About to get scammed by buyer, need help with policy!

[orchardresale]

I am a reletively new seller with little experience( 84 ratings and 100% good feedback) and I think I am about to be scammed. I need help from experts like retrose1 , as I do not know policy well enough to protect myself from people who prey on new sellers and abuse eBay policy in order to rob them. This transaction is worth more than I earn of eBay in a month.

The buyers feedback is 100%, but they have 2-3 transactions with a single seller over and over. This makes me suspicious that this might be a scam account, accumulating fake feedback through shell acounts and transactions.

I sold a preorder for an EXTREMELY LIMITED convention exclusive action figure set for $275 with free shipping in June. The item would be released in August. I updated the buyer on the items shipping status and offered to cancel the item if the buyer did not want to wait. As soon as I recieved the set from the convention on August, I shipped the item out, even packing in an extra accessory or two for the buyers patience. 

Here's where it gets sketchy. On August 28th, after my package had arrived the buyer stated that they got a package at their parents house but didn't know if it was from me or not. They stated they were not there to open it and they were going to have their prother open it to "make sure everything is ok and no damage or anything". He then asked for the tracking number, which I gladly provided. I then sent a message to the buyer to let me know when they'd gone over everything/checked the package and that I packaged everything with extreme care.

I got no response until October 17th, when the buyer messaged that they just opened the package and found the packaging with a knife mark as well as sticker residue on the side of the packaging. The buyer inquired if I had cut the shipper box open with a knife when opening it and left a sticker residue. The buyer provided pictures that did indicate a ling scratch on the side as well as the residue. The thing is, I didn't use a knife when opening the manufactuers shipper and the set actually slide out from the top of the box and not the side, where the damage was. Furthermore, it came packaged completely in bubble wrap, leaving no chance that the item would have any superficial damage, let alone one on the side. Since this was an inspensive item, I inspected the collector set throughly before I shipped it and I took pictures of the surface. No scratches or residue to be found. 

I am afraid of losing a case and having to either recieve the damaged item(it's value plummeting due to the damage) or being scammed by the return. I need help from experts, please help! I have yet to respond to the buyer. 

[softersilk]

I didn't read the whole thread.  Did you ship via USPS?  If so, this is postal fraud.

[edewsnap]

This does look very suspect, based on my very very recent experience as a long time ebayer but infrequent seller, you will lose to ebay and be prepared to let go of the money. There are so many despicable people out there. Sorry for the bad news.

[orchardresale]

I indeed shipped via USPS. What exactly is postal fraud and what qualifications makes this specific transaction a case of postal fraud? Sorry, I am a new college student and am very inexperienced in the matter.

[orchardresale]

Why will I lose the case if I have proof that the item shipped in perfect condition, the buyer violated MBG by reshipping/wait time to respond, and the messages they sent me were extremely suspicious?

[orchardresale]

I'd like to add that the collectible in question was announced to be rereleased next spring(announcement in September) and the item will be HEAVILY devalued upon the rerelease. I have a suspicion that the damage is a ploy to justify a full or partial refund due to buyers remorse.

I have been notified by several other collectors that they will just buy the much cheaper rerelease instead of purchasing the initial exclusive.

[orchardresale]

How would one contact eBay and plead my case in a way that meets all the criteria needed to make a note. My concern is that telling my story even with proof will prove imprecise and miss the keywords needed to accurately depict my predicament.

[missjen831]

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@orchardresale wrote:
Why will I lose the case if I have proof that the item shipped in perfect condition, the buyer violated MBG by reshipping/wait time to respond, and the messages they sent me were extremely suspicious?

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eBay doesn’t care about your proof. You can’t prove the condition of the item when the buyer received it. And there has been no postal fraud. If the buyer opened a return request more than 30 days after they received the item, then they cannot escalate the case to eBay and win. And you should have the ability to decline the return. If the buyer didn’t open a return request then STAY SILENT!

[orchardresale]

Will do. If they leave negative feedback on the transaction, is there any way I can remove it?

Additionally, should I call eBay to let them know of my concerns about this 5 month old transaction or would that prove detrimental as it would draw attention to their case and give the buyer an opportunity to abuse their buyer privilege in order to scam an honest seller?

I don't think a minor scratch and blemish(impossibly caused by shipping/me) would qualify as Significantly Not As Described as described by Paypal's Seller Protection because the item is mint otherwise and is in brand new condition. Am I wrong in this belief?

I would like to thank you all for your help, I would have been completely lost without you all. I may have some problems with eBay as a system but the eBay community is gold as far as I'm concerned.

[missjen831]

Don’t waste your time calling eBay if this sale was 5 months ago. The buyer can’t leave you feedback, he had 60 days from the date of purchase to leave feedback. Make sure he’s on your blocked bidder list as well. If he files with PayPal, I don’t think PayPal will agree with your belief. I think if anything. If you win it’s because of the amount of time involved here. The buyer may have 6 months to file a PayPal dispute but that doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed to win a SNAD filed 5 months after the purchase. PayPal tends to handle SNADs better than eBay. Good luck!