How long is too long on ebay

[Ponyone]

Not sure if this should go here, but I need to vent anyway

My girlfriend got me a 3do on ebay for my birthday.

She payed 95 dollars (20 to ship) on may 9th.

The package has yet to arrive (well missing my may 13th birthday). The guy emails me tonight and said he sent it out ON may 13th (after ignoring her emails of priority shipping and what have you) late saturday.. so he said that the following monday it was shipped UPS.

So now it's going to get here Monday of may 22nd, a mere 13 days after being payed.

Does that seem a bit ridiculous to anyone? Whenever I sell on ebay I ship out the same day or next day if it's too late. I don't wait 4 days later.

The funny thing is, I bought extra controllers last night off ebay because my nephew is coming in this weekend so I wanted to play some two player games. The lady said they'd be here on saturday. I'm gonna get the controllers before the system! D'oh

Is 4 days acceptable to ship? What should I do if anything? I know some people wait so they can ship everything off in one fell swoop, but I'm still ticked.

2 weeks wait and all I have to show for it will be controllers. I'm excited.

[crazyjackcsa]

Your new to ebay aren't you? Two weeks from the day you paid is lightning quick. He should have sent it out sooner, but all in all if I get something with the 30 days I'm thrilled.

[Ponyone]

If 3-4 years buying/selling is new.

This isn't the first time it's happened.. but I've had a wicked cold all week and have been waiting to relive the glorious 3do days so I need to punch a wall or two.

98% of the time I receive my packages 2-4 days later.

Some people.

[Darren870]

I always wait around 3-4 days. People have jobs and only can ship on saturdays. Post office is only open during work hours and people dont want to spend there lunch sitting on a line.

Its rare I get something out the same day for me, or even the day after. Happens, but its rare.

4 days is nothing.

[Ponyone]

Shhh it's everything.

[Matt-El]

Two weeks is long, but don't fret. Some people aren't intentionally slow. When I did a trial auction for selling a nintendo deck and a couple of games, I was slow to the punch due to some stuff backing me up, but it got there.

I'm actually more surprised at the price that you paid. 120 bucks? Crap! I picked mine up at a friend's video game store for $30.

[Griking]

If he shipped 4 days after receiving payment he didn't provide excellent service but it's not completely unreasonable either. It sucks that you paid extra for priority shipping though and he waited that long.

This is really a case where a neutral feedback would be appropriate however you can't really give it to him since you'd probably receive a neutral (or even a negative) in return just because he can.

[suppafly]

you sounds like a clone of kevin_psx...he´ll soon show up in this thread giving you all kinds of advice on how to get your money back by filing a claim to paypal or ebay

[Ponyone]

Not sure why I sound like a clone, but I'm not really looking to trouble the guy, I just want my 3do. I really wanted here this weekend so my little nephew could get a chance and play return fire and what have you. Now we'll just have to throw the controllers at eachother and hope for a fun outcome.

and she paid 95 in all including the shipping, so it came to 75 for the system.

I don't want to file fraud claims and try to get his house. I just really need to play Way of the Warrior and see Shaky Jake shake his stick about. Is that so much a crime?!?!

[Soviet Conscript]

I usually get my stuff within 2 weeks. twice it took about a month but this was the fault of the postal service rather then the seller

but speaking of ebay....i bought 4 nes games on may 5th with a buy it now option useing paypal. so far its been 2 weeks and nothing. worse yet is i've sent him 2 very friendly emails asking politely if he has send the items and if payment was recevied to his satisfaction but not a peep from him. no reply emails no nothing, needless to say i'm getting slightly worred. his feedback is pretty good, like 750+ with only 2 negatives but unless hes haveing some major life problems it would at least be nice to get a reply to my emails.

[petewhitley]

If you ever want anything within a certain time frame, don't buy it from eBay. It's pretty average shipping. Don't be a jerk and leave him a neutral because you want it NOW!!!

[Kamino]

what is your ebay ID, ponyone?

[Ponyone]

Don't be a jerk and leave him neutral? Not like I was going to, but I think he deserves a neutral. I don't care if it's on e-bay or not, I like things shipped on time. I give people the common courtesy of quick shipping. I don't think to myself "it's ebay. People on here are not worth my time. I'll ship it when I get around to it. Let em sweat."

The lady giving me the controllers.. she didn't even accept paypal. I was rushing to get the controllers, and didn't even notice this (never ran into a nonpaypaller on ebay)

I told her I'd send a check, which would require a 10 day wait on that alone, but I was looking forward to having them for the weekend (thinking the 3do would arrive),so she opened up a paypal account just for me and shipped them off next day priority (she went before work!). I'd bake her cookies if I knew how. She knows how to take care of her customers.


