ATTENTION SELLERS: Serious problems with Packlink (Auctane) – Insured shipments and dodged responses
Summary: silvana-e-chicca warns about issues with Packlink PRO, eBay's official partner for international shipping. They report a delayed shipment to Denmark and inadequate responses from customer support, highlighting problems with Packlink's legal standing in Italy and ineffective insurance claims. heavenwelkin acknowledges lower shipping costs as a benefit but warns of limited coverage. idropiu and others share similar experiences, noting the decline in customer service quality. silvana-e-chicca advocates for legal protection and stresses the importance of enforcing contract rights over accepting unreliable service.
Hello everyone,
I’m writing this post to warn you about the current handling of claims by Packlink PRO, official eBay partner. If you’re thinking of trusting them for insured international shipments, be very careful.
My current experience:
Shipment made on 01/12/2025 to Denmark (insured value € 79,00).
Tracking stuck since 22/12/2025. After 30 days the package has never arrived.
Responses from support: I only receive pre-set messages (signed by "Raquel") that ignore the reality of the facts. Despite the package being clearly stuck/lost, they keep postponing the verification by another 13-15 days, using the excuse of "estimated times" even when the delay becomes a breach of contract.
What you should know before shipping with them:
Company in liquidation/Unreachable: I tried to send a formal legal notice via PEC to Auctane S.r.l. (Packlink Italy), but the address turns out to be inactive/invalid. The company has effectively closed its legal offices in Italy, making it very difficult for us sellers to enforce our rights without resorting to international procedures (ODR/Spain).
"Phantom" insurance: Despite paying for the protection service, Packlink is stonewalling, refusing to declare the shipment lost and forcing me to wait an absurd amount of time while the buyer, understandably, pushes for a refund on eBay.
Stonewalling: Customer support does not get into the substance of the case but responds with standard "copy-and-paste" replies, ignoring legal notices and formal demands for payment.
My advice: If you have valuable items, consider direct alternatives with the couriers or be prepared to fight through the ODR (Online Dispute Resolution) platform of the European Commission, which is the only tool left to force them to respond, given the lack of valid legal channels in Italy.
I have already reported the conduct to the AGCM (Antitrust) and to eBay support for "unfair commercial practice". Don’t be fooled by the convenience of the eBay integration: if there’s a problem, you’re on your own.
Has anyone here had similar experiences recently with Packlink insurance refunds? How did you get the situation resolved?
michela878
·3 months agoI'm having the same problem too. I thought I was safe since I was connected to eBay, but I'm not safe anymore. I paid for insurance for an international shipment and it's still in Italy after 20 days, besides having taken more money from me without justifying the reason.
skopa35r
·4 months agoVery disappointing experience with Packlink.
After purchasing insured shipping, the package arrived badly crushed and the contents were damaged. I provided photos of the packaging before shipment, the damaged package, the protective materials used, and the package returned by the recipient.
Initially the claim was rejected on the grounds that the item fell under restricted articles. Later, after my objection, the reason changed and the packaging was challenged.
Despite all the documentation provided, Packlink rejected the refund, placing responsibility on the sender. After sending additional evidence and requesting a review, I no longer received any response.
My impression is that, in the event of damage, getting an insured shipment recognized is much more difficult than one would expect.
heavenwelkin
·4 months agoIn the event that the item were among the permitted items
In the event that the item were found to have suitable packaging
In the event that the timelines were met
You should ALSO be able to involve the buyer, who should be cooperative and present throughout the long bureaucratic process.
They should provide photos, fill out paperwork, keep all the original packaging, and the labels.
It is already complicated enough to get compensation by dealing directly with a courier, let alone when there is a broker / reseller / shipping intermediary between the sender and the courier that applies additional clauses and restrictions.
You always have to try to prevent these situations from happening, you really have to take great care with the packaging and make them capable of surviving being thrown from the first floor of a building. 😎
I'm sorry for the inconvenience.
Best regards.
maxr1981
·4 months agoAbsolutely! It's the second time I've had serious problems with them. The first time, they returned an item that had been shipped without even trying to deliver it; this time they lost the package and sent me back someone else's package that had nothing to do with me. I opened a ticket and it mysteriously disappeared... I'm considering leaving eBay after 22 years, to use Vinted exclusively. I would never have believed that a platform like eBay could have such a drop in the services offered!
heavenwelkin
·4 months agoPacklink is not a courier but a shipping resale service to cut costs.
Problems with returns to sender and/or failed deliveries are not attributable to Packlink but to the courier.
Packlink's customer service is certainly not among the best compared to other similar services, but it has the best rates.
For most users, saving on shipping costs is what matters.
Now that they have eliminated posta1, eBay is no longer competitive in the low-price item range.
