How do you all handle a return that you did not authorize?

[theguitarpartsguy]

So, looking for opinions.  I have someone who apparently bought something from me, I'm not positive whether it was here or on Reverb or AliExpress, but they sent me an email to my personal email address, which I'm not sure how they got, because I don't have ANY return requests on any site I sell on.  They mailed something I sold them back to me without contacting me first.  I just got this email at my personal email address saying "I sent the item back to you, am I going to get my refund or not?".  I asked them when they bought it and which site they bought it off of, then they answered that email asking if I also sell under "The Guitar Parts Guy", so apparently, it is someone who bought something from me off of either Reverb or AliExpress, as I only go by that name here.  I have not been contacted by them before today, and I have no return requests from any of the 3 sites.  If you have someone just mail an item back to you, how do you usually handle it?  I am getting ready to go through the week's mail in a minute and see if I have a package in it from this person.  I'm still trying to figure out how they got my personal email address when it's not on any of my seller sites, and if they had requested it through reverb or ebay, I would have gotten an email stating that someone was asking for my contact information... it's just really weird that someone would mail something back without contacting me first, I have never had that happen before, and I've been selling here since 1999....

[theguitarpartsguy]

Update: Found it. They bought a bridge saddle from me off of Reverb. My listings there say you must contact me first in order to process a return, and the one they bought is a saddle for an Epiphone, and that particular listing says it fits "most, but not all", and that it is the responsibility of the buyer to measure their saddle to see if it's the same size as what I'm selling, and then it gives the size of the saddle in mm so they can compare. I have gotten nothing from them until the email today. Again, I'm not sure how they got my personal email address, either. What do you all think?

[hidy-hoo · Accepted solution]

"Again, I'm not sure how they got my personal email address, either. What do you all think?"

Hi, gpg...your email address is included in the PayPal transaction details to your buyer for all eBay sales and you also receive the buyer's email address.  I have no clue if it works the same way for the other venues that you sell on or how their return options work, but as a rule of thumb, most sellers would refund the original cost minus the shipping if the widget is returned in the same condition as shipped.

@theguitarpartsguy

[theguitarpartsguy]

Yeah, Hidy, I'd say that's probably how they got my email address. Still, it was just odd. I did refund them, but for them to just send an item back without any contact first was kind of weird. Especially when the first email I got from them yesterday was basically 'are you going to refund me or not?'.... LOL

[hidy-hoo]

gpg, if weirdos could fly, this place would be an airport! ...one more...we live in an era of smart phones and stupid people! ...I'm thinkin' that I may need a bubble bath and a glass of wine so I will quit my kvetching!