Buyer Reneges

[lovemykindle]

Buyer bid at the last minute and won my auction. I messaged him and he backed out, stating that he bought another one instead. I emailed and said that legally he was obligated to buy the item. What recourse do I have?  

[mam98031]

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@slippinjimmy wrote:

While this is a non-paying buyer it is also a "buyer asked to cancel".

If you open a Unpaid Item claim the buyer MIGHT pay and then cause plenty of grief, or at least you'll have to worry about possible grief for the next month.

The buyer asked to cancel, if the OP choose "Buyer Requested" the entire thing is over and done with, buyer can't leave feedback, buyer can't do a return, nada all done and ancient history with no negative repercussions for the seller. This buyer has already told the seller where to go, nothing good can come from harassing them further for payment.

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I respect that this is your opinion, but the buyer never said that.  They said they weren't going to pay.   At least not in what the OP has shared here.

However I see your point.  Maybe a little clarification is in order.

tyler@ebay 

brian@ebay 

[brian@ebay]

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@mam98031 wrote:

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@slippinjimmy wrote:

While this is a non-paying buyer it is also a "buyer asked to cancel".

If you open a Unpaid Item claim the buyer MIGHT pay and then cause plenty of grief, or at least you'll have to worry about possible grief for the next month.

The buyer asked to cancel, if the OP choose "Buyer Requested" the entire thing is over and done with, buyer can't leave feedback, buyer can't do a return, nada all done and ancient history with no negative repercussions for the seller. This buyer has already told the seller where to go, nothing good can come from harassing them further for payment.

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I respect that this is your opinion, but the buyer never said that.  They said they weren't going to pay.   At least not in what the OP has shared here.

However I see your point.  Maybe a little clarification is in order.

tyler@ebay 

brian@ebay 

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@mam98031 @lovemykindle @slippinjimmy Hi all! Either an Unpaid Item case or cancellation (choosing buyer requested cancellation) would be appropriate in this situation. If a buyer refuses to pay that is essentially a request to cancel the transaction. However, if you've already opened a UPI then you won't be able to do a cancellation at this point. You'll need to proceed with the UPI. 

[kensgiftshop]

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@mam98031 wrote:

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@kensgiftshop wrote:

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@lovemykindle 

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Save yourself some trouble later and cancel the order as buyer requested.

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@kensgiftshop 

@mtgraves7984 

NO!  

Three reasons.  1.  It is not the correct action for a non paying bidder.  2.  The seller will not have FB protection.  3.  The buyer will not get an unpaid strike.

Oh and then if the seller accidentally picks the wrong reason, they could get a defect.

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If the buyer doesn't respond at all, I might open a UPI.

The buyer has already said they don't want it.

You can open a UPI and make the buyer mad, buyer pays, seller ships, buyer damages item and files an INAD and seller has to pay to have a damaged item returned.

Myself, I would rather cancel the order.

[electrola_man]

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@mam98031 wrote:

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@lovemykindle wrote:

Buyer bid at the last minute and won my auction. I messaged him and he backed out, stating that he bought another one instead. I emailed and said that legally he was obligated to buy the item. What recourse do I have?  

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As a seller we have no way to force a buyer to pay.  Reminding them that they entered a legally binding contract really serves no purpose unless you plan on taking this to court, which I doubt it your intention.  

What you should do once 48 hours after they purchased the item lapses is open a UID [unpaid item dispute].  Note the date and time you open the UID.  96 hours and 1 minute later if payment has not arrived, you can close it for non payment.  That will get you the FVFs charged to your account refunded and it will block the buyer from leaving FB on your account.  If they leave FB before the UID is closes, just ignore it as it will get removed once you close the UID.

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/getting-paid/resolving-unpaid-items?id=4137

Then after this transaction is close, then and only then you can relist the item.  Don't do that before this is completed because your current buyer does have the option to pay up until the time you close the UID.

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I avoid all the stuff about opening and closing a case by having Ebay do it for me automatically.  After 48 hours the case opens, and four days after it opens, it closes.  I might send an invoice to the "buyer" in the meantime, but I have to do very little.  It is very frustrating when people bid and don't pay...especially if they outbid someone else who would have paid.  The item needs to be held for six days before starting over.  Non-paying bidders are a big problem, and have been for the 21 years I've been selling.  It would seem this could be addressed and handled if given adequate attention.  I know I can avoid it with buy-it-now listings, but sometimes I like auctions.

