Anyone who sells online at any kind of real volume has probably experienced this exact issue. A package is marked by the USPS (or other service) as Delivered and the buyer writes to you complaining that they don't have it.
I have discovered through years of experience in dealing with buyers like this, and through much reading of eBay, Amazon, Etsy, and other forums where online sellers gather, a near perfect way to deal with this situation when it comes up and I'm going to share it with you.
This letter is something I have cobbled together from extensive research, through my own experience and knowledge, and through other sellers sharing their tips, tricks, and verbiage.
It works about 99% of the time. This is because while mail theft happens and occasionally packages are stolen right off the porch after being delivered, most times the package is there but misplaced, or the buyer is straight out lying. Last year I shipped a few thousand packages so these circumstances arose several times, yet I only paid off one guy. All other "missing" packages were located after I sent this letter, sometimes within minutes. These are the magic words:
Dear Buyer,
I'm sorry you haven't received your package yet and I appreciate you letting me know about it. The address on your order is: (ENTER BUYER ADDRESS) Is this the correct mailing address for you?
Sometimes when trying to locate a package, it helps to know exactly what you are looking for. Your item was shipped in (CLEARLY DESCRIBE THE PACKAGE). Many times, a lost package was simply laid aside by a family member. Sometimes your postal carrier leaves it with a neighbor. Or it may be awaiting pickup at the local Post Office and the postal carrier forgot to leave the slip, the slip was lost or was retrieved by another person in the household.
If you don't find the package this time, I can contact your Post Office and have the manager speak with your postal carrier. Postal carriers are now equipped with GPS scanners so the Post Office should be able to locate the exact delivery location via GPS data from the scanner. Using this information, I can tell you exactly where the package was left.
If the package is still not located after speaking with the Post Office, further steps can be taken. This includes filing a missing package report with your Post Office who will have you sign an affidavit that the item is missing so that an investigation can be started, and filing a mail theft report with your local law enforcement if warranted based on the Postal Inspectors findings. Basically doing everything possible to find the location of the delivery as the Post Office takes mail theft very seriously.
Please let me know, and we can start the process.
Seller
No matter what actually happened with the package, this letter covers it. It provides exact steps to locate the package, should it be at the delivery location. It scares the crap out of dishonest buyers hoping you will just refund them so you don't have to deal with their hassles and potential negative feedback.
A note on package description. I describe the exact dimensions of the package and its color. If it's a cardboard mailer, I say "cardboard mailer" and if it's a box, I refer to it as "box." Sometimes people expect a box when you sent a small cardboard mailer. If I used a Priority Mail or other box that's labelled in some way, I include that as well.
This letter has saved me time, aggravation, and money. I am posting it in the hope it does the same for other online sellers here.
I have discovered through years of experience in dealing with buyers like this, and through much reading of eBay, Amazon, Etsy, and other forums where online sellers gather, a near perfect way to deal with this situation when it comes up and I'm going to share it with you.
This letter is something I have cobbled together from extensive research, through my own experience and knowledge, and through other sellers sharing their tips, tricks, and verbiage.
It works about 99% of the time. This is because while mail theft happens and occasionally packages are stolen right off the porch after being delivered, most times the package is there but misplaced, or the buyer is straight out lying. Last year I shipped a few thousand packages so these circumstances arose several times, yet I only paid off one guy. All other "missing" packages were located after I sent this letter, sometimes within minutes. These are the magic words:
Dear Buyer,
I'm sorry you haven't received your package yet and I appreciate you letting me know about it. The address on your order is: (ENTER BUYER ADDRESS) Is this the correct mailing address for you?
Sometimes when trying to locate a package, it helps to know exactly what you are looking for. Your item was shipped in (CLEARLY DESCRIBE THE PACKAGE). Many times, a lost package was simply laid aside by a family member. Sometimes your postal carrier leaves it with a neighbor. Or it may be awaiting pickup at the local Post Office and the postal carrier forgot to leave the slip, the slip was lost or was retrieved by another person in the household.
If you don't find the package this time, I can contact your Post Office and have the manager speak with your postal carrier. Postal carriers are now equipped with GPS scanners so the Post Office should be able to locate the exact delivery location via GPS data from the scanner. Using this information, I can tell you exactly where the package was left.
If the package is still not located after speaking with the Post Office, further steps can be taken. This includes filing a missing package report with your Post Office who will have you sign an affidavit that the item is missing so that an investigation can be started, and filing a mail theft report with your local law enforcement if warranted based on the Postal Inspectors findings. Basically doing everything possible to find the location of the delivery as the Post Office takes mail theft very seriously.
Please let me know, and we can start the process.
Seller
No matter what actually happened with the package, this letter covers it. It provides exact steps to locate the package, should it be at the delivery location. It scares the crap out of dishonest buyers hoping you will just refund them so you don't have to deal with their hassles and potential negative feedback.
A note on package description. I describe the exact dimensions of the package and its color. If it's a cardboard mailer, I say "cardboard mailer" and if it's a box, I refer to it as "box." Sometimes people expect a box when you sent a small cardboard mailer. If I used a Priority Mail or other box that's labelled in some way, I include that as well.
This letter has saved me time, aggravation, and money. I am posting it in the hope it does the same for other online sellers here.
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