Is Ebay Tracking Bogus ?

*** Moved by Staff to a more appropriate forum. ***
The eBay announcements about delivery appear to be 100% BOGUS.

Apparently they calculate what the average delivery time should be and then send out a message saying the item was delivered.

I talked to the local Post Office and they said they have absolutely nothing to do with any eBay tracking. They do not scan any of their items when delivered.

I am extremely tired of getting announcements about and item or items being delivered and not having the item show up for several days or more!

No, they're not making up anything. eBay standard envelope tracking is not end-to-end, point-by-point tracking like with parcels. It gets scanned as it passes through the sorting equipment at regional hubs, so it will scan as "delivered" as it passes that last hub, when in fact it still has to get to the destination post office and the out for delivery. The item will show up 2-3 business days after it scans as "delivered".

It's a compromise for an inexpensive tracked method.

If you want point-to-point tracking pay for parcel rates.

Yes, eBay could do a better job communicating and setting the expectations of buyers, but there is no lying, scamming, or "bogus" information here.

Supposedly they are only scanned at central USPS hubs, which technically makes it somewhat bogus, although I'm not sure I'd call it 100% bogus. I think ebay's official description of the tracking is that it is "limited". Does anyone know how the scanning actually works? As far as it's described, ebay (or an ebay partner) does the tracking which implies USPS supplies images of mail transiting through their hubs to ebay for analysis which seems pretty convoluted. Does USPS have systems in place for sending images of mail in central hubs to outside parties for other purposes?

Anyways I have had nothing but resounding success with ebay standard envelope (as a buyer) and have received probably more than a hundred, so it has saved me several hundred dollars in shipping costs. It costs less than first class, includes limited tracking, and $20 insurance. You really can't ask for a better deal. If you really need to know exactly where the package is at all times, and the exact moment when it is delivered, shell out the five bucks for First Class with tracking. You get what you pay for and all that.

I believe that the ebay tracking piggybacks off of the system for "informed delivery".

For the most part it works. I do spend a lot of time explaining it to my buyers, since ebay can't be bothered to do it themselves. I get frequent complaints about the premature delivery notices, and it is really odd that ebay can't bring itself to just explain what it actually means.

I have seen cases where items marked delivered are subsequently returned to sender as undeliverable, which is ironic and would be funny, if it didn't usually take several weeks for the item to get back to me and invariably result in an agitated customer, a refund, and an insurance claim. (giving credit where credit is due, ebay has paid every claim I've made, including cases where tracking shows delivery but the buyer insists they did not receive the item).

In my experience as a seller on ebay, tracking that's bundled with the ebay standard envelope (ESE) or other ebay-purchased postage works no differently from purchasing tracking a la carte at a PO. Tracking issues, as explained to me by my local postmaster, is with USPS's reporting system which does not always update as often as we'd like or expect it too.

For example, on Sep. 9, I shipped a package for which I purchased postage/tracking at the PO. But as of today, the 12th, there's zero tracking history. From the USPS website: "USPS doesn't yet have a status update on this item shipped from the Post Office." For comparison, certain items I shipped weeks/months ago using ebay-purchased postage are indicated "shipped" but not "delivered," though I know for a fact that my customers have received the items.

Where ebay absolutely causes confusion is when the seller purchases an ebay shipping label. The moment that purchase goes through (often instantaneous), the buyer is notified via email that the item has shipped. Completely misleading. So the buyer gets the impression that their item has been physically shipped, when in reality only a few seconds have elapsed and I'm still waiting for my printer to warm up to print the label.

The only way to give buyers an accurate impression of when their item has actually been shipped is to purchase the label at the PO (very convenient using ebay's QR codes) but of course this means having to make a trip to the PO. Or, you print the label yourself and hurry on down to the PO the same day.

So that's my experience, and the explanation of why there are issues with tracking as explained by my local postmaster.

Sorry Revenuecollector: I have to strongly disagree. Most of the time the only thing listed in the tracking is "Tracking number provided". Then I get Item delivered with no enroute information inbetween.

BIG problem is when eBay says item delivered when the item was actually NOT delivered, and if the item never arrives, if you try to make a lost in mail claim, the vendor says sorry I got proof the item was delivered because eBay tracking says so! 100% Bogus proof !!!

I still say BOGUS from start to end,

This is one of the most frustrating scenarios out there. At least FEDEX records the GPS coordinates where something is delivered. If there is a dispute FEDEX will provide the coordinates to the shipper... I once had a stamp album not show up (delivered to the wrong place). The person who got it by mistake never returned it to the proper address or to FEDEX (the low rent putz). So, I provided my GPS address to the shipper and when they checked with FEDEX, they realized it was sent to the wrong address. I got a replacement album soon after that.

John

I use it regularly and only have to explain how it works occasionally. Saves money - works as expected.

I purchase some stamps on eBay 9/12/24 I received them in Oregon on 9/17/24. As of 9/20/24 eBay tracking says Last Location: GAITHERSBURG, MD.
This happens with eBay tracking all the time.

eBay tracking posted my purchase as being delivered; it was NOT delivered. I know because I was at the mailbox when the other mail was delivered. Immediately notified the seller that eBay's BOGUS tracking was in error and the package never arrived. The seller never replied. I filed a non-receipt claim. I finally received a reply from the seller...Too bad eBay says it was delivered. I checked with the local Post Office and was told they DO NOT AND NEVER HAVE TRACKED ANY EBAY LETTERS OR PACKAGES. I contact the main District Post Office and was told the same!
I am now doing battle with the seller and eBay. So far it looks like I am going to be out 25 bucks because of eBay fraud !!!

How does this work? I am curious because credit card companies do something similar. There is no tracking number, but they can track the envelope when they send a new card.

IMHO you are making a foolish generalization, albeit on a bad experience.

Sometimes items are mailed through USPS but not always, and sometimes only partway. Often private carriers fulfill the last-mile delivery. If you use a parcel tracking website that includes private carriers, your delivery status may be captured.

I find tracking is light years ahead of what it used to be.

If you want USPS tracking pay the seller for such service in one of the several manners to get USPS tracking. The eBay special envelope is not USPS tracking..




From your statement and described actions in your several posts in his thread it is clear that you do not know the conditions and processes of this special service of eBay, not the USPS.

Similar to your thread about telling time ( http://goscf.com/t/88010 ) here is some information about this special eBay envelope:












See:https://pages.ebay.com/sell/standar...service.html for the rest of this long section.


I hope this helps you and your loss claim.

I appreciate all of the information. I did file 2 claims, one for each of the eBay lots. I waited for sellers response: Sorry eBay said it was delivered.
eBay closed the case! I got screwed.

Delivery person may have stolen it. That has happened to me twice in the past. Perhaps take it up with your local post office?

P.S.

Is a paypal case a possibility? They may realize eBay tracking isn't reliable? What about your credit card?