Hello all, I’m an infrequent seller on eBay, mostly to sell off old electronics. I never had a problem until recently. Looking for some advice.
I posted and sold an old iPhone 13 that works perfectly. Buyer had zero feedback. Shipped and delivered to him in Delaware without an issue, a few days go by and I get a refund request saying item not as described with an odd message attached. The buyer claimed they couldn’t get the phone to work but that they would go to the Apple Store for help and so I didn’t need to accept the return yet as they’d probably cancel the return request once the phone was working.
This seemed fishy to me so I told them to do as they liked with the Apple Store but that I’d accept the return in the meantime so they could ship it back if they needed. I sent them a usps label via eBay. A few weeks go by and I hear nothing.
Today I get the below message:
“Hello sir , I was in California for work so I couldn't ship your item from home (Wilmington) , when I used eBay's free shipping label and sent it from California USPS changed tracking for this reason this is new one”
The USPS tracking number he included links to something shipped from California to my zip code (but I can’t see what specific address) and supposedly delivered three days ago. I didn’t receive any package. Mail is usually pretty reliable here, so this is feeling more and more like a possible scam. The eBay supplied label I sent to him still says “awaiting shipment”
Any advice on how to proceed here? I’m assuming this is a scam attempt at this point, but am I wrong? How do I best protect myself? Any role in me reaching out to eBay at this point? Thanks so much for any suggestions.
