mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999
Join the Community team here at 1 PM PT on December 18th for our Weekly Chat with eBay Staff. We don't have a set topic this week, so please bring any general questions you may have on buying or selling.
The chat will be open for questions from 1-2 pm PT, at which point we'll close thread. While no additional questions can be submitted after this time, we'll continue to work on responding to any queries that may still be unanswered.
If you're new to the chat, welcome! Simply Reply to this post with your question from 1-2 PM Pacific Time and we'll be happy to look into it for you.
*Please note that we're not able to address account-specific queries. Questions regarding your account should be directed to eBay Customer Service.
@gwzcomps wrote:
If eBay isn't going to do anything to prevent fraudulent returns can we at least get a new buyer requirements filter to help? We can block people with 2 unpaid item strikes in 12 months. Maybe give us an option like "can't buy if filed x # of false returns over a period of 12 months".
Also why does the description and communications no longer have any bearing on returns?
Hi @gwzcomps, I have great news! We actually already do remove buyers from the Money Back Guarantee protection program if we identify a pattern of abuse, which includes opening false returns. Anytime a seller encounters a buyer they believe to be abusive then we ask that they report it to us. We have teams monitoring buying activity and reviewing seller reports of abusive buyers around the clock and taking action. The abusive buyer and seller protections policies go hand in hand to protect the community.
We use the reason selected by the buyer when they open a return when deciding a case if we are asked to step in. Buyers don't always message a seller to offer more details beyond the reason selected in the return. There are also times when buyers may not properly describe the issue because of a potential language barrier. These and other issues led to misinterpretations of messages and resulted in incorrect decisions made on cases. Ultimately, we determined that using the reason selected by the buyer is the most accurate way to determine case outcomes going forward.
With that said, we know that there are times when a buyer may abuse the returns system by falsely claiming Not As Described or altering an item before returning it. The enhanced protections for Top Rated Sellers and sellers who offer free returns helps in this area. We are partnering with sellers to give return shipping credits, removing feedback and service metrics, and providing the option for partial refunds. Any customer service issues raised by the buyer after this will be handled and resolved by eBay, freeing the seller up to manage their business.
@golfingaddict wrote:
I had a seller cancel an order recently. I wanted the items and I did not want the seller to cancel. In fact the seller emailed me and asked me if I wanted to cancel to which I answered, NO I want the items.
but the seller went ahead and cancelled the order and used the reason "buyer requested" which was not an honest reason but as a buyer, there is nothing I can do. On the notices I received it just said the order was cancelled, no way to agree or disagree.. it is just the way it is.
Is it that easy to get around ebay policy and avoid defects?
Hi @golfingaddict - it's really frustrating when a transaction is cancelled, especially when you were looking forward to the items as much as you were.
When it comes to the process itself, there is not currently a way for you to dispute the reason for the cancellation. We do keep track of the number of cancellations a member sends as 'buyer requested' and review accounts for abuse if that rate seems abnormally high. Members who abuse that have appropriate action taken on their accounts.
Thanks!
brian@ebay wrote:
@gwzcomps wrote:
If eBay isn't going to do anything to prevent fraudulent returns can we at least get a new buyer requirements filter to help? We can block people with 2 unpaid item strikes in 12 months. Maybe give us an option like "can't buy if filed x # of false returns over a period of 12 months".
Also why does the description and communications no longer have any bearing on returns?Hi @gwzcomps, I have great news! We actually already do remove buyers from the Money Back Guarantee protection program if we identify a pattern of abuse, which includes opening false returns. Anytime a seller encounters a buyer they believe to be abusive then we ask that they report it to us. We have teams monitoring buying activity and reviewing seller reports of abusive buyers around the clock and taking action. The abusive buyer and seller protections policies go hand in hand to protect the community.
We use the reason selected by the buyer when they open a return when deciding a case if we are asked to step in. Buyers don't always message a seller to offer more details beyond the reason selected in the return. There are also times when buyers may not properly describe the issue because of a potential language barrier. These and other issues led to misinterpretations of messages and resulted in incorrect decisions made on cases. Ultimately, we determined that using the reason selected by the buyer is the most accurate way to determine case outcomes going forward.
With that said, we know that there are times when a buyer may abuse the returns system by falsely claiming Not As Described or altering an item before returning it. The enhanced protections for Top Rated Sellers and sellers who offer free returns helps in this area. We are partnering with sellers to give return shipping credits, removing feedback and service metrics, and providing the option for partial refunds. Any customer service issues raised by the buyer after this will be handled and resolved by eBay, freeing the seller up to manage their business.
Yes it is good that Ebay removes some repeat offending buyers from the ability to have protection under the MBG, however sellers can't tell that. We have no idea that the buyer does not have access to the MBG, so they can still cause issues for the seller outside of filing a request for return. Or can they still file one but just can't ask Ebay to step in? Either way, still an issue for sellers.
I get it about private account information. But there needs to be some way to make this better.
OMG so buyers that lie, out and out lie when opening a return, especially those returning for a buyer remorse reason but instead lie so they can get their return shipping free, Ebay rewards this behavior. Now that is a problem!!
In Ebay's effort to be more accurate they have made it so that sellers have no rights in this process. ZERO! I realize that is not your doing, you are just sharing the process with us.
While I am very appreciative of the new TRS protections. Ebay somehow seems to think that we should be grateful that we now only have to lose 50% of our money instead of 100% when a buyer returns something other than sold to them or nothing at all as the case may be. Or they return something that is so damaged it can't be resold at all. When in fact there are times when NO refund is appropriate due to the facts of the case. But Ebay goes by what the buyer initially checks off on the request return. So any facts shared after that via M2M has no bearing whatsoever. That is just not right for so many reasons.
"Partnering" is a really bad word to use for this IMHO. Partners share things. Partners share in decision and in the financial ramifications behind those decision. Ebay makes the decision in these cases and the financial end is mostly for the Sellers to handle. I know there are times when Ebay steps in and refunds the seller. But most cases don't go that way. Either Ebay needs to live up to the terms of a Partner or choose a different word to describe their part in this process. Again just my opinion.
