If an Amazon, Etsy, or eBay order is late, missing, damaged, or not as described, start with the order record. Save the listing and tracking history, contact the seller through the marketplace, and use the platform's buyer-protection process when it applies. A credit-card billing dispute is a separate route, so keep its deadline in view while you work through the marketplace process.
This guidance is for U.S. consumers. Marketplace rules can vary by country, payment method, order type, and account. Use the terms and deadline shown for your specific order.
Create a small evidence file
Save the information that shows what you bought, what the seller promised, and what happened:
- The listing as it appeared when you purchased, including photographs, description, measurements, condition, price, and estimated delivery date
- The order number, purchase date, seller name, shipping address, and payment method
- Tracking updates, delivery scans, return instructions, and the seller's refund policy
- Photos of damage, incorrect items, packaging, shipping labels, and missing parts
- Messages exchanged inside the marketplace
- The item and its packaging until the dispute is finished
Redact full card numbers, passwords, and unrelated personal information before uploading anything. A short timeline can also help: note when you ordered, the promised shipping or delivery date, when you contacted the seller, and the response you received.
Give the seller one clear chance to fix the problem
Most marketplace processes expect the buyer to contact the seller first. Use the order's built-in help or message function. Avoid moving the conversation to a personal email address or to a phone number supplied in an unexpected package.
You can adapt this message:
Hello, I'm contacting you about order [number], placed on [date]. The problem is [specific issue]. The listing or order confirmation stated [specific promise], but [what actually happened]. I've attached [photos, tracking information, or other evidence]. Please arrange a [refund, replacement, or return label] through the platform. Please reply here so we have an accurate record. Thank you.
Ask for a definite remedy. If the item is wrong or damaged, say whether you want a refund or replacement. If you would accept store credit, confirm the amount and expiration date before agreeing. Don't accept an open-ended delay just because the seller says the package is still coming.
Give the seller the response period required by the platform, but don't let that period make you miss a separate deadline from your credit-card issuer or payment service.
When an order is late or never arrives
Compare the seller's promised shipping or delivery time with the tracking history. The FTC's prompt delivery rules may apply when an online seller doesn't ship within the time it advertised. If no shipping time was given, an applicable default period may control. When a seller can't meet its commitment, the rules generally require a delay notice and an opportunity to cancel for a prompt refund. The details depend on the order and the type of delay.
Take these steps:
- Ask the seller for a specific shipping or delivery update.
- Check that the tracking number belongs to your order and that the order shows the correct address.
- If you no longer want the item, clearly request cancellation and a refund.
- If the seller doesn't resolve the problem, open the marketplace's item-not-received process.
- If tracking says delivered but you don't have the package, check the address, household members, building staff, neighbors, and carrier instructions before reporting those facts to the platform.
A delivery scan is useful evidence, but it doesn't answer every question. Include the address shown on the order and any carrier information that supports your report.
Amazon: check the A-to-z instructions on your order
Amazon's A-to-z Guarantee is a marketplace policy, not an automatic refund for every complaint. Contact the seller through the Amazon order and keep the conversation in your records.
The linked A-to-z Guarantee criteria include conditions such as contacting the marketplace seller for more than 48 hours without a satisfactory resolution. The page also refers to delivery timing and order eligibility. For non-delivery, it lists waiting until three days after the latest estimated delivery date or a delivery confirmation, whichever is sooner, and refers to a last possible delivery date of 90 days or less.
That link is an Amazon France page, not a U.S.-specific page. Don't assume its timing applies to your U.S. order. Open the order and use the A-to-z instructions displayed in your Amazon account.
Have these records ready if Amazon allows you to submit a claim:
- The promised delivery date and actual tracking history
- Your messages to the seller and the seller's response
- Photos showing damage or a mismatch
- The exact difference between the listing and the item received
- Return-shipment information, if you sent the item back
Follow the deadline shown on the claim or order page. Keep your explanation consistent, and don't move the dispute to an outside payment link supplied by the seller.
Etsy: send a Help with order request
On Etsy, start from the order page and send the seller a Help with order request. Etsy's case-opening instructions say that, for an eligible order, at least seven days must have passed since purchase and 48 hours must have passed since the Help with order request. Your location, currency, and the order's eligibility can change the options shown in your account.
If Etsy lets you open a case, include:
- A screenshot or copy of the listing from the time of purchase
- Photos of the item and packaging
- Tracking information
- A precise description of the missing, damaged, or incorrect part
- The outcome you want
Etsy's help materials state that if Etsy determines the item doesn't match its listing, the seller must refund. That statement applies to Etsy's determination in an eligible case; it isn't an automatic result for every complaint.
