Item destroyed by Customs after declared "counterfeit"

[buynshop3000]

Hi All

A buyer clims his item was not delivered because it was "destroyed" by local Customs (European)

after they declared it as  "counterfeit". 

Did anyone here encounter any such event? because to me it doesn't sound possible or even legal. 

Is there any Ebay regulation in such a case?

I asked my buyer to send me proof of his claim.

meanwhile would like to prepare myself for the next step

Thank you!

David

[bubbleman2010]

The game is called customs hanger. Buyer will open a INR dispute then when dispute gets ripe they'll escalate it to a claim and 54 mins. later it will close in buyers favor and they'll beat feet down to customs and pick up their prize...

[bubbleman2010]

It also depends on what country you're really in as to the items being fake......

[slippinjimmy]

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@buynshop3000 wrote:

Hi All

A buyer clims his item was not delivered because it was "destroyed" by local Customs (European)

after they declared it as  "counterfeit". 

Did anyone here encounter any such event? because to me it doesn't sound possible or even legal. 

Is there any Ebay regulation in such a case?

I asked my buyer to send me proof of his claim.

meanwhile would like to prepare myself for the next step

Thank you!

David

---

Yes I have encountered such an event, it's entirely possible and 100% legal. Customs will send a written notice to the recipient indicating the why and when and how.

It would be helpful if you revealed what the item was, some things would be obvious while others would be extremely unlikely. The country where it was sent to would also be very relevant to determine if the buyers claim is likely or not.

Looks like you are drop shipping well known branded clothing and accesories from Vietnam, I can see how that type of stuff would be a target for customs in many countries.

In my opinion you owe the buyer a refund presuming they can offer you some documentation from their customs service.

[thallidguy]

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@slippinjimmy wrote:

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Looks like you are drop shipping well known branded clothing and accesories from Vietnam, I can see how that type of stuff would be a target for customs in many countries.

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Branded clothes and accessories drop-shipped from Vietnam? Well, that's on the list of things that make you go, Hmm....

Vietnam is one of the countries that's currently leaching low-paid manufacturing jobs from China. Could counterfeit designer goods be manufactured there?... Nawww, couldn't be.

[a*river*runs*through*it]

If really destroyed, wouldn't the tracking eventually say that?

[thallidguy]

Well, now this is interesting. Here's an eBay member-written guide on how to spot counterfeit North Face fleece jackets. Note criterion #4.

Look at the stock photo of the North Face fleece jacket that the OP is selling. The "fleece" is obviously smooth, just like the guide's description of fake fleece.

Looks like the OP came up against customs officials who knew what they were doing.

[rolenboy01]

"destroy" is usually a codeword for a cool item customs wanted to keep for themselves.

[thallidguy]

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@buynshop3000 wrote:

My understanding is the customs do not have the knowledge to differenciate between real and fake items. We are not talking expensive items here. 50$ worth tops. 

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Reading this statement of yours in this light, then: You don't deny selling counterfeit goods; you just assumed that you would never get caught.

[berserkerplanet]

That eBay guide is almost 8 years old. Unless OP's item is that old, there is a very good chance nothing in it any longer applies due to style and manufacturing changes.

[thallidguy]

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@berserkerplanet wrote:

That eBay guide is almost 8 years old. Unless OP's item is that old, there is a very good chance nothing in it any longer applies due to style and manufacturing changes.

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I highly doubt that they've made changes that dramatic. North Face is a functional brand more than a fashion-forward brand.

North Face also tries to limit sales to authorized retailers. A little snooping around suggests that counterfeits of North Face are endemic, and that any listing that uses stock photos and offers North Face at that slender a fraction of MSRP is a good bet to be fake.

The only place I'd trust to get real North Face stuff at such a slender discount is probably Sierra Trading Post, and they note why the item is so heavily discounted — factory 2nds, overrun, etc.

[femmefan1946]

Did anyone here encounter any such event? because to me it doesn't sound possible or even legal. 

Selling or even owning counterfeits is illegal.

And yes, custom officers will destroy them.

They can't go back to the seller or forward to the buyer, who have (possibly inadvertently ) taken part in a criminal act.

Nor can they be sold.

Is there any Ebay regulation in such a case?

EBay does not allow  counterfeits (or knockoffs or replicas ) to be sold on the site.

If they find such a listing, it will be removed.

If the seller relists it, his account will be closed down.

[femmefan1946]

@missjen831

It seems to me there are some problems with customs that are not Disputable nor can they be mentioned in Feedback.

However, if the real problem is that the item was counterfeit, or destroyed as counterfeit, the seller, who is responsible for getting the purchase securely to the buyer, is responsible.

BTW, the Vietnamese factory may have Chinese owners. Chinese businesses are expanding into South Asia, and also into Africa, wherever they can find labour cheaper than domestically.

That in itself doesn't make the garment counterfeit.

I looked at the North Face site, but all they say about the origins of their items is "imported".

[gramophone-georg]

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@femmefan1946 wrote:

Did anyone here encounter any such event? because to me it doesn't sound possible or even legal. 

Selling or even owning counterfeits is illegal.

And yes, custom officers will destroy them.

They can't go back to the seller or forward to the buyer, who have (possibly inadvertently ) taken part in a criminal act.

Nor can they be sold.

Is there any Ebay regulation in such a case?

EBay does not allow  counterfeits (or knockoffs or replicas ) to be sold on the site.

If they find such a listing, it will be removed.

If the seller relists it, his account will be closed down.

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If only that were enforced as it is written...

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/08/why-ebay-tells-chinese-manufacturers-what-you...

[robot-hands]

There are not tens of thousands customs agents all over the world trained in determining the authenticity of billions of items made from the dawn of man until yesterday.

There are several criteria in a flow chart that get a second and third look. Something suspicious gets moved up the chain and compared to known problematic imports from another chart.