I am done. So done. Done done done.

[GopherDaGold]

I got a return notice from the buyer of my Kosta Boda vase claiming it was broken when delivered. It was purchased for $125 BIN with free shipping. As upsetting as that is, here's what pissed me off:

Here's what the buyer said

Reason
Arrived damaged

Comments
It arrived in a large box that was dented a little but the vase was packed in very little bubble wrap and the base was thrown in the box wrapped loosely with the bottom part. There was nothing to stabilize the vase. It looks like both items were just thrown in after they were broken. A beautiful piece. I contacted the seller today 5/30.

Wow!

Before I shipped the vase it was wrapped with many, many layers of tissue. It was then wrapped with several layers of bubble wrap and placed into a thick nest of crumpled newspaper. The surrounding area was filled with more newspaper and bubble wrap. I used a 14"x14" corrugated box which was much larger than needed which cost me $35 to ship because of the size but I wanted to make sure the piece arrived safely. You can vigorously shake any item I package up and you won't hear a sound.
I did NOT need this. I had just returned to Missouri from North Carolina after driving non-stop through the Alberto tropical storm in some of the most torrential rain I've ever experienced in my 57 years, a road trip that was complete with a tire blowout on dangerous stretch of 74W, and my hernia acting up so fiercely that I should have been in the hospital instead of behind the wheel. After stewing about it for a while I sent this back:


[h=3]'You should be getting a return label, Please send the item back and I will refund the purchase price.
Please refrain from suggesting that I just threw a broken item into a box to ship to you. I take my feedback rating VERY seriously, This was my highest priced item so to imply that i knew it was broken when I shipped it is laughable, I even sent you a message explaining how it was wrapped and shipped which was perfectly adequate. If it wasn't YOU or someone in your household who broke it, it was the post office.
Look for the shipping label I sent and send it back. And please keep your theories concerning my ethics to yourself.'[/h]
Because of this and the hen who complained that the packing tape smelled on another item AND DID NOT RETURN THE ITEM AFTER BEING REFUNDED, I'm pulling my stuff and taking it all to a consignment shop.

 

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[PirateLabs]

I got a return notice from the buyer of my Kosta Boda vase claiming it was broken when delivered. It was purchased for $125 BIN with free shipping. As upsetting as that is, here's what pissed me off:

Here's what the buyer said

Reason
Arrived damaged

Comments
It arrived in a large box that was dented a little but the vase was packed in very little bubble wrap and the base was thrown in the box wrapped loosely with the bottom part. There was nothing to stabilize the vase. It looks like both items were just thrown in after they were broken. A beautiful piece. I contacted the seller today 5/30.

Wow!

Before I shipped the vase it was wrapped with many, many layers of tissue. It was then wrapped with several layers of bubble wrap and placed into a thick nest of crumpled newspaper. The surrounding area was filled with more newspaper and bubble wrap. I used a 14"x14" corrugated box which was much larger than needed which cost me $35 to ship because of the size but I wanted to make sure the piece arrived safely. You can vigorously shake any item I package up and you won't hear a sound.
I did NOT need this. I had just returned to Missouri from North Carolina after driving non-stop through the Alberto tropical storm in some of the most torrential rain I've ever experienced in my 57 years, a road trip that was complete with a tire blowout on dangerous stretch of 74W, and my hernia acting up so fiercely that I should have been in the hospital instead of behind the wheel. After stewing about it for a while I sent this back:


[h=3]'You should be getting a return label, Please send the item back and I will refund the purchase price.
Please refrain from suggesting that I just threw a broken item into a box to ship to you. I take my feedback rating VERY seriously, This was my highest priced item so to imply that i knew it was broken when I shipped it is laughable, I even sent you a message explaining how it was wrapped and shipped which was perfectly adequate. If it wasn't YOU or someone in your household who broke it, it was the post office.
Look for the shipping label I sent and send it back. And please keep your theories concerning my ethics to yourself.'[/h]
Because of this and the hen who complained that the packing tape smelled on another item AND DID NOT RETURN THE ITEM AFTER BEING REFUNDED, I'm pulling my stuff and taking it all to a consignment shop.

