A knife trade gone wrong. What to do?

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sharkattacksw

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I recently made a trade with an individual, but the USPS lost the package I was supposed to get. The sender didn’t insure it, but did send me a copy of the receipt with tracking information. When I sent my trade to them, I did the same thing: sent the receipt and tracking information. Also, I didn't insure the package I sent; so we both followed the same procedure.

I’ve made many trades and all have gone smoothly, until now. What, in your opinion, is the responsibility of the sender? On one hand, they did the same as me: dropped the package off at the post office and sent the tracking information as we agreed upon. It’s not their fault that the package got lost. However, the sender didn’t insure it. However, as I mentioned, to be fair, I didn’t insure mine either. Is this one of those things that gets chalked up to a lesson learned, for both of us?

I'm having a hard time blaming the sender for this. If I had insured mine, I could've said "You should've insured the package. I insured the one I sent to you." The person I traded with has many references, all positive, from past sales and trades. It's not like they did it on purpose, but I'm still disappointed that I didn't get my package. I've been in touch with USPS and they said to give it 7 more days before I files a missing mail search request.

Thoughts? Suggestions? Opinions?
 
You both assumed the liability of not insuring the package you shipped. You were just more fortunate than him.

Ultimately he has to return your knife or compensate you for it.

If you want to work out a compromise, to be a nice guy that's up to you.
 
sharkattacksw said:
Is this one of those things that gets chalked up to a lesson learned, for both of us?
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This. Sending things in the mail entails some risk. Sometimes, the risk materializes. Insurance is spending extra up front to offset potential risk in the future. If you choose to not pay a little up front, you risk paying (or losing) more later. That's what happened this time. Sometimes when you roll the dice, you lose.
 
jill jackson said:
The party sending is responsible for delivery. Don't insure it's a risk they take. You took the same risk , but your package made it. Don't use insurance it's on the shipper and only the shipper can purchase insurance and collect on what they ship.
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Yep, you get what you pay for or you get your money back. So in this case, you should get your trade back.
 
jill jackson said:
The party sending is responsible for delivery. Don't insure it's a risk they take. You took the same risk , but your package made it. Don't use insurance it's on the shipper and only the shipper can purchase insurance and collect on what they ship.
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This. Until an item is delivered it is the property of the sender. Any loss is on them.
 
Once I hand the package over to the PO.. How am I responsible?? I don't get this at all.. I cant control what goes on.. John
 
Give it some time and hopefully it will show up. Otherwise, if both parties are reasonable, figure out a reasonable value of the lost item and have the party that has a knife pay the other party half the agreed upon amount. That way on one has a windfall and no one is at a complete loss. If the other party is not reasonable you are screwed.
 
A little ray of hope. I have had USPS lose one of my knives once, well one coming to me. It was only going 2 states and took about a month or more, can't remember how long exactly. I ended up with it. What happened was it got stuck in a corner that no-one ever checked, after some calling around, a lady at the post office finally found it and shipped it the rest of the way. It is VERY rare, but it happens. Don't give up yet!
 
I agree with what most said here, and I'll admit I don't always insure the full amount($50 is free, and free is free), either. But you shouldn't jump the gun quite yet, we all know how usps is on bad days and more often than not the item finds its way(albeit a bit later). There's nothing wrong with trying to figure out what to do incase it truly is lost, but always hope for the best!

Well look at that, three people in a row saying the same thing, have hope. That must be a sign! Good luck.
 
Right from the rules to sell/trade here. See #3.


Traders/Trading -
  1. Be honest and provide an accurate and detailed description of the item. Forgetting to mention defects, blemishes, or other problems is not acceptable. When in doubt, be pessimistic with your descriptions.
  2. Provide as many photos as possible, in the best lighting possible. It's always nice to see what you are about to trade for. Keep in mind, gigantic photos take forever to load for some people and can be an eyesore, resizing to a reasonable size is advised
  3. If you choose not to use insurance to save money, any repercussions will fall on you (Shipper). Insurance is there to protect you, use it.
  4. Package and ship your items in such a way that they are safe to handle, will not arrived damaged, and will reach their final destination intact.
  5. Do NOT post cash value equivalents in your trade threads, if you are caught selling in a trade thread you will receive an infraction.
  6. Communication is key, honor your word. If you say you will do something, then do it. Since we are not dealing face to face, your word and integrity is all you will be judged on.
 
jmh33 said:
Once I hand the package over to the PO.. How am I responsible?? I don't get this at all.. I cant control what goes on.. John
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Unless I've seen what was packed in the box you shipped and how it was packed and adressed I call BS until it's in my hands.
If Amazon shipped you a package and you didn't receive it what would you do?
You'd bitch until they sent a replacement. And they would.
 
I’ve asked them about getting my knife back, but they’ve already sold it. I suppose I can ask them to compensate me for it, but I’d feel kind of like a jerk for asking that. It’s not their fault. I guess I just got unlucky this time.
 
Grown men pay for their mistakes, they shouldn't have to pay for other men's mistakes. That being said , I've had USPS packages deemed "lost" show up a week late.
Tracking shows them in a single destination waypoint for days then , "out for delivery "
 
Let me play Devil’s advocate. Let’s say we agree on a way to reimburse me and I get some money from them. Then, later on, my trade finally shows up. Do I then contact them and now return the funds they sent? Also, what if we cannot agree on a fair value for the trade? I think it’s worth $x, but they think it’s worth $y.

This sucks all around.
 
sharkattacksw said:
Let me play Devil’s advocate. Let’s say we agree on a way to reimburse me and I get some money from them. Then, later on, my trade finally shows up. Do I then contact them and now return the funds they sent? Also, what if we cannot agree on a fair value for the trade? I think it’s worth $x, but they think it’s worth $y.

This sucks all around.
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I strongly recommend just reversing the trade for exactly this reason. That way if the knife does eventually turn up you can simply send it back or, if you both are still amenable to the trade, re-send your end.

ETA: Missed that they sold it. That's waaaaay out of line and, frankly, makes me suspicious. I would be very, very angry.
 
sharkattacksw said:
I’ve asked them about getting my knife back, but they’ve already sold it. I suppose I can ask them to compensate me for it, but I’d feel kind of like a jerk for asking that. It’s not their fault. I guess I just got unlucky this time.
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Ummm they sold it, before you confirmed your side of the trade received ? If this happened in the forum or forum member, it's time to move to the GB&U
 
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