Vinted is not the solution to all problems and cannot completely replace eBay, but it offers the chance to sell certain types of items across Europe at shipping costs that eBay can only dream of.
Even selling small items is particularly competitive now that they have eliminated posta1 with shipping starting from 1.99 euros with inPost, which works decidedly well where the pickup/drop-off points seem to be chosen with greater care and attention than the fermopoint options offered on eBay.
It's a pain having to duplicate or triple listings, sometimes even quadruple them, to sell them on the marketplace.
An enormous waste of time and energy that a seller would gladly do without....
Let's hope eBay wakes up.
Best regards.
silvana-e-chicca
OP9 months agoThe risk of a BAN is something I take into account, but honestly: what value is there in staying customers of a service that doesn’t respect contracts and withholds refunds owed by law?
If, to save 7 euros, I have to accept losing 80 on the first problematic shipment, the 'savings' become an unsustainable hidden cost for a professional seller.
That’s why the argument about the BAN doesn’t hold up in the face of the law:
Exercise of a Right (Art. 61 Consumer Code): Requesting a refund after 30 days of non-delivery is not 'abuse'; it is applying the Consumer Code. A company that bans a user because they demanded compliance with the law is carrying out a harassing action.
Transport Contract (Art. 1693 Civil Code): The carrier’s liability is strict. If the parcel disappears for a month, the contract is terminated for breach. You cannot be 'punished' (with a ban) for asking for the fulfillment of a legal obligation.
The 'Modest Value': Even if I were shipping an item worth 10 euros, the principle doesn’t change. If we pay for a service, that service has to work. If we accept that Packlink or Aucland, whatever it is, can handle our money and our shipments with no accountability, we are selling off our legal protection for a few euros of discount.
On the Black List issue: if it happens, I’ll let you know. But I’d rather be on the black list for having defended my rights than on the 'white list' of those who let themselves be trampled for fear of losing a broker who, when it comes down to it, doesn’t stand behind its own mistakes.
By the way, the refund officially came from Auctane SLU through the PayPal procedure on January 5th, which shows that the system itself recognizes the legitimacy of the request. If they ban me for getting what was rightfully mine, it will just be yet another proof of their poor professional seriousness. I’ll keep you updated.
magic.cool
·9 months agoPackLink has never had a headquarters in Italy, but a subsidiary controlled by the Spanish parent company.
You probably spoke with the manager and certainly not with the owner...
Anyway, since 2024 Packlink Italia Srl has been in liquidation and so it is closed (along with other European subsidiaries that are meeting the same fate): all operations are carried out in Spain and even there they have reduced staff.
They have among the most competitive prices for the consumer market, but they have to cut somewhere... (and maybe make up extra charges with discrepancies in weights and dimensions that are NEVER documented... but that’s another story...).
silvana-e-chicca
OP9 months agoImpeccable analysis of the company situation: the fact that they are in liquidation and have centralized everything in Spain explains the deterioration of the service, but it does not justify the arbitrariness.
Regardless of who is behind a monitor in Madrid, every single shipment purchased represents a transport contract that must be honored. It is not acceptable for the 'savings' to turn into the suspension of the sender's legal rights.
In my case, I showed that the 'cutting costs' (and staff) line runs up against the law if the seller digs in. After support had told me to keep waiting again (despite the 32 days that had already passed since the pickup on December 1st), I made the following points and obtained a full refund:
Art. 61 of the Consumer Code: Once 30 days have passed from the contract without delivery (or without certain news), the consumer is entitled to terminate the contract and to a full refund of the amount paid, including shipping costs. My right had already vested on January 2.
Art. 1218 c.c. (Contractual liability): Packlink is responsible for the failure to provide the service within the promised technical timeframe. A month for a European shipment is a clear failure.
Art. 1693 c.c.: The carrier is responsible for the loss (including presumed loss due to excessive delay) of the goods from the moment it receives them.
In the end, PayPal ruled in my favor, taking the €14.30 directly from Auctane SLU on January 5.
heavenwelkin
·9 months agoThis kind of action almost certainly leads to a BAN from the ebay-packlink shipping service.
So you need to carefully weigh the pros and cons of a chargeback or PayPal dispute.
I’m paying 7 ~ 8 euros for international shipping, so the savings for me are significant compared to the 15 ~ 20 euros that another shipping broker asks me.
It’s not that common for a parcel to get lost, and the service should be used for items of modest monetary value, certainly no more than 50 ~ 100 euros.
For more expensive items, in my opinion, packlink shouldn’t even be considered.
If you can, keep us updated on the packlink situation in case they put you on a black list.
Regards.
muller021051
·9 months agoI made a domestic shipment on 17/12/2025, but from the following day in the tracking it says " in transit, checks are underway on the shipment. Contact support".
