ebay stole my money
Summary: goldenbuffalo1 described an incident where eBay refunded a buyer who returned the wrong item, leaving them with financial loss despite being a long-standing seller. lakefor94 advised against involving eBay in disputes and suggested handling returns independently to retain control. Others empathized, highlighting similar experiences and noting that eBay's seller protections often fall short. goldenbuffalo1 expressed frustration over eBay's decision and eventual regret for not managing the situation differently, but later shared that eBay reversed the decision in their favor after further appeals.
EBAY just refunded a buyer who returned the wrong item to me. I opened a dispute and sent pics of the item they returned but the still gave them my money. I sold them a new houseware item and she sent me back a used pair of her shoes. I've been a seller with ebay for over 23 years and have a great rep. How and why would they do this?
cardsgamingcomics
·1 week agoHappened to me as well. Buyer returned a different trading card, I did an appeal with photos. Buyer left a negative and got refunded. Ebay stated that the card is not the same, and accused me of refunding the buyer. Straight up lie on from Ebay and is scamming Sellers out of money. I have the proof in their own written message. Ebay adding shipping fees in the final value charge.
4663samaritean
·1 week agoIt is very clear that eBay is only interested in its profits and not in the need to help sellers.
4663samaritean
·1 week agoIt is very clear that eBay is only interested in its profits and not in the need to help sellers.
kennys-kollectibles
·2 weeks agoTo those of you who are saying ebay didn't steal the money, you are correct,
they didn't....but they are accessory to theft.
kibble-net
·2 weeks agoThis is the famous "he said, she said" situation.
Your recourse here is to take the buyer to small claims court.
However, good luck proving that the buyer sent you back the wrong item.
Up to you to determine whether it's worth it.
If it's worth it---- then file the paperwork and travel to the buyer's county.
If it's not worth it---- factor it into the cost of doing business. One bad return in 23 years = $0.01 handling fee per order to cover this sort of thing.
inhawaii
·2 weeks ago"Ebay stole my money."
No, they didn't.
They found in favor of the buyer and refunded him.
That's not stealing your money.
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoOk. It's stealing my product. The buyer ended up with both and I ended up with nothing.
annadryl
·2 weeks agoYour BUYER stole your item and used ebay to get away with it. It could be done about anywhere online as well. Fortunately it's probably pretty rare in the kitchenware category.
cardsgamingcomics
·1 week agoEbay agent nut rider!
stephenmorgan
·2 weeks agoIf you can offer proof you did not receive same item back sometimes you can get eBay to reverse their decision.
The item you sent and the item that was returned, was there a big difference in the package weights?
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoI sent the pics to ebay. The sizes of the boxes were completely different the weight was close. I think the buyer probably has done this before.
kalyoth
·2 weeks agoOnce you force ebay to intervene, you lose control. You should have deducted 50%, refunded & then filed separately.
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoI will next time. 😁👍 thank you for your help.
kalyoth
·2 weeks agoIf the price is worthwhile, go to the police & file a report. Pursue it in small claims etc. otherwise, its a tax write-off.
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoYea. It's not worth the hassle. I guess I'm more upset that I counted on ebay to do the right thing when I sent appropriate evidence to support the issue and they made the choice to reward a buyer with my product and my money. It makes it hard to trust them. And apparently you can't even talk to a representative anymore.
kalyoth
·2 weeks ago · Editedebay can't force anyone to do anything outside of their own control - which is purely financial. Return of goods is civili/criminal only. ebay reset it based upon their involvement & at the same time removed their involvement for liability.
vintage-camerastuff
·2 weeks agoYou offer 30 day free returns so why didn't you deduct 50% from the sale? Also block and report her.
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoI didn't have the option. Once I notified ebay that I had received the wrong item, they refunded her . I asked that they look at the case again and review the attached pics but they still insisted that their decision was final.
lakefor94
·2 weeks ago@goldenbuffalo1
If eBay steps in to help with the return at any stage, you'll no longer be able to deduct an amount from the buyer's refund.
That was your mistake, involving ebay.
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoI didn't want to give her any refund at all. I also blocked and reported her. I assumed ebay would back me up.😪
lakefor94
·2 weeks ago@goldenbuffalo1 ecommerce on a venue using a payment processor, buyers are protected by law, not sellers.
Hang in there moving forward as you learn how to navigate the pitfalls of returns.
It is good that you have free returns @goldenbuffalo1 . You get the most protections available.
Don't ever bring eBay into a transaction, come here first for direct advice.
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoI so appreciate all your advice. This has really been a good learning opportunity for me. And now I feel ashamed that I reacted so badly to this situation especially since I woke up this morning to find out that my third request to ebay to reconsider my case was decided in my favor and I was refunded.
