Buyer opened an INAD for color...what to do?

[beach-brain23]

Hello...I recently sold a designer handbag that is that weird color between beige/gray/taupe.  I listed the item using accurate photos which the buyer said looked like off white on her phone.  In item details was listed as grey/gray neutral/taupe.  She claims the item "I was expecting a beige off-white color, I received a grey bag".  I spoke to an agent that told me that color is not a valid reason for return and the case would be found in my favor as a buyer remorse claim.  I then spoke to another agent who said something about a return shipping subsidy which I asked why I would need since former agent said it would be decided as a buyer remorse.  I have a funny feeling I'm screwed and should just accept the return after reading about ebay's policies now.  Is this what I should do, or should I wait until the case is decided by ebay?

[beach-brain23]

H

Here is the photo of the bag in question...

[marnotom!]

I'd accept the return.  It's very difficult to successfully fight an INAD claim and since you don't accept returns, an eBay decision would likely be that the buyer receives a refund without having to return the bag.

The first agent you spoke with was either unaware that this was an INAD claim rather than a return or else they were talking out of their backside.

Since your "no returns" policy only covers remorse returns, I suggest you change that as you'll get more options when dealing with situations like this in the future.

For what it's worth, the bag looks the colour of dusty Fiberglas insulation on my laptop and phone.

[beach-brain23]

I don't think dusty fiberglass insulation is a color, though...lol  

[pjcdn2005 · Accepted solution]

Do you have the option of accepting or denying the return? If so, then it is a buyers remorse return and you can deny it since you do not accept returns. Or you can accept it and it is up to you whether you or the buyer pay return shipping.  If you do deny it, the buyer may just decide to keep it or they may file a payment dispute with their payment provider later on.  Those can be difficult to win. 

If you don't  see the option of denying it then you really do not have a choice.  You will have to send a return label  and accept the return OR refund without a return.  Either way, I would probably accept the return. 

Taupe can be a tough color to photograph and since colors show differently on different monitors, on my iPad the bag looks to be a light beige color with 'maybe' a bit of gray..  Your listing title and description support that.  In both areas you say that the bag is beige/taupe.   In the item details you state it is neutral/gray taupe. Since  you gave conflicting details, I do think that you need to take some of the blame, accept the return and pay for return shipping.

i do think that taupe is technically in the grey spectrum but a lot of manufacturers use it to describe a beige gray too so you need t be really specific when describing it.  

[flipistics]

I'd suggest accepting the return and providing a label.  As far as I know, the entire process is automated so if you don't eBay will force the refund, the buyer will keep the item, and you'll get a ding on your account. You MIGHT be able challenge it successfully after this has all happened, but there's no guarantee they'd find in your favour.

When you get it back and verify that it's the same item you sent out, you can report the buyer to eBay if you wish. Colour is something subjective enough that it probably just goes down to being unfortunate rather than the buyer acting in bad faith.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

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@beach-brain23 wrote:

I don't think dusty fiberglass insulation is a color, though...lol  

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If you have the inventory you could try to get buyer to buy the matching ensemble off you to match "fibreglass insulation color" purse. Alwys good to upsell when you can. From the perspective of majority of these types of INAD's they are very frustrating no win situations. 

-Lotzof unique<subject to opinion>goodies

Disclaimer: Please consider this post tongue in cheek.

[brettjet38]

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@beach-brain23 wrote:

H

Here is the photo of the bag in question...

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Well to me this looks like a silver/grey/light grey. 

Definitely not TAUPE

Taupe ( /ˈtoʊp/ TOHP) is a dark gray-brown color.

Accept the return

[beach-brain23]

So basically I'm correct as she says she got a gray bag, but I'm screwed anyways.  I have got to stop selling this color in anything.  I accepted the return.  The ebay rep let me know however that color is not an INAD reason and apparently this buyer has done this before, for what that's worth.

[pjcdn2005]

I'm my pc now and it does look different here than on my ipad and seems to be more of a creamy  color with very light gray undertones   As I said, compute monitors vary and I am sure that even in person our perceptions of colors vary too.

Your definition is taupe is the same as on wikipedia but they also say this:

Taupe is a vague color term which may refer to almost any grayish-brown, brownish-gray, or warm gray color. It often overlaps with tan and even people who use color professionally (such as designers and artists) frequently disagree as to what "taupe" means.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taupe

[beach-brain23]

Do you have anything in that color?  Seriously though, I've been on ebay since 1996 and registered as a US seller since I shipped from the US.  The IRS got into that and last year I spent the month of May relisting 1400 items as a Canadian seller shipping from the States.  In the beginning, ebay suspended me forever as a suspected fraud (4500+ feedback, no negs), when opening my CAD account.  I had to write the CEO's office in an attempt to get re-instated which actually worked.  Pleasant surprise.  However my INAD's have increased, probably cuz I look like an easy mark as a new seller.  Since then, I've been listing to 2 other platforms...one of which does better sales than ebay.  

[beach-brain23]

Yup, staying away from anything in that color from now on.  Color should not/and is not supposed to be an INAD reason.  

[ricarmic]

Two things that I do, keeping in mind that I am by no way any photo expert kinda person.

The automatic white balancing of my camera will make "light colours" change sometimes, when that happens I have to change the "setting" from cloudy to sunny or something else to make sure I don't lose the tone. Luckily for me in my world I rarely have lightly toned items that it matters for.

I generally photograph against a black background, unless the item is mostly black then I go with a white background. I noticed that the colour of the item is "close" to the colour of the background, I wonder if that also may have affected the perceptions across the different selling viewing places mentioned in earlier responses?

[brettjet38]

I was a colorist in the fashion trade for two decades, I know every shade in the rainbow & a few more...

...and I never used Taupe as the name of a color, for this very reason. It can be any of many shades.

[reallynicestamps]

"I regret you are unhappy with your purchase. Please return it for refund."

I spoke to an agent that told me

The phone agents workfor a sub-contractor, not eBay. They will say anything to get you off thephone.

"I regret you are unhappy with your purchase. Please return it for refund."

spoke to another agent who said something about a return shipping subsidy

The phone agents workfor a sub-contractor, not eBay. They will say anything to get you off thephone.

"I regret you are unhappy with your purchase. Please return it for refund."

should I wait until the case is decided by ebay?

If you do, the unhappy buyer gets their refund and keeps the purse.

And you get a Defect for not cooperating with the Claim.

"I regret you are unhappy with your purchase. Please return it for refund."

Send the shipping label NOW.

Get the purse back.

Refund.

Your time is worth 25c a minute at minimum wage. 

How much money have you wasted dillydallying?
Re-describe*

Relist

Resell

*Taupe/putty/puce/ greige. And use them all in the description. Add photos in sunlight, against a white background (sheet?), and against a neutral coloured wall to show how the colour changes.