Royal Mail left gadget under a VAN and it was stolen

[TrueBlueTerrier]

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bil ... -CASE.html

In August I bought a Nintendo Switch games console on Ebay for £65.

It was delivered to my house by Royal Mail. Because I was out, the driver left it underneath a van (not mine) outside my house. The parcel was then stolen.

The Ebay seller doesn't want to refund me. He says he sent the item as agreed and it wasn't his fault it was stolen.

I tried to get my money back from Ebay itself under its money-back guarantee, but it says that, as the tracking information showed the package was delivered, it is not liable.

Royal Mail says it can't consider the claim unless I have a receipt for the postage - which I don't as I was the recipient, not the sender. I asked the Ebay seller but he isn't replying to my messages any more.

I'm at an impasse. What should I do? S.K

Helen Crane replies: I'm sorry to hear your Switch was swiped.

Reselling sites like Ebay, Vinted and Depop are great for getting bargains and reducing waste. But if you buy something from an individual and not a company and something goes awry, it can be much harder to get your cash back.

On the one hand, I understand the Ebay seller's lack of action, as none of this was his fault - but getting back to you about the proof of postage would be the decent thing to do.

I contacted Ebay and Royal Mail to see if there was any way you could claim your cash back for the console.


An Ebay spokesman said: 'We understand [the customer's] frustration, however incidents where items are stolen after delivery are not covered under our UK policy. We recommend buyers contact the delivery company to resolve such issues.'

Ebay also said its money back guarantee offers protection to buyers for 30 days from the estimated delivery date. You made your claim outside that time, so it would not be accepted.

I then contacted Royal Mail. It confirmed that it would need a certificate of posting (in this case, the sender's receipt) to consider a claim.

'Usually, the process is the customer will submit a claim to the sender, who will then submit a claim to us. However we will deal with the recipient if they can provide us with what we need,' a spokesperson said.

'Alternatively, if the customer can provide us with something from the seller which says they're unwilling to put in a claim to us then we can look into that.'

In cases where parcels are not stolen or lost but are damaged, recipients can use the packaging with the postmark on, according to Citizens Advice.

Royal Mail added that there are limits on compensation depending on the level of service used. In your case the parcel was sent with a standard first class post, so the maximum is £20 -far less than the £65 cost of the console.

Sadly, it seems your only option is to continue badgering that Ebay seller to either give you proof of postage, or a note saying he won't make a claim, so that Royal Mail will consider it.

Those who buy and sell online may also wish to note that using Royal Mail's Tracked 24 or Tracked 48 service - although more expensive - offers compensation up to £150 if the item is lost.