Would you block this buyer? (There are no wrong answers)

[city*satins]

On Dec 15 I sold a clothing item that was $150 when new but was pre-owned.  Before listing it, I'd carefully cleaned it, measured it, photograhed it etc etc and  wrapped it in tissue, bagged it, and put a little post-it note on the bag saying (brandname) top.

I accepted a $20 offer on it. mailed it and it was delivered on Dec 18.  No messages from the buyer, no feedback. I thought all was well.

Yesterday, doing a January 1 reoganization of my inventory what did I find but the  item!

I wrote the buyer and told her that I'd found the item, promised to ship it out right away, apologized, and asked her what she'd received instead.

Today she wrote back to say that she received a different item by the same designer and liked it a lot and would keep it and that I need not to bother to send the one she originally bought, thanks very much.

The item I sent her was new with tags and retailed for $188. I'd forgotten I had it and it was packaged the exact same way, post-it note included.

Although obviously I made an error - I believe the buyer should have alerted me that she did not receive the item she bought.  Instead, she apparently figured she got a windfall and never said anything.

Alhough sending the wrong item was my mistake, my view is that she took advantage of that mistake and said nothing, and then answered my query by announcing that she was keeping the more valuable item and  not to bother sending the correct one. 

The tone of her message suggested ( I admit that this is one of those sender/receiver kind of situations) that she was doing me a big favor by letting me keep the item that I originally sold her. 

I thanked her for her message, told her that I hoped she would enjoy her new garment, and confirmed that I would not be sending the garment she actually bought. (I don't quarrel with customers but....)

Then I BBLd her.

What would you have done?

[ersatz_sobriquet]

I would do the same. You basically have no recourse against her. Sorry that happened 😞 

I'm sure you'll take the precautions to make sure it doesn't happen again. 

People are such opportunists through ebay. Morally she owes you money or to return that item for the one she bought. Too bad people are the way they are....what can you do? Nothing but what you did do. 

[odditiesandantiquities1]

I wouldn't block her. You might have a repeat customer in the offing. I have made similar mistakes and accepted they were mine. Many of those customers have come back repeatedly. It's almost worked out as a selling hook.....lol. 

[coolections]

She saved you a headache and a lot of unnecessary work. She did do you a favor. No need to block her.

[slippinjimmy]

What would you have done?

I would figure out exactly how I made the mistake and take measures to ensure it never happened again.

I haven't blocked a buyer in about 10 years and almost all the users on my BBL were put there back in the day when eBay offered a link to block when you closed an Unpaid Item dispute.

[the*dog*ate*my*tablecloth]

I buy so much. If I received a similar item I might not even notice. I think you're overreaching when you comment that she got a windfall, etc. I don't think she did anything wrong and wouldn't even consider blocking her, a paying customer. Especially since you were the one who made the mistake.

[*madison]

What would you have done?

---------------------------------------------

What the buyer did,

and I wouldn't have cared about being blocked.  

You can always rely on an honest answer from me.

[fashunu4eeuh]

This could have gone bad, but fortunately the buyer was satisfied, (albeit with a much nicer item) and didn’t make a stink, open a SNAD and/or leave poor feedback. And while you would hope to have a buyer’s cooperation to help correct the mistake, they are not obligated to do so. Since you sent her the wrong item, it becomes hers.

Now the ethics of the situation? I feel a moral person wouldn't take advantage of an error that falls in their favor, but is done so at the expense of another person.  

But as for whether to block them, i’m torn between A) wanting to convert my mistake into a possible repeat buyer, and B) feeling annoyed they kept the more expensive item without proper remuneration.

[emerald40]

---

@city*satins wrote:

On Dec 15 I sold a clothing item that was $150 when new but was pre-owned.  Before listing it, I'd carefully cleaned it, measured it, photograhed it etc etc and  wrapped it in tissue, bagged it, and put a little post-it note on the bag saying (brandname) top.

I accepted a $20 offer on it. mailed it and it was delivered on Dec 18.  No messages from the buyer, no feedback. I thought all was well.

Yesterday, doing a January 1 reoganization of my inventory what did I find but the  item!

I wrote the buyer and told her that I'd found the item, promised to ship it out right away, apologized, and asked her what she'd received instead.

Today she wrote back to say that she received a different item by the same designer and liked it a lot and would keep it and that I need not to bother to send the one she originally bought, thanks very much.

The item I sent her was new with tags and retailed for $188. I'd forgotten I had it and it was packaged the exact same way, post-it note included.

Although obviously I made an error - I believe the buyer should have alerted me that she did not receive the item she bought.  Instead, she apparently figured she got a windfall and never said anything.

Alhough sending the wrong item was my mistake, my view is that she took advantage of that mistake and said nothing, and then answered my query by announcing that she was keeping the more valuable item and  not to bother sending the correct one. 

The tone of her message suggested ( I admit that this is one of those sender/receiver kind of situations) that she was doing me a big favor by letting me keep the item that I originally sold her. 

I thanked her for her message, told her that I hoped she would enjoy her new garment, and confirmed that I would not be sending the garment she actually bought. (I don't quarrel with customers but....)

Then I BBLd her.

What would you have done?

---

Be glad the buyer did not neg me for sending the wrong item.

Or she could have claimed you sent an empty box and told you to send the original item.  At least she admitted she received something.

Buyer took advantage of the situation, yes.  But as you said it was all on you.

Once I knew she was satisfied, I would have just left it alone after that.

[evodoor]

I might have apologized profusely, then appealed to her sense of morality by explaining the loss you would be taking and asking her to consider paying a fair price for the item she got. You never know if you don't ask. I certainly would not block her.

[emerald40]

Item retailed for $188, but that does not mean the seller could have gotten even close to that here.

So no way to know for sure, how much money she lost.

[buyselljack2016]

Does not look like that much $$ difference.  $150 vs $188 (retail, not selling price)

So , who paid the initial shipping?

You would have to pay return shipping, and pay to ship the correct item, so how many $$$ would you be ahead in the long run.

Looks like you both made out OK. Buyer more so, but you did not fare  as badly as you could have for "your" error.

I would likely not block, and if I had, I would probably remove it after I gave it a bit more thought.

[city*satins]

Wow. A wide range of perspectives!

Much appreciated.

Definitely figured out how I made this error and know how to prevent it in future.

So that part has pretty much 100% agreement.

Views of the error itself.  Personally I would rather have had the SNAD as I could have resolved that easily without a defect. A neg wouldn't have bothered me that much either.  Compared to the $ value (paid by me vs potentially sold by me) for each item, my view is that she absolutely got a windfall - a big one but I understand the contrary view.

Thank you all.

[city*satins]

Does not look like that much $$ difference.  $150 vs $188

The $150 item was used and in "good" condition.  $20 (including s/h) was a fair price for it given its age and what the market is for this brand when pre-owned.

The $188 item was brand new with tags.   I originally had 8 units of this model and this was the last one. The other 7 sold for $70-85 on eBay during the year.  I forgot I still had 1 unit remaining.

[duchess-at-speakeasy]

No, I would not block the buyer. The buyer is not to blame for a seller's mistakes. The buyer is not affected adversely. (Be grateful for that!) You accepted $20 for a $150 item. You substituted a fairly comparable item valued just $38 higher. Solution: Set your new minimum price at $58. Done! ~~C~~