Buyer switched out cards now wants to return different card that is damaged. HELP!

[plushintheusa]

So I am an honest seller who will bend over backwards for buyers however I will not be cheated. I sell a lot f cards on eBay and have shipped hundreds of cards in the last few months. A buyer took a picture of a $25 card I sent him but replaced it with another of same exact card that was damaged and took pictures of the card that glared and did not show all 4 corners. I asked him to do this and said if he did he sent me 2 pictures twice all with glare and none showing all 4 corners. I said if he did I could confirm it was my card and I would refund him in full and he could keep the card because it would be my fault. Even though the pictures he sent have glare it is fairly obvious that it is not the card I sent nor could the card have gotten damaged in that fashion by my shipping method. He refuses to take a picture of the card again and says I am accusing him of stealing when I do not know I just want to find out. He already left me negative feedback which hurts but I made mistakes in the past year and let 3 cases slip without settling so I am now a below standard seller. Next month  will be an above standard seller again and want to ask eBay to step in but it will not give me that option for the return request. I do not want it to go as a closed case unresolved and have below standard seller status. I just want to have eBay look at the pictures and see the card is no the same. What do you recommend? Thank you so much in advance 

[inhawaii]

I didn't read through your entire post but here is my advice to you. Handle this as if the buyer is in fact telling the truth. That's how ebay will see it and handle it. If you try to fight this you will lose. Good luck.

[zakstreasuretrove]

It sounds like you're on thin ice with eBay as it is with you standards.  Best to make the transactions go smoothly for the buyer, even at cost to you.  The alternative is eBay may shut down your store at a much greater cost.

Otherwise, have fun stormin' the castle.

[plushintheusa]

I have a 5 million dollar selling limit and 5 million item limit in my store and do not think i am on thin ice. I did miss the deadline on 3 requests over the last year which put my seller rating in that category at .39 and they want .30 or less. That is the only reason I am below standard. Other than that I would score Top rated or Above average in all categories. Wouldn't they have to or wouldn't they warn me before closing my store after all I sell over a thousand items a year? What is your experience in these matters would like to know more please?

[plushintheusa]

Even if you know the buyer is heating you? I have to suck it up and let him get away with stealing from me? Wow, that is really not fair. You really think if I show the pictures that eBay will not side with me. I respect your opinion if you would please let me know.

[zakstreasuretrove]

I understand you are upset about the situation, but look at it without that in mind. 

You stated that you are below standards.  You also mentioned missing three deadlines.  Those likely count against you a lot more than you think.  Is that fair?  Likely not.  Does that account for anything?  NO!!!!!!!!

eBay considers you below standard and that is all that matters.  While I commiserate with you, they will not.  For this reason, you are on thin ice.  It does not imply that you are bad and it certainly doesn't mean you did anything malicious.  But the fact of the matter remains the same and you need to take appropriate action with these concepts in mind.

Is losing your business on eBay over this worth it?  Forget fair and right or wrong.  It's business.  Account for the losses in your annual tax return and make sure your account remains open and in good standing

Also, they do not always or have to warn you before they close your store.  Some of the warning signs of impending restriction are in your original post. 

The most you can do in reality is report the buyer.  I know that isn't as satisfying as storming the castle, but I have watched situations like this enough to know that eBay does do things about it even if it isn't readily apparent.  I have reported malicious buyers and have later seen that their account has been removed.  It likely wasn't because of my report, but an aggregate of reports that I wasn't aware of. 

The point being is make a business decision and not a personal one.  Next month when you shipping out orders you will realize that this was fairly insignificant and will better help you when you encounter it again.  And you will.

[plushintheusa]

You are right. I really have a thing about people who lie and steal on eBay or anywhere else. I have been selling collectible since I left the Navy to go to College in 1987. I have been cheated so many times over the years. Had a retail store for 11 years and cannot tell you the horror stories of cheats and thiefs I have encountered. I already let this thief give me a negative and due to missing the 3 cases deadline I have had to pay higher fees in my sales and since I promote everything and no longer can my sales have dropped 50%. In my categories promoting 2.5% is huge boost in sales. February 20th I will be above standard or top rated again and will not have to pay the extra fees and will be able to double my eBay sales by promoting my listings again. I guess I have to suck it up and let him steal from me at $25 is not worth the above. When people have literally stole millions from you over the years you take it personal and get a chip on your shoulder like I have.  I should consider it a cost of doing business you are right. I already reported him and left feedback stating the card switch. It just grinds on me that he will get away with it but will approve the return and he will get his refund. 😞 Thank you for helping me put it in perspective and SHAME on eBay for putting me in this situation.