I have a job and I still send out that day or next. If I can't physically do it, I'll have someone else do it. Or go with a pickup service. I guess I just have good business practices.

2 weeks is quite a while. It's even longer when you're sick in bed and just need a little Road Rash to get you to recovery.

Why do you want my ebay id? What purpose will it serve to you?

I would have liked to have bought one from here, but it was my girlfriend who did all this so ebay it was.

[Felixthegamer]

Two weeks is hardly a wait at all. Just relax, it will get there. Most things I buy on the bay take a week and a half to two weeks, it really is no big deal.

[InsaneDavid]

Well if you would give a neutral for someone that got a little caught up with something and took four days to get a package out - then you should get one yourself for not reading auction terms.


The lady giving me the controllers.. she didn't even accept paypal. I was rushing to get the controllers, and didn't even notice this (never ran into a nonpaypaller on ebay)

Too many damn eBay nazi's lately. :roll:

[badinsults]

If you ever want anything within a certain time frame, don't buy it from eBay. It's pretty average shipping. Don't be a jerk and leave him a neutral because you want it NOW!!!

I have to agree here. I could understand being pissed if it took him 2 weeks to send it off, but really, as the others said, maybe he is unable to go to the post office until Saturday, or maybe they are waiting until they have several things to take before going to the post office. Ebay isn't freaking Amazon, and most people aren't on ebay as their sole business. Hell, I remember having to wait 6 weeks to get something from Amazon before.

[Ponyone]

Well if you would give a neutral for someone that got a little caught up with something and took four days to get a package out - then you should get one yourself for not reading auction terms.


The lady giving me the controllers.. she didn't even accept paypal. I was rushing to get the controllers, and didn't even notice this (never ran into a nonpaypaller on ebay)

Too many damn eBay nazi's lately. :roll:

Um... what?

[Ponyone]

If you ever want anything within a certain time frame, don't buy it from eBay. It's pretty average shipping. Don't be a jerk and leave him a neutral because you want it NOW!!!

I have to agree here. I could understand being pissed if it took him 2 weeks to send it off, but really, as the others said, maybe he is unable to go to the post office until Saturday, or maybe they are waiting until they have several things to take before going to the post office. Ebay isn't freaking Amazon, and most people aren't on ebay as their sole business. Hell, I remember having to wait 6 weeks to get something from Amazon before.

but I'm sick and need Plumbers Don't Wear Ties. This should trump most things.

[badinsults]

If you ever want anything within a certain time frame, don't buy it from eBay. It's pretty average shipping. Don't be a jerk and leave him a neutral because you want it NOW!!!

I have to agree here. I could understand being pissed if it took him 2 weeks to send it off, but really, as the others said, maybe he is unable to go to the post office until Saturday, or maybe they are waiting until they have several things to take before going to the post office. Ebay isn't freaking Amazon, and most people aren't on ebay as their sole business. Hell, I remember having to wait 6 weeks to get something from Amazon before.

but I'm sick and need Plumbers Don't Wear Ties. This should trump most things.

what

[Vroomfunkel]

It's great that you have people you can call on to go do your posting for you. But the fact is, some people really can't post during the week. They may not be able to get packages collected from their address either - or else there may be nobody in to deal with it.

Bottom line - you're not dealing with a business. You're dealing with an individual, and to get this wound up just because they posted at the weekend is completely unreasonable.

Vroomfunkel

[Darren870]

Im going to agree with the nazi statement. The other day I put a Marvel vs Capcom 2 on ebay with a BIN of $75 and free shipping. 4 days later the guy emails me complaining he hasn't recieved his game yet.

I gave him free shipping and he still complains...

Its getting to be a pain sometimes.

[All Things Sega]

That happens all the time. I buy and sell all the time on ebay. Things pop up and its difficult to get to post office before it closes. Who's the genius that closes the Post office same time as you are supposed to leave from work? Then they wonder why their losing business to the Postal stores. Only way a system or game should take that long is if he's shipping by media mail or something slower. Check the date sent sticker for a clue on which way he sent it.

[EndlessChris]

Yeah dude, leaving a neutral would be a dick move. It's only two weeks and he might just be busy with stuff during the week or not have the packaging material or whatever.

At least he's upfront with you telling you when he's gonna ship and everything.

[Arcade Antics]

Well if you would give a neutral for someone that got a little caught up with something and took four days to get a package out - then you should get one yourself for not reading auction terms.


The lady giving me the controllers.. she didn't even accept paypal. I was rushing to get the controllers, and didn't even notice this (never ran into a nonpaypaller on ebay)

Too many damn eBay nazi's lately. :roll:

Um... what?
He's saying that you're being extremely unreasonable. And he's 100% correct.

YOU didn't read the Seller's auction terms before you bid, it's YOUR fault, simple as that. Man up, send her a money order, and quit complaining.

