Buyer used The eBay Money Back Guarantee to return item they used and damaged
Hello,
I just had a buyer purchase an open box item from me. The item was tested and worked before I listed it. The item has a remote to operate it. Well this buyer claims it did not come with the remote. I have photos to show before I sent the item I had the remote. I just got the return back and it is clearly used, covered in pet hair all over it, and all the plastic wrap is gone, the bag the wires and remote was in is gone, the remote is gone, the instructions are gone. Why do I have to refund them 50 % on an item that they used and broke? Now the item is literally garbage. You are telling me I can buy an expensive item from someone, not like it after using it, then just return it and get my money back?
What do I do? I am SOL now and have to refund them ??
attached are photos of what I sent vs what I got back
njtoyreseller
·5 months agoI would recommend just issue this buyer a refund, chalk it up as a lesson learned, and move on. Only a small percent of buyers tend to abuse the MBG. Its the risk of selling on any online platform.
I would also recommend using your own photos of the item rather then generic photos.
christworks
·5 months ago@ric425817 You are going to have to refund your buyer, in full. If you wait for eBay to do it, they will take the money from you and your account will be damaged in the process.
I will tell you right now that "no return" policy of yours is likely why you are in this situation. If you had offered returns, even buyer paid returns, you would have likely avoided this type of buyer and would have attracted someone better.
No returns makes little sense for most sellers given eBay's broad MBG. If you were selling small items that are worth less than $20-$25, which there is nothing wrong with, a no return policy can make a little more sense as you bank on some buyers simply not trying to open a return because they, like you until now, are ignorant of the MBG. When a buyer does open a return, the seller can fully refund them and let them keep the item because the time and cost of the return outweighs the cost to refund as soon as the return is opened.
I also think you listed this item in the wrong condition. You listed it as open box and stated in the listing that it is "unused," yet you said in your post you tested it. That's a used item, not an open box. Open box items are defined as "new" by eBay, and "new" means something that has not been used. Testing an item counts as use, even if it was only for 30 seconds.
That humidifier is from Amazon. If I picked that up at a bin store, even if it looked as nice as yours did, I would test it and list it as used. I'd disclose it was an Amazon return, but that it looked great cosmetically and had been fully tested and found to be working correctly. This way the buyer knows exactly what they are getting and they will appreciate the honesty.
You can break it down into parts and sell off parts to help recoup your loss.
ric425817
OP5 months agoThanks for the reply! The seller claimed it was missing the remote and due to that the item was inoperable. What I got back was clearly used because there was moisture in it and covered in pet hair and they did not send back the remote. For the future I will switch all of my listings to accept returns but buyer pays for returns. Hopefully that will avoid these scummy buyers who abuse the system.
stainlessenginecovers
·5 months agoIt won't.
Any buyer that knows the system and likes to 'get free things' or 'free rent' or...., will just open a return for 'not as described' and YOU will still have to pay the 'return shipping' and cannot deduct anything from it, even if it's a rock.
Just the nature of selling online (you can rip off any entity). I had a customer that bought 5 Corvette items for their $100,000 Corvette and then return complete garbage that wasn't even mine (looks like made out of tin foil, cut with some really dull scissors) and this was on AMAZON where buyers get 100% 'refund' the moment they print the return label (that I also had to pay for because they said 'not as described').
Even the spoiled rich can be like that.
kensgiftshop
·5 months agoThat would help with some buyers, but not all.
kibble-net
·5 months agoAre you the buyer, or are you the seller? I'm having trouble following your story.
lb23cavaliersmvp
·5 months agoIn all likelihood you are SOL because ebay will say they have no proof, despite your listing pics, of what the buyer received and in my experience they don't care. That said assuming you have pics from the listing of all the items not returned you can try contacting customer service and point out engaging in fraud via the mail is a federal crime. Hopefully the 50% loss isn't a big #.
kensgiftshop
·5 months agoI don't think you qualify to deduct 50% of the refund.
Since you're not a TRS, you would have to offer free returns to deduct anything.
bonanza125
·5 months agoYou are telling me I can buy an expensive item from someone, not like it after using it, then just return it and get my money back?
Buyers are given 30 day moneyback guarantee so if something is wrong with it then they have the right to return the item for a refund. The advice would be to just give them the full refund and be done with it. Selling items online has its risks. This is one of them. Shipping off perfectly working items and getting them back returned in not the same shape as before. Which is why you must pick and choose what you want to sell on Ebay and what you sell locally.
What do I do? I am SOL now and have to refund them ??
You must refund the buyer in full. Do not allow Ebay to step in. Refund them and move on from the situation. Chalk it up as a loss.
ric425817
OP5 months agoSo ebay is a free item rental business now? I can just buy something from your store front, use and abuse it, and send it back then you will refund me the full amount?
kensgiftshop
·5 months agoYes, if they return it for a reason covered by the MBG.
If it was a payment dispute with their payment source, you wouldn't even get the item back before you give a full refund.
mordecai8614
·5 months agoSure, if you're a piece of s**t that wants to abuse eBay's Money Back Guarantee policy then that option is unfortunately available. Fortunately, most people aren't like that so these cases are rare, which makes it worth the risk for most of us to keep selling here.
ric425817
OP5 months agoBut this is exactly what I am dealing with. The person used the item, then told ebay the item does not work because it it missing parts. They sent it back to me used, covered in pet hair, and missing the remote, instructions, ect and now ebay says I have to refund them. Make that make sense??
mordecai8614
·5 months agoI thought I did. You dealt with a scummy buyer. It's rare, but it does happen. It's unfortunately one of the risks with selling online.