Buyer wants a refund, claims a graded PSA 10 is not a PSA 10
Buyer bought a PSA 10 card - it's a pop 41 so there are few of the actual card in Gem Mint.
Immediately after purchase (before shipment) he sent a flurry of messages concerned the actual card had 'scratches' or 'lines' on it, basically asking if it was a 'true 10.'
I sent him as many images as he needed to show him that the plastic slab had a few lines, not the card. This was all discussed prior to shipping so buyer had the option to cancel at this time.
Buyer also needed to complete some import forms and kept asking to 'help me cover any additional fees' that may occur, citing 'I paid a premium price.' It was during this time I knew the buyer may cause problems post delivery.
Buyer is now saying ' I cannot believe a grader in any company would give it a 10 from 6 feet away.'
I have photos of the card prior to shipment, photos of it packed up, message history of the buyer asking for more photos before I sent the card, the buyer approving photos prior to shipment, buyer asking for money during shipment and full tracking history from AU > US
I've seen eBay still force refunds, but surely this case will be ruled in my favour?
ryry-jj
·4 months agoOne of the best things you can do is offer free 30 day returns, or be a Top Rated and then you can deduct 50% of any return if it isn't returned in the same condition as you sent it. A buyer might think twice before ever returning a $6k card knowing they may only get $3000 returned to them.
Currently I see on your listing you don't accept returns, you need to rethink that just to get some protection.
kensgiftshop
·4 months agoI wouldn't count on it if the buyer files an INAD.
gator08041971
·4 months ago@sconce_cards
I would report the buyer for a fraudulent return before authorizing the return. This is an important step. That will start the eBay side of things regarding all the info. You don't need to block them, but filing the report will activate eBay to track it closer. It certainly won't hurt your chances in fighting the issue later but its not a guarantee it will help.
Then process the return immediately after that. If you have to help get the item shipped back to your country, try to facilitate that however you can.
Once you receive it and inspect it, you can then proceed from there.
sconce_cards
OP4 months agoNoted and appreciate this information very much. (ty as well @kalyoth)
Will be reporting the buyer and then (from what it seems) I'll have to proceed with the return, I used Fedex for shipping so getting a return label should be fairly straightforward through Ebay.
Would it be wise to additionally cite this forum thread when reporting the buyer?
gator08041971
·4 months ago@sconce_cards
Would it be wise to additionally cite this forum thread when reporting the buyer?
I don't think you will need to. They will only look at information from within the eBay system. This forum is mostly made up of other members like yourself helping each other. No one from eBay generally responds to posts here, unless they have a direct reason to do so. They do monitor and aggregate info from here as needed though in a general sense I think. The community is driven a lot by its answer system, and those answers are looked on to be relevant info relating to an original post or question for a thread when doing searches for similar topics.
As a final thought, make sure not to refund till after you have received the item and inspected it.
kalyoth
·4 months agoHow was it shipped? Did it go thru authentication or ebay international shipping? If no, unless you are able to get them a return label, you will have to fork over the cost of shipping it back to you via paypal up front. Because you are international, there should be some required work from the buyer to submit to you during this 5 days. They should be providing you the carrier, the dimensions shipped, service & cost. If they do not, its not guaranteed but it should stop their return. But be sure to message in the case that you are awaiting the return shipping - carrier, service, dimensions & cost information from the buyer for funds if you can't provide a label.
ryry-jj
·4 months agoEbay doesnt hold court....if the buyer claims the item is not as described, then they return for a full refund at the sellers expense. I know you tried to be clear, but we are operating off the opinion of the buyer. If you feel they are abusing the return policy you can report them. However, this just weighs against them down the road if others have also reported the buyer, it wont help much in this case.
sconce_cards
OP4 months agoRight, so as I understand it:
- the buyer is allowed to (theoretically) make a false return claim when I have evidence from Ebays own messaging system
- I'm out of pocket to pay return shipping
- I run the risk of the buyer damaging / tampering with the card from the return
And if I don't accept the return, then I run the risk of him keeping the card AND him getting refunded...
Just want to clarify because this seems strange to me, thank you again
kensgiftshop
·4 months agoRight.
Buyer can ship back an empty box and you'll still have to refund.
ryry-jj
·4 months agoUnfortunately, yes. Now, you don't need to answer this....but I"m going to assume you already knew all of this before you decided to list a $6000 item...no one ever wants to dive in the deep end before knowing just how deep it is
ryry-jj
·4 months agoBeing an international sale, you may have t o send paypal money or something to have the buyer then purchase a label if the service you used doesnt allow postage to be bought in the country you shipped to
ryry-jj
·4 months agoYou dont have options...if they file a claim... it doesnt matter what you two exchanged in emails...you issue a return label. If you dont, the buyer will ask ebay to step in and you will be out the money, the FVF and the card as ebay will allow the buyer to keep the card since you didnt act. It sucks, but this is how ebay works
sconce_cards
OP4 months agoSo I'm powerless because the buyer changed his mind and has an issue with the grade given by PSA?
In our Ebay messages he even asked about the condition before I sent it, wasn't in emails.
I sent him as many additional photos that he wanted and he confirmed before I shipped the item.
I've got about five days to act before Ebay steps in but just want to discuss everything that happened before I take action, thanks for your responses too
ryry-jj
·4 months agoNot if they claim " item not as described" , they get a full return per the MBG, however with cards, they must act within 3 day i believe
sconce_cards
OP4 months agoBuyer has indeed claimed 'item not as described' and has also acted within the three day window.
But with the evidence I have, it seems to be a clear case of the buyer trying to extract money from me and abuse the MBG - im very concerned that the graded card will return damaged or altered in some way.
The value is also >$6000 AUD so it's not something to take lightly
Any more details you can provide or experiences you can share would be helpful
kensgiftshop
·4 months agoIf you want it returned before refunding, accept the return and provide return shipping.