What would you do?

[stainlessenginecovers]

Customer purchases $80 item. Item shows  "late" (per tracking) and customer asks about it. I told him USPS story and to hang in there another few days. I assured him I would take care of him should it never arrive. He has purchased over $1000 from me the past few years. Within hours, he opens a INR return (on 8/7). I have until 8/10 to answer. By 8/9 tracking does not show delivered so I refund, in full.

3 Days later customer sends message he received. I told him to simply write 'refused' on the package and hand back to carrier.

He says 'I already installed it, I didn't want to wait this long for nothing'

I told him "you didn't wait, hence the return and refund you opened, and you got your $ back. I have no way of sending you an 'ebay invoice' and I don't have access to your email and can't give you my email for paypal invoicing/payments- so you'll have to contact ebay or paypal and reverse, or snail mail me a check or m.o.

He says "I did what ebay told me to do, conversation over'.

What would you do?

[inhawaii]

Send him a paypal "request money" for the total.  See what happens next.  If he doesn't pay, notify ebay.

[stainlessenginecovers]

Not sure how as I don't have his 'paypal' info/address (usually email address)

[fab_finds4u]

Contact eBay for his email address.

If he intended to keep it he should've repaid.  It's not ethical to keep the item and the money and you be out the item and the money, Sheesh,,,,,, what a low life your buyer is. Please message me his user name so I can block him.  

[doc-holmes]

I was in a similar situation as a buyer, and I repaid. If the sale is complete you can exchange contact info. So, you should be fine sending them your email address and ask for payment. Then, wait and see if they're honest. 

[fashunu4eeuh]

Well, I see this a little differently than some other posters. I would not have said what you said to a good repeat customer, which was in essence, "You didn't wait, and inconvenienced me." We don't have the luxury to be inconvenienced by a customer who was himself inconvenienced by a late package that he obviously needed.  You are angry he opened an Item Not Received when you had assured him you would take care of him. But you didn't take care of him. Instead it sounds like he didn't hear what he expected or needed during the first conversation when he called. I would have apologized profusely about the late package, then immediately dispatch another widget to him, overnight if possible, at my expense.

Then he contacted you again to alert you he received the widget (which was the honest thing to do), and instead of your acknowledging his pressing need of it, you advised him to refuse it. I think this was a serious mistake, that was compounded by your essentially then saying "I'm not going to do anything more here." instead of telling him you would invoice him. (Once in a transaction, contact info can be exchanged.)  Go to PayPal, send him a money request or an invoice, and put this entire debacle to bed.

I am afraid you have lost a good customer.

[chapeau-noir]

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@fashunu4eeuh wrote:

Well, I see this a little differently than some other posters. I would not have said what you said to a good repeat customer, which was in essence, "You didn't wait, and inconvenienced me." We don't have the luxury to be inconvenienced by a customer who was himself inconvenienced by a late package that he obviously needed.  You are angry he opened an Item Not Received when you had assured him you would take care of him. But you didn't take care of him. Instead it sounds like he didn't hear what he expected or needed during the first conversation when he called. I would have apologized profusely about the late package, then immediately dispatch another widget to him, overnight if possible, at my expense.

Then he contacted you again to alert you he received the widget (which was the honest thing to do), and instead of your acknowledging his pressing need of it, you advised him to refuse it. I think this was a serious mistake, that was compounded by your essentially then saying "I'm not going to do anything more here." instead of telling him you would invoice him. (Once in a transaction, contact info can be exchanged.)  Go to PayPal, send him a money request or an invoice, and put this entire debacle to bed.

I am afraid you have lost a good customer.

---

Huh?   The buyer had received an item he essentially had not paid for, because OP had honestly and promptly refunded him for non-receipt, WHICH WAS TAKING CARE OF HIS CUSTOMER. When package finally arrived, OP then said he could simply return to sender (thus not embarrassing the buyer by saying "OK, you'd better pay for it.").  Buyer said "Nope, it's mine now."  The seller would like to be paid for this but doesn't look like he will and he is simply honest with the buyer about this (we ARE adults here).  But he's supposed to grovel and send more free stuff to this person?  By express mail?

He lost a 'good customer?'  How?

[corvettestainless]

@fashunu4eeuh  I am afraid you have lost a good customer.

Him being covered means I would have built and sent him a new one. It's custom built to order, and nobody on the planet is making these. I didn't tell the whole story, but trust me- someone that says' why should I have to wait' when seller explains CV19 and opens a return because he is in a hurry for a frivolous item that goes on a frivolous car for a car show that he says he's attending (car shows and events have been cancelled in the greater Chi town area where he lives, so I know he's a DB liar), then calls ebay and they say 'open a refund for NR' and he does it knowing what that means- that I have to refund. 

I'm not worried about a 'repeat' customer- as I blocked him from ever buying from me again. 

[gadgetmans_attic]

That sucks that sellers have to go through this mess of getting ripped off like this the rules have to change while the post office is going through difficult times. It's an estimate delivery time not a guaranteed by like I see in some listings.  

IT'S NOT FAIR NOT FAIR NOT FAIR NO matter what some of the other sellers said.

Buyers need to be patient in this pandemic that we're all going through. It makes me not want to list anything on ebay which I haven't been doing at this time. Buyers are taking advantage of this plus some sellers are taking advantage of this also by putting crazy prices on masks etc. 

Stay safe we're all in this together some times I don't think so. PEACE

[postingid7659]

I'd tell him he can repay you or you will start a mail fraud case and report him to his local police for theft. 

[papermoneyforme]

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@gadgetmans_attic wrote:

That sucks that sellers have to go through this mess of getting ripped off like this the rules have to change while the post office is going through difficult times. It's an estimate delivery time not a guaranteed by like I see in some listings.  

IT'S NOT FAIR NOT FAIR NOT FAIR NO matter what some of the other sellers said.

Buyers need to be patient in this pandemic that we're all going through. It makes me not want to list anything on ebay which I haven't been doing at this time. Buyers are taking advantage of this plus some sellers are taking advantage of this also by putting crazy prices on masks etc. 

Stay safe we're all in this together some times I don't think so. PEACE

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I can tell you many Canadians will not sell to the US  due to the USPS situation and the attitude and impatience of American buyers.

I feel sorry for the US sellers who Ebay just keeps saying too bad, refund.

[hawkwind5454]

Agree...And what's up with the buyer basically telling the O/P, that ebay gave them a *license to kill*, so to speak... The buyer is no innocent babe in the woods here.

[powell-memorabilia]

I think your mistake was getting snippy with the customer.  He has your item, and didn't even have to pay for it.  To tell him to spend hours trying to figure out how to repay you seems silly.  You could have just asked for his e-mail in order to request money via PayPal.  Seems like he has been a good customer - but didn't like dealing with (what we took) as a bad attitude. A guy that buys $1,000 worth of goods from you, and is, what you call, a good customer, isn't likely to be looking to scam you out of $80.  

[vintage-car-magazines]

Contact eBay, provide the tracking and ask them to make you whole.