[Julio III]

Wow, that lady who opened up a paypal account for you and shipped super fast sure is a nice person. I don't think you can expect people to ship as soon as someone has won their auction and paid. I've never sold anything on ebay and if i did i wouldn't be expected to be treated like a shop with super fast service. I buy things on ebay and notice some sellers put "buyer must pay within three days" on their auction terms. Now, as a buyer, i sometimes pay straight away if i'm on the internet and/or excited about the auction. Sometimes I may take a few days to pay but not often. Sometimes stuff does get in the way. You have to remember you are dealing with individuals and not a store. I don't trust the postal service to deliver things quickly anyway, they've been slow as hell around here recently. Apart from a couple of things I bought from online stores. I was actually surprised to see things in my mailbox and then realised I ordered something. I put in the order expecting them to take longer than they did and got them well before i needed to use them.

[InsaneDavid]

At least he's upfront with you telling you when he's gonna ship and everything.

Exactly, he's keeping you informed which is more than most do. Nothing annoys me more than when a buyer or seller sends me cryptic e-mails about payment or when my items were shipped.

[Ponyone]

Well if you would give a neutral for someone that got a little caught up with something and took four days to get a package out - then you should get one yourself for not reading auction terms.


The lady giving me the controllers.. she didn't even accept paypal. I was rushing to get the controllers, and didn't even notice this (never ran into a nonpaypaller on ebay)

Too many damn eBay nazi's lately. :roll:

Um... what?
He's saying that you're being extremely unreasonable. And he's 100% correct.

YOU didn't read the Seller's auction terms before you bid, it's YOUR fault, simple as that. Man up, send her a money order, and quit complaining.

I think you guys read that wrong. I was going to send a money order/cashier check. I wasn't mad at her for not having paypal. I made the mistake of not reading the bottom, because it was all quite rushed. It happens. After noticing this, I just told her I would have liked to have it by the weekend, but I'll send out the check tomorrow. So she opened up a paypal account. I didn't tell her to. How is that unreasonable? By agreeing to her terms and her being really nice and doing that for me? A great ebayer.

I think it's safe to say we can close this now unless there are some juicy ebay stories of waiting 6 months for something to be shipped. It seems most of you have horrible service with ebay and expect these kinds of things. Most of what I'm saying was in jest anyway (including title of topic).

I'm not mad at the guy. I'm not unreasonable. I'm not leaving him a neutral.

[Sweater Fish Deluxe]

Yeah, I don't know, you guys need to learn how to read instead of just assuming all sorts of stuff. I don't see anything that Ponyone said that seems unreasonable. He never said that he was gonna try and squeeze any refund or anything out of this seller. He was just asking our opinion of whether we thought the shipping delay was unreasonable.

Personally, I think it is unreasonable.

It's not horrible, but like Ponyone, whenever I sell something I always try to ship it out within one or two days and on occassions when it's taken me longer, I usually add some little freebie to the package and apologize profusely to the buyer.

However, in this case, it's not really the four days between the auction's ending and the seller shipping that's unreasonable. It's that the seller must be using some really slow shipping method, but still charging $20 to ship a system. That's unreasonable. If he had used USPS Priority, it wouldn't have cost more than $20 to ship and the system would be in Ponyone's hands by now after being sent on the 13th (even if it didn't really go out until the 15th). Is UPS Ground really that slow? If it is, then it can't be that expensive, right? He should have used something faster if he's charging that much for shipping, especially if he couldn't ship the item out within a day or two.

So, yeah, it's too bad. Not bad enough to do anything about it, but bad enough to bitch and moan about, I'd say.


...word is bondage...

[Aussie2B]

Not to be an ass, but it wasn't exactly wise of your girlfriend to be shopping for your birthday on eBay just 5 days before the date in the first place. I think if she had been shopping at least a couple weeks in advance, this wouldn't be an issue. You also make it sound like it was after she won the auction that she was requesting priority mail and such, but if you really need an item by a certain date, this should be discussed with the seller and agreed upon before you even bid.

Anyway, if you normally receive everything you buy within 2-4 days after paying, you must have exceptional luck. Either that or you tend to buy from large stores on eBay and now that you bought from a regular Joe Shmoe, you expect the same service.

I think most people who whine about shipping time on eBay need a wider perspective on things. We always hear "But *I* always get a package out within 1 or 2 days." That's great, that's you. Do you honestly expect everyone to have the same lifestyle and/or same services in their neighborhood? People get so accustomed to what they have that they can't even fathom that it's different elsewhere. I am continued to be surprised at how most people don't even know that not ALL US post offices are open on Saturdays. People just naturally assume that they all are open the same days and same times. Or they may assume that it's possible for everyone to mail small packages from their home, right out of the mailbox, assuming they have the postage. Well, guess what, not everybody can do that either. In some areas, you can only receive mail in your mailbox, not send. Or it may be assumed that everyone has a post office close by or at least a car to get to one quickly. Or that someone would be able to go to the post office before work/school, right after, or on a break. Or that everybody has somebody they can get to do their mailing for them.

