HELP: Buyer wants to return item for very odd reasons

[phoenixhobbies]

I’ve never had to deal with a return.

This is what they said:
“ Weapon holding nub along one of the model swords was damaged prior to being shipped to me, as the piece could not be found in the packaging. The weapon does not fasten into the hands as a result. Left arm articulation joints are stiff to the point of immobility, other joints are also varyingly stiff to lesser degrees. Nothing was said or displayed about any of these issues in the listing description.”

Sounds red flaggy to me. To many words and very oddly specific. It’s not supposed to move… it’s a display collectable and 15 years old…

did not think their was any issues with it. And he states the “nub” is no their that goes in hand hole to stay in place, is clearly visible and their in the photo he showed.

So I’m confused. Also all about the articulation. It’s an old collectable that’s been in the same position in my glass display case for 12 years I mentioned in the used section…

Upon inspection and packing it up I felt their was no issues with the item.

I have 17 photos of many angles of it. Not much I could show or say about it. 🤷🏻‍♀️

They are a buyer with 0 feedback and from March 5 2023. Do you think they are trying to scam me?

What should I do or say?

Thank you for your time and help.

[phoenixhobbies]

Im in Canada and the buyer is in the US. Cant figure out how to create a label through shippo. I see creating a new label but cant get buyers address as the shipper and my PO Box as the return address. Also, how do i do the customs decluration for the buyer in the US and how do i get the shipping dimensions when i no longer have the item? So confused?

[phoenixhobbies]

My husband and I can't figure out how to create a return sipping label for the US buyer in shippo. I'm in Canada. This order is not listed with my other ebay orders in my shippo account. All I see and get is to create a new shipping label. How do I put the buyrs address as the sender and my PO Box as the return?

Aslo how do I declare customs form for the buyer in the US to me in canada? And the dimensions when I no longer have the item or box? Everything I find on google is if you have the ebay order listed in your shippo account.

Thank you.

[ypdc_dennis]

Pirateship is another shipping alternative for USPS to Canada labels.

As for dimensions ask the buyer.

[ilikehockeyjerseys]

When you login to Shippo on a Desktop computer, there should be a green button at the top right corner called "Create Label". 

You should be able to manually fill out the info there. 

If you don't have the exact dimensions, it isn't a big deal. If you underpay, Shippo will charge the adjustment to your account later. 

In a situation like this one, it is usually better to ask the buyer directly what kind of partial refund they think would be fair to keep the item. I understand you offered one. It's going to likely cost you $30 to have it returned. You also have the unrecoverable costs of the original label, and the cost of your time. Then you need to re-list it and sell it again. Even if a partial-refund costs more than a return label, it might be worth it to resolve the situation without any additional wasted time. 

In terms of your original post and how returns work on eBay. In an event where you felt a buyer didn't read the listing or made a false claim in a return, eBay doesn't arbitrate on individual issues. They don't say we will keep the return open because we can verify that the item had an issue. How it works is that if you sell something, and a buyer opens a return for an item not being as described, you have to resolve the return to the satisfaction of the buyer, either with a partial refund or by providing a label and a refund. There are avenues to report buyers or possibly recover some costs after the fact. But the take away is that it is always important to resolve a return before the deadline, otherwise eBay will step in and refund the buyer, and they will keep the item. 

I understand in this case, you seem to agree with the buyer.

[phoenixhobbies]

We tried making a label through pirateship, but it would not work and in their FAQ's they stated Canadians in Canada can not make a USPS label.

The buyer is not responding to my messages and it's also a guest account with no feedback. All seems very red flaggy to me. Apparetnly people are in groups and share and google how to get free stuff on ebay, trying to play with the rules, hoping to win...

My husband ended up figuring out how to make a USPS label on Shippo, with the buyers address as the sender and my PO Box as the reciver and on the customs decloration selected for return. The way they have it set up looks convoluted, took us a bit to figure out...

I was panicing about loosing $90.00 CAD and my figurine to the possible scammer buyer. Becasue it was at the last moment to make the decision to make a return label. I was hoping the buyer would message me back to work something out...

Now the ball is in the buyers court... The buyer has until January 25 to ship back the item... Heres hoping everything works out in our favour...

Thank you.

[phoenixhobbies]

Fair enough, makes sense.

