eBay

texasgal20 · ‎07-10-2024

Last month had a buyer put in request due to item not received. I gave buyer tracking information that item had been picked up at the post office, and buyer then closed the case. Well, yesterday 7/8/2024 item was received due to box marked that addressee was not at the address on label, and USPS was unable to forward. What is the next step? Is buyer entitled to full refund including her shipping charges since this was her mistake and not mine?

zakstreasuretrove · ‎07-10-2024

You should be covered by seller protection IF you shipped to the address the buyer had on file AND the tracking scans show delivered or if it shows an undeliverable.

I have had this happen once, except that the buyer never contacted me. It was an item that was around $150. Bought and paid for. It required a signature for delivery and that fact was advertised. It was returned to me as undeliverable and I never heard anything from the customer.

Since your customer has started a case, you should be able to show ebay (or they might be able to see it on their end anyway) that the item was packed and shipped properly and to the address on file. If you changed the address to one that isn't on file with the buyer (i.e. ship it to my friend at this address) prior to shipping you will be responsible for it.

If this was my situation, I would immediately provide all necessary documentation to eBay, even if they can see it anyway. Wait to see their decision. If you've got the item back in the same condition and you refund it, you haven't really lost anything (unless you provided free shipping). Just relist and sell it again. If eBay tries to stick it to you (unheard of..........) be sure to call on the phone. If you feel like this was part of a scam by the buyer tell them you want to submit an affidavit on the situation and file a mail fraud complaint with the USPS. It depends on how far you want to take it and how much you want to let them get away with it without using what is within your means to fight against it.

If it was a post office error then you should be both protected.

rfmtm · ‎07-10-2024

Your choice is either to send a PayPal invoice for the cost of reshipping if buyer still wants the item, or if not you can refund only the item cost, since it was the buyer's error.

wastingtime101 · ‎07-10-2024

Hi @texasgal20 . This is my standard advice for RTS (returned to sender) packages. Take the parts that are relevant to your situation.

You have a few options. You should decide which route you'll be taking and communicate with the buyer, but wait until the item is returned (and delivered) to you before you take any of the following actions.

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.
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.
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

GLORIOUS!

12345jamesstamps · ‎07-10-2024

I wait for item to be returned. I read what it states on the yellow label and package.

I wait for buyer to open a claim item not received. I do not contact buyer...buyer has to contact me first.

If buyer opens a claim item not received and eBay allows it(make sure it is allowed)...do the refund.

Mail it out again...not me...and block the buyer. Just my opinion,.

Most...almost all buyers never contact me.

monster-deals · ‎07-10-2024

@texasgal20 wrote:
Last month had a buyer put in request due to item not received. I gave buyer tracking information that item had been picked up at the post office, and buyer then closed the case. Well, yesterday 7/8/2024 item was received due to box marked that addressee was not at the address on label, and USPS was unable to forward. What is the next step? Is buyer entitled to full refund including her shipping charges since this was her mistake and not mine?

On ebay the buyer is not entitled to anything.

I wouldn't do anything unless your buyer contacts you.

Then instruct them to open an INR.

Upload tracking into the case.

After that you can do whatever you please.