I'm not disputing how may times buyers might be trying to scam you. I'm querying your earlier post where you say you're protecting yourself by claiming compensation for parcels undelivered but not lost.
Courier computer systems aren’t very good. They don’t necessarily show all the information. At times I have parcel entering Hermes network for instance or being dropped off parcel shops via DHL or DPD and then can’t see anything in the tracking until a few days later it magically turns up as being delivered.
it only takes some glitch in the scanner or somewhere in the computer system for the tracking information to fall apart.
these people who try to game the system clearly knows there is a weakness in the tracking system and they exploit it. Obviously the courier companies will do their most to find out but if their IT system doesn’t show the item been delivered and it is somewhere in their network then, they have to resort to as a lost item. By definition that is lost. But anyway, that’s why they usually ask you to wait an unfavourably long time in hope the parcel turns up.
The instance where I was stung by this scum, I wasn’t using Hermes directly. I was going through an intermediary - probably parcel2go. They compensated me rather than Hermes as Hermes couldn’t give them any information on where the parcel was. I guess for them it was just simpler to compensate as opposed to drag things out - this is still after 3 weeks of raising the issue of non-delivery. But that instance I didn’t have full covered. I only went upto £50 for something that was £100. Foolish but took a risk as the cost of insurance with a bulk delivery was unimaginable expensive.
but before all these started (around March April 2020), never had any issues with Hermes, DHL etc. RM used to have some shady records that’s why I try to avoid them as much as possible plus they don’t have full tracking on their sign for services.