There are TONS of legitimate reasons why the average person would not be able to get a package out immediately. I think if someone has mailed a package out within a week, they've done fine. Longer than that, well, hopefully they have a reasonable excuse. Either way, though, all that should be done at most is communicating in order to understand what may be causing a delay and confirming that it has or will be mailed shortly. Leaving a neutral? Gimme a break. The ONLY times I've left neutrals is when a transaction couldn't end successfully but not because of the person's own choice, like when a guy sent me a kind of payment I couldn't accept and then after returning it he fell into financial problems, or when a seller had the item I bought stolen out of her backpack and refunded my payment, or when another seller was having all these family issues that prevented her from selling me the items and also refunded my payment. THOSE are reasons to leave a neutral, not because some seller took four measly days to mail a package. :/

[Ponyone]

I only buy from ebay stores when I need a part or batteries for something

I always deal with "joe schmoes" and I always get my packages on time.

She should have shopped sooner because I'm worth it, but she didn't have the money at the time and there's 3 birthdays in my friends/family in May + mother's day, so I get scumped a lot.

If you're gonna sell on ebay, I expect you to at least be prepared for the end of the sale. Or at least say in the listing that it will take awhile to ship. If he has no post office, then he should say something.

It's like having a garage sale and not having change. Why are you having a garage sale and not being prepared? I know you're not an established business, but come now.

Again, I am not leaving him a neutral.

I guess I am extremely lucky, or just deal with people who know how to run things.

This is getting extremely silly now.

[Vroomfunkel]

She should have shopped sooner because I'm worth it

I really hope that this is sarcasm again. Anyway, case closed I guess. If you can't accept that sometimes normal people who aren't running a business might take a few days to get to the post office, I guess that's up to you. Just prepare to be disappointed, that's all.

Vroomfunkel

[Ponyone]

I can accept that, but at the very least put it in the auction, or at least email me and say you'll ship it off in 4 days.

Just because you're not running a business doesn't mean you can't have good business ethics. I am not running a business on ebay, but I ship that day/day after. I pay as soon as I buy. I don't gouge shipping prices. If I am ever late, I keep up good communication. I'm just a normal schmoe, but I realize if I'm selling something, I have a responsibility to keep my customer happy. Otherwise, I won't sell.

Why pay an inflated 20 dollars for 2 weeks worth of shipping? He could at the very least have shot me an email saying that he couldn't make it due to whatever it was due to.

Why do I have to expect this from people?

You all seem very jaded to the ebay experience. Sheesh.

[Arcade Antics]

Well if you would give a neutral for someone that got a little caught up with something and took four days to get a package out - then you should get one yourself for not reading auction terms.


The lady giving me the controllers.. she didn't even accept paypal. I was rushing to get the controllers, and didn't even notice this (never ran into a nonpaypaller on ebay)

Too many damn eBay nazi's lately. :roll:

Um... what?
He's saying that you're being extremely unreasonable. And he's 100% correct.

YOU didn't read the Seller's auction terms before you bid, it's YOUR fault, simple as that. Man up, send her a money order, and quit complaining.

I think you guys read that wrong.
:embarrassed: Whoops, you're correct. My apologies, I missed the part earlier in the thread where you explained about her opening paypal, etc. Carry on. :)

[Ponyone]

It's alright quite alright.

Sooo.. anyone have any super bad ebay/internet buying and selling stories? Unless this topic should be closed.

[Julio III]

Sooo.. anyone have any super bad ebay/internet buying and selling stories? Unless this topic should be closed.

fraid not but i learnt something new:


In some areas, you can only receive mail in your mailbox, not send.

Wow, in America you can send mail from the mailbox in front of your house? Thats a pretty impressive service. I'm pretty impressed with that, although thinking about things, I don't know if it would make posting letters more convenient as there's normally a postbox about 5-10mins walk away here anyway.

[Darren870]

Do you even have a real 8-5 job? I could not ship anything during my 8-5 job, everything would have to wait till sat.

[InsaneDavid]

I think you guys read that wrong. I was going to send a money order/cashier check. I wasn't mad at her for not having paypal. I made the mistake of not reading the bottom, because it was all quite rushed.

I didn't read anything wrong, you didn't read the auction terms before bidding and winning the auction. She more than likely opened a PayPal account because she figured you'd turn into a problem buyer over something like a couple controllers. That happens too "fine, whatever - just pay and move on."

