Community Stories

Patience or panic - ebay purchase from Italy

DrmexicoII
Posts
643
Likes
980
Anyone got any experience with ebay purchases from Italy posting to the UK? I bought a vintage Casio at the beginning of September, the seller posted it via Poste Italiane and it's yet to arrive. From the tracking number provided I can get the following information from Royal Mail:

Tue 5th Sep - Item received at "Italy"
Fri 8th Sep - Item Leaving overseas "Italy"

and that's it! I've messaged the seller and he's said he can see the following his side:

05/09/2023 <a>15.12<;/a> Accepted by the Post Office CAPACI Post Office in [location removed]
05/09/2023 <a>19.12<;/a> In progress at the Post Office CAPACI Post Office in [location removed]
06/09/2023 <a>15.13<;/a> In progress at the Postal Operations Center PALERMO PA
07/09/2023 <a>11.10<;/a> In progress at the Postal Operations Center PALERMO PA
08/09/2023 <a>03.05<;/a> In progress at the International Exchange Center International Exchange Center
08/09/2023 <a>11.38<;/a> departed from the international exchange center International Exchange Center

So both systems say it's "departed" or "left" Italy, and reassuringly on the same day, but not that it's arrived in the UK. Did it go in a kayak?!

I'm thinking it's probably stuck in post Brexit customs in the UK somewhere and I just need to be patient. But I kind of expected it to be tracked to the UK and then see it stuck in some sort of processing / customs facility. The fact it's kind of disappeared between two countries I find a bit disconcerting.

Anyone had any similar experience that can put my mind at rest?
 
140dave
Posts
1,976
Likes
9,455
I have not had Italy-specific experience but have had similar import situations. IMO - patience for 29days but if it has not arrived file as not received on day 29 for self-protection per ebay policies.
 
mario_8778
Posts
1,008
Likes
1,622
You have to be patient!
I have sold some items to Italy and at the time of pandemic there was a big mess with Italian post!
It made like two months for the items to arrive at destination and thankfully the buyers did not file any report or item not received on ebay and they got their items and I got my money!
Very stressful situation from both parts but as a seller on ebay myself,once you ship your package it's nothing we can do about it!
If the seller has good reviews,you will get your item!
So be patient!
 
mario_8778
Posts
1,008
Likes
1,622
Also you can contact your post office or the customs and ask about your package!!
There are many options via the internet to contact them and hopefully them can give a solution!
 
Donn Chambers
Posts
2,702
Likes
3,599
Handoffs between different countries’ post offices fell apart during the pandemic and got worse since then. All you can do now is wait and pray.

I only send parcels via fedex overseas now.
 
Bernhard J
Posts
632
Likes
2,134
I experience the same the other way around (UK > Germany). The tracking ends a month ago saying that the item is leaving UK. Nothing thereafter. In the meanwhile the auction house has cancelled the sale.

Perhaps your and my item are "stuck" somewhere in customs, due to unclear declaration documents. Properly declared, customs clearance typically takes a few days only.
 
filfb22
Posts
97
Likes
94
Hi there, I had the same experience on the other way (from the UK to Italy).

The package should have left Italy or it going to left Italy soon. When they say departed the real meaning is "item in a closed bag bound to leave".

Maybe check with RM if they have received it (?). They might have a lot of backlog, the custom declaration wasn't filled properly or they have changed the tracking number to a UK internal one.
 
Spruce
Posts
8,627
Likes
71,310
I recently received a watch from Italy. Initially the carrier returned it to sender but, once that had been resolved, he reposted it and it arrived within two weeks. Much faster than shipping from the USA, which takes f o r e v e r
 
Omegafanman
Posts
4,698
Likes
17,795
You are protected and can make a claim from eBay if it is held up in customs (most likely) if the watch still arrives you can keep it, but I think the honest thing is to still pay the person. I got a refund for a late delivery but it did turn up in the end and I then paid them. It is not the shippers fault if all the politicians and bureaucrats earning the big bucks can’t make the world work better.
 
DrmexicoII
Posts
643
Likes
980
Thanks for the replies everyone. Just to be clear the seller has responded to my initial query to see if he had any further details (as posted above). I don't blame the seller, it's clear he posted it and has responded to my messages promptly. I guess it's stuck somewhere and I need to be patient. I will wait 30 days as suggested above, and possibly see if my local Post Office can find any further info in their systems. It's not a high value item (EUR 35) so it's low risk... but I would really like the watch!

It's a soccer timer, bought so I can answer the inevitable question from other parents of "how long is left?" when watching my son's football matches. Sounds like a good a reason as any to justify the purchase of another watch 😁

s-l1600.jpg
 
Matty01
Posts
1,925
Likes
4,958
I sent a postcard from Florence to my fam in Oz when I was on a work trip a few years ago
I sent it a fortnight before I was due back in Oz
I beat it home by a fortnight
 
theycallmeSerg
Posts
50
Likes
83
Hey I had the same delays recently when dealing with customs between Italy and foreign countries. If the carrier is a courier such as DHL, UPS etc. it's generally easier and faster for the item to go through. On the other hand with local postal services such as Poste Italiane it takes a while. I can suggest you trying a global tracking site like https://parcelsapp.com because from time to time it can detect more infos (e.g. from Universal Postal Union) about your parcel's trip.
P.S. Bonus information: Italian customs sometimes use a wrongly alarming message in their tracking such as "Segnalati problemi durante la verifica per lo svincolo della spedizione. Dichiarazione necessaria allo svincolo mancante" which stands for "Issues reported during the sorting of the shipment. Missing needed declaration". This is just a wrong message that gets prompted and nothing needs to be done to clear customs, just wait. 😉

