Return Given, Item Not Received

[whs31]

I sold a water pressure valve and accidently sent the buyer the inocrrect valve size compared to what I had listed. I immediately gave him a refund, not knowing I was supposed to wait until he sent it back.  Essencially trying to be a very nice seller, knowing my mistake. Completely my fault. I sent him a return label the next day to stick on there and he has ignored my messages ever since. It seems like he is holding it hostage. I already refunded him and bought another return label for him to return and havent heard anything, 5 messages later... It has been about a month now. eBay cannot help since I did not follow their policy, which I completely undersatnd. Is there anyway to get him to send it back or refund me the money that I gave him back?

Thank you.

[missjen831]

Unfortunately you have no recourse. I applaud you for making things right as soon as you discovered the problem. But the buyer cannot be forced to return the item or repay for it.

[ericcanti_0]

No, sorry. This would probably be considered an unsolicited gift, which a buyer is not obligated to pay for or return. That's not just an eBay thing, it's an FTC thing:

https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0181-unordered-merchandise

This has happened to almost everyone on eBay. We're not machines, we're people and we make mistakes. 

[emerald40]

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@whs31 wrote:

I sold a water pressure valve and accidently sent the buyer the inocrrect valve size compared to what I had listed. I immediately gave him a refund, not knowing I was supposed to wait until he sent it back.  Essencially trying to be a very nice seller, knowing my mistake. Completely my fault. I sent him a return label the next day to stick on there and he has ignored my messages ever since. It seems like he is holding it hostage. I already refunded him and bought another return label for him to return and havent heard anything, 5 messages later... It has been about a month now. eBay cannot help since I did not follow their policy, which I completely undersatnd. Is there anyway to get him to send it back or refund me the money that I gave him back?

Thank you.

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No.  There is no way to force him to return the item.

A lesson learned you will probably never repeat.

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

Unsolicited gifts clause was created for companies that used to send out merchandise then pressure the recipient to pay for it. The rule does not strictly apply to accidental shipping but does say that while the buyer should send the wrong item back, there's no way to make them

[siayan]

I am dealing with the same thing. I sold a pair of crimping pliers. Grabbed the wrong ones off the shelf. I messaged for the buyer to refuse the first ones and I shipped the second the same day. They said they would send them back. I see both have been delivered. Not sure if I will get anything back but hey, I made the mistake, I accept responsibility.

[mam98031]

You buyer may or may not be seeing your emails.  Some buyers only visit Ebay when they want to shop for something, then disappear for a long time until they have another need for something on Ebay.

Request their contact info so you can call them and see if you can get this resolved.  It may be a simple misunderstanding.  

Go to the word "advanced" just to the right of the Search button on the top right side of most any Ebay page.  This will take you to a more advanced search page.  On the left at the bottom of the list provided is the link for Contact Info.  Click on that and fill out the information required.

Good Luck!

[*help_no_brakes*]

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@siayan wrote:

I am dealing with the same thing. I sold a pair of crimping pliers. Grabbed the wrong ones off the shelf. I messaged for the buyer to refuse the first ones and I shipped the second the same day. They said they would send them back. I see both have been delivered. Not sure if I will get anything back but hey, I made the mistake, I accept responsibility.

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Your siggy is very apt in this situation.