Buyer refused package by mistake and wants me to send it back... how would you deal with this?

[vip-marketplace]

Hi!

Buyer was confused when the package arrived and he refused it by mistake, twice.

Here' the tracking if you want a clear picture:
http://www.purolator.com/purolator/ship-track/tracking-details.page?pin=CGJ000890158&sdate=2017-03-1...

What should I do? I paid a lot of money to have this item shipped since it's heavy.

When the buyer inquired about his package (over a month after the purchase btw), I provided him with the tracking number and explained a delivery attempt was made but apparently he was absent. Package was available for pick up for nearly a month then 2 more attemps were made but buyer refused the package.

Buyer replied something like (MODS DO NOT DELETE THIS IS NOT THE ACTUAL MESSAGE I REWORDED):

"I had no tracking number given to me until this morning so I contacted purolator and they already sent back the package and can't redirect it so you'll have to send it back to me"

I only had 1 on this item and do not want to send it to this buyer and risk him doing this thing again.

Would it be OK to refund the buyer subtracting my shipping costs and NOT send a second item to him?

Thanks!

[femmefan1946]

Package was available for pick up for nearly a month then 2 more attemps were made but buyer refused the package.

I'd be pretty grumpy about that.

Three attempts over a month by Purolator to deliver?

Refund the original selling price,but no shipping costs.

Cancel the transaction -- is 'problem with address' appropriate ? or 'buyer refused shipment"?

Frankly I don't think this will get any better.

[vip-marketplace]

Since the item was technically free shipping even though I paid 22$ for shipping, I suppose I may not subtract any shipping cost?

[femmefan1946]

Eeew.

Much as I am a fan of Free Shipping, that is the problem.

And why I use Calculated Shipping for parcels.

How penitent is your buyer?

Is he willing to accept responsibility for his own actions?

[vip-marketplace]

I don't know but I get the feeling he's trying to somehow turn the situation around like it's my fault since I did not provide a tracking number before I inquired about his package:

"I had no tracking number given to me until this morning so I contacted purolator and they already sent back the package and can't redirect it so you'll have to send it back to me"

He's not apologetic and I doubt he will admit any responsibility for the situation.

[sylviebee]

If you add a restocking fee and/or subtract the shipping cost from the refund, what's the worst that could happen?

You can't get a defect.

The buyer could trash your FB and that's unpleasant, but it wouldn't really hurt you.

[pjcdn2005]

If the buyer files a claim eBay may say that they aren't eligible for the MBG.

http://pages.ebay.ca/help/policies/money-back-guarantee.html

Generally, the buyer is responsible for accepting the item when it arrives. If the buyer refuses delivery, their claim is not eligible for the eBay Money Back Guarantee.

I'm not sure how I would handle it, it would depend on the buyers explanation and if there is a possibility that purolator somehow goofed up.

 If the buyer really did refuse it then I wouldnt be willing to send it back out at my expense and would probably refund. If the buyer hasn't opened an eBay case yet,  I know that some sellers in this situation have done the refund through PayPal because then they can deduct  the shipping cost but you would not get back fvf,   If you do a cancellation through eBay you would have to refund the full amount since it was free shipping.  

[pjcdn2005]

You can't add a restocking fee unless that was already stated in their return policy.

OP  -  we are not obligated to give buyers the tracking number so his point about not having one isn't really an issue but if there is tracking on a package it would be best to give it to the buyer when the item is first shipped.  There are times when a buyer isn't notified that a package is being held.  If they have the tracking info they can find that out on their own.

[momcqueen]

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@vip-marketplace wrote:

Since the item was technically free shipping even though I paid 22$ for shipping, I suppose I may not subtract any shipping cost?

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That's right. You're not allowed to deduct that from your refund. This is where a 20 per cent 'restocking fee' to be applied in limited situations such as this one is important.

If this happened to me, I'd call ebay Customer Service and let them walk you through it. You already know what you can and cannot do so make sure they confirm you will be protected against Angry Buyer Repercussion. And take notes. You can prove he had the Purolator Tracking number from the moment you shipped it, right? It was updated on the Order History? 

[momcqueen]

Or if you were inclined to send it to him again, make it clear he pays for shipping the second time. No ifs ands or buts about that. 

[sylviebee]

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ggmalkavian wrote:

Hi!

Package was available for pick up for nearly a month then 2 more attemps were made but buyer refused the package.

 _____________________________________________________

It sounds like you're saying that they tried to deliver the item to the buyer's door and it was refused.   

If that's the case I'd say you're holding all the cards and may not be obligated to refund any money at all.

Also, what if you have to pay return shipping?  Would you refuse the package?