My husband ended up figuring out at the last moment how to make a USPS label through Shippo before we went to bed. With the buyers address as the snder and our PO Box as the reciver. Put on customs decloration as a return. I remeberd later I always write down my items dimensions in my notebook!

My husbad is a buisness man. He explained to me the loss in cost in this situation. Pay the $20.00 to ship and get it back, or pay $20.00 particial refund and not get it back. Throw money at the problem to make it go away as he always says, to not get a negative review or flag on my account. Not worth it, just do it, something you have to accept doing as an online seller...

Sellers I've talked to mentioned, the 1 rare time you get a dificult buyer/unsmooth transaction, is to just suck it up and deal with it... 

Was debating taking returns off my lisitings so people dont try this again? My husband says don't just becasue of this one buyer. It wont be as atrcive and wont sell as much, same as eBay states about it...

I am greatful for the seller community for help in sharing experianced advice.
Thank you everyone.

[phoenixhobbies]

*My funds are on hold, until what ever needs to be done.

Until the buyer ships it and I inspect it. Should I video record me opening it, incase the seller ships something else or damaged the item? I'm so paranoid about that happening...

Can the buyer retract the return and just keep it without refund? If so, as long as the shipping label does not get scanned, can I get a refund on the shipping label?

Thank you.

[ricarmic]

As a note, if (hopefully not) it ever happens again, I would have called the buyer, assuming they had a phone number attached. I've paid an upgrade to have "free" long distance to North America and it very much comes in handy in these situations.

In fact I actually recently had a buyer call me who initially wanted to return something but could not get the process to work on eBay (keep in mind some of my audience are not good computer users at all). I actually had them hang up and I called them back "since it's free to me" which they appreciated and as we were able to disucss what the frustrations and options were, we were able to work something out that is much easier and less expesive in the end and avoided all the crazy process stuff too!

[reallynicestamps]

Was debating taking returns off my lisitings so people dont try this again?

Counter-intuititive but No Returns actually means more refunds.

Because that policy makes you sound difficult to work with, the buyer goes immediately to the MBG and a Not As Described claim.

And.

The No Returns seller has said they don't ever want to see the item again. Because that's what NO returns means.

While the seller can still demand the return (and pay for return shipping) many we see here can't understand that and put off demanding and paying for the label.

Which means they lose both the payment and the item.

One of the things the scammer buyer relies on is that the seller does not know how to send shipping costs internationally.

But now you do. Yay!

[byto253]

I believe the seller can retract and keep the item, or indicate it is resolved.  If you sent a label, they have a specific time frame to return it to you and they are to update the status in the return.  If they do not comply then the case should be closed in your favour.

You can video opening the return but that really does not have a bearing.  I have mainly read that it had no impact, but there is no downside to it just don't count on a video as protection.  

Shippo will refund an unused labe, as per the link below. 

https://support.goshippo.com/hc/en-us/articles/201772785-Refund-a-Label-Created-in-Shippo

I am fortunate to have a mail holding service across the border that will hold items for me for 1 year for $5US and I use that for returns and that lets me use much less expensive US domestic shipment for the return.  Most other services will hold for a 1 or 2 weeks for a fee, so I am very fortunate.   You may wish to see what is available in Blaine, Washington and if any have an extended hold time.   I did not have any returns this year, so knock on wood it was smooth! 

Also do not mix up Returns and an "Item Not as Described" claim.  Returns refer to a perfectly good item but the buyer has had a change of heart and does not wish to keep it, and they pay the return shipping cost unless you are feeling generous or perhaps they are a great customer - it is at your discretion.

An "Item Not as Described" (INAD) can be file regardless of whether you will accept returns or not.  This actually makes sense as there are sellers that will package very badly or the item is badly mis-represented in the listing and they should be responsible.   

As an example I bought a pair of bookshelf speakers with a lovely walnut finish but the packaging was not great and a front corner got dinted in transit.   The listing had "No returns" stated but I could have made an INAD claim.  Instead I messaged the seller and we negotiated a partial refund.    He was actually great to work with and I sent him pictures of how to package speakers/heavy items for better shipping protection. 

Unfortunately Amazon has trained the masses to claim some kind of defect so that they do not have to pay return shipping.  As your spouse indicated, it is part of online selling.   I have not found that a problem but it does seem to be worse in some categories.  