[slippinjimmy]

Trying to teach "buyers" a lesson is futile, maybe they pay and cause trouble or maybe they don't pay but a month from now they open a throwaway id and really give you grief.

Sellers have to understand that there is absolutely NOTHING you can do to "hurt" a buyer but a buyer CAN do things to hurt a seller.

[lovemykindle]

Thanks all for the differing views. I’m going to cancel and put buyer request. eBay can check messages to see that he refuses to pay for the item he bid on and won. I’ve relisted it as another buyer wanted it. 

I would love for this to be a mark against him. He’s been active only since July 2019 with 10 positives and no negatives. I’m leery of adding a negative feedback comment though he can’t say anything negative about me — that’s not made up. 

[scullie0007]

Well, the buyer has 48 hours to pay.  Once that time limit expires you can open a non payment case against the buyer.  In my experience ebay automatically steps in on your part to file the case.  Be sure to invoice the buyer.  That way you have evidence.  Good Luck!

[mam98031]

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@lovemykindle wrote:

Thanks all for the differing views. I’m going to cancel and put buyer request. eBay can check messages to see that he refuses to pay for the item he bid on and won. I’ve relisted it as another buyer wanted it. 

I would love for this to be a mark against him. He’s been active only since July 2019 with 10 positives and no negatives. I’m leery of adding a negative feedback comment though he can’t say anything negative about me — that’s not made up. 

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Sellers can't leave negative FB for a buyer.  And it is against the rules for you to leave a negative comment in the positive FB.  So don't get yourself in trouble over this.  Better just not to leave FB at all since there really isn't anything positive you can say about the transaction.

[7606dennis]

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@lovemykindle wrote:

Buyer bid at the last minute and won my auction. I messaged him and he backed out, stating that he bought another one instead. I emailed and said that legally he was obligated to buy the item. What recourse do I have?  

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Actually you do have the right to sue the bidder for breach of contract under the auction laws of most states.  However, it isn't usually economically feasible to do so.  I would probably simply file a UID after the required 48 hour wait and close it 96 hours later if the buyer hasn't paid giving them an unpaid item strike on their account.  Don't forget to place them on your BBL.  After the UID is dispensed with you are free to relist the item.

Of course, if the buyer pays within the 96 hour period, ship the item and thank them for their business.

By the way, I advise not threatening legal action since most buyers are aware that it isn't economically feasible for you to take such action.  Best to leave any mention of it unsaid, in my opinion.

[lovemykindle]

He or she isn’t responding to my message. I canceled the auction and will just move on. I don’t use eBay often and now I understand the issues people have with auctions. I learned a lesson and have another buyer ready to buy and ship at his expense per his FedEx account. I’m quarantined and can’t get out to ship it anyway. I could just do a private sale but am not willing to screw with eBay. For a few bucks it’s worth using eBay.

Thank you all for your help. 

[slippinjimmy]

have another buyer ready to buy and ship at his expense per his FedEx account.

That is almost always a scam, buyer uses a stolen FedEx account, the actual owner of the account complains to FedEx, FedEx rebill the charges back to the original shipper.

It's not a "private sales" it's done on eBay and they get their fees so that is not the issue. You get the bill later for shipping and often it goes hand-in hand with a stolen credit card.

When you think you qualify for PayPal's Unauthorize Use protection you find out you are not because the "buyer" redirects to a different address and you may lose the Item money as well (plus a $20 extra fee).

Unless you actually know the buyer well never use an shipping account provided by the buyer.

[lovemykindle]

I will confirm his name and address with FedEx. I have the information already and he has 1,400+ positive feedback comments.  I think his longevity and 1437 + feedback speaks for his honesty . “has been an eBay member since Aug 27, 2006”

[dhbookds]

I’m quarantined and can’t get out to ship it anyway.

Why do you have listings up for sale?

[lovemykindle]

Because anyone buying the item has to arrange for shipping. Usually I can’t get out to ship things easily as I’m disabled in a wheelchair. 

[wastingtime101]

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@lovemykindle wrote:

Because anyone buying the item has to arrange for shipping. Usually I can’t get out to ship things easily as I’m disabled in a wheelchair. 

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On a printer? That's asking for trouble. You should arrange your own shipping - most carriers will pick up your outgoing packages from your porch. If you can't arrange your own shipping then maybe you should stick exclusively to the local pickup option.