Fraudulent "Not As Described" Claim Ignored — Lost Money After Case Closed Without Review
I’m extremely disappointed in how eBay handled a recent return case involving a buyer who falsely claimed an item was "not as described."
I sold a Flomatic 1-1/4†foot valve in brand-new condition. The item was returned in the same condition it was sent, and I even submitted an email from Flomatic themselves confirming it was a genuine, authentic product.
Despite that, eBay still refunded the buyer. Initially, eBay support told me not to respond to the buyer's request, and instead escalate it to eBay. Later, I was told the standard process is: the buyer returns the item, and once received, the case would be re-evaluated and I’d be reimbursed. None of that happened. The case was closed, and I was left with the loss—despite doing everything right and providing documentation.
Here’s the outcome:
-
Item Price: $50
-
Shipping: $20.82 (non-refundable)
-
eBay Fees: Over $9
-
Ad Fee: $7.74
-
Total Earnings: - $37.73
I’ve attached screenshots showing the breakdown.
To be clear—I have recordings of the phone calls with eBay support confirming everything I was told. I’m more than willing to share those conversations if this isn’t escalated and addressed properly.
This is absolutely unacceptable. Sellers should not be penalized for following protocol, especially when eBay support provides misleading information and fails to protect long-standing, top-rated sellers.
@eBay — please explain how this qualifies as fair seller protection.
jimi56
·1 year agoI have seller on eBay since 1998 and there is nothing I haven't heard from customer service. They tell you what you want to hear just to get you off the phone, and when you call back because what they said did not happen, someone tells you that they gave you the wrong information. My estimate is that this has happened to me between 40 and 50 times over the years. Too many to just be by accident.
silverbuyer13
·1 year agoSorry this happened to you, the same thing just happened to me to the T but with a $425 sale. The buyer had buyer's remorse just 2 days after buying it and told me a eBay glitch bought it for him and he would return it as soon as received. I called eBay and because eBay CS told me to ignore the fraudulent item not as described claim it was escalated to a case which I was told would be closed in my favor since it was a fraudulent claim/case....well eBay automatically escalated it to a case, closed the case, told the buyer to return for a refund, and refunded him....
The best part is since eBay told me to ignore the claim and they had to step in I wasn't refunded my $35 final value fee so at the moment I'm out $39.xx with that and the original shipping label. To me, eBay should refund my FVF and original shipping since they sided with a problem buyer that opened a fraudulent case just so he could return the item. It was a silver bar and you don't have to accept returns on them so his only way to was open a fraudulent not as described claim. He even included a picture of the item exactly as described! I'm so mad at eBay India CS, I keep getting nowhere but frustrated with them..they tend to give bad information and not have the power to actually do anything. I'm gonna try to keep fighting and wish you the best of luck!
procaredepot
OP1 year agoYeah man, it's some serious **bleep**. I’m in the middle of fighting them over email right now—same exact story. They told me to ignore the buyer's fraudulent claim, then turned around and refunded the buyer anyway. Classic.
Their $5-a-day support team doesn’t stand a chance against me and ChatGPT-4+ 😤 I’ll keep pushing and let you know if I make any headway. Stay on them—you’re not alone in this mess.
silverbuyer13
·1 year agoI hope they refund you and me but if they don't refund me I won't be as mad now because I was upset I relisted the rare silver bar for $525 ($100 more) and despite it taking 7-9 months or so to sell at $425 it sold for $525 5 hours after relisting. Blew my mind. Good luck.
johnrj1226
·1 year agoWonder how Walmart or The Big "A" would have handle the return.
Do know well that the Big "A" accepts returns w/o an issue and issues a return label. "She Who Must Be Obeyed" does it seamlessly a bunch of times and I'm instructed to take the return to the UPS store each time W T F = What's The Fuss.
Never had a return rejected from a Walmart store since 1984..
inhawaii
·1 year agoI'm sorry you are extremely disappointed that ebay handled your INAD case the same way they handle everyone else's.
dalilrollin0
·1 year agoOn your post, you mentioned that item was returned in the condition it was sent. You didn’t lose $38, at least you can repost it again.
procaredepot
OP1 year agoYeah bro, I did lose $38—between non-refundable shipping, eBay transaction fees, and promoted listing costs. The item was returned, but that doesn’t undo the money that was already spent.
