What to do when someone ships incorrectly?

[SPAZ-12]

Hey,

I bought a XaviXPORT off of eBay awhile ago. The seller was in the USA, and I live in Canada, so I requested USPS shipping so that I wouldn't have to pay the UPS customs brokerage fee.

The problem is that the seller charged me for USPS shipping, and then shipped it UPS, meaning that I had to pay the stupid $34.50 UPS fee. I've contacted the seller asking that they pay this fee (it was their mistake that led to me paying this after all), and for awhile it looked as if they were actually going to refund my money without much of a fuss.

But now it seems that they have decided to start ignoring my emails, and I think that I have to try to get my money back through Paypal or eBay. Does anyone have any ideas about how to do this? I mean the item was as described and stuff, but I paid extra for USPS shipping, and then they sent it UPS instead. Could I claim that the item was not as described or something?

I have until the end of this week to lodge a complaint with Paypal. The seller will be getting a negative feedback no matter what at this point for their poor communication and inability to follow directions.

Thanks for any suggestions.

[suckerpunch5]

you should be honest. file a complaint with paypal and explain.

[ryborg]

Yeah, that sucks, but unfortunately for you, ebay totally revamped their policy on customs recently so you can't leave a neg for customs reasons.


Customs Requirements

We will remove Feedback if the listing meets the Customs Requirements below and the seller receives a negative or neutral Feedback comment which references customs delays or customs fees.

Why would you pay MORE for USPS shipping, anyway? International UPS shipping is waaaayy more expensive than regular mail.

Did the auction itself say UPS shipping? I know you said he agreed to use USPS in an email, but according to Paypal, that's not a binding agreement. Either way, you're going to have a hell of a time getting any money back by filing a Paypal dispute. You can only file it if the item never arrived or if it was not as described. You can't file a dispute to get money back from being overcharged on shipping or customs fees. There is nothing to "explain" like suckerpunch5 said above; it is an automated system.

[Bratwurst]

In the future your only recourse really is to refuse the package and do a chargeback through paypal for nondelivery. Or try to convince the delivery man to tack the customs fees onto the sender's account.

[SPAZ-12]

I was told by the seller that USPS shipping would cost about $2 more than UPS shipping. And I would ALWAYS pay whatever the cost for USPS shipping instead of UPS, because of that stupid fee that UPS charges.

I had him send me an invoice for USPS shipping, so in the payment summary on eBay it shows that I paid for USPS First Class Mail International.

I am hoping that I could say that it was not as described because of this invoice, even though I doubt it. Most likely I'll just never get my money back and I'll get to give this seller his first negative feedback. At least now I know to not mention customs problems in my feedback.