Best way to move forward

[kwiji43]

Hi there

Any advice would be so greatly appreciated. It's our first time with this sort of issue. We took a video of a Disney music box we sold on here, packaged it very well and sold it with insurance on the freight cost using USPS. So now the buyer is telling us the item arrived shattered.

I've asked for a photo of the original packaging and the item itself, advising we may need to ask for it back. 

But now the buyer is telling me that they would be fine with a partial refund as "not all the pieces are there."

I don't want to sound paranoid or accuse my dude of being a scammer but I just don't want to end up mis handling the whole thing.

Thank you in advance.

[pikabo-icu]

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@kwiji43 

Tell them to open a return..

They will need to send the item back, you provide the label.

I think this is a partial refund fisher.. 

"Return for Refund" 

Also forgot to add tell them to save all the packaging as USPS will need to for an investigation for the insurance. 

[kwiji43]

Thank you! We were thinking that way, too. I mean it was packed in bubble wrap and extra padding all around. The buyer didn't have any ratings on e bay, though I don't know if it's fair to judge by that.

[coastaltechsolution]

You want to follow the  rules so you can at least try and protect yourself

@pikabo-icu gave solid advice 😁

Don't think of it as judging, you are just following policy 

[cityslickercreations2004]

I would ask for the item back so you can refund them and file an insurance claim.

Without pictures, it is hard to determine how much damage there is to the music box.

Partial refunds have salvaged many sales as stated on these boards. I would certainly hold out for pictures.

Listen to your spidey senses.

I have had buyers demanding refunds but claimed they threw the item away because it didn't work or whatever. Threw an item away without a refund? How convenient.

Other buyers have approached me with a civil explanation. Guess who I refunded without requiring a return?

[kensgiftshop]

If it was shattered like the buyer claims, a partial refund wouldn't fix it.

Sounds like they are just trying to get the item cheaper.

Tell buyer to open a return, then leave it up to them and see what they do.

[kwiji43]

Here's the damage. It's the small shell on top that looks like it could be glued back together and resold, in mynopinikn.

[kwiji43]

*in my opinion.

For all the hassle of it I'm tempted to offer a partial refund of $20 rather than bring it back. I don't know if USPS will look at this and take it seriously.

[pikabo-icu]

@kwiji43 

It looks like there is indeed damage..

Up to you if you want to offer a partial refund but the buyer asking violates policy. 

[kwiji43]

I didn't know that it was a violation for the buyer to ask for a partial refund. Thank you for sharing that.

There is a small area of damage that could be glued back together. Bit worrisome to me that they claim they don't have all the pieces. Thats why I suspect it's a bad faith thingy, and I hate to reward such a thing, but it's more of a hassle to bring it back and file a claim.

I'm going to sleep on it, not be frustrated and do the most sensible things tomorrow. Thank you so much for all your help 

[pikabo-icu]

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@kwiji43 wrote:

I didn't know that it was a violation for the buyer to ask for a partial refund. Thank you for sharing that.

There is a small area of damage that could be glued back together. Bit worrisome to me that they claim they don't have all the pieces. Thats why I suspect it's a bad faith thingy, and I hate to reward such a thing, but it's more of a hassle to bring it back and file a claim.

I'm going to sleep on it, not be frustrated and do the most sensible things tomorrow. Thank you so much for all your help 

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@kwiji43 

That's true..

You would have to pay shipping back and be stuck with a broken item.

Also they could force the issue and file a not as described case.

SIGH

If they'll take the partial it's what I would do.  Until I saw the damage I was against it. 

The Buyer Abuse policy is where you'll find the verbiage about buyers asking for partials.

It's helpful info if you have a buyer that wants one and then dings your FB.

Good Luck.. 

[inhawaii]

A lot of sellers will refuse to give a partial refund.

I will do it if it will save me time and/or money.

If you're ok with a partial refund and you and the buyer can agree on a amount, that might be something to consider.

Otherwise the advice given above is sound.

[fern*wood]

I would hate to depend on my buyer to pack it so more damage doesn’t occur on a return.  I think the policy issue on partial refunds depends on how it’s done,  because it is a choice eBay has available on return cases.

[cityslickercreations2004]

Interesting. Nice clean break. Too bad it is on the top.

So where is the other half of the shell? If I were the buyer, I would be glueing it back together.

It is a very cute piece.

Someone on this thread (sorry) mentioned the risk of buyer packing so to not cause further damage during shipping back to you. That is a valid concern. 

[dy60609]

the chances of collecting anything on the insurance falls someplace in the range of slim to none.