Please see the attached photo for a full breakdown. Reposting it doesn’t make me whole—it just means I get to gamble on getting burned again.
gloryglorygifts
·1 year agoI would definitely reach out to ebay on Facebook, as others have suggested.
Good luck to you.
caseypl
·1 year agoSorry to see this. April and the start of May have brought out some of the worst buyers. I'm seeing a huge uptick in return requests. I think people are trying to claw back any money they can and will do whatever they feel morally okay doing to get it.
seconhandrosie
·1 year agoWhen the president is a rapist and thief, anything goes!
seconhandrosie
·1 year agoIronic how Feebay knowingly allows all manner of criminal fakes and counterfeits from china.
luckythewinner
·1 year agoeBay support told me not to respond to the buyer's request, and instead escalate it to eBay.
If you told support that the claim was fraudulent and asked how you could fight it, then eBay gave you advice that was technically correct ... except that they probably did not tell you that eBay will almost always rule in favor of the buyer when you ask them to step in.
Later, I was told the standard process is: the buyer returns the item, and once received, the case would be re-evaluated and I’d be reimbursed.
If you asked support how to handle the case without the risk of receiving a defect for it, then eBay gave you advice that was technically correct ... except that they probably did not tell you that eBay will almost never re-evaluate the case and reimburse you.
This is absolutely unacceptable. Sellers should not be penalized for following protocol
Every transaction on eBay carries the risk of fraud. This has been true since 2008 when eBay introduced the Money Back Guarantee for buyers.
It may be unacceptable to you, but this is how eBay has handled almost every case since 2008 and there are still 1.5 billion items listed here.
eBay has no idea what you sent or what the buyer returned, and they know that anything you or the includes, writes, or attaches regarding the case may be faked, forged or made up. They have no idea if your email from Flomatic was legitimate or not, and even if they could they have no idea if the item that Flomatic authenticated is actually the one you sent to the buyer or not.
The bottom line is that eBay cannot possibly determine the truth, and even if they could they are not going to spend the time and effort and money to do so. It is a "one said, the other said" situation, and eBay is going to decide the case in a manner that is most advantageous for eBay.
Now that you know how eBay works, you can choose re-evaluate your business model to account for it.
soh.maryl
·1 year agoAm sure you know this now, but sadly, once a buyer opens an NAD case, the outcome will be one of these at least 99% of the time: Seller sends buyer a prepaid return label and refunds in total when he gets the item back OR seller refunds buyer without requiring the item be returned OR seller digs in heels, refuses to comply with the MBG and appeals and THEN eBay refunds the buyer and puts a defect on the seller's record.
albertabrightalberta
·1 year ago@procaredepot
The most important takeaway from this experience is to understand that whether an item is "as described" or not, any time and every time a buyer opens a claim for NAD (not as described, you MUST accept the return (if you want the item back) or you MUST issue a refund without a return.
Any time and every time ebay has to step in to resolve a NAD case, the seller will lose the case, lose the FVF credit and get a defect on their account for not handling. the case properly.
The best you can hope for at this point is:
1. Request that ebay review the CS messages you got telling you to ignore the claim and their promises to reevaluate and reimburse you when the item is returned.
2. Recommend that once they see the misinformation you were given, advise additional training for the CS phone people
3. It's possible they might give a one time courtesy refund to you. I'm not sure they'll do it for the large amount of money involved but it's worth a try.
procaredepot
OP1 year agoSo let me get this straight—if I sell a sealed collectible or a limited release that’s meant to stay unopened, and the buyer opens it or swaps parts, I still have to accept the return like nothing happened? That’s not protection—it’s a free pass for fraud.
How can any seller of high-value or condition-sensitive items trust this system? We’re just supposed to eat the loss and hope eBay “might†offer a courtesy refund? That’s not a policy - it's a joke.
kensgiftshop
·1 year agoYes.
Ebay has very little seller protection.
It's better to go ahead and accept the return, provide the shipping label and refund when something is returned, then get Ebay involved.
ittybitnot
·1 year agoHow can any seller of high-value or condition-sensitive items trust this system?
