Buyers requesting to cancel after winning bid and waiting til the last minute

[skpujji]

So this has happened a few times in the past month, where buyers have bid on items, then won the auction. Than right before the 48 hours is up, they request to cancel. 

As a new seller this is disheartening and annoying. I try to get everything i have for sale with the most details possible so buyers are aware of what they are bidding on.

Any advice for how to deal with these situations?

I have been going ahead and just cancelling.  I have changed my preferences to prevent buyers who have unpaid item strikes, but i believe with the cancellation the buyer does not get any strikes against them

[1grandmashope_1]

Cancel and refund.  Put them, if you like, on your block bidder list.  Just part of the things that happen when you sell on line.

Here is to all your future successful sales!

Grandma

[gwzcomps]

Also don't forget to report them to eBay using the report buyer option.

[skpujji]

Thank you! I think blocking them is a good idea. I doubt they wanted to buy in the first place, probably just bored

[ohioguy20]

I've recently had quite a few winning bidders do either what you're describing or they just don't pay even after I try contacting them and they don't send a cancellation request, meaning I need to eventually open an unpaid item case to properly cancel the order.

One possible solution could be to switch to using the BIN format for all items with the immediate payment requirement enabled. This is what I've done and the number of cancellations and unpaid item cases have dropped dramatically for my items ever since. It's less exciting than a bidding-style auction and you may get less buyers, but it's worth it in my opinion.

Otherwise, all you can do is accept or deny the cancellation request (should accept it since buyer may send back item anyway) and block the buyer if you feel it is necessary. You can also give second chance offers to bidders that didn't get the winning bid should this happen again, that way you don't need to re-list and can give other people who actually want the item a second chance to get it.

Good luck!

[bluebirds-2013]

I had them bid, and not respond at all, THANK YOU EBAY! NO MORE CONSEQUENCES MY TIME IS NOT IMPORTANT ANYMORE.

I TOOK MOST OF MY STUFF AND SPREAD IT OVER 5 OTHER AUCTION SITES.

[coolections]

---

@skpujji wrote:

I doubt they wanted to buy in the first place, probably just bored

---

It is most likely they ended up finding the item cheaper than what they had bid.

[chapeau-noir]

---

@coolections wrote:

---

@skpujji wrote:

I doubt they wanted to buy in the first place, probably just bored

---

It is most likely they ended up finding the item cheaper than what they had bid.

---

Most of the bids are on .99 items and the rest have best offer.   They're sport bidding.

[eye_of_the_tiger]

You can report a buyer here: 

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/resolving-buyer-issues/reporting-issue-buyer?id=4084

You can block a buyer here: 

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/resolving-buyer-issues/blocking-buyer-ebay?id=4082

Hope these help you. Good luck! 

[oneblindcat]

Wow! You have some beautiful things!

[cakersfish]

When this happens, I let the "Unpaid item strike" work itself out. 

It is very frustrating when you create an auction and have to wait 5 or 7 days for it to end, to have the winner say "oh, i change my mind. please cancel." It wastes so much of the sellers time and energy.  When a buyer requests to cancel after winning an auction or sending an offer to buy an item that I accepted, I do not force them to buy it or try to argue with them. After four days, the item will cancel itself and supposedly sends an unpaid item strike to the non-paying buyer. The buyer is supposedly not allowed to leave a feedback if they have not paid, and it usually tells you this after the item has been automatically cancelled. 

If you just agree to cancel every time someone changes their mind, these non-paying buyers will not take ebay seriously, and feel like they can just bid to win, and then figure out later if they want the item or not.  Sellers have very little protection in these situation, so we need to use what ebay has given us. I usually relist my item right after a buyer has asked to cancel, or "send a second chance offer" to the next highest bidder. 

[donsdetour]

Dont forget to add them to you blocked bidders list....

[redmodelt]

Why not just let the 4 days run out and on the fifth, cancel the sale for non payment so they get a non payment strike? 

[ewolfe357]

I've had sold items go way past four days without auto-cancelling. Is that no longer a thing?

[nobody*s_perfect]

It depends on how you have your site preferences set up. Perhaps the eBay gremlins un-checked it, or changed the number of days before they cancel. You can review it and fix it here:

https://www.ebay.com/Cancel/Preference/UnpaidPurchase