eBay

rasportcards · ‎01-13-2021

A little background: I had a buyer purchase an item and opened a did not receive case. He never sent a message, only opened a case to tell me to send the item to a different address (apparently he never updated his address on ebay). I responded with okay once I receive item, I will ship it back to new address. He never responded. I sent another 2 messages after (one of which asked if he wanted refund or shipped back). Never responded. The day the case needed to be close, I called ebay and asked what to do since I did not have item in my possession. The buyer didnt have a forwarding address so it was being returned back to me. Ebay said do not refund while in transit and extended the case deadline. When that date came, i called again and told them it is still en route. They then closed the case and told me to keep item when it finally does arrive and they ruled in my favor and released the funds. I thought this was strange but okay? It took about a month to finally get back to me. Ebay said the reason to rule in my favor was that he never responded to any of my messages/solutions. Well today (almost 2 months later) the buyer left negative feedback for not receiving item and refund. I called eBay to try to get it taken down and they said it doesn't qualify? I tried to resolve the issue with the buyer but he never responded and they stepped in and told me to keep item and not refund so why is this my fault? I would've gave him the refund/replacement had he responded to any of my messages.

vintage-car-magazines · ‎01-14-2021

@outdatedrecreated wrote:
Now that the buyer has left you negative, I wouldn't refund them, that's for sure. The best thing to do is respond to the negative feedback and move on if eBay isn't going to exercise any common sense. This is why I record every phone call and request a reference number for EVERY call with eBay. You still have a great reputation on eBay even with the negative feedback. No sense in stressing about it.

How does one respond to a negative like this? "Sorry you lost $62, eBay told me it was ok to keep the item and your payment for it."

For me, the buyer's negative is warranted and doesn't factor into my sense of right and wrong. If a refund is appropriate before the feedback, it's still appropriate now. The feedback isn't part of the financial transaction.

vintage-car-magazines · ‎01-14-2021

THIS DISCUSSION is the poster child for eBay's reputation and why people avoid shopping here because they think it's risky!

rasportcards · ‎01-19-2021

I won the appeal. I was more than willing to give him the refund and/or card. I did forget to mention the timing. The card took about a month to get back to me. I got the fund released maybe 3 days after the initial sale. I had already sent about 4 messages on what he wanted to do with the item (either send new address or refund). He didnt reply. Sent another once I had it in my possession asking again. Yes, I take full responsibility for not issuing refund right away but in my defense I was waiting on him to see if I should send it back. I am mad at myself for letting that happen. But time got away from me waiting for his response ( again, i know that is my fault). The negative feedback was the only thing i heard from him since he opened the case. After he left the negative feedback, I sent another message saying I would give him refund AND send the item back. He did not respond.

I won my appeal. The negative feedback is gone.

shopping*schnarf · ‎01-19-2021

I know my email system FREQUENTLY sends email straight to the junk bin, even if it is a response to my email, or a shipping update, or even an order confirmation. In the future, you might want to check your email junk (spam) folder and make sure the person hasn't responded. Your buyer may have responded, but it didn't come to your in box, I know that would frustrate me.

futuremarine2011 · ‎01-19-2021

the reason they wont take the neg down is because its his opinion and they say he entitled to it. least thats what they have said to me in the past. ship anything to the address on file with ebay no matter what. doesnt matter if a buyer suddenly remembers he forgot to change his address with ebay and tries to get you to send it to the new address anyway. absolutely no seller protection if you do. never do that .cancel the purchase and tell them when they get it fixed with ebay. then buy again if they wish. sounds like you ran into someone whose not the sharpest tool in the shed. personally id take take the money over the neg. you can respond to the neg. be nice but precise in your response so future buyers can see the situation from both sides

rasportcards · ‎01-21-2021

Thats the thing, I have one email address only for ebay use and watch it like a hawk as well as ebay messaging. He never responded to any! He opened the case and attached a message there but then never responded to any of my responses. The whole situation was weird.

rasportcards · ‎01-21-2021

I think that is why ebay released the funds so quickly to me was because I shipped to the address on file. He did not leave a forwarding address so they said I had to wait to get the address and make sure he pays for shipping that way it is "proven" it is going to the right address. I did get the negative removed. The representative said they would appeal it to a committee and with the proof of messages I sent trying to solve the situation. Everything I seen online said they wont remove it but i guess there is some "committee" that will take a longer look into the situation to see if its warranted. The buyer had the lowest feedback rating ive ever seen so maybe youre right with him not being the sharpest.

southern*sweet*tea · ‎01-21-2021

This thread speaks volumes for people's moralities nowadays.

All I know is I couldn't sleep at night if I had both the buyer's item and the money they paid for that item. The circumstances don't matter. Right is right, wrong is wrong. Keeping the item and the buyer's money is just plain wrong no matter how you slice it. If anyone can't see that, then they have no moral compass.

The easier you are to offend the easier you are to control.

We seem to be getting closer and closer to a situation where nobody is responsible for what they did but we are all responsible for what somebody else did. - Thomas Sowell

pjcdn2005 · ‎01-21-2021

@southern*sweet*tea

I agree that the seller should have refunded the buyer for the item less their expenses once they received the item back.

But my question is about the negative. I thought that when a seller won a case, the buyer couldn't leave a negative. Since the buyer opened an inr and 'lost' because the item couldn't be delivered shouldn't that mean that the seller won and therefore no negative? Or am I misunderstanding something?

pwrshift421 · ‎01-24-2021

You can report a buyer for undue negative feedback. You contact EBAY and they will review all your e-mails to the buyer. If there is proof that the buyer did not respond to multiple e-mail mails or did not act appropriately as outlined in EBAY'S rules, EBAY can make a decision to mark the buyer and remove the negative feedback. I had a situation like yours. EBAY decided in my favor.