Buyer filed a payment dispute with their financial institution

[cicli_john]

I cannot find a situation quite like mine after searching "payment disputes with financial institution"   I am appreciate of the outcome for me but feel bad for e-bay if this is how these cases end up....

On 1/29/24 I sold a book for $125. I always purchase postage through e-bay  and they have recorded that the book was delivered on 2/2 (not bad for media mail NY to Montana).  Buyer left positive feedback and even sent  a couple of e-bay messages to me.  The first saying that they left feedback and the second  about how excited she was with the book as she was getting into it (hey, its a good Stephen King book). 

3/16 I received the following from e-bay:

buyer filed a payment dispute for an order placed on Jan 29, 2024. This means that they disputed a charge directly with their payment institution. They are requesting $125.60 back and the reason for this dispute is that the buyer did not recognize the transaction. The good news is that you’re protected for this dispute under eBay seller protection policy Today I receive the following: The buyer’s payment institution sided with the buyer. The good news is that you’re protected for this dispute under eBay seller protection policy. We won't deduct the dispute amount from your funds. You're not required to take any action at this time. I am not out any money but I assume e-bay had to refund the buyer....that is just not right.  There is no way for me to respond to the dispute reminding e-bay that the buyer received the item and I have written proof she is happy with it.  I keep an eye on what my feedback number is and before writing this I noticed it dropped by 1 and sure enough, I can no longer find her feedback but on the sellers hub under orders paid and shipped it still shows the green plus that she left feedback.  Can a buyer retract feedback?  She was probably trying to cover her tracks unless e-bay removed it.  Anyway, that's my story and I am happy that at least for now I am not out any money...and yes, I have blocked the buyer.

[stainlessenginecovers]

See post #40. 

Re: Are there any class action suits against Ebay ... - Page 3 - The eBay Community

[robbie31415]

You have written proof that the person who used the card is happy with it.

You have no clue about that actual owner of the card.

[cicli_john]

I did not think of that,  thanks

[luckythewinner]

There is no way for me to respond to the dispute reminding e-bay that the buyer received the item and I have written proof she is happy with it. 

That would not accomplish anything.

eBay did not VOLUNTARILY refund the buyer, they LOST A DISPUTE with the financial institution and were REQUIRED to refund. 

The only thing eBay decided was whether the refund would come from your funds or eBay's funds.

[dbfolks166mt]

      I am quite surprised the CC company sided with the card holder it is generally easy for the merchant to prove that the buyer purchased the item. EBay has all the information required to do so. In situations like this it is likely the buyer simply did not recognize the charge on their statement due to the cryptic nature in which the eBay transactions appear. 

     I have had to contact my CC company a number of times about line items on my CC statement to get clarity but I do this before I open a chargeback. The payback is pennies for eBay and a tax write off. It is hard to say if they took any action against the buyer. 

[gurlcat]

I'd be curious about the buyer's account, like did they have much (any?) feedback before this book purchase, does their account still exist, etc.  I don't think there's any way to delete a positive feedback comment, only revise a negative and maybe neutral comment.  So I'm leaning more toward this being a stolen card and/or hacked eBay account.  But the part about them cheerfully writing to you about how much they're enjoying the book .... lol that was kind of a weird detail even before the chargeback. 

[gurlcat]

Now I'm a bit confused. -the 3/16 eBay message sounds like they didn't require you to submit anything on your behalf, like not even tracking.  -Was the sale via the Ebay International Shipping program?  

[luckythewinner]

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@dbfolks166mt wrote:

 it is generally easy for the merchant to prove that the buyer purchased the item

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It is easy to prove that the credit card was used to buy the item. 

It is not easy to prove who used the credit card. 

[mam98031]

@cicli_john 

These types of claims are called Chargebacks.  That is when the buyer goes directly to their funding source to file a dispute on a charge, whether it is a Credit Card or Debit Card.

Ebay did exactly what they should have done and protected you and your money.  So that is a blessing that you don't have to worry about that.

Now what I find puzzling is this is a Chargeback that should NOT have been lost in the first place.  The CCC should not have ruled for their buyer at least they usually don't when a buyer claims they didn't recognize the charge.  That is the easiest claim for Ebay to disprove.  Ebay has all the info to prove that the buyer purchased and received the product.  Very odd that they didn't do it in this case and lost the funds.

This is a head scratcher for me as to why this Chargeback was paid out by Ebay.  It was avoidable or should have been.

But it is wonderful that Ebay did the right thing by you.  

[vintagecraze50]

It makes me wonder mam98021 if they are disputing these properly, or just letting them run their course.

[mam98031]

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@vintagecraze50 wrote:

It makes me wonder mam98021 if they are disputing these properly, or just letting them run their course.

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IDK since I've never had any access to how they actually process these things.  However the seller could have submitted the information into the Chargeback too and they really should have.  It may have turned out differently if they had.

I've had one of these before and I won it, but I did submit the evidence to prove the buyer purchased the item.

[dbfolks166mt]

Now I'm a bit confused. -the 3/16 eBay message sounds like they didn't require you to submit anything on your behalf, like not even tracking.  -Was the sale via the Ebay International Shipping program?  

     There used to be a LOT of these when eBay first moved to MP due to the way the charges appeared on the buyers CC statements. That has subsided quite a bit as buyers have gotten used to the changes in/on the CC statements.

     At one point eBay was handling these internally without the seller having to submit anything although they did notify the seller that a chargeback had been opened the initial notification stated nothing was required from the seller. This makes sense since eBay already has the information pertaining to the transaction. 

     Why eBay was required to refund the buyer in this particular case is a mystery and may remain as such since nobody knows how eBay responded to the chargeback. Maybe it fell through the cracks and they neglected to respond, who knows. 

[cicli_john]

The buyer has only been with e-bay since 10/23 and has feedback number of 7 and one of those was a negative response from a buyer.  The account is still active with a few items for sale and I am glad to see that my book is not one of them. 

[cicli_john]

correct, e-bay did not ask me to provide anything.  I assume they could just look at my account to see whatever they would have wanted.  This was not an international sale.