Trying To Return Item to China - No Tracking Available?

[marycg]

I bought an item from China for a little over $100. It doesn't work right (GPS not working on cell phone). After going around with the seller, they finally agreed to a return. International shipping to China is very high, and the cheapest rate I found was around $30 for 1st class USPS international first class.  The seller agreed to pay for my return shipping, since he couldn't provide a label.

I paid for shipping and created at label on the USPS website) Only after checking out did it say that tracking is not available for shipments to China. Higher shipping classes may have it available, and the next-highest-class, Priority small parcel (around $45, and I wouldn't mind paying the cost difference myself), still does not have tracking available to China. Only Priority Express, which is close to $100 (about what I paid for the item).   I even checked for the other shippers, including UPS and DHL, and their rates are over $100 for this small package.

I called E Bay customer service, and they said as long as I have proof that I shipped the item (receipt for shipment payment, shipping number) that they would step in and guarantee refund of the item even if the seller doesn't receive the item. I'm not sure whether this is correct or not. I hope so. In the meantime,  the E Bay phone rep. said I should contact the seller and tell then that the tracking info is not available, but that I shipped the item, and they should look out for my shipment and that the seller should confirm that they received the item and notify E Bay when that occurs. The address they gave me for return is long and complicated, and there is the language barrier (I assume the label info is translated once it reaches China?). 

I'm not sure how the seller is going to react to this information.

Was the E Bay customer service rep correct that I can still get a refund as long as I followed all these procedures (proof of mailing, seller knowing that there's no tracking available)?

[krazzykats]

I found the same thing out buying clothing from China, and never again. 

Once I received the items, I found they were more of a child's size than an adult's.  Shipping the items back was more than what I paid, so I'm stuck with two items I can either resell or donate.

If it's going to cost you more than what you paid, don't do it.  Personally, I'd keep the phone, shop USA for one, and never buy from China again.

[xadexane]

Two issues, both not good.

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@marycg wrote:

The seller agreed to pay for my return shipping, since he couldn't provide a label.

I paid for shipping and created at label on the USPS website) Only after checking out did it say that tracking is not available for shipments to China. 

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If you indeed paid for return shipping yourself, without first getting cash upfront

-- you won't be reimbursed, and

-- eBay cannot get the cash back for you. 

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@marycg wrote:

I called E Bay customer service, and they said as long as I have proof that I shipped the item (receipt for shipment payment, shipping number)

-- that they would step in and guarantee refund of the item

-- even if the seller doesn't receive the item. 

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And if you bought the return shipping yourself, you are responsible for non-tracked return delivery, and 

-- eBay cannot force the seller to refund.

Hopefully @marycg you got cash upfront.

[marycg]

I did get the cash via PayPal. I now need to get a refund for the unused label from USPS, but that hopefully won't be a problem.  

I contacted EBay via live chat, and they told me to get a quote for tracked shipping and send a request to the seller for more funds to get me to the cost of that tracked shipping. I have no idea if the seller will want to do that, since it will be a money loser for him. If he refuses, EBay says they will refund my money. I don't know if the seller might also try to settle for cash and have me keep the phone, but the phone is not worth much without working GPS. It was sold new and sealed, which it was, but I've now learned that some model variations were prone to bad GPS out of the box (maybe why he and some other Chinese sellers have a stock of these older, still-sealed phones).