Is shipping damage ever the buyer's responsibility?

[badkit19]

I recently purchased a piece of furniture (open box) that stated it comes in original packaging in new, excellent condition. I would have preferred to buy it new from a store but it's discontinued and unavailable locally. And although I have yet to receive it I already have some concerns.  Here's why...

1. According to the UPS tracking # the item is heavy and weighs over 90lbs
2. Despite the weight, the item had a relatively low shipping cost
3. The Buy It Now was reasonable but price seemed to be compensating for the low shipping fee.
4. I was curious so checked shipping at UPS website and the quote was more than the total cost I paid.
5. After I bought it I found reviews online that mentioned ship to store to avoid damage from shipping.

Ugh, so now I'm concerned that I may get stuck with a damaged item and that it may not be noticeable until after the carton is opened. If that's the case I know the next step is to contact the seller and inform them. But then what?

Hopefully it arrives safely but if there's damage then seller is obviously going to say it occurred during shipping because they stated it was in new, excellent condition. So then would I (the buyer) be responsible for filing a claim with UPS to get my money back? 

[joliztoyco]

Unless the Ebay policy is different for furniture, the SELLER is RESPONSIBLE for shipping it to you in the condition described. You simply file a "not as described" case and Ebay will refund your money. And the seller will also be responsible for return shipping. Sellers on here had to "beat me on the head" until I understood that as a seller I am responsible for the buyer receiving their merchandise undamaged. And there's really no exceptions. Just one of the things you have to live with if you sell on Ebay. I insure all my items over 200.00 just for added protection. And as the seller, I am responsible for collecting that insurance. NOT the buyer.
You will be fine.

[kathiec]

EBay policy is not different for furniture. If it arrives damaged, no matter when in the unpacking process you discover it, you're covered under eBay's Money Back Guarantee.

[nobody*s_perfect]

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@badkit19 wrote: ...  if there's damage then seller is obviously going to say it occurred during shipping because they stated it was in new, excellent condition. So then would I (the buyer) be responsible for filing a claim with UPS to get my money back? 

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No, you would not.  If an item arrives and is not as described, you can file a claim and get a full refund.  If the seller wants to get the item back. they have to pay for the return shipping. Here's a link to eBay's buyer protection  policy, which they call the "Money Back Guarantee":

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy...

eBay sellers pay discounted rates for UPS and other shipping, so it's possible that whatever you paid for the shipping did cover all or most of the seller's discounted cost.

[badkit19]

Thanks, I appreciate the help. I just hope it arrives safely so I won't have to deal with shipping a heavy item back.

What I don't understand is how this guy made money on the sale.  Because when I checked the UPS website for shipping a heavy item like this from his zip code to mine, the shipping quote that was substantially higher than my total cost  for the item. 

[tomgnade]

I bought a set of speakers, the seller packed them poorly, and they were damaged. I opened a complaint and eBay is refusing to refund me unless I pay to ship them back - which is close to $250 on a $980 purchase, and the seller's policy is to not accept returns. eBay is doing absolutely nothing to help, neither is PayPal, and neither is my credit card. The seller supposedly "can't do anything" because there's a dispute open on it. I will most definitely never use eBay again after this experience. What a complete crock of sh** that they have any sort of buyer protection. Absolutely not true whatsoever.

[albertabrightalberta]

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@tomgnade wrote:

I bought a set of speakers, the seller packed them poorly, and they were damaged. I opened a complaint and eBay is refusing to refund me unless I pay to ship them back - which is close to $250 on a $980 purchase, and the seller's policy is to not accept returns. eBay is doing absolutely nothing to help, neither is PayPal, and neither is my credit card. The seller supposedly "can't do anything" because there's a dispute open on it. I will most definitely never use eBay again after this experience. What a complete crock of sh** that they have any sort of buyer protection. Absolutely not true whatsoever.

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You should have started your own thread instead of hijacking another. 

If you opened the correct type of return request for NAD/damaged, you wouldn't have had to pay return shipping. 

[albertabrightalberta]

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@badkit19 wrote:

 And although I have yet to receive it I already have some concerns. 

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I think you're jumping the gun in worrying about what might happen. 

[monster-deals]

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@badkit19 wrote:

So then would I (the buyer) be responsible for filing a claim with UPS to get my money back? 

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The only time you would technically responsible is if something weather related happened to the package because you didn't have a safe place for delivery.

...well two if we count if you were responsible for buying the label for the return and the package was damaged or went missing.

That being said ebay will very rarely help a seller on returns like that even when the buyer can be shown to be clearly at fault.

[janet9988]

If the buyer pays for the shipping using their own carrier then the buyer is responsible.

[buyselljack2016]

badkit19 left the thread long long ago.................  🤣

[kh-shakhib]

Hi everyone,

Due to the age of this thread, it has been closed to further replies. Please feel free to start a new thread if you wish to continue to discuss this topic.

Thank you for understanding.