Getting Scammed By A Buyer

[misszeldazonk]

I'm currently dealing with a problematic buyer who is trying to pull a fast one. I had a brand new PS2 game for sale, and it was factory sealed. Before she purchased it, she asked me for photos of all sides of the case; she wanted to make sure there was no sort of damage. I sent the pictures, and she purchased the game. She also sent a message saying that she needed it fast, and to please package it carefully because she has "had too many games damaged in a padded envelope". I carefully packaged it and shipped it out the following Monday.

The day she received it, she sent me a message with a photo and tells me that the case is not authentic and she wants to return it. She opened the game and sent me a photo of the inside of the case, and I told her that I had no control over what the inside of the case looks like. I'm also not even sure if the picture she sent me was actually from the item I sent; she could have very easily switched the cases before taking a picture. I bought it from a retail store long ago, so I am confident in the product. She claims it's not authentic and that she "can't use the case". She was very rude about the whole thing and insisted that I'm the one who is wrong because she claims that there is no way for her to know if it's authentic until she opens it. Best Buy/Walmart/Target would never allow someone to return an open game unless it's defective, especially if it's just a matter of returning it because of the case. 

The whole thing is suspicious, and I called eBay and was advised to accept the return and then to contact them after I receive the item. I'm frustrated because the buyer has opened it, so it's no longer sealed and brand new. If I have to refund her, I'm losing the value of the product, plus the shipping both ways. Has anyone else had this type of situation before? What can you do to protect yourself as a seller from this type of fraudulent activity?

[gurlcat]

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@misszeldazonk wrote:

What can you do to protect yourself as a seller from this type of fraudulent activity?

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Have 30 days Free Returns.  Then if someone returns something in worse condition or missing parts, you can deduct up to 50% of the refund.  

[misszeldazonk]

Thank you. That's a helpful suggestion.

[gurlcat]

Free Returns also gets you cheaper return labels if you buy them through eBay (because they get a bulk discount from USPS and pass the savings onto you, but only with FR's).   There are also other benefits but I'm getting too sleepy to think LOL.  

Anyway the thing you might be expecting  -that you'll get MORE returns if they're all free -it actually does not happen, in fact when I switched I started having LESS of them, and I've seen other sellers say the same thing..  I don't know why, my only guess is that knowing they can easily return gives them piece of mind, whereas if they think it's a problem then they start looking for more problems.  OH, and just seeing that you have FR's -that's one of the other benefits; you will defiinitely sell more.  Tons of buyers won't buy from sellers without it, in fact it's one of the sorting features on the left side of the search screen, so they don't even have to see listings without it.  

[chevymontecarlo88]

Selling sealed items can be tough because you never know the condition of what is inside. I have sold NOS items in the past and typically will ask the buyer if they want me to open and take pictures before i send the item out. Of course this does not work on some collectables. Sometimes the offer to open and verify can discourage any buyers remorse but does not mean you will be protected of course. gurlcat pretty much covers what can be done in the future and hopefully you can recoup your funds once the ps2 gets back to you.

Good Luck

[powell-memorabilia]

I would not assume that you are being scammed. That item is not an attractive target for scammers. And, look at your own photos – there is a big rip in the seal. And around that big rip, there seems to be some gunk – I can’t tell if it is on the inside or the outside. Regardless, signs point to this being an honest return request. 

[isaiah53-57]

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@misszeldazonk wrote:

I'm currently dealing with a problematic buyer who is trying to pull a fast one. I had a brand new PS2 game for sale, and it was factory sealed.

The day she received it, she sent me a message with a photo and tells me that the case is not authentic and she wants to return it. She opened the game and sent me a photo of the inside of the case

The whole thing is suspicious, and I called eBay and was advised to accept the return and then to contact them after I receive the item. I'm frustrated because the buyer has opened it, so it's no longer sealed and brand new. If I have to refund her, I'm losing the value of the product, plus the shipping both ways. What can you do to protect yourself as a seller from this type of fraudulent activity?

