I Refunded and Then Re-Invoiced when Item Showed Up (UPDATE)

[jt-libra]

I started the following thread a few weeks ago and several people stated that I shouldn't have refunded so quickly.  But that isn't the issue in this new post.  Just as a refresher:

'I sold an item to a U.S. buyer.  When she didn't receive her item in 15 days, I sent her a refund and asked that when it arrived, she either write "Return" on it and toss it back in the mailbox or, if she still wanted it, to let me know and I would send her an invoice.

There was no acknowledgement of the refund or any communication whatsoever.  Three weeks later, I contacted her to see if it had ever shown up and if she had returned it to me.  A week later (I believe she's a person who doesn't check her e-mail very often), she replied that, oh yes, she got it, it was just as described and she was very happy with it.

I responded that I was happy it had arrived and, since I had sent her a refund, I would send her an invoice for this item.  I looked everywhere but it seems I couldn't re-invoice her for the same item, so I sent her a personal invoice through PayPal.  I'm thinking though that I have no recourse should she not pay? (True, I found out)

Of course, I should have asked for your advice and the correct procedure before I sent the invoice."

I sent a couple of reminder invoices during the next couple of weeks, with no smart remarks or anything like that, but of course I didn't hear back from her.

I realize that if I had asked her to wait a few more days, this incident would never have occurred.  But the principle is the same -- she got the item and wouldn't pay for it.

I always leave positive feedback as soon as I've received payment.  I'm wondering if I should add a comment to the effect that she received a refund, acknowledged that she then received the item which she was very happy with, but then refused to pay for it.  Or would you just leave this whole thing alone?

My thinking is that I hate to see buyers get away with this type of behaviour.  If it was so easy this time, she (or her friends and family) may try it again if there are no repercussions.

Thanks.

[pierrelebel]

May I suggest: take a minute or two, pick up the phone and call the buyer to clear the air.

[jt-libra]

Thanks Pierre.  I forgot to mention that I did get her contact information and tried calling but her number was no longer in service.  I've found over the years, on the few occasions I attempted to call someone, that their numbers have changed or they've gotten rid of their land lines but haven't updated their eBay profile.  She would have been notified of my request for the info so knew I was trying to contact her.

I'm not a person who harasses.  I wrote this money off long ago.  There are so many ways that people can cheat sellers (and, I'm aware, vice versa), and while the majority of people are honest, I just think there should be some repercussion for those who aren't.  I'm not losing sleep over this but I was wondering what others might do.

[owen6122]

I would drop it.  Only leave positive feedback for buyers or you could get yourself in trouble.  It is too bad she didn't do the right thing.  Shipping from Canada to US can s sometimes take longer and I would just be happy they didn't open an INR case against you on day 15. 

[jt-libra]

I thought because I had already left positive feedback at the time of payment, that additional comments would not be considered negative feedback, if worded politely.

I'm not going to make an issue of this --- sometimes when you get several dishonest buyers in a short period of time, you just want them to be accountable for their actions.

[reallynicestamps]

You can add a Response to any feedback, yours or your buyers. While the most effective Responses, like the most effective feedback, is calm and factual, Responses are not required to be positive.

But the Response will be read once by the deadbeat buyer and hundreds of times by future customers.

A consideration.

[jt-libra]

Because she received a refund, does this constitute an "unpaid item", i.e. would she be unable to leave me negative feedback?

[jt-libra]

I'm answering my own question :-).  Of course they can still leave feedback.  I just remembered a few people who I refunded went on to leave me positive feedback, mentioning the refund.

[zee-chan-jpn-books]

If this buyer already left you feedback (hopefully a positive), then I'd add a response to her feedback saying that buyer acknowledged your refund and later received the item, but buyer did not repay for the item. This is a factual comment and contains no personal attack whatsoever. True, not many people aside from the buyer would read it, but at least it'd help to vent a little bit.

However, if she hasn't leave you a feedback... I'd personally leave it because I don't want the buyer to get ticked off and turn around to leave a negative feedback. That'd be too much trouble to go through eBay to revoke that one, and it may not even be revoked...

Just my 2 cents.

[viv-writer]

Hi there 🙂

I am just wondering why this buyer told you that the item showed up if she wasn't going

to re-pay for it? Seems like there was some honesty in the transaction at one point, not that this helps you to get your invoice re-paid of course. 

I have had two items I have bought, from different sellers, go missing and never shown up and the sellers refunded my payment, As a buyer I felt bad for the seller who has little control once the package leaves their hands, but I sell too so I know this.

I don't stress items that are less than twenty dollars and anything purchased above that I want to have tracked through the mail and signed for. Seeing that this kind of thing has only happened to me twice in my ten years as an Ebay seller and buyer, I think you are right to let it go I would too. Its not worth the stress and the extra work in the long run and if either party is being dishonest its going to catch up to them eventually. Karma.

Have a wonderful day 🙂

[kalvin@ebay.com]

Hi jt-libra,

Have we at least refunded your fees for this transaction? If not, did you want to drop me a note with the item number so we can see if it's possible to do so?

Thanks,

[jt-libra]

Thanks Kalvin -- I appreciate your offer.

Actually, I did open a mutual cancellation, to which she didn't respond, so I did get my FVF back.

Thanks again.

[thepuckcanuck]

I am having a similar situation right now, but I am the buyer. I was refunded but the item showed up. When i tryed to pay via the my purchase page using pay now, the invoice was asking for double the agreed upon price. He sent me an invoice from paypal which i assumed wasn't allowed because its outside EBAY. I didnt even look there. He told me he sent me the fixed invoice but I could never see it. The problem was the fixed one was in my email which a barely look in. Now 30 days have passed and the pay now option is gone. I still want to pay for the item, so how should I go about this? 

[pierrelebel]

"I still want to pay for the item, so how should I go about this?"

Forget using eBay.  Pay the seller directly through PayPal or - if the seller accepts it - send a cheque or money order.

[thepuckcanuck]

Thanks. He is saying he wants the item back, but I used it to complete a set that has since sold, and his invoice is cancelled from his end. What are my options if he refuses the payment? Any help is appreciated. 

[rose-dee]

For what my two cents is worth, I'd probably let it go.  Even if you leave a factual response to FB and block this buyer, you never know what sort of resentment it may cause, or whether she (under a different ID) or her friends/family, etc. may pop up again to deliberately cause you trouble. 

It's unfortunate that these sorts of buyers get away scot-free because eBay's system isn't set up to properly handle a refund/re-invoicing situation.  This, and the intentional fraudulent INR claims, are areas I believe eBay needs to take a really serious look at.

So sorry this happened to you!

[recped]

---

@thepuckcanuck wrote:

What are my options if he refuses the payment? Any help is appreciated. 

---

Presume the seller has so much respect for your offer that they are declining....

or

Presume the seller is a complete idiot!

[thepuckcanuck]

My reasoning is that the invoice should have been fixed in Ebay in the first place.

Thanks for your response, it made me laugh. I just want to pay the guy and be done with this transaction.  I believe in Karma, and this has me feeling negative because he acts like its my fault for not paying him outside Ebay. Now 30 days have passed, and I don't see a proper way to pay.

Thanks for replying.

[pjcdn2005]

As long as a transaction has been done in ebay, it can be billed directly through paypal and still be considered an ebay transaction. Since you already have the item, it would be silly of the seller if they did not agree to take your payment.

btw...kudos to you for letting the seller know that you did receive the item after you had been refunded. Not all buyers would do that.