...I'm also glad someone saw my points re: animal arrived alive being standard TOS for many shippers.
...Technically, you probably are not due anything, but I think a half-refund would be a good step for NTA, and next time, as I am pretty sure will happen, he will be a real stickler on the packaging. "Do you want paper or plastic? Fries? Shake? Heatpack or no heatpack?"
I've seen your suggestion and I understand the point but everything else aside (his lies, drama, etc.), it disregards some important matters. For places that WILL ship 2nd day the standard TOS is that live arrival is guaranteed for overnight shipping only. I haven't seen otherwise but there may be some that exist. Animals shipped overnight (with appropriate packaging) tend to be viable. For buyers that choose 2nd day there is no guarantee. Those are normal terms. So, sellers, in general, do not view animals arriving in two days as viable but he can suddenly apply overnight TOS to a 2nd day arrival? BS.
If the animal were shipped USPS and DID arrive alive overnight, we wouldn't be here with this discussion as the TOS would be fulfilled even if the courier were wrong. We may be having one just on how he'll freely change the details of the transaction, particularly shipping, and communicates poorly and deceptively, which is important for people to understand.
Now, that the animal DID arrive alive (2nd day) is mostly just a curiosity in a wait-and-see kind of situation. If it had arrived on day three or four or a week, alive, would the original TOS still apply? I think not. This is where the situation needs to be worked out and resolved through negotiation.
By all matters of hindsight, what I should have done is rejected the package since it was NOT delivered overnight, NOT delivered with the agreed upon courier and was NOT delivered to the given address (held at post office) (ignore the size and lack of heat for brevity). That would be certain demise as the package winds its way back through the system. However, in the ANIMALS best interest, accepting the package to facilitate resolution and rehab is the ETHICAL thing to do; this isn't a pair of mittens shipped from Amazon.
Second, he agreed to ship FedEx (reliable) and then ships USPS (not reliable) on his own accord. He's chosen the courier and takes full responsibility for his actions and their service. If he shipped FedEx and they blew a biscuit he could have shifted responsibility to me with 'it's your courier, deal with it'. He asked me and I provided two possibilites with one preferred; none of them were 'Joes house of leisure suits and reptile shipping' He comes back after selecting neither of them with a third.
His courier not only failed to deliver accordingly, it seems like this delay is substantially if not completely what led to the demise of this creature. He shows no intention of actually shipping FedEx, ever, besides the original exchange; that original agreement appears to be deception after all of his subsequent remarks. This is all on his side before I even have contact with the package.
Third, I notify the guy that the animal has died after a few days in my care after the ordeal in shipping. There's no follow-up, no interest, no apology, condolences, no adult response like "That's unfortunate, but considering what happened with USPS it's really not suprising. Let me talk to USPS and let's work out something amicable." All I get are wise-ass remarks and condescension. AS IF something that manages to survive two days in transit is equivalent to something delivered on time. That's immature. I've been available for negotiation both up on the original purchase offer and down on a settlement. He's taken interest in neither; his behavior is on display.
I think we're about three weeks out from the original shipment now; there was a remark he made that I've ambushed him with this thread; that is disingenuine. Others I've consulted had suggested Paypal and BOI earlier than I did; I have endeavored to communicate with him at every point.