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Suspicious?? - This is classic Money Back Guarantee Fraud - The same mandate that pushed us to stop listing on this site - For a small to mid-size seller, the only way to make money on this cost and labor intensive site is to list high/higher dollar items - In our opinion, with the ever-present and fast-growing risk of fraud, you have to be crazy to list anything of value here..

[isaiah53-57]

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@gurlcat wrote:

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@misszeldazonk wrote:

What can you do to protect yourself as a seller from this type of fraudulent activity?

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Have 30 days Free Returns.  Then if someone returns something in worse condition or missing parts, you can deduct up to 50% of the refund.  

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What about all the posts I see here saying that the buyer appealed the 50% refund and the seller had to pay it anyway - which of course they will in a fraud or shady situation - Is it still possible for that to happen? or did the site make adjustments where the protection is in place regardless?

[kensgiftshop]

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@misszeldazonk wrote:

What can you do to protect yourself as a seller from this type of fraudulent activity?

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Not sell online.

Sell local for cash.

[pjcdn2005]

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@gurlcat wrote:

Free Returns also gets you cheaper return labels if you buy them through eBay (because they get a bulk discount from USPS and pass the savings onto you, but only with FR's).   There are also other benefits but I'm getting too sleepy to think LOL.  
 

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I have never read before that sellers with free returns pay less for a return label through ebay than a seller with 30 day or no returns. Can someone else confirm that please?

[gurlcat]

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@isaiah53-57 wrote:

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@gurlcat wrote:

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@misszeldazonk wrote:

What can you do to protect yourself as a seller from this type of fraudulent activity?

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Have 30 days Free Returns.  Then if someone returns something in worse condition or missing parts, you can deduct up to 50% of the refund.  

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What about all the posts I see here saying that the buyer appealed the 50% refund and the seller had to pay it anyway - which of course they will in a fraud or shady situation - Is it still possible for that to happen? or did the site make adjustments where the protection is in place regardless?

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When buyers appeal a seller-issued partial refund due to decreased value returned items, EBAY pays them the difference, not the seller.  It's not something eBay waves around for the world to see because they don't want it to become widely used and abused, but it is a fact.  You can read about it in other threads here.  

[inhawaii]

You're going to run in to this type of buyer once in a while.

It's all part of selling online.

Just accept the return.

[gurlcat]

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@pjcdn2005 wrote:

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@gurlcat wrote:

Free Returns also gets you cheaper return labels if you buy them through eBay (because they get a bulk discount from USPS and pass the savings onto you, but only with FR's).   There are also other benefits but I'm getting too sleepy to think LOL.  
 

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I have never read before that sellers with free returns pay less for a return label through ebay than a seller with 30 day or no returns. Can someone else confirm that please?

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Well here's the crazy thing, and maybe you can help me out with this. -I get returns so rarely that I usually don't even think about the label cost, but once in a while (like when it is asked about here in the Community) I get curious, so I go to see how much my last return label cost me .... and I cannot find anything showing that I was charged any amount for it.  

Like right now my most recent return was completed March 1st.  The buyer first filed it Feb. 24th.  Luckily that is within the past 90 days of transaction history so I can look at on my regular Payments home page, without downloading a whole report.  But I'm telling you, there is NO line item for where I was charged for the buyer's return label.  Not in the return details page either.  It wasn't withheld from my fee refund or anything.  

So I don't know, maybe I get literally free returns, maybe because I have so few of them, I don't know.  I do remember when I was considering switching to Free Returns, cheaper return labels was one of the things that other members said was a perk, and I fuzzily remember finding that to be the case after I switched.  But that was before Managed Payments so it all looked very different.   

If there is somewhere that you know of where I should be able to find that charge, I will go and get screenshots and everything.  

[chapeau-noir]

I kind of doubt that eBay is bankrolling return labels for free returns - the USPS has a schedule for return merchandise labels which saves sellers money over purchasing their own label, and that may be the discount people are talking about.

[chapeau-noir]

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@powell-memorabilia wrote:

I would not assume that you are being scammed. That item is not an attractive target for scammers. And, look at your own photos – there is a big rip in the seal. And around that big rip, there seems to be some gunk – I can’t tell if it is on the inside or the outside. Regardless, signs point to this being an honest return request. 

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All I see is a small stock photo.