For a dropshipped order that is late, missing, damaged, or unlike its listing, contact the seller named in your order confirmation first. Ask for one clear outcome: current shipping information, cancellation and a refund, a replacement, or return instructions.
The supplier may explain the delay. It usually doesn't determine your complaint route.
Write down four facts before you escalate: what the seller promised, what happened, how you paid, and where you bought the item. This is general information for U.S. consumers, not legal advice.
Identify what went wrong
Name the failure first. "Late" and "not as described" require different records.
| Problem | First request | Why keep the record |
|---|---|---|
| The order has not shipped or is late | Ask for the actual shipping status, a firm ship date, or cancellation and a refund | The seller's shipping promise may matter under the FTC rule |
| Tracking stopped moving | Ask the seller to investigate with the carrier and explain the next step | Carrier scans can help show what happened |
| Tracking says delivered, but you do not have the package | Report the nonreceipt to the seller and carrier, then save both responses | A marketplace or payment provider may weigh delivery evidence |
| The item is damaged, wrong, or not as described | Send photos and request a replacement, refund, or return instructions | The listing and the item's condition become central |
| The seller stopped responding | Send one clear written request and keep it | It shows that you tried to resolve the issue directly |
What the FTC shipping rule actually covers
The federal Mail, Internet, or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule generally requires a seller to ship within the time it represented. When no shipping time was given, the rule generally uses 30 days as the default.
That is a shipment deadline, not an automatic promise of delivery within 30 days.
If the seller cannot meet its promised shipping time, it generally must notify you and give you a way to cancel for a prompt refund. A revised date can bring extra notice requirements, especially when it is more than 30 days later than the applicable original time or the seller cannot provide a definite revised date. The FTC business guide describes those notice and refund steps.
The rule does not resolve every dispute about quality, authenticity, or a store's voluntary return policy. A supplier's message that it is behind also does not replace the seller's responsibility to explain what happens to your order.
Save the checkout page, confirmation email, and shipping promise together. Do it early.
Send a complaint the seller can act on
Give the seller a request it can answer. Keep the first message short, include the order number, and name the result you want.
- Save the promise. Keep the product listing, price, stated shipping time, estimated delivery date, confirmation email, and tracking page.
- Describe the failure. Say whether the seller never shipped, the order is delayed or lost, the package is damaged, the item is wrong, or it materially differs from the listing.
- Name the remedy. Choose cancellation and a refund, a replacement, or return instructions. One specific request makes the next reply easier to evaluate.
- Keep one complete record. Use email or the seller's support form. Save the full conversation, not just the final reply.
- Watch outside deadlines. Give the seller a reasonable chance to respond, but don't let repeated messages run past a marketplace or card-dispute deadline.
Dates blur quickly. Put the emails, carrier scans, promised refund, and silent week into one simple timeline.
Build a compact evidence packet
Turns out, a tidy file often does more work than a long explanation. Keep copies of:
- The product page, seller name, order confirmation, and promised shipping or delivery information
- Your receipt and the relevant payment-card statement
- Seller emails, support tickets, chat transcripts, and any promise to refund or replace
- Tracking details, carrier scans, delivery photographs, and a nonreceipt report if available
- Photos of the item, packaging, shipping label, damage, wrong model, or differences from the listing
- Return instructions, postage receipts, return tracking, and confirmation that the seller received a return
Listings disappear. Tracking pages change. Support chats can be hard to export. Screenshot important material early.
Your payment method sets the next route
Your payment route determines the next escalation. A seller refund request and a payment dispute are separate tracks, so keep an eye on both.
| Payment route | What controls the issue | Practical next move |
|---|---|---|
| Credit card | The federal credit-card billing-error process may apply | Follow the issuer's written dispute procedure and include your order evidence |
| eBay checkout | eBay's Money Back Guarantee and any applicable payment rules | Open the marketplace issue within its stated window and keep the case record |
| Debit, prepaid card, bank transfer, or payment wallet | The provider's own terms and applicable law | Contact the provider promptly and ask which nonreceipt or billing-error process applies |
| Direct purchase from a standalone online store | The seller's shipping, refund, and return terms, plus any applicable consumer rules | Contact the merchant shown on your receipt before escalating through your payment provider |
The supplier's identity does not set a credit-card or marketplace deadline. The payment route does.
If you paid by credit card
Federal credit-card billing-error rules may cover merchandise you never received. The FTC says that this type of error should generally be disputed in writing within 60 days of the first statement showing the error.
That clock matters. Keep watching it while the seller responds.
The issuer must generally acknowledge the dispute within 30 days unless it has already resolved the problem. It must resolve the investigation within two billing cycles, with a maximum of 90 days. During the investigation, the FTC says you don't have to pay the disputed amount or related finance and other charges.
Follow the issuer's required method carefully. An online form, secure message, or mailed letter may have different documentation requirements.
To be honest, a chargeback is not an instant refund. The issuer reviews the dispute and the records you provide.
These FTC timelines concern credit-card billing errors. Don't assume the same 60-day rule applies to a debit card, prepaid card, bank transfer, or payment wallet. Some issuers may extend the period when a shipment is delayed, but don't wait for an extension.
Marketplace deadlines are separate
For an eBay purchase, the eBay Money Back Guarantee policy is a marketplace process. It is separate from the federal shipping rule and from a credit-card dispute.
The deadline depends on the transaction and may be tied to the estimated or actual delivery or collection date. A buyer or seller may appeal an eBay decision within 30 calendar days of that decision.
Keep the listing, seller messages, tracking, photographs, and return records inside the eBay case. Check the policy and the case page for the window that applies to your transaction.
Opening an eBay case may not pause a payment-provider deadline. Check both clocks.
For a standalone online store, identify the merchant shown on the confirmation or receipt. A checkout platform's logo is not a substitute for the seller's contact information.
If the seller or payment company still fails
A CFPB complaint is aimed at a covered financial company, not an ordinary merchandise seller. The CFPB complaint process accepts complaints about products such as credit cards.
Companies generally respond within 15 days. You can review the response and provide feedback within 60 days.
This route may help if a card issuer mishandles your billing dispute or fails to explain its decision. It does not replace the seller complaint, an eBay case, or the payment provider's own dispute process.
Keep the escalation focused. State the transaction date and amount, explain the problem and what you already tried, then request the resolution you want.
Avoid weakening your own complaint
Phone calls leave a thin record. If you speak with support, send a short follow-up email confirming what was said.
A tracking number does not settle every question. Ask whether the carrier actually received the package, and preserve the scan history.
Don't send an item back without clear instructions. If the seller agrees to a return, keep the receipt and tracking information.
Thing is, a supplier's excuse can explain the delay without resolving your complaint. The seller named on the order still needs to give you a clear outcome.
To be honest, don't close a payment dispute merely because the seller says a refund is coming. Check that the money has posted.
Take the next step today
Open the order confirmation now and save the listing, shipping promise, and seller details. Send the concise written complaint, then mark any card or marketplace deadline on your calendar.
Start with the seller named on the receipt. If that fails, use the dispute route tied to how you paid.