USPS delivers uninsured item to wrong address. What to do?

So I sold this guy a game for $110 and USPS delivered it to the wrong address. Wrong zip code even. However the hell that happens.

No insurance on it of course. So technically I dont have to do anything as it is not my fault but I'd feel like a douche if I don't. It sucks because it was $110 so of course neither of us wants to be out that kind of money.

Going to contact USPS but of course with no insurance there's not going to be anything they could/would do I imagine.

Sooo, what would you do in this case?

In which venue did you sell the game?

If you sold it on eBay or through PayPal although it is not your "fault" you will be held liable for refunding the buyer if he files an item not received case.

I would call USPS and see if they can retreive the item if at all possible.

I dont know if that's right though. Yeah it was ebay/paypal but wouldn't paypal just look at the shipping address and see that it was mailed to the correct address? So regardless if he filed a dispute I don't think he'd win it.

I'm not really worried any which way. He already left positive feedback and basically said yeah that's a shame USPS. I agree with that and sure it can probably just end there but then I still feel like crap since he didnt get it and is out his money regardless of whose fault it is.

I guess it could just be a lesson to buy insurance but even then I dont know that USPS would help. All I've read is how it's a scam and I've seen other people in similar situations saying that USPS responded to them telling them the package was delivered and they wouldn't do anything for them. If that's true then why the hell would I buy the insurance?

Has anyone had a good experience with USPS insurance or is it really just a scam? I could see if an item is never delivered they may have to fess up that they screwed up and pay for it but what about damaged items or a situation like this where it gets sent to the wrong address? Does insurance actually help?

If you feel so bad give him half the money back.

[quote name='whoknows']If you feel so bad give him half the money back.[/QUOTE]
I probably will do that after awhile. Whoever actually got the package could end up sending it to him. Probably not but maybe.

OP,

If the item is less then $250 you have to show online proof of delivery to the buyers zip code. Meaning if he lives in 00001 you could deliver it to any residence in 00001 and you would be covered.

If the value is more then $250 you would need online viewable SIGNATURE confirmation.

Where your item was valued at less then $250 you can get away with delivery confirmation BUT it has to be in the same zip code as what is on the paypal invoice.

It sucks because eBay and PayPal hold sellers responsible for an item until it is delivered when in reality that should be USPS job. However to hold USPS responsible you would of needed to purchase insurance.

I would still call the post office and see if they can find where the item was delivered and try to recall it. Otherwise if you buyer understands anything about how PayPal works he can unfortunately get all his money back.

[quote name='ShockandAww']I dont know if that's right though. Yeah it was ebay/paypal but wouldn't paypal just look at the shipping address and see that it was mailed to the correct address? So regardless if he filed a dispute I don't think he'd win it.

I'm not really worried any which way. He already left positive feedback and basically said yeah that's a shame USPS. I agree with that and sure it can probably just end there but then I still feel like crap since he didnt get it and is out his money regardless of whose fault it is.

I guess it could just be a lesson to buy insurance but even then I dont know that USPS would help. All I've read is how it's a scam and I've seen other people in similar situations saying that USPS responded to them telling them the package was delivered and they wouldn't do anything for them. If that's true then why the hell would I buy the insurance?

Has anyone had a good experience with USPS insurance or is it really just a scam? I could see if an item is never delivered they may have to fess up that they screwed up and pay for it but what about damaged items or a situation like this where it gets sent to the wrong address? Does insurance actually help?[/QUOTE]

If you have DC showing it going to the wrong address, assuming you have the package addressed correctly (receipt should show zip code) that's lost while in the hands of USPS and their insurance policy covers it. Heck, I even processed a claim that disappeared after they delivered it--even though they said they didn't cover it after delivery...I was like bullshit, your slip says insured against loss or damage.

So insurance can work, it just depends on your willpower & ability to yell vs. their desire to not pay you.

My only related experiences were 2 situations:

1. The person that actually received the item went around the block and delivered it to my buyer out of the goodness of their heart.

2. The mail delivery man somehow accidentally scanned the DC and had the zipcode entered incorrectly at the time even though it went to the right address. I preemptively called USPS when I saw the DC tracking but while they investigated the buyer left me positive feedback within 24 hours. It was then USPS called me back and I explained to them that everything worked out and the investigator told me once in a great while the zipcode is uploaded incorrectly even though the package was actually dropped off at the right location.

[quote name='Indigo_Streetlight']If you have DC showing it going to the wrong address, assuming you have the package addressed correctly (receipt should show zip code) that's lost while in the hands of USPS and their insurance policy covers it. Heck, I even processed a claim that disappeared after they delivered it--even though they said they didn't cover it after delivery...I was like bullshit, your slip says insured against loss or damage.

