I bought one on eBay from Germany over a month ago and it still hasn't arrived. The seller seems trustworthy but he says DHL didn't give him a tracking number which seems a bit weird.
Bought it for a decent price of 89 Euros (around 121 USD these days - ouch!). Seller charged 42 Euros for shipping from Germany and requested payment via wire transfer (should have been a warning perhaps but he seemed OK & had good feedback). Sent $175 USD via bank wire transfer & ate a $40 international wire fee. So out $215 all told.
That was on 3/21.
Seller says he shipped on 3/28. Says he shipped via DHL. Here's where I could use the help of anyone who's shipped to the States from Germany. DHL says he would have been given an air waybill with a reference number that can be used to track the package. Seller claims he was not given any tracking information by DHL.
So: it's been 35 days since he says it was shipped. Unless it went overland to China and then by boat, I think it should be here by now. I basically have no recourse if it doesn't show up other than negative feedback in eBay.
I still don't know if the book was lost, or if I was taken.
You need to initiate action in the seller non performance section on e-bay. They have mediators, or if necessary can take punitive remedies. I wouldn't be surprised if they could help track your package for you. At least it is better than doing nothing. You might even get your money back, since they do have insurance for this kind of thing last time I checked.
Thanks Elliot. I did open a dispute in eBay but being an international sale, and one in which PayPal wasn't used, it's just a formality. They said they would make a note on the seller's account and if too many such complaints are made, they would consider further action. But in the case of this auction, as far as eBay goes I am 100% on my own. They asked him to provide shipping date & tracking number and he provided neither one and they accepted that.
In eBay's defense, it says right on the auction page "This item is not covered by buyer protection on eBay" -- I think if I had used PayPal I would have better recourse.
The book arrived today! Number 1933, it is signed by M. Charle to Daniel, the guy I bought it from. As good as his word, the seller mailed the book on March 27. Sure took its time getting here...
Shipping from Europe can be funny. The Stochelo book I ordered from Holland last year took two MONTHS after shipment was confirmed to arrive. The mail boat from Europe only takes 5-6 days to cross the Atlantic for cryin' out loud. Sailing yachts routinely cross in less than 30 days. So who knows what that book was doing in the mean time. I'd bet bureaucracy has something to do with it.
At work, we order lots of parts from Europe, France especially. We try to use FedEx. That seems to work pretty good (2-4 days) and is reasonable from Europe to US. NOT the otherway around for some reason.
Comments
Cheers,
Josh
Here is the auction:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0106986759
Bought it for a decent price of 89 Euros (around 121 USD these days - ouch!). Seller charged 42 Euros for shipping from Germany and requested payment via wire transfer (should have been a warning perhaps but he seemed OK & had good feedback). Sent $175 USD via bank wire transfer & ate a $40 international wire fee. So out $215 all told.
That was on 3/21.
Seller says he shipped on 3/28. Says he shipped via DHL. Here's where I could use the help of anyone who's shipped to the States from Germany. DHL says he would have been given an air waybill with a reference number that can be used to track the package. Seller claims he was not given any tracking information by DHL.
So: it's been 35 days since he says it was shipped. Unless it went overland to China and then by boat, I think it should be here by now. I basically have no recourse if it doesn't show up other than negative feedback in eBay.
I still don't know if the book was lost, or if I was taken.
:?
John
In eBay's defense, it says right on the auction page "This item is not covered by buyer protection on eBay" -- I think if I had used PayPal I would have better recourse.
John
At work, we order lots of parts from Europe, France especially. We try to use FedEx. That seems to work pretty good (2-4 days) and is reasonable from Europe to US. NOT the otherway around for some reason.
Craig
-Matt
Portland, OR
Learn how to play Gypsy guitar:
http://alexsimonmusic.com/learn-gypsy-jazz-guitar/