eBay

cmh7020 · ‎07-09-2022

I received a sold item back a few weeks ago marked "Return to Sender; Attempted, not know. Unable to Forward." I have sent the buyer two messages a week apart and have not received a response. Is there any specific policy in this case? Do I just refund her minus shipping costs?

and FYI: It initially shows as delivered (and eBay shows the same), but when I pull up the detailed tracking from USPS, a few days later it starts its journey back to me. I looked up the address and it's a hospital, so it was probably bulk received in the mail room and then when they couldn't determine who it was for gave it back to USPS. The shipping address makes it look like a regular residential address with no floor, department, or mention of the hospital name.

Thanks!

caseypl · ‎07-09-2022

I think you have done your part. Wait for them to reply. They may never reply back. No sense for you to eat shipping costs.

ittybitnot · ‎07-09-2022

@caseypl

Until the buyer files a claim through eBay, you need not do anything. If you eventually get the item back, you can refund if you so choose.

714ricki · ‎07-09-2022

Just try to send one more message next week & then just hold on to it for a few more weeks. Then, it will be up to you to relist the item.

lamber9347 · ‎07-09-2022

@cmh7020 You did your part so are fine at this point. I would suggest you set the package aside, where it won't get in your way. Stop messaging the buyer, your two messages are sufficient. Just give them more time. Buyer may be ill and recuperating but will eventually get back to you. When they get in touch with you, refund them for the item minus shipping and fees If they still want the item, you can sell it again to them in a new transaction with a buy it now price. Best of luck to you....

wastingtime101 · ‎07-09-2022

Hey @cmh7020. You have a few options. You should decide which route you'll be taking and communicate with the buyer, but wait until the item is returned (and delivered) to you before you take any of the following actions.

You can refund the buyer the item cost minus original shipping and minus a portion of your eBay fees (fee credits are prorated on a partial refund so you won't get back fees on the shipping amount you withhold). Go to your orders page, find the transaction and select "send refund." On the next page enter the amount. After that, relist the item and if you still want to work with this buyer you can tell them to repurchase it with the correct name/address.
Have the buyer sort out their address issue then pay for re-shipping. Send them an invoice through PayPal or give them your PayPal e-mail. This is post-sale so it's OK to exchange e-mail addresses. It's also OK to ship to a different address because it's technically not tied to the original transaction. You would not purchase the shipping label through eBay or upload tracking to the transaction. You would purchase it from an alternate site like pirateship.com or paypal.com/shipnow and you can send the buyer the new tracking # through e-mail or eBay messages.
A different way to accomplish buyer payment for re-shipping is to create an eBay listing for the shipping cost (bumping it up to factor in eBay fees) and having the buyer purchase it, entering their correct address at checkout. You could purchase a shipping label through eBay for that transaction.
You can cancel the transaction "problem with address" which will trigger a full refund to the buyer and your FVF would be credited.
You can do nothing. The buyer's MBG protection is voided when there's a package delivery attempt. I don't recommend this because even though you'll win an INR (item not received) claim on eBay, there's nothing stopping that buyer from going to their credit card to file a dispute which would grant them a full refund from your account. I also think that handling it before it gets to this stage with a partial refund is the "right" thing to do if you're not going to make reshipping arrangements.

GLORIOUS!

soh.maryl · ‎07-09-2022

OP states received the item back a few weeks ago.

inhawaii · ‎07-09-2022

I had that happen once.

I tried several times to contact the buyer without any luck.

I had meant to refund the buyer but never got around to it.

I never heard from the buyer again.

That was 2 years ago.

Come Dancing - The Kinks

sin-n-dex · ‎07-09-2022

@cmh7020 wrote:
I received a sold item back a few weeks ago marked "Return to Sender; Attempted, not know. Unable to Forward." I have sent the buyer two messages a week apart and have not received a response. Is there any specific policy in this case? Do I just refund her minus shipping costs?

and FYI: It initially shows as delivered (and eBay shows the same), but when I pull up the detailed tracking from USPS, a few days later it starts its journey back to me. I looked up the address and it's a hospital, so it was probably bulk received in the mail room and then when they couldn't determine who it was for gave it back to USPS. The shipping address makes it look like a regular residential address with no floor, department, or mention of the hospital name.

Thanks!

I just send a message telling them I sent it and it's been returned to me, so I'm refunding. If you try to send it again, you run the risk of losing an INR because the clock on your shipping started the first time you shipped.

It's up to you if you're going to deduct shipping. Shipping on my stuff is generally around $3.50, so I generally refund that as these things are infrequently (like maybe 3 or 4 in the past few years). On a more expensive shipment I might be inclined to keep the shipping.

C.

m60driver · ‎07-09-2022

I have had this happen a few times. I would just wait until the buyer reaches out to you. If and when they do you can refund less your expenses including shipping. You can either hold the item a little while longer or you can just go ahead and relist the item as you are under no obligation to hold the item once it is returned as undeliverable. I once had an item returned and the buyer never did reach out to me, despite numerous attempts on my part to reach out, so I kept the money and resold the item.