@procaredepot
You can't, and you have to weigh that against your risk tolerance. Just about ANY item on eBay can be had for free at your expense with the right kind of phony claim. Any loss you suffer is regarded by eBay as "part of doing business." In addition, the whole process is automated with very predictable results.
As soon as the buyer chooses a "not as described" reason from the dropdown menu, for all intents and purposes on eBay, that item becomes exactly what the buyer says it is. Robots don't care if the buyer is lying, and it is a generally accepted practice by those buyers who don't want to pay for a return or get free merchandise. Your photos won't matter and will never again be viewed, and your description will never be considered. Any evidence or appeal will result in "we found in the buyer's favor" even if the buyer in their comments says "the sweater has holes in the sleeve" and you sold them a hammer. Again, it is all bot driven and cannot be changed. You agree 'by using eBay' to let them decide all outcomes, which basically means you agree to be a victim of buyer fraud such as this.
Count yourself lucky if you actually got YOUR item back, since eBay has not cared what is returned to you in these scenarios at all in many years. A box of paper clips instead of your product would work, and the
buyer would still be refunded from your proceeds.
As far as customer service is concerned, if you happen to get past those bots and get a call back or chat in the regular CS flow, you are generally speaking to an agent in a foreign call center. They are notorious for giving wrong advice. Unfortunately, for you when you follow it and your problem gets worse eBay will tell you, sorry that you were given misinformation, and not back you or change the outcome. Among the other "code phrases" mentioned upthread, I always considered the "24-48" hours one to be the ultimate code phrase for NEVER.
theteamsetguy
·1 year ago@procaredepot ,
I’ve offered free returns on account for a very long time. I just look at returns as a cost of doing business. I add a couple of percent to the sales prices to make up for it. I don’t take it personally. If someone wants to return something they are going to do it. Why fight them on it.
l5vw
·1 year agoeBay phone support literally told me to wait until the 30th of the month before escalating the buyer’s return request. I followed their exact instructions, didn’t provide a return label (because I was told not to), and by the time I escalated as instructed, the case was already closed and refunded in the buyer’s favor.
Yes this is terrible advice from support. Sellers will lose every time if they do this !
Best of luck. Hopefully through Facebook or X you can get this straightened out.
Please keep us updated as this could help other sellers also.
l5vw
·1 year agoInitially, eBay support told me not to respond to the buyer's request, and instead escalate it to eBay.
I think this is what the main issue stems from. Sounds like you did not provide a return label and then the customer opened a case?
procaredepot
OP1 year agoThanks for the input—totally understand where you’re coming from.
In my case, eBay phone support literally told me to wait until the 30th of the month before escalating the buyer’s return request. I followed their exact instructions, didn’t provide a return label (because I was told not to), and by the time I escalated as instructed, the case was already closed and refunded in the buyer’s favor.
I even had proof from the manufacturer confirming the item was legit and returned in sellable condition.
But hey—I guess that’s the level of guidance you get when the support team is probably getting paid $5 a day to read off scripts. 🙃
fashunu4eeuh
·1 year agoHi @procaredepot
So very sorry this happened to you. The terms of the Money Back Guarantee are absolute. It carries the main risk in selling on eBay. The platform protects its buyers’ interests, often at the seller’s expense. Sellers tacitly agree to follow these rules and procedures when listing their first item.
If it is any comfort, you got off cheap. Some sellers lose hundreds or thousands of dollars at a time by getting side-blinded by the MBG policy. Sellers’ best defense is to know all the policies that govern the site so they can make informed decisions. It is not a stretch to say that it is impossible to succeed on eBay without this foundation of knowledge regarding eBay’s practices.
How did you appeal? Did you read and follow the policy? Or did eBay open the appeal for you? (If so, it was doomed to fail.) Below are the instructions on the appeal for those who may read this.
https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/managing-returns-refunds/appeal-outcome-case-seller?id=4369
procaredepot
OP1 year agoThanks for the reply—I appreciate the insight, but I’m definitely not new to this. I’ve been selling online for 15+ years and run a private trade page with over 100,000 members—well before Facebook Marketplace even existed. I know the policies, how to appeal, and how to protect myself.