I have never sold anything on ebay but, an idea that I used when shipping items all over the world in a business I owned many years ago was to photo the item as it was being packaged, this way when ups ran over the package (which happened several times) and their claims dept. "determined" that the damage happened due to poor packaging, I had the photos to prove them wrong and was able to collect their ins. money on the items. Just a thought...might not be worth the effort though. The stuff I was shipping was valued in the thousands of dollars. One crushed box actually had tire marks that matched the tread pattern of a ups truck.

 

[Kray Gelder]

Gopher, so sorry to hear your experience. Some customers are the biggest PITA. I have never sold on ebay, but had a flea market business for several years, and I finally couldn't take dealing with the stupid and dishonest public. Thieves and liars. Marked everything down, sold it all including the displays, and walked away. Good luck to you.

 

[b3y0nd3r]

Always film everything! If you have vid evidence of you packing and sealing the box, you can better defend yourself.

 

[Kray Gelder]

One more side note: I worked for and retired from the post office. Although I did my job as best I could as a carrier, I personally witnessed clerks, while sorting parcels, if the package was marked fragile, they would compete to see how far they could throw it. Or intentionally, repeatedly slam it to the floor. When you would report this behavior to a supervisor, a shrug was the response. What can you do? You can't kill them.

 

[nomad 11]

i hate reading stuff like this ! does this smell of fish or revenge ? i truly know now this is how nice people become axx holes ?? now i became one sorry. just what we need more axx holes in the world. i dont know why people do things like this ? peace out.

 

[trdking]

They say there is one in every crowd but for eBay I am pretty sure the ratio is 20.
I sell a lot on eBay 20 - 30K per mos I have a constant stream of A Rods that make claims. eBay pretty much sides with me on the false claims these days. I have too many positive feedbacks. Still most of the time I lose the product because it is not returned to me. This a chalk up to cost of doing business. I don't let them get to me anymore. I just block them and move on. (It used to get me all balled up and angry but no more time spent on AHs)

 

[GopherDaGold]

One more side note: I worked for and retired from the post office. Although I did my job as best I could as a carrier, I personally witnessed clerks, while sorting parcels, if the package was marked fragile, they would compete to see how far they could throw it. Or intentionally, repeatedly slam it to the floor. When you would report this behavior to a supervisor, a shrug was the response. What can you do? You can't kill them.

There's where I went wrong! I marked the box as fragile! On all four sides.

 

[Ammoman]

Sounds like a post office claim. You did your part, they got the item. Lets hope it had enough insurance.

 

[Kray Gelder]

There's where I went wrong! I marked the box as fragile! On all four sides.

Gopher, know this. When parcels arrive at the distribution centers, and the delivering station, they are manually sorted. Each one is handled by a clerk. They arrive in a huge rolling container, about 8 x 5 x 7 feet tall. Daily, there are many of these. The clerk will position it in the center of a large ring of hampers, one for each route. He/she will open one side, the entire long side, and some parcels will just spill out onto the floor. Each parcel's address is examined, and the clerk will THROW it to the appropriate route's hamper. Like shooting hoops. Distance 15, 20, 25 feet or more. They're pretty accurate, the more experienced sorters, but there are many misses and overshoots...pack your items well!

 

[Diver_Down]

Gopher, know this. When parcels arrive at the distribution centers, and the delivering station, they are manually sorted. Each one is handled by a clerk. They arrive in a huge rolling container, about 8 x 5 x 7 feet tall. Daily, there are many of these. The clerk will position it in the center of a large ring of hampers, one for each route. He/she will open one side, the entire long side, and some parcels will just spill out onto the floor. Each parcel's address is examined, and the clerk will THROW it to the appropriate route's hamper. Like shooting hoops. Distance 15, 20, 25 feet or more. They're pretty accurate, the more experienced sorters, but there are many misses and overshoots...pack your items well!

