mail letting me know when the card was shipped.
I agree that we all have lots of things on our plate and that sitting in line to mail off a package is something that can be streamlined for most of us. But I also believe that if I decide to put something up for sale on ebay or I sell or trade a card here on HI, there is a certain level of responsibility on my part to make sure the card goes out in a prompt manner. Any delay in such and I should be communicating that with the buyer.
I just think solid communication is the key to a successful transaction.
