unpaid item, buyer sent message saying he will not pay - how does it work - what do I do now

[4seasonhockey]

Hi,

I have a buyer who won an item on eBay. He sent me a message 3 days later stating that he will not buy the item.

I waited for the 4th day so I could select the "I haven't received payment option" (That option was disabled, I had to wait 4 days)

I then navigated to "Resolution Center", Selected "Haven't received payment" option and then I got a popup about a "Unpaid Item assistant". What is that ?

What do I do? I just want my eBay fees refunded and I want to relist this item ASAP.

Can someone guide me on how to do this ? Thanks,

[4seasonhockey]

Do I have to select the "The buyer and I agree to cancel a transaction." option from the "Resolution Center" page ?

[rose-dee]

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@4seasonhockey wrote:

Do I have to select the "The buyer and I agree to cancel a transaction." option from the "Resolution Center" page ?

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What you do really depends, in my view, on how (or whether) the buyer has approached you.  Generally in cases where the buyer simply disappears, with no contact at all, and doesn't pay after agreeing to purchase an item, I would initiate an Unpaid Item Dispute.  But if a buyer expresses a desire to get out of a transaction, I usually will agree.

From what you've described, it sounds as if this may be a problem buyer who simply told you he won't pay -- is that right?  You can follow through with the Unpaid Item Dispute if you wish.  Remember though to keep any comments or messages to the buyer factual and professional, because if he does end up paying, he'll be able to leave Feedback and DSRs.

However, if the buyer sounded like he wanted to get out of the transaction (with or without an excuse), and you just want to relist and move on, you might as well accede to his wishes.  There is probably no point in angering him by attempting to force payment when he's told you he can't (or won't) pay. 

I once had a buyer tell me she didn't want to pay for an item because her daughter had got into her eBay account and purchased it while she (the mother) was in hospital, and that she wanted to get out of the transaction for that reason.  Tall tale or not?  Who knows?  I decided it was best to just kiss that buyer goodbye by initiating the cancellation process -- but I did ask her to please agree to the cancellation promptly once she received the message through eBay.  That allowed me to relist the item fairly quickly.  There was really no point in trying to force payment in that situation. 

By the way, don't forget that a buyer can leave FB and DSRs even if a transaction has been cancelled.  You'll probably find most buyers who want to get out of a transaction just disappear without leaving FB, but it is a slight risk, so "friendly" is the key.

[patken123]

Do I have to select the "The buyer and I agree to cancel a transaction." option from the "Resolution Center" page ?

Bottom line?,accept mutual cancellation,be nice so you don't receive a negative/neutral FB.

[pjcdn2005]

Do I have to select the "The buyer and I agree to cancel a transaction." option from the "Resolution Center" page ?

If you want to do the mutual, that's what you select. As Rose suggested, let the customer know that they will be asked to agree to that request. Once they agree, the transaction is cancelled and you get your fees back. If they ignore the request, you can close it after 7 days and then get your fees back.

Bottom line?,accept mutual cancellation,be nice so you don't receive a negative/neutral FB.

There's really no definitive answer as its up to you. Some sellers like to always file for an unpaid item if the person doesn't pay.

[patken123]

Some sellers like to always file for an unpaid item if the person doesn't pay.

It is obvious (in this case mentioned by the OP)the buyer wants out of the deal,why stretch the conversation,unless the seller feels victimized and will want to use this opportunity to teach the buyer a lesson.

There's an adversarial  atmosphere here on ebay between buyers and sellers,deny all you want but this the way I see it after reading buyers and sellers central for the last while.

[rose-dee]

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@patken123 wrote:

It is obvious (in this case mentioned by the OP)the buyer wants out of the deal,why stretch the conversation,unless the seller feels victimized and will want to use this opportunity to teach the buyer a lesson.

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The problem is that a seller never knows for certain whether a particular non-paying buyer has legitimately fallen into difficulty and can't pay for something they purchased (in which case I would usually feel sympathetic and agree to cancel), or whether the buyer is perhaps "cherry-picking" amongst several purchases and has made a habit of purchasing and not paying, a habit which eBay does not condone. 

In that event (a truly problem buyer), opening a case may be what finally restricts that buyer from continuing his unwanted activity.  As you likely know, eBay only permits buyers to accumulate a certain number of strikes before it takes action, and no one knows what that number is.  Cancelling a transaction lets the buyer off the hook, but may mean another seller will be targeted. 

I tend to want to believe what people say, especially if they approach me in a courteous way, and I certainly don't want to force a buyer to complete a transaction if they seem honest about getting out of the purchase.  I would never refuse to cancel a transaction if a buyer asked me to cancel and gave me some reasonable explanation for not being able to pay. 

However, there's a big difference between "can't pay" and "won't pay".  The latter could be a red flag for the kind of aggressive or repeated behaviour that eBay doesn't want on their site.  Whether a particular seller wants to "out" such a buyer and perhaps prevent other sellers from having to deal with similar behaviour is a matter of intuition and personal choice. 

Also remember that if the buyer doesn't pay after an Unpaid Item Dispute is opened, then the seller not only gets his fees refunded, and is able to relist the item, but the buyer will not be able to leave FB and DSRs.  This is an important consideration for many sellers.  Cancellation doesn't prevent the buyer from leaving FB/DSRs, and if the buyer happens to have a change of heart and refuses the cancellation, the seller has a whole new set of problems to deal with. 

Negotiating this whole issue is not as simple for sellers as it may at first appear.