How do I deal with items lost in the mail. This has happened a few times.

Question

I have had a few occasions where items have been lost in the mail.  Should I have to refund the buyer?

Answer 1

Well, this is a tricky one.The postal service is very very good at its job and it is very very rare that shipments don't get delivered.And coin collectors have a reputation ...... Well, if you can't say something nice. We've been selling by mail order for over 30 years, and of thousands upon thousands of shipments, I don't think even two dozen have ever been 'lost'. (Some have been returned for one reason or another and some have been delayed.) Given the low prices on your listed items, I assume that you don't use tracking. Given the cost, this is probably wise. So. You should be self-insuring (Cookie Jar Insurance). This means adding a small amount to every asking or shipping price, less than a dime, and putting all those virtual pennies into a virtual cookie jar. When you get a claim, you pay from the Cookie Jar. No eBay or PP involvement. And use PP Send Money for the refund. The FVF are also being covered by the Cookie Jar. I'd make a couple of minor changes to your standard feedback. Leave it on shipping, but add the date of shipping and the service used. This, in my opinion, will reassure your nervous honest buyer that the item is on its way but is coming from Canada, which might signal border displays. But if you get a claim that an item hasn't been delivered and you don't have Proof of Delivery, refund and move on. Being a grouchy and cynical person, I would also add that person to my Blocked Bidder List. At the very least, the address is not secure. Some other comments, completely unasked for: You might also want to add a grade to your coins. And since they are not top quality, the weight for those collecting bullion might be useful. I believe all the coins of Canada are catalogued by Charlton. Adding the catalogue number to your titles may help buyers in Search and makes you look more professional. Your description shows on my monitor as very small and a run-on block. Consider adding a little coding for easier reading. And you say:  buyer pays shipping and handling charges $1.00 in North America, actual shipping costs outside of North America, $0.50 for each additional item,You only have the shipping set for Canada. You don't need to put the shipping and handling cost into the description since it is already there in the appropriate tab.  I am not responsible for uninsured items. Yes, you are. And the buyer has no way of insuring an item you send. And insurance protects the seller not the buyer. Drop this, go to Cookie Jar Insurance and move on. Look for other sellers items for more coins for sale. Grammar police. This is actually telling your customers to go to 'other sellers'. Not a good idea. Missing the apostrophe.Change this to 'More coins available. Look at my other listings.' Don't refer to yourself in the third person.  Thanks for bidding and good luck in your auctions.Irrelevant and annoying to those impulsive mobile buyers. And the auctions you want him to use are yours not his. Again grammar police, but I am a retired editor and I just can't stop.