Order returned with by USP with sticker "No matching CAO".

[mambrax444]

I shipped an item to a repeat buyer, but it was returned to me, as shown below. This has never happened to me before. I don't understand why this occurred or what steps I should take next. It's definitely not my fault, and the shipping was not cheap. I also want the buyer to receive the item. Can someone help me with this?

[inceptions]

Hi @mambrax444 

That's a USPS label (not UPS) and "COA" means change of address. Bottom line - the buyer is not at that address.

What I would do is refund the buyer for the item price (not including any shipping paid by buyer). Then send the buyer a message to let him know you have done so and why. You can relist the item and give the buyer the new item # so he can repurchase it if he still wants it. Remind him to add/edit the shipping address at checkout BEFORE completing his payment.

[mambrax444]

Thanks for the input. Super helpful.

From my understanding, when refunding the buyer, do I have to pay the numerous eBay fees (which are very high in that case) associated with the sale?

Best,

[inceptions]

@mambrax444 

You're welcome!

Your final value fees and the sales tax the buyer paid are refunded by eBay. You refund the item price only (not shipping, as that has already been used).

[mambrax444]

Sorry to be slow understanding today, but is there a link that shows me the amount to be refunded and how to proceed (on average sale, I barely get 65% of the total amount back to me before COG, so I am not in a hurry to pay eBay again for something I'm not responsible for)?

[inceptions]

@mambrax444 

You're not paying eBay again. Here's an example (I've blanked out some information such are ID #s for buyer transaction, item...)

Circled in red are the fees you paid when you sold the item. Circled in blank are the fees you're credited when eBay covers in their portion of the refund.

If you don't refund the shipping, you'll still be paying the fees on that portion of the sale, but it's better to do that (unless the shipping is enormously high) than covering that yourself.

Regardless, you can't keep the buyers payment and his item too.

Not sure I understand your question about a link to show you the amount to refund. You enter the item price on the refund form and eBay does the rest as shown above. (Click Send refund to see what the form looks like, you have two more pages to go before you can submit it.)

I got to the page showing the breakdown above after refunding by going to the Seller Hub > Payments tab (after a refund had been processed).

[mambrax444]

Does saying "again" mean I have to pay eBay a 20% fee for something I never earned income from, simply because a customer provided an incorrect address? It feels unfair that I have to pay a sales fee on an item that didn’t result in any income. Plus, there’s no one available to talk to for customer service. It seems like a pretty exploitative system they have in place.

[inceptions]

@mambrax444 

As I explained, you get your fees credited for the first transaction when you refund. Of course you would pay fees for a new transaction (whether from the same buyer or some other buyer).

In the example I showed you, the refund to the buyer was $26.50. I paid $23.01 and eBay paid $3.49 + $0.50 (which were the fees I paid).

There is nothing exploitive - it works just as it should work.

If you want to speak to customer service, you can request a callback from this link:

https://www.ebay.com/help/eua?id=5275&mkpid