Is Buyer Scamming Me?

[hmelanie324]

Hi, I recently sold a New Apple Pencil to a new eBay buyer (joined 12/2022) who only has one feedback rating. They are claiming it is broken but I know this isn’t true. They are requesting a refund. I feel like I am getting scammed. What should be my next course of action? 

[brightlightbookseller]

"Please return for a full refund."

No more needs to be said.  You don't know that it's not broken, and you haven't given enough information to suspect a scam.  More likely you simply got a bad one or the buyer is not setting it up properly, but either way your best bet is to have them return it, and if you verify it's working, you can sell it again.

[chapeau-noir]

You need to accept the return, there's no choice in the matter as the money back guarantee trumps everything else when it comes to not as described returns, whether they are bogus or not.  eBay can't adjudicate because they don't have the item themselves and they pretty much automatically side with the buyer.

Be sure to process this return promptly and don't allow eBay to 'step in' as that simply will mean that the buyer will be refunded without having to return the item and you'll get a big defect on your account.

Get the item back, inspect it, and if there are problems, then you can report the buyer for abuse of the MBG.

[deltilogical]

Send them the return label - make the buyers at least do the return.   Don't refund until returned.   

If the item was new, that means is was never used, so maybe it was actually broken to begin with. 

But the 1 feedback, and the months of delay, seem hinky.

[soh.maryl]

"But the 1 feedback, and the months of delay, seem hinky."

Why? There are logical explanations for both.  

[1tuna]

sure,the buyer is pushing you into a return

now is not the time to push back, it never really is

you just need to say yes to the return and get them a return label

its not a scam when they are being pushy

the sooner you put this behind you, the better it is  for all involved

@hmelanie324 

[josephb555]

It is possible that they broke the pencil and now want a refund. I suggest that you do not give a refund and if they start a case you could contest it in eBay resolution center.

[southern*sweet*tea]

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@josephb555 wrote:

It is possible that they broke the pencil and now want a refund. I suggest that you do not give a refund and if they start a case you could contest it in eBay resolution center.

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That is NOT how it works, and doing that will cause the seller to lose the item, the money paid for the item and they'll get the pleasure of a non-performance defect, two of which can permanently ban a small seller.  The percentage is very low for those- 0.3%.  That's a third of one percent. 

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-policies/seller-standards-policy?id=4347

Cases closed without seller resolution

What this means

When a buyer reports that an item hasn't arrived or requests a return, the seller is responsible for providing a resolution. A case closed without seller resolution means that the seller didn't resolve the buyer's issue, eBay stepped in to review the case, and the seller was found responsible. For full details of actions, time frames, requirements for sellers and how eBay decides the outcome of a case, please read our eBay Money Back Guarantee policy.

Minimum requirements

You're allowed 2 cases closed without seller resolution within an evaluation period, or 0.3% of your transactions – whichever is higher.

[dbfolks166mt]

It is possible that they broke the pencil and now want a refund. I suggest that you do not give a refund and if they start a case you could contest it in eBay resolution center.

     Probably not the best advice. Surely you have been selling long enough and seen enough postings on this forum to know that eBay will almost always side with the buyer. If seller does not accept the return, depending on the reason the buyer used, the buyer will simply ask eBay to step in and 99% of the time eBay will fully refund the buyer and allow them to keep the item. 

[hmelanie324]

Ok I messaged the buyer telling them to start the return on their end. 

Am I correct in the fact that I am now out the shipping fees both ways and also the PayPal fees? 

super annoyed at this😩 

[12345jamesstamps]

Did buyer give you feedback before requesting a return?

Did buyer contact Apple support at 1-808-215-3409. There is a lot of information on why it is not working if buyer can google about problem on the internet or even call Apple. I would ask them what they did if it was not working. Lots of solutions on the internet.  Heck, the buyer can walk into any Apple Store and they will say what is wrong for free.

The feedback thing is important. So you don't want to hassle the buyer of course. Will the buyer return the item or just return a cheap .05 cent pencil. Have to think how much the return shipping cost is. And can you afford to just refund them and let them keep item? And of course block them.

[hmelanie324]

It looks like from most of the replies here that as a seller I’m basically getting screwed either way. 

I gave the buyer links from apple and screenshots and explanations as to what to do. They are just saying it’s “broken”. 

They haven’t given me feedback yet. 

[pjcdn2005]

You will be out shipping both ways but as long as you refund when the item is returned you will get your fees credited.

[chapeau-noir]

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@hmelanie324 wrote:

It looks like from most of the replies here that as a seller I’m basically getting screwed either way. 

I gave the buyer links from apple and screenshots and explanations as to what to do. They are just saying it’s “broken”. 

They haven’t given me feedback yet. 

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Don't worry about the feedback - that's beside the point, it's not even a metric.  You just need to do the right thing to protect your account and get this processed ASAP.  I've sold a fair number of electronics myself and it's not an easy market. Generally I'm able to actually help with any compatibility issues that might come up, but there is always that one person who swears it does not work and refuses to put much effort into it. You can't make people do what they don't want to do.  So do what you can do, and that's just follow-through with the return - make sure they open the return properly and don't refund until you have your product back.

[ckimodog]

@hmelanie324 

Your next course of action is to tell the buyer to file a return claiming the item doesn't work and pay for the return of the item.  Do not refund any money until you have the item back in your possession.  Ebay offers a money back guarantee to all buyers up to 30 days.  It's best to honor it as usually comes out in the buyers favor.