Doll Return

[suszy-q]

I received the Twin Dolls yesterday even I. Did check twice and no dolls. There were delivered after our dinner. Dolls are in good shape. My problem is why did she have a month to ship back.  She ask me how to do a return and I told her to contact e-bay. I did not know the dolls had lead. SO many for sale and someone told me there is no lead in these dolls. Not sure why I got a negative feedback?  I do not understand e-bay rules. I have been a member on ebay for a long time. Sounds like by your standers I'm all done.

[onefootflipper]

You are going to quit ebay over one return with a negative feedback after many years of selling? 

Seems like a bit of an overreaction.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

Ebay wants the least hassle for an already unhappy buyer. The long time to send the return is part of their effort to minimize the disappointment of your failed transaction felt by the buyer.

Your cash flow is not a consideration in creating Ebay policy.

Ebay has more sellers listing more items than they can sell, ALL of the time.

[chapeau-noir]

In the feedback it sounds like it was the buyer's perception that they had difficulty dealing with you, rather than the lead paint on the doll itself. Saying "contact eBay" for a return isn't how it's done, and makes it sound like you're evading responsibility - it should be a simple process: They file the return, you OK it, they ship it back within 30 days.

Anyone can make a mistake (i.e., missing the lead paint) - it's how you handle it that determines any success. 

Not understanding "I do not understand e-bay rules. I have been a member on ebay for a long time. Sounds like by your standers I'm all done."

[caldreamer]

EBAY 30-Money Back Guarantee (supersedes "no returns") allows customer to open "return request" 30-days AFTER receipt of item.  EBAY allows customer an additional 30 days to return the item to the Seller.

I can understand why the customer is unhappy with lead paint on the dolls.   I can also understand that as a Seller you would not test for "lead paint" or be aware of this problem.

However, EBAY is NOT going to delete customer's negative feedback (all customers are allowed to express their opinion, and, in this case, customer was only stating the facts).    Only thing you can do I apologize and explain that you were not aware of this problem with the paint.

This is all part of the joy of being an EBAY seller.   You win some and you lose some.

[ebooksdiva]

Selling online you need to have a thick skin and allow things like returns and negative feedback to roll off your shoulders.
If by “all done” you mean you are leaving, don’t forget to end your 208 items first.

eBay doesn’t care how long you’ve been a member, they just care about happy buyers. 

[mam98031]

@suszy-q 

You have been a seller for a long time, why wouldn't you know the rules on Ebay.  At least the basic ones and certainly those rules that pertain to returns.  To me that doesn't make any sense.

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/managing-returns-refunds/handle-return-request-seller?id=4115

From the feedback left, your buyer felt you were a little hostile with them or at the very least felt you were difficult to deal with.  That should never be something a buyer should feel about you or any other seller.  It is very important to provide GREAT customer service.

Your lack of interest to guide your buyer through the Return process and referring them to contact Ebay, certainly played a part in that feeling.  You could and should have helped them to understand the process.

Yes, you certainly have been a seller / member for a long time, which is exactly why you should have known how to assist your buyer in this matter.  Your lack of customer service very likely inspired this buyer to take as long as they could before returning the item.  Most buyers don't do that.  But this buyer was willing to wait for their refund in order to show their distaste for how you handled the transaction.

Instead of leaving Ebay.  Learn the rules you don't know about so you can better serve your customers.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

I am shocked by the presence of lead on an American Girl doll.

The brand is such an icon, I can only think that the product was a counterfeit.

[pickapaper]

I Googled "lead content in dolls" and didn't find a whole lot.  Apparently, some Chinese factories have used lead paint in some toys but that's about all I found.  For American Girl dolls specifically, the only thing I found was that lead paint was used in some of the buttons on some dresses.  However, I did not spend a lot of time digging into this and only found a little bit of info.

I don't know how a person even tests for lead in toys.  If this buyer buys toys and has some kind of kit that she can test them for lead, that's a new one to me, especially if she is a collector and is buying the toys to set on a shelf.   The AG twins she bought are, I believe, are from 2003 and I wouldn't think she would be buying them for children to play with, but who knows.

[bennotbill]

If you're a collector, not a kid playing with it licking it, does the lead really matter?

[christworks]

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@suszy-q wrote:

I do not understand e-bay rules. 

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How in the world have you sold over 9k items and don't understand eBay rules. Have you never had a return? 

Your buyer's issue was with you, not the lead paint. They naturally would not want it, but what they did want is an easy return. 

BTW, I'm in Virginia and some of the shipping costs on your items show up with some outrageous amounts, over $50 in some cases, on items that would cost nowhere near that. You may want to look at that. I see you are shipping a lot of things via USPS Priority Mail which could easily go USPS Ground Advantage and save you some money. 

[adamcartwright]

@pickapaper 

There's been a trend where people are going around to Homegoods testing items on display to show they contain lead.

From what I understand, you have to use a kit intended for the surface you're testing, or you may get a false result. I bought a test kit once and found it wasn't intended for the surface I was trying to test, so it was money down the drain.