eBay

lazer*lightning · ‎02-21-2025

I have a laptop that I sold Feb. 11th and on Feb. 17th USPS tracking said the package was being returned due to insufficient address. After contacting the buyer, he told me that he had forgotten to update the address and asked me if I could reship for free. I tried to find that out by asking the PO but unfort. it cant. So I then replied to him saying he could pay an additional $6.82 (which is what I paid for shipping minus my 50 cent original handling fee) or I could refund him minus the original shipping and handling. He said he was down for paying the re-shipment charges. eBay on the phone told me I could print another label. That last buyer communication was yesterday. Today I found he had opened an INR case to which I asked in the case why he opened it and if he had changed his mind about reshipping. I told him that I have not received the laptop back yet. There also is no change in the tracking as it still shows it's being resent to me as of the 17th but nothing has updated since then to show where it currently is. Is that normal? There is no reply from the buyer yet.

Why would this buyer open up a INR case if it clearly is his fault for providing an incorrect address? And should I be putting the original tracking number where eBay asks me to upload or the new shipment tracking when the buyer pays again? The buyer is in the NYC area and has 0 feedback but has been on ebay since 2016 so maybe he just has no clue what he is doing.

I did reread my last thread of when something like this happened. Should I be following this advice of wastingtime101 if an INR case has been opened?:

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.

That's the option I think I would do most but the other options he provided were:

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.
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 and why deal with all that? I also think 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.
You might also want to direct the buyer to this page so their address is updated for future purchases: Account Settings: Addresses

12345jamesstamps · ‎02-21-2025

Should wait for package to be returned...will have a label on it why it was returned.

I wouldn't do anything today...until you have to...you have 3 days before doing a refund or responding to the claim. Work with eBay and no more emails to the buyer.

Resend with new address...nope.

richard1rst · ‎02-21-2025

@12345jamesstamps wrote:
Should wait for package to be returned...will have a label on it why it was returned.
I wouldn't do anything today...until you have to...you have 3 days before doing a refund or responding to the claim. Work with eBay and no more emails to the buyer.
Resend with new address...nope.

@lazer*lightning

STRONG exception to that statement: Immediately go into the INR case and enter the tracking number. There may also be a space for a comment. if so add "Package is being returned due to incomplete address".

In the mean time NO further communication with the buyer. This is a slam dunk win for you. You will have to give a refund BUT not until you get it back and verify it is what you sent and eBay will also refund your fees. You should also be able to deduct the original outgoing shipping fees from your refund since it was the buyer's fault. So you will be right back where you were as is you had never sold it in the first place..

"Laissez-faire capitalism (AKA The Great Material Continuum) is the only social system based on the recognition of individual rights and, therefore, the only system that bans force from social relationships." ~ Ayn Rand

12345jamesstamps · ‎02-21-2025

Except responding immediately...item might show up on Monday.

And responding means it can escalate immediately rather than in the 3 day time frame to respond.

I would use the 3 days rather than even input tracking since that can be done in 3 days...what if something changes in 3 days?

lazer*lightning · ‎02-21-2025

So you are saying it's not wise to send a paypal invoice and reship even if the buyer pays it? ebay can see all messages sent and there was no phone or outside communication.

12345jamesstamps · ‎02-21-2025

It's an INR case open...

Send it to buyer with new address...buyer gets it plus the refund for the INR claim opened.

Buyer closes INR but can buyer open a different claim...item not as described?

eBay...artificial intelligence will not read any messages or emails...or will they?

cityslickercreations2004 · ‎02-21-2025

" After contacting the buyer, he told me that he had forgotten to update the address and asked me if I could reship for free." Seriously? Personally, I would tread carefully with this buyer.

They have filed an INR because they failed to provide their correct mailing address for delivery. OK, it happens.

Quit negotiating into the future. First off, get that laptop back in your possession. USPS may not be eager to send it to you so you may have to wait. Follow ebay's instructions re: the INR case.

Read richard1rst response to you.

lazer*lightning · ‎03-03-2025

Ok, well I have an update and another question. When I called eBay they understood the situation and closed the INR case so I don't have to worry about that. And I worked it out with the buyer to have him pay the additional shipping cost but when I went to pay for the label on eBay it gave me the old shipping address after he had said he corrected it. This person has 0 feedback but not really new to ebay as he registered in 2016. He probably didn't realize he had to update his shipping address through another part of My eBay and only updated his registration address. I informed him about this and am waiting for his reply. After that I thought I could pay for a label on PayPal using www.paypal.com/ship now but they removed that option. So when I went to create a label from the PayPal payment that he paid me through it showed his correct address but it wanted to charge me $7.54 instead of $6.82 that I get with the EBay discount (and that's what he repaid). 72 cent difference. Plus I'm hesitant to do that as I don't have a clue if I would get the same seller protection either way? I think the best thing to do is wait another day until he confirms his shipping address on eBay is updated. Right?

jonathanbrightlight · ‎03-04-2025

Buyers cannot update the shipping address on a paid order. Ever. Refund them (minus the shipping) and let them repurchase the item with the correct address if you feel like continuing to deal with them.

Volunteer Community Mentor | Posting ID

mam98031 · ‎03-04-2025

@12345jamesstamps wrote:
Except responding immediately...item might show up on Monday.
And responding means it can escalate immediately rather than in the 3 day time frame to respond.
I would use the 3 days rather than even input tracking since that can be done in 3 days...what if something changes in 3 days?

While I agree, just for different reasons, it is important to remember that as long as the tracking shows there was an attempted delivery or that the address was bad, the seller is covered by Seller protection. So even if the buyer were to be able to escalate the claim to Ebay, the Seller would win.

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999

mam98031 · ‎03-04-2025

@12345jamesstamps wrote:
It's an INR case open...
Send it to buyer with new address...buyer gets it plus the refund for the INR claim opened.
Buyer closes INR but can buyer open a different claim...item not as described?
eBay...artificial intelligence will not read any messages or emails...or will they?

The Buyer will NOT win the INR IF the tracking shows it wasn't deliverable or a delivery attempt was made.

If the buyer were to open an INAD, then the seller should simply approve it and issue the return shipping label. The buyer has nothing in hand to return which is evidenced by the tracking.

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999

mam98031 · ‎03-04-2025

@lazer*lightning wrote:
So you are saying it's not wise to send a paypal invoice and reship even if the buyer pays it? ebay can see all messages sent and there was no phone or outside communication.

Once you get the item back and IF that is what your buyer wants, there is nothing wrong with doing this. But don't do it blindly as the buyer won't know what or why you are doing this and it could make them very uncomfortable. Ebay doesn't care about this. They know they don't have a way to do this easily on the site.

Just remember if this is what you end up doing, make sure you create your shipping label from the PayPal payment. DO NOT create it in Ebay from the original transaction or you could compromise the tracking details for the original shipment.

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999