I received the wrong item.

[5051jam]

I received the wrong item from a seller in China.  I need advice before I contact him.  Do I ask to be compensated for return shipping.  The return shipping will be more than the cost of the item.  The shipping from China was included in the price of the item.  Thanks kindly.

[dmil8030 · Accepted solution]

When you receive an item which is not as described, the official procedure is outlined in the following link, see Section 4:

http://pages.ebay.ca/help/buy/item-not-received.html

Best to contact the seller first.  He may simply refund you if it was not expensive, but to send it back with Delivery Confirmation would be very costly indeed.  You will not likely get that reimbursed, because that would be a huge amount in China, - even if it was the seller's mistake. 

He may offer to send a replacement, but what happens so often with that is the replacement never shows up and the seller delays you past day 45 to file a claim.  You only have 45 days to file, so you must not let that day pass. 

I'd say be nice about it and explain that the wrong item arrived.  Tell him how disappointed you are because to send it back would be so costly.  If he offers a replacement, you might want to ask for a refund so you can rebuy the item.  The seller knows you can leave feedback, and if delaying you with promises will clearly not work, then he may refund just to bring an end to it and avoid an open claim.

Try contacting the seller as that will give you your best idea of how to continue.

[scifan57]

Asking for a refund is usually better than agreeing to a replacement item. Most sellers are honest but there are a few bad ones out there whose goal is to delay you until the 45 day filing deadline for opening PayPal disputes as expired. Dmil is correct in stating that the first step is to contact the seller before going to PayPal and opening a dispute. Often problems can be handled without ever getting to the stage of opening a dispute.