Buyer opened return request choosing reason "item doesn't seem authentic" and further said in reason for return that the item I sold (and eBay allowed to re-list more than a dozen times and the brand is really picky and if anything looks slightly off, eBay will end your listing) "doesn't have the brand stamp" DOES INDEED HAVE THE BRAND STAMP.
So, I haven't yet accepted the return. I realize people like this can be a pain and likely saw the same item at a better price and now just don't want it and will force a return under the MBG by stating the wrong reason, because I can't believe after all that she actually missed the brand stamp both on her item as well as the auction closeup photo and the brand stamp's description in the listing! I'd rather just get rid of her and let her return it but here's the thing: the order was over $750 and though she got "free" shipping, I had to pay $16 to ship it to her and the FVF was $96 and I want her to pay to ship it back to me and not let eBay give her a prepaid label by taking even more money away from me for this false claim under the MBG. Basically, all I want to be out is the 30 cent nonrefundable "order fee" that eBay won't give back to me. I don't want to pay for shipping either way and I want my FVF back.
So, can I issue a partial refund minus what I paid to ship it to her in the first place and also avoid having eBay give here a prepaid shipping label? I don't have a store and I sell just a handful of items per year, so I'm not a Top Rated Seller; my rating is just "above standard". I'm in Managed Payments so I have no idea how she paid. I haven't accepted the return yet, I haven't asked eBay to step in (I've seen on the boards it's a no-no) but I did message the buyer through the Return link in Seller Hub and say very nicely, it's authentic the reason you gave for thinking it's inauthentic because it's missing the brand stamp doesn't make sense, it does have the brand stamp. Here's what it looks like, where it is and furthermore, I'm attaching the same photo of the brand stamp from the listing. Then I called eBay CS immeditaely afterward and asked if I could partially refund and they just took notes and agreed my pictures and listing description were awesome and I did show authenticity and furthermore, the auction would have been taken down if there were authenticity questions as this brand in particular is really aggressive BUT they didn't tell me what to do. More details on this below.
FIRST, I messaged the buyer instead from the Returns area in Seller Hub and told her that I saw the reason she chose (doesn't seem authentic based upon the claim there's no brand stamp), but that the brand stamp is indeed there, told her what it looked like and where to find it, told her this stamp and its location was shown in a closeup photo in the auction listing, and included that exact same photo again in my message in case she missed it. And, I have not yet accepted the return, I'm waiting to see what she says. Maybe she really did miss things and she might decide to keep the item.
SECOND, I immediately called ebay CS and told them what happened. The rep looked at my photos and listing description and said , yeah, everything proving authenticity is there, I can see the brand stamp in your photo even though the buyer is saying it's not there and there is no way you would have been able to re-list this thing a dozen times until it sold as this brand is really aggressive and the isting would have been taken down the first time if you hadn't done all of those things. And, you've pointed all of this out to the buyer just today in the returns center, so it's clear that she shouldn't be claiming inauthenticity. But, when I asked how I could make the buyer return it at her own expense and not issue her a prepaid return label, the CS rep didn't answer. Nor did the CS rep answer whether I could give the buyer a refund minus my cost to ship to her. It's the first couple hours of the return request, so the CS rep said to wait to see whether the buyer responds and that she's noted all of this in my account. I also told the rep that I have another of the exact same item in a different size, and that the brand stamp on the item I sold matches the stamp and location on the item I still have in my possession and i can share photos. The rep said that wasn't needed now.
What are the next steps I could take if the buyer doesn't back down from the inautheticity claim and forces this return? Again, I am trying to avoid a defect and also to get my FVF fees and the $750+ item back and make the buyer pay for shipping both ways since her claim of inauthenticity isn't correct and the basis for her claim (the brand stamp missing) isn't true- the stamp is there!
