Issue with seller not processing return not sending shipping label?
I purchased a cell phone battery from an eBay seller around September 25th. The item arrived within a few days but turned out to be the wrong model. I went to my purchase history, initiated a return, and uploaded photos showing the incorrect item. Although the item was brand new, it wasn't the correct model.
I also messaged the seller directly and sent the same images. He said he would get back to me and eventually authorized the return, but I never received a shipping label—neither from him nor through eBay. The return page only shows that I should send the item back, without providing any label.
After a few days with no progress, I left negative feedback since the transaction wasn’t going well. The seller then contacted me through eBay messages asking why I left negative feedback, and he said he would “handle everything†if I revised it. Wanting to resolve things amicably, I agreed and changed my feedback to positive, noting that we worked it out.
Since September 30th, however, I’ve repeatedly asked him for the shipping label, and he keeps promising to send it but hasn’t done so. Tonight, he said he “doesn’t have the option†to send a label and asked me to ship it myself, offering to reimburse me about $5 through Venmo—which doesn’t make sense to me. I now feel I may have been too trusting by revising my feedback early.
He showed me a screenshot claiming he can’t generate a return label, but I also don’t see any way on my end to ask eBay to step in. In the past, I could contact eBay directly by phone to fix issues like this, but now that option seems unavailable. My return deadline is October 15th, and I’m unsure how to escalate this further.
The seller only has about 93% positive feedback, and the package originally shipped from an Amazon address. At this point, I just want my refund. How can I escalate this to eBay or find the correct option to report the issue?
12345jamesstamps
·11 months agoKinda sounds like 'drop-shipping' so he doesn't have a replacement(he would have to use his own money to buy it for you) and item can't be returned to him personally.
I wonder how you opened the claim?
Did you open a claim for item not as described and wait for a return label...and no excuses from the seller.
No retun label would means you escalate the claim and get a refund.
adamcartwright
·11 months ago@steppinthrax
If the seller promised you a return label and hasn't sent it, get in touch with customer service through the HELP link.
They will see that you initiated a return but have not yet received a return label.
You should definitely also let them know how your seller coerced a feedback revision out of you.
steppinthrax
OP11 months agoI finally managed to get in touch with eBay. I went through their AI help section and kept responding as if I were talking to a real person until it eventually offered the option to have them call my phone. The first agent I spoke with said I might have chosen the wrong return reason, claiming that if I selected “wrong item purchased†or “changed my mind,†I’d be responsible for return shipping.
However, while waiting to be transferred to the returns department, I checked my return summary and saw that the reason listed was “wrong item sent,†which confirms I chose the correct option. The second agent wasn’t very helpful—his English was poor, and it seemed like he just contacted the seller and gave them five more days to send a return label. None of this makes much sense, and now I have to wait even longer. I’m thinking of calling eBay again tomorrow to see if I can get someone more helpful.
glorybells
·11 months agoyou can also contact customer service by sending a PRIVATE message on social media. Customer service verifies your identity before responding.
https://twitter.com/askebay
https://www.facebook.com/eBay/
steppinthrax
OP11 months agoThank you very much for your advice. I clicked the Facebook link you provided and surprisingly was able to talk to somebody through Facebook Messenger via the eBay Facebook site. They were able to authenticate me and then pull up the physical item that needed returning. While I was waiting, I started receiving emails that a case had been opened and eBay decided in my favor. They processed a shipping label and I have 7 days to ship the item back.
Thank you very much
adamcartwright
·11 months ago@steppinthrax
@glorybells gave you the right advice.
I would not wait for the label to arrive, but would contact them through social media asap.
yo0339
·11 months agoThat was exactly what you needed @steppinthrax because the seller said and showed that they cannot send a return label, so after 5 days eBay would force a full refund with no return required.
Now when you ship the item back, it's possible it won't be claimed for 15 days and has to be returned to you, before eBay will force the refund when tracking finally shows Delivered, albeit back to you which eBay considers delivered back to seller.