Dealing with my First Refund/Return Dispute
Summary: krispy038 described their first experience with a dispute on a selling platform, involving a buyer requesting a return for an SSD due to 'missing parts,' despite the listing details. Several participants advised them to accept the return to avoid penalties, explaining that even if 'No Returns' is stated, certain buyer complaints can still require a refund. christworks pointed out potential listing confusion due to photos showing multiple SSDs. Others warned that if the case escalates, the platform typically sides with buyers, urging krispy038 to accept the return promptly. A participant noted their success using free returns for better protection.
I've been selling on here for a long time, just not very often and this is my first time dealing with a dispute. On my listings, I always have it set to No Returns or Refunds. So, this guy buys an SSD I gutted and put into a new upgraded housing. I have it listed, photographed, and have the description saying the SSD is in that new caddy. Well, they guy buys it, then messages me asking to do a local meet up. I told him I need to refund him and do a completely new sale. The guy says to just ship it. I do. He gets it and asks if I have the original housing/caddy for the SSD. I told him I don't and if he wants one, he needs to buy one or buy a broken unit and use it for parts. He then starts a Refund/Return case for "Missing Parts and Pieces" and in the description writes that he thought the SSD was coming with the original housing and that it won't work for him. Right there, saying he THOUGHT it was coming with extra parts when it wasn't listed or photographed anywhere or in the description he was getting the original housing and then claiming he's missing pieces is stupid. He says he's missing stuff but then admits he that he either knowingly or unknowingly made a mistake.
I called him out on it and told him I wouldn't do a return. So now, I'm waiting on Ebay to step in in a week. Not sure if anyone has any advice or on what to expect.
I did report the buyer for abuse/fraud with the return/refund system.
kandf_vintage_finds
·3 weeks agoSorry this happened to you. Normally in cases like this the buyer wins and the seller looses.
burky79
·3 weeks agoA similar situation to this is why I started using free returns on all my listings. The extra seller protections and partial refund options that come with it are completely worth it compared to the extremely few returns I've ever actually done.
gurlcat
·3 weeks agoKudos for coming to ask, because if you had trusted your gut and let eBay step in, you would really regret it. In fact I think the one demerit for 'Case closed without seller resolution' would be enough to sink you down into 'Below Standard' level, because you have so few sales in the past year, that one strike would be too high of a percent to stay above standard.
No kidding, accept the return immediately, not tomorrow or the next day, NOW, because at any moment the buyer could contact eBay and ask them to 'escalate' things, which some poorly-trained phone reps have been known to do -albeit against policy, but it's a lot harder to get bad employee choices reversed than avoiding situations where they can make them.
gurlcat
·3 weeks agoSorry the return policy is so confusing but you must get a firm grasp on it or you will be taken advantage of by scammers, and electronics is the #1 most scammed category on eBay.
Having "No returns" is only an illusion because if the buyer chooses any of the menu reasons that count as INAD (Item Not As Described, also Arrived Damaged and yes Missing Parts or Pieces) then you cannot refuse to refund. You can refuse to accept the return, like if getting the item back just isn't worth paying for the return label (this would be the wise choice in a situation like a shattered glass object and they showed photos of it). In that case you would just issue a refund without return. But if you want the item back, you must accept the return, eBay will give them a return shipping label (and charge you for it, but with the discount, same as when you ship through eBay).
annadryl
·3 weeks agoYou put your foot down and fought the return. You should never do that when a buyer says it's not as described. If you tell ebay it's you versus them and ask ebay to decide who is right (which you did) then ebay will side with the buyer. It's probably even an AI decision. If you still can, issue a return label. Hopefully you'll get the right item back before you refund. If ebay has to refund you get a defect mark on your selling account. Please stop fighting this!
christworks
·3 weeks ago@krispy038 I am sorry, but you do not want eBay to step in. You will lose the item, the money, your eBay fees, and get a defect on your account. Very bad move!!!
You set your return policy however you want. No returns is not the same as no refunds though. Any buyer can open up an Item Not As Describe return and a seller must refund them or accept the return, then refund.
Your listing has issues. You show three SSDs in your photos. In the description you state you are only selling the red one because you sold the other two. You set yourself up for an INAD because a buyer can easily be confused and think they are getting everything in the photos. It is possible your buyer thought one of the other SSDs was actually the original housing, not a seperate SSD. You only have two photos that show them. I could see how some buyers might be confused.
I'm sorry but that is a lazy way to sell. Just take photos of each item you are selling, then you don't open yourself up to stuff like this.
You will lose if you do not accept the return and issue your buyer a refund. You also risk a negative feedback if you drag your feet and jerk the buyer around. You are going to have to work it out with him. You could offer him a partial refund to cover the cost of him buying a damaged SSD for parts so he can recover the housing from it.
If you feel the buyer is lying, you can report them to eBay for return abuse. If eBay agrees with you, they will protect you from any negative feedback the buyer might leave. You still have to issue the refund though.
krispy038
OP3 weeks agoIn his dispute explanation, he flat out admits he made a mistake on his end. He’s not claiming it’s not as described, only that it’s “Missing parts” and he shows a bit of buyers remorse in that box. But whatever
gurlcat
·3 weeks agoWhat you have to understand is that no human will decide whether his reason was legit or not. We see things all the time where the buyer flat out lies, shows bogus photos, etc. and it NEVER matters, because the bot only "considers" whether a return was one of the INAD reasons or not. I don't even know why they have a text box and photo requirement, to be honest.
kensgiftshop
·3 weeks agoDoesn't matter, if you want it returned before refunding, you need to accept the return and provide a shipping label.
As a seller, you never want to let Ebay decide, you won't like the ending.
ma-647837
·3 weeks ago · EditedNo @krispy038 if you ask eBay to step in you will earn a defect and lose your payment plus fees, while the buyer will get a full refund and keep the item.
Instead, you should accept the return, issue a prepaid eBay return label, and refund after you get your sorried-state drive and its candy back.