mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999
We recently had three item not as described cases opened on orders made by 0 feedback freight forwarder buyers sending orders to Chinese forwarding companies. The following ensued:
- Buyer opens Item not as described case claiming scratches, doesn't perform etc.
- Buyer returns an empty envelope or box
- We escalate the case with Ebay FB team as they agreed freight forwarded orders aren't eligible for MBG.
- Buyer successfully overturns each ruling with the reason "Seller agreed to provide refund but did not". Ebay FB team clarifies as long as return tracking provided on an ebay label is successfully returned then the buyer is entitled to a refund.
- We ask for clarification on ebay MBG FAQ, where exclusions for MBG include "The buyer used third party freight forwarding or mail redirection." Ebay FB team clarifies this is only for if the buyer wants the item returned from the forwarded country i.e China.
- We're left holding the bag on these orders when we could have issued 50% restocking fee. Either way buyer keeps his funds and the item.
Policy link here with screenshot below
Is this correct that MBG is still valid for forwarders as long as they use the Ebay provided return label? I'm surprised Ebay didn't include this note when mentioning on the exclusions list or reworded the excerpt above. We opened up forwarding orders after reviewing the FAQ but it looks like we're mistaken, and based on what I've seen other sellers recommend per this FAQ, many of you are also mistaken.
I'll provide an example: If a buyer ships to a freight forwarding company that is easily researched by address and clearly states they ship to X country, buyer profile states location is in X country (this may not even be needed), and the item you sold is restricted for X country.
Buyers don't ship to the Freight Forwarder, Sellers do. It is unlikely that the FF will disclose the records to the seller as to where the item is being shipped. There is no rule that says the buyer will always have the item shipped to the country in which their account is set up in. That is an assumption. The seller has nothing to do with the address the package ultimately gets shipped to nor is the seller even consulted.
The seller doesn't retain ownership of the item once it is delivered to the Freight Forwarder as far as I know. Nor does the seller have any control over where the FF reships the item to.