[zakstreasuretrove · Accepted solution]

I get it man.  I get the same way over $5 let alone millions.  I know for sure, I do not have the heart to run a store where I would have to deal with those types in person. 

Demographics and technology has changed a lot since 1987.  People might not be any more or less moral and ethical then they always were, but it really is incredibly easy just to scam your way through life at this point and seemingly get away with it.    Then when the companies you rely on seem like they turn a blind eye it can really get you down.

I self imposed a walk away and cool off period to myself before responding to a situation.  Sometimes it's good to just come to these boards to blow off steam.  It's helped me put things in perspective and has also taught me some useful business tidbits.

No matter the issue, someone on here will be the "refund and move on" guy.  I used to hate that at first.  Then I hated pushing the boulder uphill more. 

[kensgiftshop]

Right now, your best option is to accept the return and provide a shipping label.

Once it's returned and buyer refunded, then you can complain to Ebay, if you can prove they returned a different card.

[thelongball]

Hello- I can see a possible way this happen and what could have avoided it. You sold the card for 24.95 with free shipping. In the feedback the customer says you used envelope shipping. Looks as if card they took picture of was in a top loader holder. The card sent was a relic card which is a thicker card. 

  If my above reasoning is all correct  then these are the things that went south for you

1 - Envelope shipping is for cards 20.00 and less. So don't use that method when selling higher priced cards. 

2- Thicker cards should not be sent with the envelope shipping because they can jam up the sorting machines and thus damage cards. I've had this happen in the past when they first came out with the EUS shipping method. Because my card was in the under 20.00 as it was supposed to be, I received my money back thru the insurance. Because of that I apologized for my mistake in using the envelope shipping and just gave the refund with no hassle. Didn't matter to me because I was getting my money anyways because I followed the rules. 

3 - Next time if you sell a card over 20.00 send it using a better and more expensive shipping method. Thicker cards should always be sent using padded envelope between cardboard and top loader. Sure, that will cost 5.00 instead of .69 but is the 4.00 worth what you are going thru now. 

4- You should have sold the card figuring in a safer shipping way. 

    I know this because I made the same mistake difference being I worked within the rules, so I was backed by eBay. If I had to do it over again, I would have sold my card for 20.00 plus 5.00 for shipping and sent it the better way. My customer would have been happier. My customer wasn't mad at me. They were mad at the post office. But in the end, it really was on me because I made the mistake of money over quality. I was the wrong individual. I should have not been a cheap skate. If this is what happen to you, its on you just like it was on me. 

[fern*wood]

I've been here a long time, I've had buyers cheat me, but do not under any circumstances let ebay step in on a case.  Ebay does not want to get into this on every case so it is pretty much automated.   Always take care of it yourself.  Don't make being right more important than keeping your selling account in good standing. 

Also, hate to add to your unhappiness, but it is also against the rules to give a buyer a false positive.  Just don't do stuff like that to try to get even.

If you get back to TRS status and offer 30 day returns, ebay will offer some limited protections for faulty returns.  Also free returns gives the same protection.

[thelongball]

People can't scam you when you have shipping insurance against damage. If they are scamming, then it's the post office they are scamming and that's a federal crime. Then this whole episode never happens, and you don't feel cheated.  You also might have had the negative removed by eBay. 

[jerseyboymusic]

@thelongball 

There is no such thing as USPS insurance against damage any longer. Not in my experience, any way. Every insurance claim I submit to USPS (MAYBE once every two years) gets shut down

[plushintheusa]

I understand what your are saying I accepted an offer of $19.75 so I could ship ESU. I have shipped hundreds of Marvel Masterpiece Star Wars fat cards and a ton of fat relics. I put them in a team bag and then put a top loader behind it seal it up tight and tape paper around it. They do get sent back as machine unreadable sometimes and they do get lost 5% of the time but the hundreds of fat cards I have shipped none have gone from mint to terribly creased and with a dimple that was not there originally. He switched out cards. he refuses to show the corners. I need to improve my shipping method maybe use semi rigid holders on non fat cards instead of top loaders for less USPS returns. When I get the card back I will take a picture of it and it will be obvious by the corners and minor imperfections on the card I shipped that it will not be the same card and then report that to eBay via pictures. It is futile I know. Many of the fat star wars cards only sell for  3-6 dollars so no way to sell any with $4 postage.

[plushintheusa]

Curious what type of protection will they offer on faulty returns? TY for the advice