That's happened when I've sold things in the past, said UPS Ground only and then the buyer had an APO address. "It's still a valid US zip code!" mm-hmm, and those aquatic UPS trucks will roll it right out to you. I went down to the post office, wasted my time (I was using a local shipping center back then), filled out the customs form, sent it to him - then blocked his ID from my auctions. Should see if she blocks you after your business is done.


If he had used USPS Priority, it wouldn't have cost more than $20 to ship and the system would be in Ponyone's hands by now after being sent on the 13th (even if it didn't really go out until the 15th). Is UPS Ground really that slow? If it is, then it can't be that expensive, right? He should have used something faster if he's charging that much for shipping, especially if he couldn't ship the item out within a day or two.

Last system I sent via USPS Priority (a boxed Odyssey 2) cost $26 and that was before the postage hike.

With my eBay auctions as well as my stuff I sell in the Buying and Selling forum here and off my site, I ship everything within at least 48 hours of payment arrival. That's just me, I can keep that schedule, and I say that upfront. Sometimes delays come up and I scale it to 72 hours - but I'm always upfront about it. If a seller doesn't say "your item will be shipped _____" then they can take their sweet time.

[graboid9]

I have a Ebay shipping story four you.
I listed a cd set on ebay and it was won by a Canadian...not a problem. Boxed it up and took it to the UPS store near my work and shipped it off. The guy behind the counter asked me what was in it and the value. I said 10 cds valued at $150. About 4 days later i get an email from the buyer saying that Canadian customs is charging her $200 for importing this item. How can this be? Apparently the computer at the shipping store multiplied the amount of cds by the value of the set giving it a value of $1500. After going back and forth with UPS and Canadian customs for about 3 weeks trying to get the item back so I can reship it with the correct value, Canadian customs says "no, someone owes us $200 and it dosent go anywhere until its paid." The owner of the UPS store finally had enough and was going to just pay me the value of the auction wich was more than what customs was asking for and giving up the package as lost in transit. He really didnt want to give Canadian customs any money. I then asked him to go ahead and pay them so the lady could get her cds and it would be cheaper for him. In total it took about 5 weeks for the lady to get her package.

now i no longer ship outside the US.

[Ponyone]

I think you guys read that wrong. I was going to send a money order/cashier check. I wasn't mad at her for not having paypal. I made the mistake of not reading the bottom, because it was all quite rushed.

I didn't read anything wrong, you didn't read the auction terms before bidding and winning the auction. She more than likely opened a PayPal account because she figured you'd turn into a problem buyer over something like a couple controllers. That happens too "fine, whatever - just pay and move on."

That's happened when I've sold things in the past, said UPS Ground only and then the buyer had an APO address. "It's still a valid US zip code!" mm-hmm, and those aquatic UPS trucks will roll it right out to you. I went down to the post office, wasted my time (I was using a local shipping center back then), filled out the customs form, sent it to him - then blocked his ID from my auctions. Should see if she blocks you after your business is done.


If he had used USPS Priority, it wouldn't have cost more than $20 to ship and the system would be in Ponyone's hands by now after being sent on the 13th (even if it didn't really go out until the 15th). Is UPS Ground really that slow? If it is, then it can't be that expensive, right? He should have used something faster if he's charging that much for shipping, especially if he couldn't ship the item out within a day or two.

Last system I sent via USPS Priority (a boxed Odyssey 2) cost $26 and that was before the postage hike.

With my eBay auctions as well as my stuff I sell in the Buying and Selling forum here and off my site, I ship everything within at least 48 hours of payment arrival. That's just me, I can keep that schedule, and I say that upfront. Sometimes delays come up and I scale it to 72 hours - but I'm always upfront about it. If a seller doesn't say "your item will be shipped _____" then they can take their sweet time.

I'd become a problem buyer because I told her I was sending a check out the next day? Yeah, I was a real trouble maker. All I basically told her was "I'll send out the check tomorrow, but I would have liked the controllers by saturday."

I didn't say "listen lady, you don't accept paypal. You're trash. You're so glib. I have your daughter. Please send the controllers by saturday or she takes a dirt nap. Genesis does what Nintendon't."

She's going to block me after agreeing to the terms? You're nutty.

You're really trying to vilify me here over nothing at all, so I'm going to ignore this post from now on.

Yes I have a regular 9-5, plus my own online business.. and I still ship it like a polaroid pictcha.

[Sweater Fish Deluxe]

You all seem very jaded to the ebay experience. Sheesh.
My guess is that this thread is just full of people who consider themselves "eBay sellers" and so have some sort of wrong-headed sympathy for other sellers. I don't know where that comes from, personally. I've sold tons of stuff on eBay, probably as much as I've bought, but I don't have any sympathy for sellers. The sum of my experiences has taught me that there's way more shady sellers on eBay than there are shady buyers (and, in any case, that both groups combined make up less than 1% of the people on eBay anyway).


