International buyer upset re: custom charges, contacts me on different account---now wants to return

[bangordiscount]

Hello,

I'm looking for feedback on how to proceed with an international buyer located in the United Kingdom.

On 4/12 they bought a battery charger from me for $29.98
https://www.ebay.com/itm/183989109215

The item was shipped the next day and on 4/25 the item was delivered via USPS FCI

https://tools.usps.com/go/TrackConfirmAction

That same day 4/25 I received a message from a buyer I have never conducted any business with that was upset about the custom fees they had to pay on this item

""I brought a greenworks battery charger and didn’t know I then had to pay a extra £17.01 customs charge on top you should state on your site there man be extra charges ☹️"

I've only sold a few of these items so it was easy enough for me to match this id to the sale even though it's not the same account. The eBay id they used when purchasing the item was a new account (I'm the only person who has left them feedback (1) ) and the one they had contacted me on was well established.

I do mention in my listing that it's the responsibility of the buyer to research/pay for any applicable custom fees and the in the past that has helped get negative feedback removed in these instances.

Anyways I was thinking on how I wanted to respond and before I could I received a second message from this person, again on an account I have never done any business with that states:

"I brought this item . And had to then pay £17.01 customs charge and I had to then buy a UK plug and it don’t work . So I need to return item"

How should I proceed? I don't mind taking the item back but I don't want to A) Pay for return shipping (I don't have my listings set up for international returns) or B) refund the original shipping C) give any type of reimbursement for custom fees D) receive an item that doesn't work because they tried to plug it into the wrong electrical standard causing potential damage.

Should I start by asking the person to contact me on the account in which they made the purchase? Am I allowed to state I'll take the item back for a refund only on the item price? I'm trying to avoid a NAD dispute which it looks like they're hinting at and I'd also like to avoid defects/negative feedback

Thanks for the input

[frodobagginskennedy]

Per e bay we are supposed to have the caveat in our listings.  Way back in the day we were told we NO longer had to have this disclaimer in our listings that it was "understood".  Now according to the help pages we are suppossed to have the blurb in our listings.  

Informing overseas buyers about import charges

When you sell to buyers outside the US, import fees (including taxes and customs charges) will apply for the country you're sending the item to.

The fees are usually based on the item's price, shipping weight, dimensions, and country of origin, plus any taxes, duties, and fees from the country you're sending the item to.

Buyers are responsible for paying import fees, usually as part of clearing their parcel through customs or when they receive their item. If you offer international shipping, you can't include these costs in the item's purchase and shipping price. Make sure to let international buyers know this in your listings.

[rosszonebricks]

I wouldn't even respond to any message that discusses business not done on that account.  If they have a legit question or concern on an item, they are required to communicate to the account it was purchased from.

[holidayshopper201]

I agree with the previous poster. Ignore messages from any accounts not involved in the transaction.

I would also add ALL of those accounts to my blocked bidder list.

[sg51]

How should I proceed? I don't mind taking the item back but I don't want to A) Pay for return shipping (I don't have my listings set up for international returns) or B) refund the original shipping C) give any type of reimbursement for custom fees D) receive an item that doesn't work because they tried to plug it into the wrong electrical standard causing potential damage.

While you're not formally obligated to reply to the message from a different buying account, it makes sense to contemplate the weakness of the hand you hold as you plan your reaction.

Two possible worst cases:

1. buyer will file a SNAD, and you will be required to pay return shipping, perhaps by providing such shipping by separate monetary transfer to buyer.  Icky as that sounds, and sometimes is.

2. Buyer will file a SNAD, and ebay will resolve the case instead of you, and you will take an unresolved strike as well as being financially responsible for whatever ebay does, which will probably be to give buyer a full refund with no return expected.

In no case, will you be formally required to refund VAT.

So anything you can achieve which is better than either of those might be worth pursuing.

[southern*sweet*tea]

Don't even think about doing anything with the account that didn't purchase from you. Respond back ONCE and once only to contact you on the proper account if they need assistance. Don't respond to any further messages. Read them and save them, though.

If the actual account contacts you, tell them they are free to return the item. That said, that still won't get their customs fees refunded. To do that, they will have to take it up with their local customs agency.

There's a reason they didn't contact you with the proper account, and that reason is not a good one.

[bangordiscount]

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@southern*sweet*tea wrote:

Don't even think about doing anything with the account that didn't purchase from you. Respond back ONCE and once only to contact you on the proper account if they need assistance. Don't respond to any further messages. Read them and save them, though.

If the actual account contacts you, tell them they are free to return the item. That said, that still won't get their customs fees refunded. To do that, they will have to take it up with their local customs agency.

There's a reason they didn't contact you with the proper account, and that reason is not a good one.

---

Yeah I don't want to completely ignore them---I have more than one eBay account so I figured maybe they accidentally contacted me from an alt account, but the alt account (the one they are using to contact me but did  not actually use to buy from me) has no transactions in the last 12 months, at least that they have received or left feedback for. In fact, in the message they sent, they included a screenshot from what I'm assuming is their phone of our actual transaction and the message title was:

Returns: [username removed] sent a message about New! GreenWorks 40 Volt Li-Ion Max Quick Battery Charger(Model: 29482)[Open Box] #183989109215

I'm not sure why eBay allows a buyer I've never had any transactions with before or any communication with select that as an appropriate message title.

But regardless they have sent me two message in the past two days. I was going to contact back something to the effect of:

Dear buyer,

I apologize for the delay in my response, but I was not able to find any transactions involving this account. In order to provide customer service regarding your inquiry I will need you to contact me using the account name involved with the purchase.

Best Regards,

Me

[chapeau-noir]

I think that's a good response.

ETA: I would take the 'name' out of 'account name' as it's definitely two discrete accounts, and it's good to emphasise that.

[a_c_green]

---

@sg51 wrote:

Two possible worst cases:

1. buyer will file a SNAD, and you will be required to pay return shipping, perhaps by providing such shipping by separate monetary transfer to buyer.  Icky as that sounds, and sometimes is.

2. Buyer will file a SNAD, and ebay will resolve the case instead of you, and you will take an unresolved strike as well as being financially responsible for whatever ebay does, which will probably be to give buyer a full refund with no return expected.

---

3. Buyer in the UK uses a plug adapter instead of a voltage converter to plug the 120 VAC device into a 220 VAC UK power outlet. Predictable fireworks ensue. 

I would suggest offering 120 VAC US-spec devices for sale only to the US, Canada, Mexico, or any other countries using a similar power supply. The UK is very definitely not one of them, and although it's possible to use a power converter to operate it over there, plug adapters (which do nothing to the input voltage) are also widely available, and running 220 VAC through a device that can't support anything higher than 120 VAC will not end well.

(Modern laptops will generally have power supplies that can take a range of input power up to 230 VAC or so, and thus need only a plug adapter, but simpler devices that are made for use in one area of the world but not another may not have the same versatility.)

[pjcdn2005]

As an fyi...When an international buyer is looking at a listing on ebay  there is a line below the shipping cost that states...

International shipment of items may be subject to customs processing and additional charges