Funds on hold to make sure buyer has no issues. But what if they lie?

[jxfitz]

I had listed a camera for sale on eBay & it sold pretty quickly. Right now my funds are on hold because I’m a new seller and they are holding the funds to make sure the buyer gets the product and it’s what they paid for. The person I’m selling to their account was created today and I’m worried of it being a possible scam. If I ship the item and the buyer says it’s not what they paid for will I be out of money and the product or will I be protected in some way?

[wastingtime101]

There's always a risk whether funds are held or not. The short answer is any buyer can steal any item from any seller at any time. This goes for any online venue, not just eBay.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

Whether they lie or tell the truth, you risk having to accept a return and refund the payment for any item if the buyer files an Ebay Money Back Guarantee claim.

There are no final sale, as is sales on Ebay.

[jxfitz]

What if they don’t send it back? Or send back a defective product?

[ebooksdiva]

Your buyer probably used a guest account, guest accounts are created the day of purchase. 
I have had numerous buyers with guest accounts without any problems. Your funds are on hold because you are a new seller you will experience transaction holds while learning best selling practices. This helps sellers become established and build a strong selling history on eBay. New sellers typically experience holds for up to 30 days, although sometimes it may be longer. 
Payout Hold

If your buyer opens a return, all you can do is hope they return what you sent them.

[caldreamer]

EBAY Money Back Guarantee (supersedes "no returns" policy) allows customer to lie and claim anything (no proof required) to get their money back.   EBAY will force you to give customer a full refund (purchase price + shipping BOTH ways).   EBAY always rules in favor of the customer.

Sorry but Seller protection does not exist anymore...

[jxfitz]

if I’m scetched out would I be wrong to cancel the purchase and relist it?

[kensgiftshop]

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@jxfitz wrote:

if I’m scetched out would I be wrong to cancel the purchase and relist it?

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If you're worried about shipping it, why cancel the order and relist?

Sell it local for cash.

[dbfolks166mt]

What if they don’t send it back? Or send back a defective product?

     That is always a possibility although I assume, but cannot prove, that most transactions take place on eBay without any problems. When new sellers ask for advice as a new seller I generally tell them not to start off with high dollar, high target items. 

     Always remember the first rule as a seller on eBay. Never list anything you are not prepared to, or cannot afford, to take the financial loss on. 

[dbfolks166mt]

if I’m scetched out would I be wrong to cancel the purchase and relist it?

     Unless the buyer asks you to cancel or there are issues with the buyers address you really have no valid reason to cancel the order other than choosing out of stock for which eBay will ding your metrics. Not a good way to start off as a new seller.

[jxfitz]

I just did a quick search of the buyer and address and everything checks out. I’m going to send it. Thank you everyone for the help 

[mtgraves7984]

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@jxfitz wrote:

if I’m scetched out would I be wrong to cancel the purchase and relist it?

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@jxfitz 

Only if you promise yourself that you won't be "scetched out" the next time it sells. That can't be comfortable...

[chapeau-noir]

For a while I sold a bunch of camera equipment and the buyers were exceptionally nice.

[isaiah53-57]

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@jxfitz wrote:

I had listed a camera for sale on eBay & it sold pretty quickly. Right now my funds are on hold because I’m a new seller and they are holding the funds to make sure the buyer gets the product and it’s what they paid for. The person I’m selling to their account was created today and I’m worried of it being a possible scam. If I ship the item and the buyer says it’s not what they paid for will I be out of money and the product or will I be protected in some way?

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Buyer Fraud is the main reason we stopped listing here - If a buyer claims " not as described", you have to accept the return and regardless of what they send you back, be it a rock or a cow patty, it is a near surety it will be your loss - By our experience, its that easy to scam a seller here - And reporting a buyer? Thats a joke we reported a buyer in the hopes we could get them booted - a buyer who likely 20 other sellers had reported and many months down the road they were still buying(I mean stealing) with impunity - They may still be for all I know - We stopped listing those items after that - we stopped listing many types of items and finally just stopped listing period...

Dont take it lying down though - File Fraud reports with Police Depts, USPS, IC3 Internet fraud, and also go to the BBB Website to file a complaint - Use the information you collect from the reports/complaints and file an appeal - maybe you'll stand a snowball's chance...

Best of luck to you