upload_2023-9-27_14-5-59.png
 
DrmexicoII
Posts
643
Likes
980
theycallmeSerg theycallmeSerg
Hey I had the same delays recently when dealing with customs between Italy and foreign countries. If the carrier is a courier such as DHL, UPS etc. it's generally easier and faster for the item to go through. On the other hand with local postal services such as Poste Italiane it takes a while. I can suggest you trying a global tracking site like https://parcelsapp.com because from time to time it can detect more infos (e.g. from Universal Postal Union) about your parcel's trip.
P.S. Bonus information: Italian customs sometimes use a wrongly alarming message in their tracking such as "Segnalati problemi durante la verifica per lo svincolo della spedizione. Dichiarazione necessaria allo svincolo mancante" which stands for "Issues reported during the sorting of the shipment. Missing needed declaration". This is just a wrong message that gets prompted and nothing needs to be done to clear customs, just wait. 😉

upload_2023-9-27_14-5-59.png

Cheers for this - that parcelsapp.com site is brilliant 👍
 
Fallout Boy
Posts
2,928
Likes
6,103
SEIKO Germany France via TRANSIT !! Australia 😁😁😁 (but arrived - 4 weeks later)

good luck!

dhl-irrsinn-1.jpg
 
K
Posts
50
Likes
49
DrmexicoII DrmexicoII
Anyone got any experience with ebay purchases from Italy posting to the UK? I bought a vintage Casio at the beginning of September, the seller posted it via Poste Italiane and it's yet to arrive. From the tracking number provided I can get the following information from Royal Mail:

Tue 5th Sep - Item received at "Italy"
Fri 8th Sep - Item Leaving overseas "Italy"

and that's it! I've messaged the seller and he's said he can see the following his side:

05/09/2023 <a>15.12<;/a> Accepted by the Post Office CAPACI Post Office in [location removed]
05/09/2023 <a>19.12<;/a> In progress at the Post Office CAPACI Post Office in [location removed]
06/09/2023 <a>15.13<;/a> In progress at the Postal Operations Center PALERMO PA
07/09/2023 <a>11.10<;/a> In progress at the Postal Operations Center PALERMO PA
08/09/2023 <a>03.05<;/a> In progress at the International Exchange Center International Exchange Center
08/09/2023 <a>11.38<;/a> departed from the international exchange center International Exchange Center

So both systems say it's "departed" or "left" Italy, and reassuringly on the same day, but not that it's arrived in the UK. Did it go in a kayak?!

I'm thinking it's probably stuck in post Brexit customs in the UK somewhere and I just need to be patient. But I kind of expected it to be tracked to the UK and then see it stuck in some sort of processing / customs facility. The fact it's kind of disappeared between two countries I find a bit disconcerting.

Anyone had any similar experience that can put my mind at rest?

I ordered a watch from Germany once and it seemed to be in customs on their side for an eternity. It eventually cleared (as I hope yours does soon) and everything was good. There were some anxious moments for sure.
 
Pastorbottle
Posts
2,781
Likes
4,693
DrmexicoII DrmexicoII
Thanks for the replies everyone. Just to be clear the seller has responded to my initial query to see if he had any further details (as posted above). I don't blame the seller, it's clear he posted it and has responded to my messages promptly. I guess it's stuck somewhere and I need to be patient. I will wait 30 days as suggested above, and possibly see if my local Post Office can find any further info in their systems. It's not a high value item (EUR 35) so it's low risk... but I would really like the watch!

It's a soccer timer, bought so I can answer the inevitable question from other parents of "how long is left?" when watching my son's football matches. Sounds like a good a reason as any to justify the purchase of another watch 😁

s-l1600.jpg
A soccer timer eh?………..now a real useful complication would be a postal timer 😁
 
gatorcpa
Posts
13,309
Likes
18,419
Pastorbottle Pastorbottle
A soccer timer eh?………..now a real useful complication would be a postal timer 😁
They have such things:

upload_2023-9-27_19-37-47.jpeg


😁
gatorcpa
 
Sign up or log in to reply...

Similar threads

pIoNeErOfThEnILe

my latest ebay purchase story

pIoNeErOfThEnILe Other Watch Brands Forum
pIoNeErOfThEnILe
pIoNeErOfThEnILe
Posts
14
Views
2K
georgeszaslavsky

Another ebay purchase of a Zenith rarity last Thursday, the Respirator ref 6680 from 1969

georgeszaslavsky Zenith Watches
georgeszaslavsky
georgeszaslavsky
Posts
14
Views
3K
WhatYourWatchSay

PayPal protections for a non-ebay purchase?

WhatYourWatchSay Open Discussion
Vercingetorix
Vercingetorix
Posts
34
Views
3K
Gaz6263

eBay purchase. Am I complaining unnecessarily? One year update.

Gaz6263 Open Discussion
BobXX
BobXX
Posts
28
Views
3K
Waynepjr

If you are planning a purchase from Italy, be aware....

Waynepjr Open Discussion
CTS-V
CTS-V
Posts
37
Views
4K