Buyer damaged item , now wants a refund
Buyer purchased cassette tape , says it dosn't work , tell buyer I will send a self addressed stamped envelope to him so can send it back to me , then I will refund , buyer goes ahead and takes cassette apart and trys to fix the cassette tape , but no success , then he messages me saying he would like a refund , says he will return the cassette in pieces
need help with this one
8 comments
recped
·6 months agoI've sold thousands of tapes on eBay (80+% sealed).
Two issues that come up for me (very rarely), tension pads that fall off or tape that becomes detached from one of the reels. the ability to fix these issues varies depending on the shells, if the shell has screws it can sometimes be fixed, if it's a welded shell then there is nothing that can be done.
While this is very rare (for me) it does happen and when a buyer reports this the last thing I would do is require a return. I can often replace tapes since I mostly sell multiples, in that case I send a replacement, if I had any doubts of the honesty of the buyer (it's never happened) I would ask them if the case and insert are fine and if so I would just send the tape itself.
If I can't replace I simply refund, a tape that is "broken" has no value, silly to pay to get it back.
maximus7001
·6 months agoCassette tapes are mainly what we sell. Been doing this for over 20 years. We fast forward and rewind every tape to test for jams or breakage. We use a higher end deck for this. Another thing to do is to try to break off the pressure pad. If it doesnt come off it is not going to. If it comes off we use a drop of super glue and tweezers to glue it back on and not touch it for 24 hours. We harvest pressure pads and cases from junk tapes and titles that would never sell.
Tapes $25 CAD and up go tracked. Most of these higher priced ones get play tested. Ones $24.99 and under go lettermail for $2.61 in stamps for 1 cassette within canada. Gotta draw the line somewhere.
Our efforts to test for defects seem to work well. If a buyer does claim a defect we just refund right away. It is a very rare occurance.
intimewithmusic
·6 months ago@maximus7001 Pretty much the same here. Old tapes are usually tight. The FF and REW loosens them up nicely and tests the leader for strength.
If the tape is a double album or 120 min extended play I insert a cautionary clause. Most people's decks aren't maintained. They can't handle the torque of a tape that long and it will surely get eaten.
intimewithmusic
·6 months agoMe too. I restore a lot of broken tapes from the 60s thru 80s. I save all the unused parts. If tapes are personal and have no internal access screws I break the shell apart and move the components to a new housing.
I recently restored a band's cassette recording from 1982. Then I digitize it and deliver the files via OneDrive. This last one went to the singer's family for his celebration of life. They are very grateful. It's rewarding but you have to be into it.
For my 8 track tapes I replace almost all the felts and re-splice the leaders. I list media twice a year. Each bout is a 2 week session and by the end I've had enough!
intimewithmusic
·6 months agoHi! Thanks for bringing this up. I haven't seen this topic in the forum before.
Tapes are too volatile to dispute. Buyer's machine transport mechanisms are out of our control. it sounds like your buyer had a transport problem. Besides tranport issues all it takes is for someone or something in transit that puts the tape close to an electric motor or a speaker and it's magnetic data is corrupted.
Up to the 80s we used to send tapes by mail in shielded containers. I would still use a shielded container for a high value rare tape such as a presidential speech etc. In this case include a short video sample of the tape in the listing. None of this will prevent fraud but it may ward off fraudsters if they see evidence of condition in the listing.
Unless the item value is over $20 send a refund with an apology for the defect (fact or fiction). Then "eat it". [pun intended] If it's a higher value item consider what you paid for it. You could offer a partial refund from the eBay pmnt you recd or, get it returned.
I've lost many tapes because someone set it on top of their guitar amp so I have this info in my template. Magnets within 30 feet can distort data. All my media is in a room with no magnets or speakers. Then there is heat while in transit....You probably know all of this but buyers may not.
Good luck and thanks for posting!
marnotom!
·6 months agoFor a sale of around ten bucks including shipping, I probably would just take the buyer at their word and let them keep the tape and have them deal with the mess.
ricarmic
·6 months agoI'm with @marnotom! one's time is much better spent instead listing more items, after of course blocking the buyer....
john_koenig99
·6 months agoTricky one.
This paragraph in the ebay's Money Back Guarantee indicates that you still need to provide the return label or envelope, but you could deduct part of the refund due to what the buyer did to the tape:
"The buyer must return the item in the same condition in which it was received. If the item is returned used, damaged, or missing parts, some sellers may deduct the loss in value from the amount refunded to the buyer. "
Condition of returned items policy | eBay