[vip-marketplace]

That's  exactly what happened according to the tracking:

http://www.purolator.com/purolator/ship-track/tracking-details.page?pin=CGJ000890158&sdate=2017-03-1...

You think I don't have to refund the order at all?

How would it play out if the buyer started an "item not received" case? Would eBay side with me looking at the link above?

And what about a potential negative feedback? Could I get it removed stating the buyer refused the package on multiple occasions?

[sylviebee · Accepted solution]

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@vip-marketplace wrote:

You think I don't have to refund the order at all?

How would it play out if the buyer started an "item not received" case? Would eBay side with me looking at the link above?

And what about a potential negative feedback? Could I get it removed stating the buyer refused the package on multiple occasions?

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I'm not 100% sure, but close.  When buyers refuse items because they don't want to pay import fees the seller is not required to refund. How is this any different?  I don't think it is.

I assume you've added the tracking number to the completed listing?   That will show that the item was in fact received so would the buyer even be able to open such a case?  I don't think so.

If they could, then you'd simply have to show that the tracking proves otherwise.

I'm not sure that there's any way for you to get a strike.  I don't think there is.

If the buyer left NFB there's an excellent chance that it could be removed for the reason you stated.

Since this is an uncommon problem there's no way to draw on past experience, but I wouldn't refund.  I don't like when buyers and sellers toy with me like that.

[momcqueen]

Side issue: Was the item valued at more than $800 USD? Was there import fees due?

[vip-marketplace]

Nah it was a relatively low value item. Shipping actually cost ­­>50% of the item's value. The buyer was also a Canadian so there were no import fees.

I've decided I wouldn't refund the buyer but I'm not too sure what to tell the buyer. Should I wait for him to contact me again regarding the refund?

[momcqueen]

If it were me, I'd call eBay Customer Service to confirm it as well as reiterate my rights as the seller in this case. And offer suggestions as to how that should be put to the buyer. And, yes, let the buyer ask again. Don't volunteer that he's up the creek as far as his MoneyBack Guarantee is concerned.

I'd refund cost of item minus shipping. (Unless Purolator charges you to get it back.) But if you've got it back, you can resell it. He might not be entitled to his money back for it, and I wouldn't give him postage back, but I'd throw him a bone on the item value since he doesn't have the item. That's what I've done when stuff gets punted back due to non-delivery issues that are the fault of the buyer. 

[sylviebee]

I guess it's just one of those things.  There really is no right or wrong answer and unless eBay offers some guidelines whatever you do or don't do is just a matter of choice.

[momcqueen]

Well, I'm 99.995 percent sure that the eBay MoneyBack Guarantee here is null and void because the parcel was tracked and tracking says it was rejected by the buyer. If the tracking says that, the seller cannot lose an Item Not Received case.

As to the issue of a refund....

The first time I got a parcel kicked back -- the buyer refused the import fees -- I got dinged for return postage. So I lost $20 right there. I called eBay to complain about this but ended up having to refund the buyer their whole purchase price (item and postage) on the advice of eBay because I could not technically prove she refused it without online tracking to show for it. And therefore I'd loose any INR case against me. No repurcussions. I blocked the buyer and carried on.

The second or third time a package was sent back to me due to buyer non-payment of import fees, I didn't have to pay return postage to CPC but neither was it tracked. I therefore messaged the buyer, explained it had been sent back to me because he never showed up to pay his import fees, and refunded his purchase price minus postage. No fall-out either.

The fourth time, it was an issue with the buyer-supplied address and the parcel was tracked. I refunded in full. I had the item back. It had increased in value due to its relative scarcity. I refunded, relisted for a higher price, and then told the buyer it was available for repurchase. She declined, I didn't care. No long-term fall-out.

So....

If I had a case where the item was returned because the address supplied by the buyer was wrong, or it was declined, and then it cost me money to get it back, and the buyer was making unreasonable demands, I'd probably dig in my heels and not refund in full. I'd still likely give them back whatever the difference was between postage there and back.

The thing about feedback is that, however logical to us it may seem, I'm not convinced the eBay Customer Service Feedback Specialists would take the time or care to remove a negative from that. My fear would be that the seller would get the old line: "it's buyer opinion that this was a negative transaction so we're letting it stand" because I have that little faith in the Feedback department. They're just the worst. Literally the very worst arm of eBay that I've EVER had to deal with. Contrary and contradictory and uninformed.

[momcqueen]

Did the OP refuse it? There's a line on the tracking from this afternoon that makes it sound like that. Could Purolator's descriptors be really out- of-whack with reality?

[momcqueen]

And what's the reason it was assigned so many different tracking numbers? Has anyone called Purolator to ask them to explain themselves? Maybe the buyer isn't telling tales.