Item Being Returned To Us Due To Address Issue, What are our Options?
Summary: videotimeplus posted about a game that was returned after being shipped within Canada, as the address was purportedly incorrect. They are seeking advice on whether they can cancel the order, refund the buyer, and not incur a strike or fees in case the buyer opens an Item Not Received (INR) case. Multiple participants contributed to the discussion. flipistics suggests that although the error might not be the seller's fault, it is their responsibility to ensure delivery, advising that if the item comes back, the buyer could file an INR and be refunded, possibly without losing fees. Another approach is waiting for the item's return and reshipping it upon buyer's agreement. sapphyres-designer-jewellery adds further detail on handling refunds without incurring defects. dhslk and ilikehockeyjerseys suggest verifying the buyer's address or involving Canada Post, while also considering the impact of eBay's policies regarding buyer protection and INR claims. reallynicestamps takes a more lenient stance, asserting that sellers owe nothing if the buyer provided an incorrect address, suggesting only a refund of the purchase price could resolve the matter.
We sold a game within Canada and it made it to the nearest post office to their address before being sent back to us saying "recipient not located at address provided". The buyer is asking why this is happening and insists the address is correct. If we get the game back is there a way to cancel the order and not a get a strike so they can be refunded? If they open an INR case do we lose the selling fees and shipping cost in the refund too? Just wondering what the best course of action is.
reallynicestamps
·1 year agohttps://www.ebay.ca/help/policies/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy?...
You owe the buyer nothing.
They are required to give you a useable address and you are required to ship to it.
They gave you an Undeliverable address.
You owe them nothing. Too bad buyer, so sad.
Now in real life, if the buyer opens an Item Not Delivered claim, you give eBay the tracking number that shows the shipment was Undeliverable. "recipient not located at address provided".
Most sellers will refund the purchase price but not the seller's costs, fees, shipping, packaging. The transaction is now complete.
You don't owe the buyer a penny.
Their problem
ilikehockeyjerseys
·1 year agoedit: Ignore this post. Irrelevant to the OP since they shipped tracked. There is still some useful info about lettermail delays.
Was this shipped with lettermail?
Assuming you haven't opened the bubble mailer, bring it back to your post office and explain that it the address was correct and it was returned in error. They might put it back in for you.
Otherwise, if the buyer still wants it pay to have it re-shipped to them. It was obviously a Canada Post issue, and not an issue with the buyer. Even know you didn't cause the problem (Canada Post did), you're still responsible for it as the seller.
In my experience, what you're describing has been happening a lot with Canada Post lettermail lately. Prior to the strike, I rarely had issues. There have been some years where I've sent 3000+ packages lettermail and rarely had a return. I've barely been sending out lettermail this past year due to the ongoing labour dispute, and I seem to get at least one of these every month.
The only possible concern would be that the buyer can open an INR. So if you agree to re-send it, and it is lettermail, make sure the buyer knows it could take another 2-4 weeks. If it is tracked an you re-send it, if they open up an INR you might be able to explain the situation to eBay (via the AskEbay customer service on Twitter or Facebook) and have them delay the request a few weeks.
If this is untracked, you will have to refund everything including the shipping. If this is tracked, it's a bit of a grey area in terms of eBay policy. eBay doesn't cover buyers if an item is refused or undeliverable, but in this case the buyer claims they provided their current address. So I am unsure about how eBay would view it. I still believe that if the buyer gave their correct address and there was a postal error, the fair thing to do is for the seller to resolve it.
dhslk
·1 year agoI would call the Postmaster at that post office. The most likely reason is that the buyer forgot to update their address and that they gave you an old address. If the Postmaster can't give you the info you need, then I would ask for proof from the buyer that this is their current address before doing anything else. Of course, if the buyer is 'innocent', I would refund them completely once the item is returned to you.
IMO only a buyer who is trying to pull a fast one would obect in any way to giving you that info.
ilikehockeyjerseys
·1 year agoIf it is tracked they can open a ticket with Canada Post. Expedited should have $100 of insurance included.
The proper way to do it would be to communicate to the customer that they plan to open a ticket and they will get back to them as soon as they have an update.
Canada Post will either cover the item with an insurance claim, or they will refuse to cover the item because it is en route to the sender.
When the item is returned, it would be up to how eBay views it. If eBay sees it as an attempted delivery, the buyer's protection would be voided. If not, the buyer could open an INR.
If the buyer protection is voided, based on eBay policy then up to the OP to decide how they want to resolve it because the buyer can no longer open an INR request. Ways to resolve it would be to issue a refund, re-send it at cost, or ask the buyer to cover the cost to re-ship it.
If the buyer protection is valid, the buyer can open up an INR and get a full refund including the original shipping.
flipistics
·1 year agoThis is just my opinion.
It's your job as the seller to get the item to the buyer (assuming the buyer gave the correct address). It's not the buyer's responsibility to deal with stupidity from the shipping company that you chose to use. The exception for that might be if you have a delivery scan and the customer claims they never received it.
You're going to be out the shipping cost no matter what happens unless the courier refunds that to you (they're more likely to charge you for the return shipping too, but you can always hope for the best). It's certainly not your customer's fault if they gave the correct address and they shouldn't be on the hook for it.
When you see the item on its way back to you, you can handle it in a few different ways. You can have the buyer file an INR, refund them, and when you get it back and relist it they can buy it again. I'm pretty sure eBay refunds all the fees in this scenario. You can also ask the buyer if they mind waiting and resend it to them when you get it back. I believe if you refund without a case you get an out of stock defect, and I don't THINK you get the fees back in that scenario but I could be wrong.
sapphyres-designer-jewellery
·1 year agoYou only get the OOS defect if you refund immediately and ship nothing. If something was shipped and tracking was uploaded and it came back, you can safely refund it (I would pick buyer return or item not received for the reason), and not get the defect. They know you're not out of stock if you actually ship something to the buyer and it comes back to you.
C.
flipistics
·1 year agoI've gotten it before for an item that was shipped with a tracking number uploaded. I always have someone open a ticket now because of that (it happens very rarely anyway).
ilikehockeyjerseys
·1 year agoThis is it. Something can be your responsibility without being your fault.
It's not the sellers fault that Canada Post made an error, but it is the sellers responsibility to ensure the item is delivered as expected.