Customer questions after payment

[pollyhannavintage]

A customer of mine purchased and paid for an item, then proceeds to ask additional questions about the item. Since eBay is currently in the process of updating the system, ALL of my listings were inadvertently changed to a 1 day processing!! 🙄 I have no problem sending this customer additional photos or answering questions to ease his mind. But how do avoid any negative impact this delay may have on my account? Does eBay provide extensions since the customer has questions after payment?  

[mam98031]

It would be extremely unusual for Ebay to randomly change your handling time.  That isn't something they normally do.  What leads you to believe that they did that on your listings?  Have you checked your listings?

Look at the listing your buyer purchased from, what is the handling time you have on that specific listing?

It is all go to depend on what kind of questions this buyer is asking you.  Tell me more about what they are asking of you and what it is you sold them.  Or give me the listing number and I can look at what it says, take into consideration as to what the buyer is asking you specifically.  Because you may want to see if this buyer wants to cancel this transaction.  But it really depends on what they are asking you.  

So more details please.  I'm about to head off for bed, but I'll be back in the morning.

[pollyhannavintage]

Thank you for the response. Trust me when I say, this is no newbie error on my part. I too didn’t think it was possible for those type of changes to happen with eBay but it absolutely happened. Not only did eBay change my handling times but the categories that my items were originally classified under, the shipping carriers, and shipping methods have all changed too. I am even having to go back and add item specifics to pieces I’ve had listed for months. The specifics within my listings are disappearing. Crazy right?! I’ve been on the phone with eBay customer service since Monday regarding the handling times. They walked me through how to do a mass update to all of my listings…I’ve updated my listings 3 times and they still continue to revert to something else. They were not able to tell me when the changes are happening, meaning before or after payment. They were able to pull up the details to my original listings to show that the handling times are in fact changing. You can test that by going into the listing and selecting “sell similar”. It will pull up the template that includes the same handling time as the previous listing. All of them have said 3 days, not 1 day. They were also able to see that I’ve attempted multiple updates to my listings that are not processing. They indicated it’s probably a glitch but their hands are tied since tech needs to get involved. The only thing I am able to do at this point is continue to call and continue to submit tickets. I have also had to put my store on vacation. I can’t continue to sell with these type of internal errors. Let me know what details you would like me to provide? But I’m not sure you will be able to help me with that.

So, regarding my original question. The customer now has questions about the item after he has already paid for it. Because the item technically needs to be shipped TODAY, will eBay provide me with an extension in order to properly help this customer? I normally answer questions before the sale, not after. It’s putting me in a tough spot. 

[mam98031]

Ebay is in the process of updating categories and some item specifics as they announced they would in the Fall Seller Update.  So that would answer part of your problems about things moving to different categories than you had them in originally.  I believe they are suppose to be done sometime tomorrow.  While I have not heard of anyone experiencing problems like you are having, maybe that is what is causing your problem.  I'm glad you called Ebay and had a ticket created, that was a very good idea.

As to your current buyer.  As I said in my earlier posting, without knowing what the buyer is asking or seeing your listing, it is really hard to advise you other than what I've already shared.  I get it if you don't want to share that information.  But without it I can't offer you any other advice.

No Ebay will not give you an extension on your handling time.  However since you normally have a 3 day handling time and if you get dinged for shipping within that 3 days, you could call to get it removed and refer to the Ticket number you have for the problems you are currently having with your listings.  It is highly likely they would remove it.

You will be in a tougher spot if you ship this item to the buyer and then they file for a return when they get it.  I'd wait until you are satisfied you have answered their questions.  But again without knowing what they are asking there isn't much more I can share.

[pollyhannavintage]

Ok thank you! So far, I seem to have taken the right steps. This item is a vintage, Indiana Glass, hen in nest in a very rare color. It was listed as used and I provided an extensive description of its condition within the original listing. I spend the extra time with specifics. There are rough areas, there is texture - specifically at the mold lines. Indiana glass pieces do not have the same finished, smooth edge as say an L.E. Smith or Viking. There are no cracks. I included 10 pictures in my listing. I also indicate that questions or concerns need to be addressed prior to payment. The buyer made an offer which I accepted. After the buyer paid, he then asked if there was damage. Specifically on the back edge. I did not feel or see what he was referring to so I sent him an additional 6 photos. He mentioned he didn’t get them so I re-sent 10 photos. He confirmed the photos but said he was unable to view.  After sensing his hesitation, I asked if he was still comfortable purchasing and even offered to honor a cancellation. He responded by saying he is “used to purchasing pristine items and thinks my price reflects that”. Not only are his responses severely delayed, but they do not address the questions or content of my emails. And I think he is fully aware of that. Pristine means perfect and I feel he is wanting me to say it’s perfect! It is not. Referring to it as perfect, doesn’t make it perfect! And there is nowhere in my listing or my messages where I indicate it is. 

I do not want to ship this piece. I would rather just cancel and refund but ebay doesn’t offer that without defect. Customer service has left me with 2 options…ship the item and risk a return(I would have to pay to have it returned) OR cancel the order and risk a defect to my account which I would have to go back and fight for. Customer service also said that they do not necessarily consider messages between the buyer and seller when it comes to claims. It’s unfortunate and I don’t think I could feel any more defeated. It makes me not want to sell. This policy needs to be updated. I do not feel as if eBay is protecting me as a seller. They should care considering they are making money from this sale too. 

[mam98031]

If you buyer were to return the item, in Ebay's current system, you would just need to accept it.  Fighting it would serve no purpose no matter how much evidence you have, they will side with the buyer.

If this were my transaction.  I would send an email to the buyer with a single question.

This item is NOT Pristine, it is as described in the listing.  Would you like to cancel the purchase?

If he still doesn't answer that, then send it again, same statement and question.

This buyer is highly likely to want to return the item or even more likely ask you for a discount AFTER they receive it.  This is going to be a problematic transaction no matter what you do.  All those questions should have been asked before the purchase and it is highly likely your buyer knows this and pulls this a lot on sellers.

The goal IMHO should be how to get out of this transaction with the least damage to the health of your selling account.  I would really try your best to get them to say it is OK to cancel the transaction.  But under no circumstance would I ship this item to the buyer.  I would cancel for a seller reason, take the defect and risk the buyer posting a negative FB, before I would ship this to them.  IMHO you are going to have bigger headaches if you ship it.

[pollyhannavintage]

I have officially spoken to you about this issue today, more than the customer!! How sad!! Hahaha! And you are far more responsive! Thank you! I’ve been selling for years. Usually when I feel this type of bad juju and my senses go off, it’s for a reason. I can feel when a customer is being shady and I think that’s exactly what is happening here! I just needed the validation. I contacted eBay this afternoon and cancelled the order. This item is rare and pricey. There aren’t any currently listed online anywhere, if that gives you an idea. 😳 I would rather take the defect than run the risk of it going to someone that’s just going to return it anyway and damage it in the process! This sale was not meant to be. So if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got 10 new listings to post. Haha! Thanks for the feedback!