Next time I'll take a breath, come here to speak with you all and become a better seller and person. Thank you again. This community is awesome. :)
gurlcat
·2 weeks ago23 years without this happening before? I am neon green with envy.
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoReally? Does this happen frequently?
reallynicestamps
·2 weeks agoNot often-- probably less than one percent of transactions.
But it does happen.
Remember losses due to Failed Transactions are a business expense and tax deductible.
A possible response to Feedback "Thank you for sending your used shoes instead of the doohickey I sent you. Unfortunately they are not my size, could you send the doohickey back instead?"
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoGood point!👍
kibble-net
·2 weeks agoYeah, if this happens even once every 10 years, a ONE PENNY handling fee will cover a rainy day pretty easily.
lakefor94
·2 weeks ago · Edited@goldenbuffalo1
EBays seller protections are listed below.
A seller's main protection is being Above Standard rated and offering Free Returns or being a Top Rated Seller and just accepting 30 day returns. These sellers can do a 50% refund on items returned damaged or the buyer sends back something other than what the seller shipped. Savvy scammers tend to avoid these accounts.
The Item Not Received cases are the only other significant seller protection if you have tracking that shows delivery.
Here is some eBay documentation on the subject:
An item is returned after it was used or damaged by the buyer
Sellers who are not Below Standard are eligible for this protection for listings that offer free returns.
If you accepted a buyer's return request but the item is returned in a different condition than it was originally sent:
You can deduct up to 50% from the refund to recover the lost value of the item. We'll automatically remove any related negative or neutral feedbackIf the buyer had requested the return because the item didn't match the listing, we won't count the return in your "Item not as described" rate in service metrics.
Make sure you report the buyer. Then open in new window or tab and send the refund within 2 business days after receiving the item back. You can do this from the return request. If eBay steps in to help with the return at any stage, you'll no longer be able to deduct an amount from the buyer's refund.
If we're asked to step in after you've issued the refund, it won't be counted as a case closed without seller resolution. We'll keep the return open for up to 10 days while we work with the buyer to resolve their concerns, and you won't need to do anything.
https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/selling/seller-protections
modulok!
·2 weeks agoI swear I remember that ebay announced a change in policy, in which, if a seller did the 50% deduction thing that negs and neuts would no longer be removed. I swear ebay announced this at the same time they announced that negative feedback removal was going to be more difficult (and at the same time as the advent of automatic feedback). But there it still is in the policy you just quoted...negs will be removed. So which is it? Am I remembering this wrong? Does anybody else remember this ebay announcement or am I experiencing the mandela effect? Have I been taking crazy pills this whole time?
lakefor94
·2 weeks agoI think perhaps you are correct, @modulok!
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoThank you. That helps. However, how could I have not refunded her without telling ebay why. Once I told ebay that they had returned a different item other than the one we sold her, I assumed ebay would handle it honestly. I'm a top rated seller with free 30 day returns and they came down on the side of the dishonest buyer. How can I trust ebay after that?
lakefor94
·2 weeks ago · Edited@goldenbuffalo1
Involving eBay in your transaction was the mistake. A seller needs to handle all returns without eBay involvement. Simple as that.
chapeau-noir
·2 weeks ago · EditedIt's not simple, though - how is a seller supposed to know beforehand not to involve the site they are selling on in a site transaction? That's the part that makes no sense to me. It's like bait and switch.
lakefor94
·2 weeks ago · EditedThe seller knows now. Perhaps even understands that involving eBay was a mistake. Will the seller do it again? Who knows?
Seller has probably sold 20,000 items over the years, they ought to know........
chapeau-noir
·2 weeks agoIt's not just this one sellers, it's eBay's actions regarding this entire hot mess returns process that bothers me because it's misrepresentation. They claim to help, but automatically do not.
goldenbuffalo1
OP2 weeks agoExactly!
lakefor94
·2 weeks agoWhy the reps give sellers incorrect info, at times, ehhhh, much of the time is a dirty deal.
The thing is, many sellers don't want to hear from the reps that they have to refund and I am sure they argue to the bitter end with the reps and the reps then tell them what they want to hear to get them off the phone.
Everything about returns is in the ebay policies and if I had sold 20,000 items, I would bet that policies would have become clear, a long, long time ago.
toomuchstuffagain35
·2 weeks agoI'm in the middle of a false snad return right now and expecting the same treatment. I did report the buyer for misusing returns but that's another story.
Buyer (in NY) shipped it back to me in WA state. ebay returns details show it as delivered though their tracking clearly shows it got to my city and is now back in NY.
No idea how this is going to play out but I have that feeling.....
kensgiftshop
·2 weeks agoOn this account, it doesn't show you are a TRS and not all your listings have free returns.