Best of luck, don't let this get you down! 

[phoenixhobbies]

Fair enough. Makes sense. More pros than cons. Thank you.

[phoenixhobbies]

Right, makes sense.

The buyer claimed a "Doesn't match description or photos". I was confused about their complaint becasue I never noticed any issues with the item to mention anything in the description or close up photos. I then looked back at my listing photos if I could see what the buyer was talking about and sure enough, I saw the defect in 3 of the photos I had in the listing.

I honestly never even noticed the defects before as an issue, so I could of not mentioned it in the descripton...

The buyer still never responded to any of my messages, even after sending them the return shipping label... So, if they dont ship by January 25, the case closes and nothing happens? I keep my money and the buyer keeps the item?

I'l block that account once everything is said and done... 

[flipistics]

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@ypdc_dennis wrote:

Pirateship is another shipping alternative for USPS to Canada labels.

As for dimensions ask the buyer.

---

Also get them to add simple export rate to the Pirateship account.

[byto253]

That is the way it should work.  To confirm, you can contact eBay indicate a label was sent and to verify you have done the correct steps and if it is not returned by the end of the return period if will be closed.  I don't know all the details of the situation or eBay interactions and status, so take info provided here as more general and contact eBay if you wish the verify how it should play out.   

I have done this in the past - I indicated having a return is new to you and wanted to confirm that eBay  procedure was followed, and how the process comes to a close if the item is not returned.   

[phoenixhobbies]

The buyer finaly replied to my messages. They siad they responed normaly and are going to haplily return it, becasue it would not pose in the position they wanted... They are a guest account... I profesionaly and politley explained a few things for future referance buying from ebay and if they try buying the same item else where even new in box it most likley will have the same issues because of its age... 

[ilikehockeyjerseys]

The way that eBay works with returns is that you still have to accept a return if an item is not as described, even if your item was final sale. So removing returns won't prevent this from happening in the future. It will only prevent buyers from being able to return items that they change their mind on. It is up to you to decide whether offering returns adds enough value to your listing to justify keeping them on. 

Transactions sometimes not going smoothly is the cost of doing business online. You have to account for the value of your time. Negative feedback is not that big of a deal. While you should always strive to provide great customer service because it is the right thing to do, the reality of eBay is that most sellers who aren't selling in a very popular and narrow category don't have the possibility of repeat buyers. So this isn't quite the same as a scenario where you own a local hobby store, and a regular customer complains about a product. Of course in that scenario, refunding the product and taking the loss makes more sense. In the scenario you are in, it's not really a consideration because the customer is never going to shop with you again, even if you do a great job, it's just not how eBay works for the type of store you have with varied items. So when I suggest a partial refund, it's not so much to retain the customer, it's more that you could pay them x amount to be satisfied and save yourself multiple hours of time spent facilitating the return. 

There are cases where it's an obvious scam with the buyer fishing for a partial refund, and you can provide the label knowing they won't use it, but that's an entire different can of worms that doesn't seem relevant to this transaction. With your average return where you can verify the problem, if the customer is fine with it, it's usually faster and easier just to go the partial-refund route than the return route.

Either way, sounds like you have figured it out. Best of luck with it. Hopefully it goes smoothly. 

[phoenixhobbies]

So, I did a stupid...

I just wanted to check the return tracking number status on the eBay app and when I went to scroll down I acedently hit the "Delivered" button... 🤦🏻‍💩

Now, I have to refund the buyer before the 27, no matter what... I dont even have the item back to inspect yet, even though it is in transit, it still awknowlaged it as delivered, even though the tracking does not say delivered yet... 💩🤷🏻‍

I give up at this point... I don't even mind anymore... I'm just gunna refund at this point, so I can stop thinking about this, once I read your responces before tommorrow... 😑

[reallynicestamps]

the reality of eBay is that most sellers who aren't selling in a very popular and narrow category don't have the possibility of repeat buyers. So this isn't quite the same as a scenario where you own a local hobby store, and a regular customer complains about a product.

This is true for the individual seller, but eBay does have repeat buyers.

EBay is pushing the responsibility for returns and problems off on their sellers who don't really have much reason to cooperate.

BTW  there is an interesting discussion of returns on CBC Radio One today.

https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-63-the-current/clip/16032012-reverse-logistics-business-makin...