I sold some leggings on eBay for £13 and obtained proof of postage when I sent them. I always take good care with packing and labelling, with my “return to sender” address firmly attached.

Then the buyer opened a complaint with eBay, saying the packet had not been received.

This buyer did not follow any of the usual procedures by contacting me first and did not respond to any of my messages. I checked the feedback and there was a list of comments saying that the buyer had a habit of opening complaints about not receiving goods.

One of the sellers was fortunate to have proof that the item had been received.

With this information, I contacted eBay and had an online “chat” explaining my concerns.

Without one message from the buyer to me, eBay closed the case and took money from my account to pay the buyer.

Linda Fozard, Cheshire

You had not had the item tracked because the cost would have been disproportionate for something of so little value. The proof of posting you had acquired did not provide evidence that the article had indeed been delivered, a situation that, apparently, the buyer was quick and accomplished at exploiting.