So insurance can work, it just depends on your willpower & ability to yell vs. their desire to not pay you. [/QUOTE]

I usually print the shipping label through eBay/PayPal and just drop it off at the post office without waiting for a receipt. But I do take a picture of the shipping label once everything is packaged up.

Do you think that would be sufficient for pursuing a USPS insurance claim and/or PayPal "proof of shipment" (assuming, of course, that it gets scanned at least once along the way so there is at least some online evidence that it entered USPS's hands)?

[quote name='ragingst0rm6']I usually print the shipping label through eBay/PayPal and just drop it off at the post office without waiting for a receipt. But I do take a picture of the shipping label once everything is packaged up.

Do you think that would be sufficient for pursuing a USPS insurance claim and/or PayPal "proof of shipment" (assuming, of course, that it gets scanned at least once along the way so there is at least some online evidence that it entered USPS's hands)?[/QUOTE]



If you print your label through eBay you should be all set; just keep your label receipt (it is the smaller label that prints on the 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper). You should also get an e-mail from eBay or PayPal confirming that you paid for the label so those two documents along with the tracking from USPS showing that the item was "accepted" is more then info information for proof of shipment.

You should not worry about the buyer getting there money back. You should worry about how to make sure you do not loose your product and money. The buyer always have the credit card company(chargeback) and eBay/Paypal to protect them encase things go wrong.

Depending on label and ink quality, the words on the label could get smudged during transit. I always send my items out with a self adhesive label pouch to prevent this. eBay used to allow the option for sellers to offer shipping insurance as an option to buyers. They have since removed it because they believe it is the seller's responsibility to make sure the item gets to the buyer so you can't make buyers pay for shipping insurance.

Did the tracking info show the item being delivered to the same city and state as the buyer's address? If not your pretty much screwed since seller protection only protects you if you can show proof the item has been delivered to buyer's city and state at minimum.

[quote name='htz']Did the tracking info show the item being delivered to the same city and state as the buyer's address? If not your pretty much screwed since seller protection only protects you if you can show proof the item has been delivered to buyer's city and state at minimum.[/QUOTE]
Same city/state but the zip code was off by a number.

If the buyer doesn't contest it then count yourself very lucky. At the end of the day you are responsible for getting the item into the buyers hands. The common misconception is that if the purchaser doesn't buy insurance then they assume the risk of errors during shipment. This is false. Insurance is the shipper's protection that their item won't be lost/destroyed from the point it leaves their hands to the time that it arrives to the buyer.

On Ebay you are a merchant selling items to a customer. It's no different than buying an item from Amazon. If you buy something from Amazon, and it gets lost during delivery, are you just going to say "that's too bad" and walk away without getting your money back? No, you're going to demand that they make it right -- and they will do so at their loss. Its the cost of doing business.

I'm surprised the buyer isn't more pissed about this. On Amazon Marketplace you are required to refund a buyer even if they provide the wrong address. Yep, you could be responsible due to a problem caused by them, regardless if you get the item back or not.

There are instances where an address might fall so close to two different zipcodes that either one of two zipcodes will work so trying to argue that they delivered it to the wrong address might likely won't work.

But regardless, you are at fault here, believe it or not.

Safe delivery of the package is the burden of the sender. It's not the buyer's responsibility to get insurance, a misconception that was so widespread (and going by the replies here, still is) that eBay actually changed their ToS so that sellers can't say "if you don't buy insurance, it's not my fault". Additionally, it's not USPS's fault because they actually don't guarantee lost/damaged packages unless you insure them. And before everyone jumps on the USPS sucks bandwagon, UPS and FexEx are the same except they automatically include $100 insurance (which is reflected in their higher prices).

But it looks like the buyer doesn't know this either so... you're likely in the clear.

[quote name='Rozz']I'm surprised the buyer isn't more pissed about this. On Amazon Marketplace you are required to refund a buyer even if they provide the wrong address. Yep, you could be responsible due to a problem caused by them, regardless if you get the item back or not.[/QUOTE]

Wait, doesn't Amazon itself have a policy where it's not responsible for non-deliverable addresses?

[quote name='Indigo_Streetlight']Wait, doesn't Amazon itself have a policy where it's not responsible for non-deliverable addresses?[/QUOTE]

Not sure about that, but I do know that sellers on there have gotten burned for buyers giving the wrong addresses and then filing A-Z claims. Items are not always returned to the sender so when that happens you are out of the item and your money because the buyer screwed up.