I feel bad for the sorters who have to handle the package that is currently in the system. 68 lbs in a large flat rate box. Taped the heck out of it with threaded tape, and made sure to get a copy of communication from the buyer stating they accept responsibility for any damage. The buyer wanted to save on shipping on multiple items that would have been shipped in their own flat rate box. This guy wanted it all packed in one.

 

[Kray Gelder]

Yeah Diver, there are exceptions to tossing it. LOL. They will put that one on a hand truck and walk it over to the carrier.

 

[ecmjamsit]

Something extremely fragile gets put in a padded box. That box get put in another padded box. I learned this from my military experience.

 

[Paleo_joe]

Ship that expensive stuff fedex. They’re gentler, and they pay claims fast and fair based on my experience. If it’s REALLY expensive, pay to have them pack it. I love the USPS but they have their limits

 

[smokeythecat]

Man, I'm sorry to hear about this. I still buy on Ebay but rarely sell there anymore. The buyers have become real jerks in a greater measure than ever before. I have only had 1 return in 19 years there and it actually did come back - messed up. Recently (last fall) I had somebody try a chargeback but I had the completed tracking # so they lost real fast.

It's probably going to get worse, not better. My mineral collection went to a museum, my kids are getting the rest.

 

[trdking]

Ship that expensive stuff fedex. They’re gentler, and they pay claims fast and fair based on my experience. If it’s REALLY expensive, pay to have them pack it. I love the USPS but they have their limits

I shipped a 10K Server to Canada. I had UPS pack it and I insured it for value. The thing arrived looking like it got dropped off of a building. UPS denied my claim three times. They said they they delivered it safely to the Customs office in Canada and that satisfied their responsibility. No proof either way. I lost 10K and now I do not ship anything internationally. We all learn lessons everyday. Some are a hundred bucks and some are 10K Sa la vie

 

[SD51]

The USPS fooled me once, never again! Sent E-TRAC in for warranty repair and made the mistake of insuring it and having it marked Fragile! After it didn't arrive on the designated day, I called the repair center. The Tech said he just received a USPS shipment and went back to look for mine. He found what was left of the box. The ends were crushed and the top was smashed in. Somehow they weren't able to destroy the detector. I asked what would have happened if it had been broken and the Tech said Minelab would replace it since it was under warranty.


Since then, I only use FedEx!

 

[1320]

I learned how to ship fragile items by researching how ebay sellers ship chicken eggs (for hatching). One video I watched, guy packages up his eggs, tapes the box up, proceeds to toss the box of eggs about 20 feet into the air, hits the ground. Dude opens the box and not one single egg is cracked. The guy didn't use anything fancy for protection, it was all about technique.

Two problems with ebay right now, relaxed buyer return rules and an automated resolution process. I'm done on ebay as a seller, too much risk. The last two items I've "sold" on ebay: An irobot Roomba from Bed, Bath and Beyond - buyer claimed it was a Chinese knockoff. Two brand new Star Wars drones - buyer claimed both were inoperable.

Create your own Karma. "Follow" the problem buyers....see what they have for sell ;}

 

[diggummup]

Create your own Karma. "Follow" the problem buyers....see what they have for sell ;}

Oh how long I have waited on for several that are on my favorite sellers list. Never actually followed through though.

I never mark fragile on anything. I know how pissed off federal employees think,especially the ones that work in the post office. They don't say "going postal" too much anymore but it used to be a common term pre 9/11.

 

[OtakuDude]

When shipping anything ceramic and breakable, it helps to pack the inside of the item with peanuts and then wrap the entire unit in bubblewrap. The peanuts help equalize the interior/exterior pressure and reduce stress on the item.

At least that's the way I believe it works. I've shipped numerous breakables over the years and never had a damage claim levied against me.