Since then, the emails to support have led to nothing, I requested a refund....let's see what happens.
idropiu
·9 months agoHi
I agree with what you wrote.....packlink has become a site, yes cheap for shipping, but in case of problems they are unreachable
I can tell you from an acquaintance that it wasn’t like this before....My friend had had a courier lose a mirror. After all the documents and after the relative days to process the refund, packlink paid for the lost mirror (shipping excluded)
Now, instead, after you open the ticket and after a few days it gets deleted
In my specific case, I wasn’t even able to get them to open an investigation
heavenwelkin
·9 months agosilvana-e-chicca
OP9 months agoI was among the first customers to use Packlink, and then switched to Packlink Pro: I still remember when there was a phone number and I even managed to speak with the owner when they were just starting out.
Today the situation is embarrassing. They do not respect the contractual terms: I have an insured package that has been lost for over 30 days and they refuse to proceed with the refund of the goods. Support has become a 'theater of the absurd': first the operator Raquel pretends to be general support and says to open a specific ticket for complaints; then, once the ticket is opened, she always replies herself (or a bot with her name) with pre-set, inconclusive messages. It seems like one of those outfits that pretend to have great customer service but are then run by very few people who do everything badly.
Moreover, from public data, the company appears to be in liquidation (as is eBay Italia srl), which says a lot about the current quality of the service. I'm already evaluating alternatives: it makes no sense to save a few cents per shipment if then, at the first problem, you are left abandoned. With just one lost shipment and no refund, all the savings accumulated over months of shipments are wiped out. Sellers, be very careful.
silvana-e-chicca
OP9 months agoI haven't given up. At the very least, I got the shipping reimbursed, which is more than fair since 30 days have passed
heavenwelkin
·9 months agoDistance selling always involves a certain amount of risk.
Risk that during the journey the item gets damaged
Risk that during the journey the item gets stolen and the delivery is made
Risk that the package doesn’t arrive at its destination (goes missing)
Risk of running into a somewhat less-than-honest buyer who wants to keep both the item and the money...
Risk that the package arrives very late and the buyer opens a dispute for item not received while keeping the item and the money.
All situations where it is almost always the seller who has to patch things up.
I ACCEPT the fact that distance selling involves risks and when faced with certain financial losses, I always try to limit the damage.
I really hope packlink doesn’t ban you because it happened to me with crono internazionale to have savings of 30 ~ 40 euros on certain international shipments.
Best regards.
silvana-e-chicca
OP9 months agoI completely understand the list of risks you’ve laid out; they’re the day-to-day reality of anyone selling online. But there’s a fundamental difference between the physiological risk (the package breaking or the dishonest buyer) and the acceptance of the total inefficiency of a service provider.
The point is not resignation, but legal protection. If I pay for insurance and a transport service, I’m not gambling at SNAI: I’m entering into a contract.
That’s why I can’t agree with resignation in this specific case:
The delay is not a matter of opinion: Between the pickup on December 1st and the delivery on January 5th, 35 days passed.
The Consumer Code (Art. 61): I’m not being 'impatient'; it’s the law that says that after 30 days without delivery I have the right to get my money back.
The refund evidence: PayPal did not side with me 'out of kindness', but because Auctane SLU (Packlink) was unable to prove delivery within the timeframe set by the dispute, so much so that the charge of €14.30 came directly from their accounts on January 5th.
On the issue of saving money and the BAN: if, to save 30 euros on a shipment, I have to accept that the courier can make my parcels disappear for a month without refunding me, then that saving is an optical illusion. If they ban me, there are dozens of other brokers. But I find it absurd that a seller should have to fear 'retaliation' (the ban) just because they demanded that the Civil Code (Art. 1218) be applied to a service that was blatantly not provided.
I’d rather run my business by enforcing the contracts I sign than hope for luck while a broker in liquidation handles my money and my goods with automatic replies. Rights are not negotiated away for a discount on shipping.
heavenwelkin
·9 months agoI have been using the packlink-ebay service since 2015 (basically since it was launched) and I have made about 300 shipments with them.
The positive thing about packlink-ebay is the shipping rates (especially international ones), so if you look at the service from the perspective of saving money on low-value items, it is a service worth considering. This month I shipped 2 items to Germany weighing about 1kg and, if I remember correctly, I paid 7.45 euros with BRT.
With another broker I would have paid AT LEAST 15 or 20 euros for each shipment.
Packlink has several restrictions and inefficiencies in case of problems with shipments (including some of the ones you listed).
Here you can find a long list of prohibited and/or restricted items that can still be shipped without any insurance coverage.
https://support.packlink.com/hc/it/articles/208328585-Articoli-proibiti-e-soggetti-a-restrizioni
So take the best from this service thanks to its shipping rates, and go elsewhere if you need more security in case of shipping problems.
Best regards.
"}sika700
·9 months agoIt is well known... nothing new.
Best regards.