It's now past 35 days since I placed the order (Hannants deadline). I've just filed my first PayPal dispute for non-delivery. Any advice?

1. Contact Hannants directly. I'm sure you're not the first person to have had your parcel lost by the postal services. I'd expect they will resolve it quicker than Paypal. It's not like Hannants took your money and deliberately didn't send you the order...

2. Be patient, In my experience Paypal rarely side with the vendor but there is a process to go though and that takes time.



Cheers

Calum

http://a4alley.t35.com/

Sorry you misunderstood, but I have emailed Hannants several times prior to taking this step. The July 13th deadline was per their request. The order was mailed on June 6th (airmail), but no tracking number is available. I received a seperate decal order that came from another vendor in Ireland (made on the same day) roughly a week later. It's hardly my first overseas order. It normally does not take this long for an order to go from the UK to CT.

It finally arrived after it had been replaced by the seller.

orders from Hannants have been delayed by US customs for anywhere from 2 to 4 weeks. All shipped small packet air. Another from 3D-Kits was routed by HM post to Australia where it eventually found its way to the USA.

Where are you located? US. Well it may come by slow boat.

Brett's rule is contact the seller. Last resort is a rant on HS.



There is no such thing as an unbuildable kit, just some kits one may consider not worth building.

Ive realized that most people ... tend not to be direct when they feel something is shoddy because they want to be liked, "which is actually a vain trait".
[Walter Isaacson's (author of Steve Jobs) recounting of his interview with Jony Ive, Chief Designer at Apple @ page p. 461]



BUY THIS BOOK
http://tinyurl.com/Ididntseeitcoming

I've already contacted both Hannants and PayPal as I've mentioned previously. This was a update to a post I made a couple of weeks back. Again asking for helpful advice. From what I've seen on various modeling forums this is not the first time this problem has been reported. PayPal gives only a 45 day window to resolve a dispute. After that no refund is possible. If Hannants routinely offered a tracking number on orders, problems like this could be avoided. Yes, I have made calls to Customs offices based on tracking number information. Shipping delays are usually due to missing information on Customs forms and can be corrected over the phone.

Did Hannant ever respond?

If you filed timely with paypal, then it would appear you are not at a loss.

Accidents happen. that's why they are called accidents.



There is no such thing as an unbuildable kit, just some kits one may consider not worth building.

Ive realized that most people ... tend not to be direct when they feel something is shoddy because they want to be liked, "which is actually a vain trait".
[Walter Isaacson's (author of Steve Jobs) recounting of his interview with Jony Ive, Chief Designer at Apple @ page p. 461]



BUY THIS BOOK
http://tinyurl.com/Ididntseeitcoming

I'm not sure where asking for useful advice qualifies as a rant. I have no issue with you. Please re-read my original posts. I have contacted Hannants via email several times during this. I have never opened a PayPal dispute with any vendor prior to this. That was done today. 35 days after the order was placed. I've ordered from other companies & individuals in Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Canada, etc. without major incident. I have traced back packages stuck in Customs offices in NY and AK using supplied tracking numbers. Called them and found that the only reason a package was being held was due to an incomplete form. I've then either called or emailed the vendor asking them for the missing information and then relayed it to Customs. Which usually clears up the problem and I receive the package within a week. If either you or Brett feel that I have somehow violated forum rules by asking people's advice in this matter, please have me removed from this forum.

Sure it is expensive but at what cost is your piece of mind? I've never chosen that option myself due to the cost and that postage between the UK and Australia has never let me down so far. Touch wood!

I hope everything gets sorted out for you as soon as possible.

Tim

I thought that Hannants offer Recorded Delivery that requires a signature on delivery and isn't a tracking per se.

a year from a London bookshop and a N of London hobby shop. ALL arrive within 5-10 days via cheapest 'fast' post. Never surface/slow boat. And it's been that way for many yrs. Zero lost. Zero damaged. Thank you Royal Mail and US Post! How much of that 5-10 days is spent sitting in US Customs, I don't know. Those UK pkgs are seldom sent via trackable post.

Have never ordered from Hannants tho.

My WNW pkgs from NZ usually get to LAX in 2-3 days (thank you NZ Post!) and they usually sit in LAX Customs, awaiting release, for 2-4 days. Never wks! Some of the four day waits may have been due to a weekend arrival. Does US Customs postal pkg inspection work Sat/Sun?

Pretty much the same story for many pkgs/yr sent by Japanese onlines, but those usually only spend 1-3 days going thru US Customs!

Just lucky I guess. Perhaps my name is on a list for quick, no hassle, spl service! I am a very nice guy after all!

My postman, for ten yrs, also hides pkgs, out of sight, behind the ft porch bench if he doesn't catch me at home. Not that he really has to. Little foot traffic out ft, no crime in the area, a sign on the ft gate to keep cold callers/salemen/church people away, etc.

I share your experience.

And when there is a problem it is usually resolved. If not, I call my Credit card and tell them order never arrived, charge removed.

So far the worst thing in the past 12 months was that I did not receive a set of decals from Radu Brinzan. Emailed him, he sent a replacement. Good service and didn't need to rant on HS to get a resolution. As far as I know the missing set is in a container at the bottom of the Atlantic.





There is no such thing as an unbuildable kit, just some kits one may consider not worth building.

Ive realized that most people ... tend not to be direct when they feel something is shoddy because they want to be liked, "which is actually a vain trait".
[Walter Isaacson's (author of Steve Jobs) recounting of his interview with Jony Ive, Chief Designer at Apple @ page p. 461]



BUY THIS BOOK
http://tinyurl.com/Ididntseeitcoming

Let me explain first: I live in Brazil and since the 80's I usually made Orders from Hannants and I never lost any one. Sometimes the Mail is slow and sometimes the Brazilian Mail (EBCT) has such level of bureaucracy that modelers think they will never recovery the goods ! and then the package arrives.
Long ago When to make Orders You had to use Fax and payment was by Money Orders in some Bank, with very high taxes, I bought from Hannants one Monogram, 1/48, F-14 Tomcat,and Months later I received the package very screwed up, because it was sent by the Mail to Panama ! And I live in Paraná, Brazil.
Good Luck.
BR

You've done everything you can it will sort itself out...

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Hannant's has got excellent customer service. Enquiries are handled promptly and staff are quite accomodating. They have my highest recommendation.

Always, always contact the vendor directly before anything else. Sometimes they can address and resolve the issue.