Item left safe, with picture proof / customer claims it was no longer there
Via DPD we shipped an item, to which they left it safe, behind a bin behind the property
this is gps and picture proofed to the correct house. the customer is claiming they havnt recieved it upon checking the location.
I have told the customer that we are investigating with dpd (which we are) but in all likelyness the customer has taken the item and is claiming its been stolen.
The customer wants a full refund rather than a replacement which again is fishy, any advise on how to handle this?
8 replies
Seller_EOmLRMFX8Oo9x
Unfortunately Amazon is likely to side with the customer as no signature has been taken. Not sure on the ruling with “safe place” with DPD but you should be able to claim from them.
Seller_e6W0DhZtXtxwt
Yes not sure how this would effect things with covid and the policy to make contactless deliveries
as its a low value item i actually think this would be under the claim value i might get from them so it does seem a case of word against word and a scam buyer
Seller_KKcTTZzy6Jd6Q
First… confirm with DPD as to whether or not the customer requested the item was left in a safe place or if they chose to do this themselves.
If the customer asked for it then as far as the law is concerned they have taken ownership of the parcel and it is now their responsibility that it is missing, if they wish to it is their responsibility to claim the value from the courier if it wasn’t delivered or to report the theft to the police.
On the other hand if they didn’t request it specifically… then it’s your responsibility until the customer actually has the item in their hands, if it was stolen from a “safe place” then it was essentially stolen from you, not from the customer, in which case DPD will probably have a process for claiming this, since it’s kinda their fault they left it in a safe place
Seller_xUKHc5xSYJmI4
Personally, I would contact the courier who you paid to deliver the order to investigate the claim because this is what you are contracted to do when a claim is made. From experience DPD are usually quite good.
At the moment most couriers do instruct the buyer to provide a signature upon delivery. I have several couriers who take a photograph of the door and sometimes me holding the parcel. They leave when I have answered the door.
If the order is left near a bin or thrown over the gate there is usually a card through the front door saying parcel at side of gate or back gate etc. It’s rare but we do get occasions where the courier has delivered to the wrong door however our neighbours know one another and are happy to collect for one another via versa.
You can usually tell when a buyer is trying it on… Our database tells which are the worst areas for claims whether this is in the UK or over seas. Paris, Berlin and London is the highest areas for claims.
These claims also come in groups when you get a claim in one area you are 100% going to get one soon after. It’s like planed purchase or cordinated activity.
Seller_lljyzgTxr5fgI
This is not the usual process for DPD. Since lockdown, DPD photograph a parcel just inside the front door once the person has answered. If nobody is available, they do try a neighbour and undergo the same process. If no success, it should be taken back to the depot.
With regards to “safe places”, the same rules apply for couriers as for Royal Mail. These specifically state that if a customer choses “safe place delivery”, they then accept responsibility for that item and neither RM or courier will be responsible for any losses, which makes sense if you think about it. So this is very much a case of whether or not the customer chose safe place delivery? I would advise Amazon of the rules regarding safe place deliveries but I am not hopeful that they will find in your favour. Good luck.
Seller_NoLYurmb006tq
Hi, as mentioned above amazon are likely to side with the customer which is crazy as most of the time the customer opts for it to be left there.
All you can do is raise a claim with the courier and they will likely get back to you if they have opted for safe place.
