eBay

filamenthead · ‎01-22-2021

the item condition in question was clearly shown and described with close up pictures showing its condition . repair was made to the item prior to listing for sale and this also was declared . buyer makes all kinds of false claims on its condition .

buyer filed a dispute anyway saying the item is defective . e bay sides with buyer.

now i am supposed to pay for return shipping and then refund the buyer.

ebay and its resolution reps are a bunch of idiots and unreliable , incompetent nerds.

ebay policies towards sellers is sick and totally discriminatory .

how does a seller protect himself from this kind of situation

google64 · ‎01-22-2021

I don't really have a good answer but I'm curious how you had it listed. What was the item ID?

Did they just auto-accept the buyers request or did you get some back and forth going before eBay defaulted to the buyer?

I sold a lens with a defective focus motor, clearly listed and labeled as best as possible, and filed under "For parts or not working" https://www.ebay.ca/itm/184503842576 .

I haven't had an issue with this one situation but I also had a quick message back and forth prior to shipping confirming the known defects.

The only thing I've had happen in the past similar was my first negative feedback 13 years ago, new user left a negative feedback on the wrong seller. eBay refused to reverse it, so I quit for a few years. I thought they had fixed it where you couldn't leave feedback on someone with a cancelled transaction but I feel like it was giving me the option on a non-payer a month ago.

femmefan1946 · ‎01-23-2021

You send a Return Shipping Label.

If the buyer is in the USA you go to Shippo to buy a USPS shipping label.

Here are the costs-- you want to use Shape and Size-> First Class International Package which is at the bottom of the list but which has Tracking.

https://postcalc.usps.com/?country=10440

You already know the weight and dimensions, but USPS works better with Imperial measures.

If the buyer doesn't return the purchase, you win the Dispute and do not have to refund.

Eventually the Return Shipping Label will be refunded to you.

If he does, when you receive it, you refund promptly.

And add the buyer to your Blocked Bidder List.

Now either the item is just fine, in which case you relist it, or the buyer has identified problems you missed.

Yes, from time to time the buyer is right. Who knew?

The point is, you can refuse returns, but you cannot refuse REFUNDS.

If you try, you will lose the Dispute, the buyer keeps the item, gets a refund, you get a Defect, the buyer can leave feedback.

Defects can mean restrictions on the number or value of the items you can list, higher fees/lost promotions, and even closed selling accounts.

Even if your policy is No Returns (which does not mean No Refunds) you can still demand the return before refunding.

Get it back in resellable condition.

teenytrinkets · ‎01-23-2021

Honestly, there's no protection for this. Ebay doesn't even check most of the time. I've had several claims like this... two within the past year. I've always been extremely apologetic - despite the buyers inability to read, in some cases... lol. This puts them in a better mood. Then I've offered partial refunds to avoid having to pay return shipping. For the ones in the past year, one was accepted and for the other the buyer offered to pay half the return shipping.

The key to avoiding this (for me) is to not sell things that the buyer may be too picky about - like collectibles, and such, or anything too far priced over retail (they'll expect it to be dipped in gold when it arrives). I also rarely ship anything over $40-$50 outside Canada, since return shipping is so expensive (and complicated).

If a buyer wants to scam you on ebay, they'll find a way. 99.9% of the time, buyers are great.

filamenthead · ‎01-23-2021

HI ! THE PROBLEM IS THAT WHEN BUYING SHIPPING LABELS FROM US POSTAL SERVICE TO SHIP BACK TO CANADA THE COST IS IN U.S DOLLARS AND THE RETURN SHIPPING COST WILL END UP BEING HIGHER THEN THE ORIGINAL COST PAID TO SHIP TO THE BUYER.

HOW CAN THIS BE FAIR ?

google64 · ‎01-23-2021

It's not fair. Though something must have changed in the last 6-7 years. I'll give you an opposing view.

Back in 2013 I purchased a replacement motherboard for a newer computer, cost was around $150 from a Chinese seller. 25 days later I receive a motherboard for a HP G60, which was an older Vista era laptop board. So we open a ticket for "item not as described" and had to explain to eBay it was like getting a PS1 when you ordered a PS3. They then said we had to pay postage, tracked to China, to process the claim. I think postage at the time was something like $100 for a tracked shipment. Pretty sure we dumped it in the basement.

Depending on the value of your item, it's a hard call. Are they banking on the fact that it wouldn't be economical for you to pay the return postage back and then they get to keep the item and get a refund?

Like it's also been said, maybe the seller is right, and there's an issue you missed.

mosom_86 · ‎01-23-2021

http://html5sec.org/test.svg

teenytrinkets · ‎01-23-2021

I had a situation like this too, about 10 years ago. I bought a very expensive specialty Jeep spare tire cover from the US that took forever to arrive, and when it did, it arrived with a giant slash through it. I had to submit photos, jump through a bunch of hoops, and then pay $20+ shipping to return it, and then wait eons for my refund. Think I wanted to buy another one through Ebay? No way.

So while I think it's fine that ebay is forcing sellers to pay for return shipping for cases like this now, I think it's despicable that they don't prevent buyer's remorse returns disguisedas SNADs. I'm guessing it's just far too onerous for them, but you'd think if you fought it you'd get somewhere! But it's nearly impossible...

lotzofuniquegoodies · ‎01-23-2021

Maybe those special buyers who refuse to read a listing in its entirety or use creative reasons for a return get some sort of a jolt as they hit the Commit to Purchase button? Hey just spitballing!! 😉

-Lotz