Keep the conversation in Etsy Messages. If the seller asks you to close a case before the refund appears, read the case instructions first. Save the refund confirmation and check that the money reaches the expected payment method.
eBay: watch the Money Back Guarantee window
For an eligible transaction, use the eBay order page to report an item that wasn't received or doesn't match the listing. The eBay Money Back Guarantee policy has exclusions and condition-specific requirements.
The policy describes a reporting window of 30 calendar days after the estimated or actual delivery or collection date has passed, depending on the issue. Check the deadline for your transaction rather than assuming every eBay purchase follows the same timetable. Some transactions also have specific evidence requirements, including signature confirmation for certain orders costing $750 or more.
If eBay requires a return:
- Use the return address and shipping method provided through eBay.
- Photograph the item and package before shipping.
- Use tracking and keep the receipt.
- Don't send the package to a different address supplied only in a private message.
- Upload the return tracking promptly when eBay requests it.
Keep the original listing, return instructions, and tracking receipt together. They can matter if the seller says the wrong item was returned or that the return was not shipped.
A credit-card dispute is a separate route
If you paid by credit card and never received the goods, the charge may qualify as a billing error. The FTC's billing-error guidance says to dispute the error in writing within 60 days of the date the first statement containing the error was sent.
For the written dispute:
- Send it to the card issuer's billing-dispute address. That address may be different from the payment address.
- Identify the transaction, amount, and problem.
- Describe the steps you took with the seller or marketplace.
- Include copies of the order confirmation, messages, tracking, and refund request.
- Keep proof of when the issuer received the letter.
- Pay the undisputed part of the statement on time.
The issuer generally must acknowledge the dispute in writing within 30 days unless the issue has already been resolved. It must resolve the dispute within two billing cycles, and no more than 90 days, after receiving the letter. During the investigation, the FTC says you don't have to pay the disputed amount or related finance and other charges.
That 60-day written billing-error rule applies to credit-card billing disputes. Don't assume the same deadline applies to a debit card, ACH transfer, prepaid account, wire transfer, or payment app. Those services can have different agreements and procedures, so contact the provider promptly and follow its instructions.
Describe the facts accurately to both providers. If a marketplace refund resolves the matter, tell the card issuer. Don't seek or accept a double refund.
If an unordered product arrives
An item that arrives without an order is different from a delayed purchase. Check your marketplace accounts, household purchases, gifts, subscriptions, and the shipping label before deciding what happened. Don't enter payment details or scan a QR code from an unexpected package.
Preserve the label and packaging. Report suspicious activity through the marketplace's official support page, and contact your payment provider promptly if a charge appears.
What a seller policy or tracking scan does not settle
Keep these distinctions in mind:
- A no-return policy may address an ordinary change-of-mind return. It doesn't automatically decide a non-delivery or not-as-described dispute.
- A marketplace guarantee is a platform process. It isn't the same as a credit-card billing-error right.
- A tracking scan is evidence, but it may not show whether the package went to the address on the order or whether the contents matched the listing.
- The promised delivery date, estimated delivery date, and marketplace case deadline may be different dates.
- A replacement offer doesn't automatically document or resolve the original problem. Confirm the replacement, return, and shipping terms before accepting it.
Keep the complaint factual. Don't threaten a review, alter photographs, claim non-delivery when the item arrived, or send payment outside the marketplace to speed up a refund.
If the first decision goes against you
Read the reason for the denial before appealing, then match it to a record:
- If the platform says the item was delivered, provide the order address, tracking details, and relevant carrier information.
- If it says the item matched the listing, show the saved listing and side-by-side photographs.
- If it says the claim was late, check whether the deadline was calculated from purchase, estimated delivery, actual delivery, or the decision date.
- If a return was required, provide the platform return label and tracking receipt.
Appeal through the official account page and save the confirmation number. The eBay policy provides a 30-calendar-day appeal period after a decision. Amazon and Etsy may show different instructions, so follow the deadline attached to the specific case.
If the charge was unauthorized rather than merely disputed, contact the card or payment provider immediately and secure the marketplace account. Change the password, enable multifactor authentication, and remove unfamiliar payment methods.
These are general U.S. consumer steps, not legal advice. Cross-border orders may be governed by different marketplace terms, payment-provider agreements, and local rules.
Open the order page, save the listing and delivery promise, and send one concise message through the platform. If you paid by credit card, also note the date of the first statement containing the charge so the 60-day dispute period doesn't pass while you wait for a response.