What happens if...

[inhawaii]

What if there is a INAD return.

The seller accepts the return and provides a return label right away.

The buyer ships the item back right away.

But the item gets "stuck" in the USPS system.

The tracking shows movement but very slow.

If the return window closes while the item is still in transit, who wins?

[bonjourami]

The buyer will win, if he shipped it back within the time frame.

[golfingaddict]

The buyer will win.  The seller will get a defect for not taking care of the case.

[golfingaddict]

In this case, eBay considers the label/shipping to be the seller responsibility.  They bought and paid for the label and they are responsible for the label.  

The seller might be able to get an extension from eBay but in my experience, each contact with eBay can be risky because they seem to want to help, but instead just want to close out the case and the seller can get a defect.

If I were the seller, I would refund before the deadline and hope the package gets back to me.

[dolcetreasures]

Same thing that will happen if the buyer returns any item that offers free returns. eBay considers it on the seller, but outside of Amazon, no retail store will give you back so much as a cent if the return is not actually received in a timely manner that commensurates with their return policy(typically 30 days). 

[chevymontecarlo88]

Always seems that Ebay will side with the buyer in most cases.

[stainlessenginecovers]

You will get a message from eBay stating 'your return item SHOULD have been to you by now- so it's time to refund' (paraphrasing). 

Wait for that message as 

1.) things get stuck all the time

2.) there is NO 'closing/end date' for a return, but there are these 3 dates

 a.) X time for you to approve label

b.) X time for buyer to ship 

c.) X time AFTER received (48hrs) for you to refund

Again, there is no 'end date' for all these things as a total- but you will eventually either get the item or get that message from ebay. 

[kandf_vintage_finds]

Tracking shows the buyer shipped the item back

I would refund now

Doesn't matter if the buyer sent a box of rocks back

He will get his money. Better that you give it to him before eBay does

[ittybitnot]

Doesn't matter if the buyer sent a box of rocks back

@kandf_vintage_finds 
@inhawaii 

While that is true, is a seller who qualifies allowed to only refund 50% if they don't get the item back at all? 

[ten_o_nine]

120%, the Buyer.

[buyselljack2016]

@inhawaii 

We just had a thread about that very recently.

When the date hit that "the item being returned was expected to be delivered" eBay refunded the buyer with the seller's money and decorated the seller account with a defect.

[inhawaii]

Thanks for the info.

In this case I am the buyer but nice to know in case i'm ever in this predicament as a seller.

[ittybitnot]

In this case I am the buyer 

@inhawaii 

Basically, as a buyer, apparently all you need is "proof of shipment" .    

[sapphire_studio]

I guess as the seller you are not only responsible for getting it to them but also responsible for them getting it back to you. I wonder if you can file a USPS claim in the same way on return packages if the package gets lost forever.

[dolcetreasures]

Yes you can, whomever furnished the label can indeed file the claim. The issue is eBay offers some sellers the ability to deduct up to 50% for returns that have gone wrong.

Well, if the seller never received the item back how can they decide that? And if the item never arrives at all, that means the seller never received anything.

Yet eBay will force the refund, but there’s no way to retroactively deduct anything at that point. The problem is, there is no specific timeframe, it seems to be something that’s always in flux. At eBay’s discretion.