Cue Lost - USPS Shipping - Who's Responsible??

Hungarian

C'mon, man!
Silver Member
Question for the forum.

I'm trying to understand the best way I should handle a situation for a buyer where a cue was lost in shipping by USPS.


Background:

I sold an relatively inexpensive cue for $190 and it was lost by USPS by no fault of me or the buyer.

Purchase was made via PayPal including the normal fees (not friends and family)

I shipped it Priority 3-day, signature required and did not purchase additional insurance at the buyers direction.

I filed a claim with USPS and was paid the $50 plus the cost of shipping.

Now the buyer is out $190 and more than likely will not receive the cue.

If the buyer files a claim with PayPal does PayPal cover his loss?

Does PayPal take the money from me?

Should I refund the buyer his money?

I'm just not sure how this should work.

Any input is appreciated..

Thanks
 
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Klink

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I would refund the buyer. The buyer never received what he paid for. If he files a claim with PayPal they will charge it back to you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

ideologist

I don't never exaggerate
Silver Member
The seller is always responsible for safe delivery. The insurance is to protect the seller in case or loss, not the buyer. The buyer will always say they don't want to pay for insurance, and they don't have to, it's on the shipper.

If he filed a claim, he'll get a full refund and you'll be left sucking wind, unfortunately.

You essentially self-insured in this case.
 
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alstl

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Question for the forum.

I'm trying to understand the best way I should handle a situation for a buyer where a cue was lost in shipping by USPS.


Background:

I sold an relatively inexpensive cue for $190 and it was lost by USPS by no fault of me or the buyer.

Purchase was made via PayPal including the normal fees (not friends and family)

I shipped it Priority 3-day, signature required and did not purchase additional insurance at the buyers direction.

I filed a claim with USPS and was paid the $50 plus the cost of shipping.

Now the buyer is out $190 and more than likely will not receive the cue.

If the buyer files a claim with PayPal does PayPal cover his loss?

Does PayPal take the money from me?

Should I refund the buyer his money?

I'm just not sure how this should work.

Any input is appreciated..

Thanks

Next time inquire about registered mail.
 

Double-Dave

Developing cue-addict
Silver Member
If the buyer asks for no shipping insurance then I assume this was done to avoid customs charges? In that particular case I would say the loss is on the buyer. PayPal will more then likely rule in the buyers favor though.

Regards, Dave
 

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
Silver Member
Next time inquire about registered mail.
That was fairly expensive the last time I looked at it although it does give you more checking along the way. For a $190 item, I'd just go self-insured.
 

Kickin' Chicken

Kick Shot Aficionado
Gold Member
Silver Member
as most have already said, the seller has the obligation to get the merchandise safely to the buyer and if it becomes lost or even if it arrives damaged, the buyer should be refunded right away unless there was some other agreement about it prior to shipping (rare).

Any claims, arguments, frustrations, that sort of thing, should all be between the seller (sender) and the shipping company (usps in this case)

Buyer needs to be made whole.

best,
brian kc
 

sixpack

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The person who makes shipping arrangements is responsible IMO. Keep the $50 and refund his money.

ETA: I missed the part about the buyer declining the insurance. I’d still refund the money but it would be fine to pass along the 50 and call it a day. As a buyer if I declined the insurance that is what I would expect.
 
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iusedtoberich

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I don't have any advice, but a question. Are you sure the cue was lost, and not just Corona Delayed?
 

ChrisinNC

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Question for the forum.

I'm trying to understand the best way I should handle a situation for a buyer where a cue was lost in shipping by USPS.


Background:

I sold an relatively inexpensive cue for $190 and it was lost by USPS by no fault of me or the buyer.

Purchase was made via PayPal including the normal fees (not friends and family)

I shipped it Priority 3-day, signature required and did not purchase additional insurance at the buyers direction.

I filed a claim with USPS and was paid the $50 plus the cost of shipping.

Now the buyer is out $190 and more than likely will not receive the cue.

If the buyer files a claim with PayPal does PayPal cover his loss?

Does PayPal take the money from me?

Should I refund the buyer his money?

I'm just not sure how this should work.

Any input is appreciated..

