buyer not receiving my letters

FFHillbilly

Sold an item 30th March, I posted it inside an envelope with a hand written address and a first class stamp on the 31st .
Buyer got in touch on the 6th stating they haven't received anything
I replied on the 7th telling them to let me know if it hadn't arrived by the 12th and I'd send again if not
They replied on the 13th informing me it hadn't arrived, so I sent another set out on the 14th but this time I got proof of post at the post office when I dropped off.
today they have informed me that they still haven't received anything! something seems odd tbh
how long do I have to wait before submitting a claim with royal mail?
The items are free to me but just take my time to find and gather up and there isn't an unlimited supply of them, what's the cheapest way of sending a tracked letter?

soolin

There is no cheap way of sending a tracked letter , 2nd class signed for would be £2.65 and depending on the item cost I can’t imagine many buyers wanting to pay that. 

Assuming your buyer has confirmed the address is correct, and assuming your handwriting is clear and unambiguous then you might have met a scammer, but they are few and far between especially on low cost items. 

I have no idea how long you have to wait to claim now, I’ve been lucky and not had to claim for a while , it used to be something like 20 days from estimated delivery time. A claim can now be done online from here https://personal.help.royalmail.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/19907/~/how-do-i-submit-a-claim-for-loss%2C-damage-or-delay-to-my-item%3F

tightauldgit

When you say you 'sold an item' does it comply with the dimensions of a letter? I've been caught out like this in the past. 

If you raise a claim on the RM site it'll tell you if you have to wait exactly how long you have to wait. I think it's 10 days for 2nd class but not sure for 1st class. 

soolin

tightauldgit said:

When you say you 'sold an item' does it comply with the dimensions of a letter? I've been caught out like this in the past. 

If you raise a claim on the RM site it'll tell you if you have to wait exactly how long you have to wait. I think it's 10 days for 2nd class but not sure for 1st class. 

That’s a point, unless it was something like a sticker or thin sheet of stamps or something it might just be a case that it is delayed waiting to be surcharged. 

Spoonie_Turtle

Not that this answers your questions, but as improbable as it sounds, I bought something once from a small business that also took three attempts to actually receive - they sent a new one each time, and only the third one ever arrived.  My address was most definitely correct! 

Thankfully these were small parcels so they had reference numbers and looking those up showed they had not been delivered or attempted, but it was just bizarre, especially as we never usually had had problems with Royal Mail at that point.  I'm grateful the retailer didn't give up and just refund me, and I hope they were able to claim from RM; when I occasionally hear of similar happenings it does sound so unlikely but I know it certainly can happen.

FFHillbilly

tightauldgit said:

When you say you 'sold an item' does it comply with the dimensions of a letter? I've been caught out like this in the past. 

If you raise a claim on the RM site it'll tell you if you have to wait exactly how long you have to wait. I think it's 10 days for 2nd class but not sure for 1st class. 

defiantly within the dimensions of a letter. 3mm thick, 10g tops

looked online it's 10 working days I need to wait, and I've got no proof of value so would only receive £1.10 it's not even worth bothering with

olgadapolga

FFHillbilly said:. 

 I've got no proof of value so would only receive £1.10 it's not even worth bothering with

That's not correct, according to Royal Mail you'd be entitled to six first class stamps, providing that you had proof of posting, see screenshot below. Definitely worth bothering with, it's an online form and you upload a photo of your POP.

soolin

FFHillbilly said:

tightauldgit said:

When you say you 'sold an item' does it comply with the dimensions of a letter? I've been caught out like this in the past. 

If you raise a claim on the RM site it'll tell you if you have to wait exactly how long you have to wait. I think it's 10 days for 2nd class but not sure for 1st class. 

defiantly within the dimensions of a letter. 3mm thick, 10g tops

looked online it's 10 working days I need to wait, and I've got no proof of value so would only receive £1.10 it's not even worth bothering with

If you are a private seller then RM will pay you the item cost as proved by uploading your ebay sale page. When you do the RM form you have to indicate whether its ebay or not, and they tell you what to upload.

If you are a business seller then as you say you would need to prove item cost to you.