Proof of Shipment Question

Here's a question about "proof of shipment" (tracking number).

Does it matter whether the tracking shows the delivery as completed or not when being
asked to give proof of shipment?

So in other words, when I get a chargeback claim or a buyer claims they didn't receive the
item, if I provide the tracking number and it shows that the item was indeed shipped out
and to the proper address, even though it doesn't show the delivery as completed, does
that still count as proper evidence? Or does it also have to show that the delivery was successful/completed.

The reason I ask is this. Sometimes customers order things without knowing their country's
import laws/customs/restrictions etc. It gets held at customs and since the customer did not provide a phone number, nobody at customs knows how to reach the customer OR it gets to the local post office and it just sits there because they don't have the complete/correct address and with no phone number they don't know how to contact the buyer. Therefore it sits there for a month or so and the buyer can claim they never got it. Now you'd be asked to provide evidence that u shipped it out.

So does it mean tracking is enough or tracking must also show delivery was completed?

If the customer didn't pick it up or provide the clearance info, then of course it won't get successfully delivered. Isn't that on the customer and not the shipper? I think as long as u provide evidence u shipped out the item with tracking and correct address as given by the buyer, that constitutes as proper evidence. Correct me if I am wrong.

I actually have one chargeback case pending and it's exactly this. It's been a week and it's still under review with no verdict yet. I provided full tracking info/proof but item was held at customs and required buyer's clearance info but buyer never gave it to them so the item has now been abandoned/lost. Buyer opened a chargeback case.

I'll let u know if I win this one or not when I find out.


P.S. I just wanted to add that my little journey here since the past 4-6 months has been great and successful. I'm breaking my own sales record every month, and I started with earnings of about $50-80 a month making 1 sale per day (if u remember my older posts), and each month it has DOUBLED. I'm now earning about $600-$800 and I'm still just a small time seller but I'm thinking about expanding and upgrade the store to triple my sales and earnings hopefully! I also just received a gold medal for being a top rated seller (yay?). It's a journey.....succeed or fail, it's all about learning, it's all about growing and trying to reach new goals step by step, brick by brick....one day it'll probably all end, so I'm trying to enjoy it while it lasts!

oatmeal said:

Does it matter whether the tracking shows the delivery as completed or not when being
asked to give proof of shipment?

Click to expand...

Yes, it's called "proof of delivery" not "proof that you shipped it"

oatmeal said:

Sometimes customers order things without knowing their country's
import laws/customs/restrictions etc.

Click to expand...

Use eBay's Global Shipping Program and you won't have this problem. Under GSP, you are only responsible for getting the merchandise to eBay warehouse. Everything after that is eBay's responsibility.

If the product eventually reaches the customer it's enough, ive had many claims where the package hadn't been recieved yet, in my explanation to paypal i told them that the tracking status ment that the package was stuck in customs ( Pending To be forwarded ). Which was true, paypal gave me some leeway and eventually the package reached it's destination.

EDIT: Either way if you know the package will not reach the customer and is on it's way to be returned to you, you should just give them a refund to keep your reputation up

toml3030 said:

Use eBay's Global Shipping Program and you won't have this problem. Under GSP, you are only responsible for getting the merchandise to eBay warehouse. Everything after that is eBay's responsibility.

Click to expand...

Interesting. I'll have to look into this. So basically I'm sending all my orders to this GSP address and then they will be responsible for shipping it out to my customers worldwide? Do they have cheaper shipping rates worldwide? Would I be allowed to use them ONLY for my international orders (because my domestic orders are nearly flawless)? The main issue I'm having is just certain countries that seem to have either very expensive and strict import laws/customs (ie., Chile).

Brannan said:

If the product eventually reaches the customer it's enough, ive had many claims where the package hadn't been recieved yet, in my explanation to paypal i told them that the tracking status ment that the package was stuck in customs ( Pending To be forwarded ). Which was true, paypal gave me some leeway and eventually the package reached it's destination.

EDIT: Either way if you know the package will not reach the customer and is on it's way to be returned to you, you should just give them a refund to keep your reputation up

Click to expand...

In my particular case, I know the order/shipment has been abandoned already by the shipper because it's been in customs for like a month and customs was waiting for the buyer to send them proper clearaance documents but he never did. So the tracking number only shows that the item was shipped out to the address given by the buyer, but it won't show that it's been delivered ever.

oatmeal said:

In my particular case, I know the order/shipment has been abandoned already by the shipper because it's been in customs for like a month and customs was waiting for the buyer to send them proper clearaance documents but he never did. So the tracking number only shows that the item was shipped out to the address given by the buyer, but it won't show that it's been delivered ever.

Click to expand...

You are probably better off just giving the refund as soon as possible when this happens, i know it's not right and shouldnt be like that but paypal's a bitch, also you risk getting limited on paypal like i did. 30% of my funds are withheld for 180 days. Which really sucks if it happens to you to. This was because i didnt resolve my cases quick enough

Brannan said:

You are probably better off just giving the refund as soon as possible when this happens, i know it's not right and shouldnt be like that but paypal's a bitch, also you risk getting limited on paypal like i did. 30% of my funds are withheld for 180 days. Which really sucks if it happens to you to. This was because i didnt resolve my cases quick enough

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Paypal gives you like a whole week to provide proof of delivery or refund. If you can't do either in a week, they SHOULD limit you.

here is how to deal with these case :
- kindly contact the buyer via ebay massage system, and inform him that his order is at custom, and what he has to do to receive it
- Then, the buyer answer that he doesn't want to pay for clearence, and eventualy, tells you to go fuck yourself
- It's ok, you have enough, send the proof of shipping, and a copy of emails to paypal, saying the customer doesn't want to pay for custom, and you will win the case

Well, some good news! I got a message from Paypal today and they told me that they have confirmed this transaction is covered under Seller Protection as I met the PayPal Seller Protection requirements. The disputed amount is now back in my account balance.

This a relief! So it seems to answer my question, at least this time. You are only required to show PROOF OF DELIVERY, and there is no requirement for proof that it was successfully delivered. I provided all the info, tracking number, buyers mailing address info he provided to me from ebay, and even though tracking doesn't show it's been delivered (because the buyer did not provide his customs clearance documentation to release it), I'm not on the chopping board for that.

Well, I would not refund this buyer because his case he opened on was a "chargeback" case meaning, he's claiming that someone used his credit card against his will (or someone hacked it or whatever). He wasn't disputing that he never got the item or that he didn't want to provide clearance papers or maybe pay an import fee? It was a chargeback case so it must mean he's claiming that someone used his cc without his authorization.

This was just like my first chargeback case I posted a month or so back and that was successfully won by me also as I provided evidence of tracking (and that one was actually delivered successfully).

I always keep my paypal account balance at around $200. I transfer the money out each week.