If a seller doesn't say "your item will be shipped _____" then they can take their sweet time.
Sure they can. And Ponyone can be frustrated by it and bitch about it on this forum. And you can get snippy and stupid in response to his bitching. And I can think you're all idiots. Everyone's free to do whatever the hell they want, but that doesn't mean that it's all okay. Sometimes we're free to do stuff that sucks and it's up to us as individuals to make the decision not to.


...word is bondage...

[Aussie2B]

My guess is that this thread is just full of people who consider themselves "eBay sellers" and so have some sort of wrong-headed sympathy for other sellers.

Quite the contrary, I'd guess that most people in this topic have extensive experience in both buying and selling, so they know what it's like to be on both sides of the fence.

I don't know how you can think there are way more shady sellers than buyers. o_O I do much more buying than selling, yet while I can only think of a few sellers who gave me some serious problems, there are more buyers than I can remember. I'd say out of every five auctions I list, I get a thoroughly incompetent buyer who I end up having to bend over backwards for just to complete the transaction. In fact, as I speak I'm waiting on a guy who bought something of mine on April 24th who paid for the item but didn't pay for the shipping fee even though it was clearly stated in the listing. The guy is frickin' impossible to communicate with; I've sent at least 4 or 5 emails only to receive one reply in which he said he was receiving them just fine (but I guess he didn't feel like it was necessary to reply to them and let me know what's going on). He claimed he had tried to pay for the shipping cost, yet I received nothing in my PayPal, and he said he would pay for it right away in his last reply but again I haven't seen any money nor heard from him since. You wouldn't think that a measly $4 wouldn't be so hard to get, especially when he paid for the item's value immediately. So yeah... that's the kind of crap I have to deal with nearly every time I sell. :/

[InsaneDavid]

And you can get snippy and stupid in response to his bitching. And I can think you're all idiots.

Nice little sub-hidden flaming attempt. ;)

[wrldstrman]

I think if the seller and buyer are both in the us and the payment is made by paypal there is no reason the item shouldnt be there in 3 days..unless the seller states they only ship once a week..I may offend but I cant stand a lot of ebay store sellers who over charge for shipping and handling then send the item media mail..my postmaster will not let you mail video games media mail..But unfortunitlly just like everything else in this country there is to much demand and not enough supply so people can get away with poor customer service...its not just ebay but about everything in the us.

[Darren870]

I wish you people that are complaining would stop buying on ebay. It would save me and others a lot of time.

[Soviet Conscript]

i bought shineing force III a few years back on ebay and when i got the game case it was empty. i got a nice manual and case though. needless to say i was upset. fortunitly the seller was pretty decent about it and didn't deny anything. he said he probibly misplaced the item and to send the case back. he never ended up finding the disc and i got a refund.

i dunno if thats relevent to the shipping time topic much but it seems ppl are telling ebay stories and i felt like shareing.

[Aussie2B]

I think if the seller and buyer are both in the us and the payment is made by paypal there is no reason the item shouldnt be there in 3 days

You do realize that even if you ship the same day payment has been received AND you use priority mail or such, it will still often take more than 3 days, right? The US is a big country, and if you're shipping from one end to the other, it'll take time. I mean, what's the estimate that the USPS gives on priority mail, 2 to 5 days I believe? And I think UPS ground is something like 2-9 days.

[InsaneDavid]

I wish you people that are complaining would stop buying on ebay. It would save me and others a lot of time.

Agreed, in the case of this item in question - it's been taken care of.

[dankicksass]

Ponyone, I really hope you get your 3DO soon, you're really going to enjoy the system. If you can find the Street Fighter games for 3DO, grab them. They're gold. And happy belated birthday.

Though two weeks may seem like a lot of time to wait for an ebay item, it's really not unheard of. You indicated that the parcel was shipped via UPS - have it tracked. UPS tracking services are amazing. The person on the end of 1-800-PICK-UPS (Hit 0 twice to speak to a live person) will tell you everything, even things UPS.com won't.

[The Manimal]

Damn. 4 days is unreasonable? Some people have jobs and their work hours are from 9-5, the very same hours that the counters are open for service at most post offices (juding NE Ohio).

I hope I never do business with any of you who think this way. I think getting it shipped within 5 days is still acceptable. It's like some people don't think eBay sellers have LIVES, that they are there on their computer awaiting payment, and instantaneously jet out to the post office. LOL

This guy was complaining to my brother who was selling an item on eBay. He mailed a money order, and the guy complained long and hard and threatened a 'neutral' because he didn't receive the item until 11 days later. He said it should have arrived earlier...as if the moment this guy emailed that he mailed a money order, that the item should have been sent. Obviously, only an idiot would mail an item out without actually having received payment. In all of this, my bro didn't receive the money order until 9 days later, he mailed it the next day, and the guy got his item in 11 days. Why did it take 9 days for my brother to receive his payment? The idiot used a stamp dated 1995 in 2006.

