Fraudulent Activities
I have been a dedicated seller on eBay for several years, consistently operating with honesty and integrity. However, I’ve become increasingly disappointed with the declining quality of seller support and the lack of protection against fraudulent activity.
Recently, I sold two high-value perfumes totaling $710 to a buyer. As I always do for expensive items, I carefully documented the shipment process, including photographs and item weight, and purchased shipping insurance to safeguard against any potential damage or loss.
Unfortunately, the buyer returned empty bottles of different perfumes, clearly not the items I originally shipped. Despite providing eBay with detailed evidence and engaging in multiple conversations with customer service, the case was ultimately decided in favor of the buyer. As a result, I not only lost valuable merchandise but also absorbed the shipping cost of approximately $35.
It’s disheartening to experience such a lack of protection as a long-standing seller. This situation raises serious concerns about how fraudulent buyer behavior is handled and whether eBay is truly committed to supporting and safeguarding its sellers.
I hope eBay will re-evaluate its approach to such cases, as continued experiences like this discourage honest sellers and erode trust in the platform.
tobaccocardyahoo
·11 months agoIMO Ebay Customer support is no worse than it has been throughout the existence of Ebay.
Ebay has come a long way from the early days when Pierre ignored any and all scams on the site.
Some sellers are less risk-adverse than others and suffer losses which they cannot afford. There is a relationship between risk and reward and many of those sellers never consider the risk when they list an item on Ebay, others assume they can manage a risk which they cannot manage, and assume protections exist which do not.
Statistically, Ebay sellers as a group may experience manageable risk levels, but that does not mean that a seller cannot take on far more risk than any sane person might accept or they would if they could think.
pickapaper
·11 months ago@ranauts
I agree about you selling some of those expensive items, especially that Rolex. There are just so many things that could go south with that item. You offer 30 days returns on your items. What if you send that Rolex out, the buyer files a claim to return it and you get back a Timex? There is no way to prove what you sent or what the buyer receives. eBay will not accept photos or videos as evidence of anything. You would have to refund.
Unfortunately, there is a lot of theft/scamming that goes on, on eBay (and that's with both buyers and sellers). I don't know how long you've been selling but many of us who have been selling on here for a long time will no longer sell anything over a certain dollar amount; different amounts depending on how much we are comfortable with. There is even a saying: "don't list anything you can't afford to lose".
Oh, and by the way, eBay really doesn't care if you or anyone else has been a dedicated, honest, and integrity seller. Their main goal is to have happy buyers. I agree with @jonathanbrightlight, I think you should try pursuing this with the Postal Authorities.
caldreamer
·11 months agoThere are many scammers on EBAY and little to no seller protection. EBAY always rules in favor of the customer.
I cannot believe that you are selling a Rolex watch (scammers delight). Do you realize that any buyer can "reverse payment" AFTER they receive your item? Buyer has 6-months to contact credit card company and make up some lie (counterfeit item) to get their money back. They also get to "keep your item" as credit card company give them an immediate refund (and lets customer keep the item). Great deal for scammer!
dnasilver
·11 months agoScammers tend not to have 15K to throw around. There are also legal means and Rolex watches all have unique identifying marks. Scammers tend to be on lower items, like a grand or less.
jonathanbrightlight
·11 months agoSince eBay does not have the items in its possession at any point in the process, there's really no good way for them to handle those types of issues. They can't conclusively decide if you shipped the buyer empty bottles, or they shipped their old bottles to you, or if either of you shipped any of those things back and forth, other than that they can see that there was a shipment from you to the buyer, and from the buyer to you. They would never survive as a marketplace if they typically favored the seller in cases like that, because buyers would refuse to shop here. While it's a frustrating problem as a seller, it's one that eBay doesn't have any good ways (that I've ever heard of) to solve, especially without increasing costs for all sellers.
For that type of value, though, I would consider contacting the US Postal Inspector's Office, and/or pursuing a small claims court case against the buyer.
heckofagame
·11 months agoThe best approach would be to do a partial refund based on the fact that the buyer returned something other than what they bought. Try to avoid getting eBay involved as it rarely goes in favor of the seller. And be sure to report the buyer.
What to do if an item is returned used or damaged
Once you receive the item back, you need to refund the buyer. However, if the item has been used, altered or damaged, it may be appropriate to deduct an amount from the buyer's refund to cover the loss in the item's value.
If the return is eligible, you'll see the option to deduct a specific amount or a percentage when you refund the buyer through the return request. Once you've sent the refund, we'll keep the return open for up to 10 days so that we can help the buyer if they ask us to step in, but because you're protected there's nothing more for you to do.
See our seller protections for full details of eligibility and how we protect you in these situations. Keep in mind that you're not eligible for fee credits when you deduct from the buyer's refund for a return that was used, altered or damaged, and you’ll no longer see this option if eBay steps in to help with the return.
How to deduct from the buyer's refund when the item is returned in a different condition
If you qualify to deduct an amount from the buyer's refund: