Is buyer abusing eBay’s return policy?

[lecoll8020]

Hi, so I recently sold a buyer a brand new in box LEGO set. I posted two images of the LEGO set, showing the front side and back side of the LEGO’s box. However, I mentioned in the description that the LEGO box would not be shipped with the legos. I was only selling the contents inside the box, which are the legos and the manual. The buyer received his order and immediately filed a return request arguing that he should have received the box because it was shown in the images, but I explicitly said that the box was not included. Is this situation eligible for a return and refund? The buyer has admitted that he didn’t read the item’s description and simply assumed that the box was included by looking at the images. 

[lacemaker3 · Accepted solution]

@lecoll8020,

No, the buyer is not abusing the return policy. They are entitled to a refund because the item was not as described.

The pictures are part of the description, and eBay's Description policy says that "Item descriptions must be accurate and not mislead the buyer.  ...". Your description and pictures should be consistent with each other, not contradictory.

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/listing-policies/item-description-policy?id=4372

I suppose that you wanted to be able to sell the Lego box separately. In that case, you should have taken a picture of the contents without the box for this listing.

[alcoforever]

Yes, it is eligible for a return, as is everything sold on ebay, no matter what the seller says about returns.

It baffles me why you would sell a brand new Lego set without the box.   Your buyer was likely baffled also,

[lecoll8020]

Thank you. 

[lecoll8020]

Thanks for the swift reply. I sold the set without the box because the box was damaged. I actually sell a lot of legos without the box but I had no issues with buyers until now. I actually had ONE similar issue last year but the case was closed in my favor because the buyer didn’t read the item’s description.

[kensgiftshop]

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@lecoll8020 wrote:

Thanks for the swift reply. I sold the set without the box because the box was damaged. I actually sell a lot of legos without the box but I had no issues with buyers until now. I actually had ONE similar issue last year but the case was closed in my favor because the buyer didn’t read the item’s description.

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If you're not going to ship them in the box, you don't want photos of the box in the listings.

No, the buyer isn't abusing the MBG, they did not receive what they were shown. 

[naomysun3]

How did that work out for you that eBay closed in your favor?  I have similar situation first time return and not sure which next steps to take to arrive at that outcome.  Do you mind telling what steps you took?  I appreciate the info. 

[lecoll8020]

I understand. Should I wait for eBay to intervene and make a final decision? Or should I just accept the return and issue a full/partial refund? 

[aproudparent2010]

Buyer is 100% in the right. You yourself even said I sold a brand new IN THE BOX set of Legos.

Why show the box if it's not included? if you just wanted to sell the Legos without the box you should have listed it that way.

[aproudparent2010]

Accept return and give that buyer 100% of the money back that they paid you.

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@lecoll8020 wrote:

I understand. Should I wait for eBay to intervene and make a final decision? Or should I just accept the return and issue a full/partial refund? 

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[lacemaker3]

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@lecoll8020 wrote:

I understand. Should I wait for eBay to intervene and make a final decision? Or should I just accept the return and issue a full/partial refund? 

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Don't wait for eBay to intervene -- they expect sellers to resolve issues like this on their own. If they step in, you will get a defect on your account, and they may refund the buyer without making them return the legos. I see that you have sold some rather expensive sets this way, so that would not be a good resolution for you.

Why don't you try reaching out to the buyer to see if you can make this right for them? The buyer expected to get a box, and for the prices involved, that was a reasonable expectation. Why don't you offer to send the box to them? If you send the missing piece, that ought to make the buyer happy, they  might be willing to close the return once they receive the box.

In the future, when you are selling at that price point to collectors, it would be better to include the original box. And, double-box it when you ship, so that hopefully it doesn't get damaged. To collectors, the original package is usually very important. Don't offer free shipping, if that would be too much for you. 

[monster-deals]

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@lecoll8020 wrote:

I actually had ONE similar issue last year but the case was closed in my favor because the buyer didn’t read the item’s description.

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That is most assuredly not why the case was closed in your favor.

That isn't even a thing.

[aproudparent2010]

1. If you aren't going to include the box then you cannot classify this as new according to eBay definition of new.

2. Do not show or even mention the box if it is not part of the listing.

[naomysun3]

Your only chance to issue a partial refund is when the buyer first submits a return. U have those first few days to do that or accept  return.  You won’t b able to do it after you accept or after u let eBay step in.  You have to be a Top rated seller and offer free returns to be eligible for any seller protection this as it may be.  Limited options sorry to say.  

[thphngn-0]

where is the box?