For reference, back when PayPal handled eBay disputes, things were at least fair and handled properly. Now that eBay took over the process, it’s a complete mess. PayPal still holds their own, but in cases like this, I can’t even go through them because if I bypass eBay and try to get the money back, they’ll just ban me. Is it worth it? Probably not.
This isn’t about lack of knowledge—it’s about how eBay completely failed on this case despite me doing everything right, including manufacturer verification. Just disappointed how hard they screwed me on this one.
fashunu4eeuh
·1 year ago“I know the policies, how to appeal, and how to protect myself.â€
Speaking only about how the Money Back Policy /Not As Described case is handled, please pardon me for contradicting you. If you knew how to handle the case, It would not have been necessary to call eBay for input (where they had the opportunity to wreak utter havoc with their horrible advice).
Your case was not managed to best protect your interests and your appeal was denied. Neither of these outcomes points to an understanding of how to address the issues being discussed. I stand by my earlier post. There is a lack of knowledge here and it has exacted a heavy toll on your account.
My post was not meant to offend (sorry if it did)—i did not say you were new to all this—Instead it was meant to give you the information you need to have to successfully navigate the eBay universe.
The phone rep told you what they thought you wanted to hear. My intent was to offer you some facts. They were likely difficult to hear, but still important to say.
What you do with the information is up to you. Best of luck to you.
procaredepot
OP1 year agoYes to all three. I responded on time, provided clear documentation, and followed every step correctly because I knew from the start this buyer was a problem.
eBay did step in and refund the buyer, even though I submitted proof from the manufacturer confirming the item was authentic and matched the listing. Despite being told the case would be reviewed after the return, it was closed without explanation and no further investigation was done—directly contradicting what eBay support said would happen.
As a seller with 16 years of 100% feedback, it’s unacceptable to be left with these fees while eBay sides with fraudulent claims. On top of that, their fees and promoted listings cost me additional money, bringing my total loss to over $37 on a $50 sale. This is not seller protection—this is negligence.
kensgiftshop
·1 year agoCS will tell you anything they think you want to hear, just to get you off the phone quicker.
When you get them involved, they already know whats going to happen so I don't know why they just don't tell sellers.
procaredepot
OP1 year agoTotally agree with you. It’s clear now that CS just tells sellers whatever will end the call the fastest—whether it’s accurate or not. I was told multiple times by phone that my case would be re-evaluated after the return, and I had manufacturer proof the item was authentic.
Instead, eBay refunded the buyer anyway and left me with a $38 loss, despite doing everything right. Now I’m stuck with an opened item that may or may not have had parts swapped out.
What’s the point of seller protection if we’re treated like we're disposable? Appreciate you confirming this isn’t just a one-off.
coastaltechsolution
·1 year agoOuch!
ok have you tried reaching out to eBay on Facebook?
Sometimes they can look further and help.
procaredepot
OP1 year agoGreat suggestion—I appreciate it. I actually just filed a dispute with the Better Business Bureau since I couldn’t get anywhere through normal support channels. I’ll try eBay’s Facebook page too and see if that gets traction. Thanks for the tip.
coastaltechsolution
·1 year agoI agree with @kensgiftshop
Standard CS contact will tell you anything to get you off the phone.
"We put a note on your account"
"Please wait 24-48 hours"
"I have escalated the ticket"
Yes please contact eBay on Facebook or other social media and explain and send them the information you shared here. Worth a shot for sure.
procaredepot
OP1 year agoAppreciate the response—you're absolutely right. I heard every one of those classic lines: “We put a note on your account,†“Please wait 24–48 hours,†“We’ve escalated the ticket.†None of it actually led to a resolution—just delays and dead ends.
I’ve already filed a complaint with the BBB and also reached out through eBay’s Facebook page with all the details. At this point, public pressure seems to be the only avenue left for getting a real review of the situation.
Thanks again for the support and guidance—it means a lot.
coastaltechsolution
·1 year ago@procaredepot
Best of luck
Please let us know how it turns out
We love to hear seller success
coastaltechsolution
·1 year agoDid eBay have to step in and refund?
Please give details of how you responded to return request?
You did respond in the time frame for request?