[The Manimal]

I think if the seller and buyer are both in the us and the payment is made by paypal there is no reason the item shouldnt be there in 3 days..


LOL

3 days is priority mail, and that'd mean that they'd have to get it mailed the very same day you pay.

[hezeuschrist]

Two weeks, meh. I just sent out a hideous email demanding my items show up by June 6th (30 days after auction close, payment sent same day) to some seller.

I'm in the boat of "no sympathy for the sellers." The buyers are the ones putting it on the line with the greatest chance of being dicked, if someone doesn't pay for your auction you just relist. I've been dicked by "dealing" with sellers for too long and then not being able to file any kind of official "get my money back" motions, so you've got 30 days for it to show up on my doorstep or I'm getting my money back, plain and simple.

At two weeks, i sent him an email asking whats up, (auction closed May 7), on may 23 he sends me an email saying he was on vacation in florida, and it'll be shipped tomorrow. I don't care how you ship it, if it was shipped the 24th it'd be here by the second, and it's not. So now it's on the seller to salvage his feedback to only a neutral and not a negative.

And for the record, people are far too conservative with negatives on ebay. Leaving a negative feedback for a horribly packed item will make that seller learn their lesson.

[nebrazca78]

I think if the seller and buyer are both in the us and the payment is made by paypal there is no reason the item shouldnt be there in 3 days

You do realize that even if you ship the same day payment has been received AND you use priority mail or such, it will still often take more than 3 days, right? The US is a big country, and if you're shipping from one end to the other, it'll take time. I mean, what's the estimate that the USPS gives on priority mail, 2 to 5 days I believe? And I think UPS ground is something like 2-9 days.

Priotiy Mail will go to anywhere from anywhere in the U.S. in 3 days max. Unless it gets delayed which happens about 5% of the time. UPS Ground can take as little as 1 day but will never take more than 5 business days to anywhere from anywhere. If you send via Priority Mail the same day you're paid and the destination is relatively close they can get it the very next day. Most likely it will take 2 days, but less than 48 hours. The USPS is awesome, it's one of the only US government institutions left that does what it's supposed to, cheaply, and well (for the most part).

As for my personal expectations, I expect a purchased item to be shipped within three days if it is through package services. Priority Mail packages should be shipped immediately. You can schedule a USPS carrier pickup as late as 2:00 in the morning CMT and the service is free as long as you're sending at least one Priority package. This is available absolutely everywhere in the U.S. If the seller takes 3 days or more to send a Priority package I get pissed. I don't expect much from package services on the other hand. They are cheap but often take two to three weeks to arrive. When I see an item postmarked five days after payment or more is when the neutrals or negatives come out. Neutral or negative just depends on how well the items are packaged and if the seller is a jerk-ass or not. I do have relatively high expectations but I always pay in less than 24 hours.

As for the items I sell, I often ship out in under 24 hours. The only time I take my time is when the buyer takes more than two days to pay. I figure they must not be in a hurry to get the items or they would've paid quicker. The only time anyone complains about my shipping speed is with Media Mail, but most people don't understand how long it can take and still be within the estimated delivery window.

The best way to deal with eBay is as straight business. Keep from getting all excited about stuff (not always easy). There are jerks out there and if you use eBay a lot you will run in to them no matter what. Use Paypal exclusively and make payments with a credit card only. File a claim with Paypal if you don't get your items or they're broken and if Paypal fails you use the credit card to stop payment. Kill people with kindness unless they're real pricks - then let 'em have it.

[The Manimal]

Two weeks, meh. I just sent out a hideous email demanding my items show up by June 6th (30 days after auction close, payment sent same day) to some seller.

I'm in the boat of "no sympathy for the sellers." The buyers are the ones putting it on the line with the greatest chance of being dicked, if someone doesn't pay for your auction you just relist. I've been dicked by "dealing" with sellers for too long and then not being able to file any kind of official "get my money back" motions, so you've got 30 days for it to show up on my doorstep or I'm getting my money back, plain and simple.

At two weeks, i sent him an email asking whats up, (auction closed May 7), on may 23 he sends me an email saying he was on vacation in florida, and it'll be shipped tomorrow. I don't care how you ship it, if it was shipped the 24th it'd be here by the second, and it's not. So now it's on the seller to salvage his feedback to only a neutral and not a negative.

And for the record, people are far too conservative with negatives on ebay. Leaving a negative feedback for a horribly packed item will make that seller learn their lesson.