Thanks
I would say the right thing to do if the buyer never received the cue is to refund their money and deal with the shipper yourself. Your case is a little different since it sounds like you normally take out additional insurance, but the buyer was not willing to pay the difference for you to do so. Hopefully the cue will eventually show up but in the meantime, under these circumstances, I would not refund the buyer for their payment other than the $50 plus shipping costs that USPS apparently refunded you for the lost shipment. Obviously I would stress to the buyer that this is exactly the reason why you strongly recommend the buyer pay for the additional shipping insurance.
 
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Biloxi Boy

Man With A Golden Arm
Parties are free to contract with regard to risk of loss, etc. The problem, however, is proving what was agreed upon to the satisfaction of whoever is judging the dispute -- a judge or credit card company. I would expect paypal, etc., to follow the clearly expressed intent of the parties.

The moral: Get it, and keep it, in writing.

This case is easy $190.00. With large transactions . . .
 

Hungarian

C'mon, man!
Silver Member
Corona delay. Tracking stills shows it's on the way but it's been 18 days since it shipped and the USPS claim has been paid to me already.

I don't have any advice, but a question. Are you sure the cue was lost, and not just Corona Delayed?
 

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maha

from way back when
Silver Member
18 days isnt too long for it to be lost. and if insured then claim but once a claim is paid you get nothing most times after it is found as they bought it.

and make your deal with the buyer if he doesnt want insurance than he is responsible then. but i wouldnt send a cue uninsured as being insured the p.o. looks after the package better as they have skin in the game. but for 50 bucks they dont care.

you could have bought 200 in insurance for 10 bucks and the cue would have arrived or you both could have been made whole.

not much every comes good from doing things the cheap way.
 

Hungarian

C'mon, man!
Silver Member
Oh shit. It just gets worse. They paid the claim a few days ago but it's still shows out for delivery.

18 days isnt too long for it to be lost. and if insured then claim but once a claim is paid you get nothing most times after it is found as they bought it.

and make your deal with the buyer if he doesnt want insurance than he is responsible then. but i wouldnt send a cue uninsured as being insured the p.o. looks after the package better as they have skin in the game. but for 50 bucks they dont care.

you could have bought 200 in insurance for 10 bucks and the cue would have arrived or you both could have been made whole.

not much every comes good from doing things the cheap way.
 

Hungarian

C'mon, man!
Silver Member
Have any of your big sellers ever considered selling cues but having the buyer set up shipping and have the shipping company come to your location to pick up the package?

Why would that be a bad idea?
 

ShootingArts

Smorg is giving St Peter the 7!
Gold Member
Silver Member
making buyer whole

In this case where the buyer refused insurance I feel that the risk then falls to the buyer. However, even though the buyer should assume the risk, the seller will go down as somebody bad to deal with if you don't make him whole.

i would try to smile and bear it taking the hit in this case unless the buyer is beng a jerk. I would also sell future items for enough to cover insurance and never bring up the subject with the buyer. They will think you are a nice guy for covering the insurance and everybody is happy, and protected.

hu
 

Hungarian

C'mon, man!
Silver Member
Yeah, exactly. I'm working on another deal with him to sell him another cue at
a loss in good faith. I rarely sell cues. But all I wanted to do was clear out my cue closet and sell a few production cues. The buyer is a super cool dude and I don't want him to have a bad taste about dealing with me.

Main thing I wasn't clear on was how PayPal would act if he filed a claim. Consensus here is that PP would take the money from me even though I did nothing wrong.

Lesson learned is always buy the insurance.

Thanks for everyone's comments

In this case where the buyer refused insurance I feel that the risk then falls to the buyer. However, even though the buyer should assume the risk, the seller will go down as somebody bad to deal with if you don't make him whole.

i would try to smile and bear it taking the hit in this case unless the buyer is beng a jerk. I would also sell future items for enough to cover insurance and never bring up the subject with the buyer. They will think you are a nice guy for covering the insurance and everybody is happy, and protected.

hu
 

Hungarian

C'mon, man!
Silver Member
I actually tried that but he offered a lower but reasonable price.

I would also sell future items for enough to cover insurance and never bring up the subject with the buyer. They will think you are a nice guy for covering the insurance and everybody is happy, and protected.

hu
 
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