Buyer claims package was never delivered but USPS tracking indicates otherwise.
The buyer wrote me a message requesting a full refund because his item has not arrived after about 2 weeks. USPS tracking shows that it was delivered in 2 days. The item was shipped on time and delivered on time. The shipping label was purchased through Buy Shipping (Free economy shipping) and indicates it is Claim Protected and OTDR protected.
I responded to his message by telling him to file an A-Z claim. He responded by telling me that he will not because it was my responsibility as the seller to solve his problem and refund his money.
I responded by sending him the following template that I copied and pasted from another discussion on Seller Forum:
You may be eligible to request a refund under the A-to-Z Guarantee if you have not received your package and three days have passed since the maximum estimated delivery date or the tracking shows a delivery confirmation, whichever is sooner. Note: Amazon also requires you to wait 48 hours after contacting the seller before you are eligible to request a refund.
Requesting an A-to-Z Guarantee Refund
To request a refund on an eligible order using a LAPTOP or DESKTOP device:
1. Go to Your Orders.
2. Locate your order in the list and click Problem with order.
3. Select “Package didn’t arrive” from the list.
4. Select Request refund.
5. Enter your comments in the text box.
6. Select Submit
To request a refund on an eligible order using a MOBILE device or CELL PHONE:
1. Call (Phone number) or use Amazon’s mobile app to connect to Customer Support.
2. Report that you “did not receive” your order.
3. Request a refund.
Note: Refund requests can take up to one week to investigate. Amazon will notify you of their decision via the email address associated with your account. To view the status of your request, locate your order in the list on the Your Orders page and select Problem with order.
I apologize for your inconvenience.
Once again, the buyer said that this is not his problem, and I should solve the problem for him. I responded by telling him that this situation requires that he file an A-Z claim because the USPS claims that the package was delivered.
He responded by saying, once again, that this is not his problem, and I should solve it for him. At this point I clicked on "No Response Needed".
He sent another message saying that I should solve his problem because it is my responsibility. I clicked on "No Response Needed" again.
I would like to know if I have handled this correctly because he keeps sending me new messages every day or two. I'm afraid that my metrics will be dinged, and my account will be charged for a refund if I did not handle this properly.
29 replies
Seller_z3XfkorVSmnEY
Yes, you are doing the right thing....directing the buyer to file an A-Z claim.
IF you feel like going another step, you could reach out to your postmaster and ask them to look up the tracking number and verify that it was scanned at the actual address. I've done that a few times. And as a buyer off another platform I had a package delivered to different neighborhood with a similar street name. It happens.
But, whatever you do -- don't refund. That's Amazon's job. It's possible this customer really thinks they shouldn't have to jump through other hoops and wants YOU to take care of it NOW, and it's also possible they are a scammer who's trying to get a free product without alerting Amazon to the fact that there's yet *another* INR claim.
Seller_LPywrpahqueQw
Report every message from this point and select the option that says something like this: "I think the buyer is trying to deceive me" option.
Seller_LTNvvFJ2jqJOv
This is my message, it is a bit shorter? Most buyers don't read it anyway...
I am terribly sorry for USPS, I did ship it on time using Amazon Buy Shipping.
You need to request a refund through Amazon.
To request a refund:
Go to Your Orders.
Locate the order.
Select Problem with Order.
Select your problem from the list.
Select Request Refund.
Enter your comments in the text box.
Select Submit.
It must be 3 days after the deliver date to file.
Seller_Sram36TnVt73c
This buyer is clearly trying to scam you... in all the time it took for him to write these emails to you he could have filed his claim and gotten refunded already.
In the meantime you could let the buyer know you are contacting the US Postal inspector to see if they can help locate the package... that usually scares them off.
But don't only threaten to file a lost package inquiry with USPS... actually do it at their website.
Then mark all subsequent messages as no response needed
Seller_Ha6JyVvDK6Ybs
That is the Amazon way where my item give me another of money back. Amazon created this policy and this generation of whiny online shoppers in order to steal customers away from retail and in the end Amazons return policies and how they treat sellers will be their demise.
Seller_SJRMV3s4mNrFA
Sounds like a scammer who has filed too many A to Z's. Don't worry, Amazon will eventually "delight" the scammer with a refund from your funds.
Seller_qMgi7qxvEo7f1
I would be too scared to ask the buyer to file an AtoZ.
So many people complaining about Amazon not honoring it's rules about A-to-Z. :-(
Seller_1Le3xvzF0gGyv
You handled this correctly. I would have done the exact same thing. I have had buyer's leave me negative feedback due to me telling them to follow amazon policy & file an AtoZ, oh well, I keep telling them & eventually they file the claim & get a refund then they remove the feedback because I was right all along. Stand your ground.
I used to be a driver for a major carrier. My management required that every time they got a claim of an item not received I had to go talk to the recipient. In most cases another family member brought the package inside & forgot to give it to them or it is sitting right where I left it out of site behind a plant or something. IF you live where there is an office some drivers just drop everything off at the office. I try to mention all of this when I get a message about an item not received.
A buyer needs to wait the full 3 days before filing a claim. I live on a Cul-de-Sac. The homes on the opposite Cul-de-Sac have similar #'s. I get my neighbors packages all the time, I just run them over to them but sometimes it is the next day. I think sometimes items show delivered & then get the next day for various reasons.
Seller_uuiUJi7rf0fpY
In addition to the A-to-z instructions, I often include a statement something like this before the instructions:
"Amazon is responsible for refunding the order because an Amazon shipping label was used for the order."