I hate the feedback system altogether. I avoid leaving it just because of fear of someone slandering me out of nowhere and I have no recourse if I've left it already. I had a guy who ripped me off of $40 and then dropped my only negative on me, after i gave him one. I paid him the same exact day as the auction ended, he took my money, and left me negative. Another auction, a guy sold me something for $220 and it was broken (not shipping damage). Ignored all my emails, then I left him a neutral because I thought it was just damaged during shipping, and he goes and gives me a neutral also, with a short email saying 'tit for tat'. While examining the item further, it wasn't damaged in transit...it had a shirt button stuck in one of the gears and another broken piece.

[kentuckyfried]

I've been waiting for about 3 months for a new battery for my Ibook, the seller shipped it, but it got lost at the Canada/US border no doubt :(

[The Manimal]

I've been waiting for about 3 months for a new battery for my Ibook, the seller shipped it, but it got lost at the Canada/US border no doubt :(


That sucks. I sell internationally, but worry about such things, as PayPal will f*ck a seller over since mailing anything w/o some kind of delivery confirmation (registered mail, EMS, etc) can't be proved to be shipped, and you cannot dispute a chargeback. Most buyers won't be willing to pay $8 extra for this, and you just hope that you won't get a chargeback because you have no way to prove you did mail it.

[Darren870]

I think the people that are unrealistic are the ones who don't have a 8-5 jobs, or do and like to wait on line at the post office during there lunch break.

[Aussie2B]

UPS Ground can take as little as 1 day but will never take more than 5 business days to anywhere from anywhere.

No way, man. I've have it take longer than 5 business days LOTS of times. Try having stuff shipped from Florida to Washington state. x_x

[Darren870]

Can take usually up to 14 days when shipping across the nation. I sent something to steve in CA and it took what 10 days? It was only a few snes games too.

[bangtango]

Ponyone:

Just because a seller has an item listed for as many as seven days doesn't mean it is enough time to prepare to ship the item, as you've suggested earlier. The most you can do is box and package it up, assuming you have a suitable box to put it in at the time you LIST the item. How are you going to address it ahead of time and why on earth would you have to tape it up or anything like that?

I am a private individual and it can be a bitch at times to find the perfect box, seeing that I don't always use the free ones at the post office and I might have two dozen boxes laying around, none of which are the proper size. It might take me 2-3 days during the auction to even find a good box, sometimes longer, depending on how busy I am. All I have to go with most times are boxes from purchases I make, boxes from my local grocery store or boxes from retail purchases. I'm not going to rush and use any old box that I happen to find first so a buyer will quit breathing down my neck. I want their item to avoid getting damaged and fit comfortably into the box.

Want to know the truth? I never even box the item until the auction ends. I double-check, triple-check and quadruple check to make sure everything I stated in the auction is included (if it is a few items bundled) and that they are in the condition I described. This is once the item is sold. Then I box it. In case you ask, I also do the very same thing BEFORE listing. I do it all over again afterwards because I am that worried about getting the buyer EXACTLY what he or she paid for.

This is not to mention the buyers you run into who wait a week, two weeks or three weeks to pay you.

I'm damned if I am going to rush and box an item and package it up for an item that either might not sell or might not get paid for, especially when the auction is still running. I don't care if I have seven days to do it. Again, it allows me the chance to check the items one final time after I am paid before shipping, so I don't have to tear apart a perfectly good packaging job. That is a waste of time. Packing a box isn't fun. I used to be a postal worker.

It is especially fitting because I print the completed Paypal receipt after the buyer pays me and include it in the box so they know what the hell they paid for and where it came from, since a lot of buyers bid on numerous auctions and may have trouble keeping track of where (and who) everything is coming from. I can't include that receipt if I've already taped the box up.

Maybe that sounds irrational or careless to you but I haven't had any issues yet.

Would you rather have some klutz rush to ship an item and either forget something or inadvertantly send it to the wrong buyer? When I have received the wrong item (meant for someone else) OR found items missing from my order, it is ALWAYS from a seller who rushed to do things in a hurry, so as not to piss anyone off. And believe me, that has happened to me many times. I don't mind waiting a few days if it means my purchase will be filled accurately and without a hitch.

Any seller will tell you that mistakes happen when you rush. Didn't you make a mistake rushing to read (and bid) on the item?

[The Manimal]

It is especially fitting because I print the completed Paypal receipt after the buyer pays me and include it in the box so they know what the hell they paid for and where it came from, since a lot of buyers bid on numerous auctions and may have trouble keeping track of where (and who) everything is coming from. I can't include that receipt if I've already taped the box up.

I do this also. :)

[The Manimal]

It is especially fitting because I print the completed Paypal receipt after the buyer pays me and include it in the box so they know what the hell they paid for and where it came from, since a lot of buyers bid on numerous auctions and may have trouble keeping track of where (and who) everything is coming from. I can't include that receipt if I've already taped the box up.

I do this also.