Need your opinion.

[brmcc-2905]

Recently listed an item as “used” and buyer wants a partial refund because they claim it was not fully operational. What would you do? 

[candd205]

Was it fully operational? A used item should be fully operational. If you are trying to sell something that is not fully operational, you should sell it "for parts only". If it was fully operational, then that is up to you if  you want to offer a partial refund to avoid a return. For me, I would just ask them to return the item for the full refund (unless the shipping costs are too high).

[brmcc-2905]

I listed the item as “used” and the buyer claims he took it apart and it was full of dirt thus keeping it from being fully operational until it was cleaned. Mechanically it worked but now wants a partial refund because they had to clean it 

[ebooksdiva]

This is what I would do….invite the buyer to open a return request and tell the buyer I only give refunds on the return of the item. 
Then see what they do. If they open a return request, give them a return label when the item is returned, inspect it to ensure it’s your item. Then refund. 

[brmcc-2905]

Thanks for the help!

[ebooksdiva]

You’re welcome. 

[duffy4444]

A)   Agree to an amount to be partially refunded, then do it

B)   Have the buyer return the item, then refund in full AFTER it is returned to you

C)   Argue with and tick the buyer off, eBay automatically refunds buyer's INAD claim, punishes you

D)   Do nothing, buyer opens credit card chargeback or INAD claim, and you still lose and get negative FB to boot.

   ...Your choice. Try to keep eBay out of the loop, or you will open a can of worms.

     I would choose option A, then put the buyer on my BBL (Blocked Buyer List), suck it up and move on.

     If the buyer is a scammer, option B will probably be one of numerous clever return scams, so that's not desirable.

     Options C and D are self-explanatory.

    You are a new seller with 0 feedback, which makes you a magnet for scammers and simple opportunists who notice it.

    All sellers here face this scenario sooner or later. I hope the item you sold was not really expensive, and hopefully you can get out of this predicament with as small a loss as possible. Educate yourself on the scams that are victimizing sellers, and learn how to handle those who may have a legitimate beef with the item.

Cheers, Duffy