"New" buyer claims she received an empty package

[madchenmarketplace]

A buyer purchased 2 items from me at a big discount via Best Offer (she originally lowballed both items...I should have known better).  I packed them up very well in a box and shipped it out the next day. Today she emails me to say she received the box but it's been opened and the items aren't in there and it's taped back up. I told her to file a report with the post office & the police - she said she talked to the post office already and they said it had been through so many people there was no way to tell where it happened and to toake it up with eBay. But she is "new" so she doesn't know how to file a report so she needs my help. I told her to go to the Help menu so she did...

Aaaaand she filed a return for both items and put in the notes that I had told her to file the request because she received an empty package from me. Now my funds are on hold. What should I do? This feels sketchy to me.

[madchenmarketplace]

UPDATE: It's been a week and a half since the package was "stolen." After contacting eBay customer service again regarding both 1) eBay taking my money to refund her for a return she did not return and 2) the buyer reporting me for "violent comments" that I absolutely did not make, I finally heard back from a human being who did not give me a canned response. I received an email saying that basically eBay messed up by refunding her so quickly, I did everything I was supposed to do so they will refund me, they can see all the emails so they know I did not issue any threats, and they urged me to pursue any criminal charges I see fit to stop the "thief" from stealing again. The refund still hasn't hit my account but I'm watching it like a hawk, I won't believe they refunded me until I see it.

Got a letter from the post office regarding the insurance claim; they won't pay out unless they can examine the "damaged" package. I completely understand that but she was so uncooperative that I imagine she already tossed the evidence so I guess I won't be getting the insurance claim fulfilled - which is fine given that eBay said they would refund my money (if they do).

Additionally, I did file a report with the sheriff of the county in which she lives - this time not naming a mystery porch pirate but HER as the perpetrator. The deputy I talked to was very nice and understanding but said there's nothing he can really do - which I totally understand, it's a low priority thing. But the report helps me with eBay and according to an attorney I spoke with (a family member, lol), should she ever be accused of other crimes, that can be taken into account during investigations as well as the sentencing phase after conviction. Not sure if a small theft carries that much weight but it's worth a try.

And I'm not sure if this has anything to do with her but the item I sold to her, that I still had listed as I have a few left, was removed for a VERO violation and it said my item was counterfeit. It's not, I have the receipt from the store, but I know since it's a VERO complaint I can't relisted it and I don't want to break rules. So that sucks.

Thank you all for sticking with me on this journey. It's been a lot of stress & work and makes me think it's more profitable to be a buyer than it is a seller lol. Disheartening for sure.

[katzrul15]

Thanks so much for the update.

Terrific news if e-Bay will indeed refund your monies back to you.

So very sorry that at every turn, there lies another obstacle to hold her accountable. 

It is stressful dealing with thieves.  Keep us posted.  Hopefully, they credit you soon!!!

[craft-stash]

🤥Lies are always so easy to see🤓

[cstpos]

@madchenmarketplace  Let the buyer know that you will have to open a case with the USPS to start an insurance claim  for a refund from them. I was told that if you have the buyer send the package back to you, the insurance is voided as damage can then occur while in transit back to you.

We have filed insurance claims with the PO and it was our (the seller) responsibility to open a claim with the USPS. If the buyer opens the claim, they can then get a refund from the USPS AND open a case on ebay and get refunded there as well. Let the buyer know they need to hold on to the package as the USPS might need to see it. Also, the USPS might want you to open a police report in the location of the buyer.

All your messaging should be done on ebay. Make sure you print out anything related to this case. Records and info may only be available for a very limited time on ebay, and these cases can take a while to resolve.

The buyer may be telling the truth, but you would think they would have noticed immediately that the box had been tampered with. If they won't provide pics of the package to you, the Post Office can have them bring it in. When I print a USPS label, I also print the receipt portion which shows the package details.

The scammers are really increasing. I has a buyer open a return because it wasn't the right model for the computer he was using. We accepted the return and per our policy all shipping costs are paid for by the buyer. He then contacts ebay and changes the reason as INAD! We accepted then return and when we asked what in our listing was incorrect so we could fix it, he refused to answer. Our listing and photos were clear and correct.  Ebay sided with us, then them, then us, then them again. We were told if we didn't issue a full refund (the item and shipping both ways) we would not get any of our ebay fees refunded. The shipping total would have been $28 and our ebay fees $51. So ebay rewards the scammer and the seller pays for it. I know, it's the cost of doing business, but that doesn't mean it's any less frustrating. How does ebay justify making a profit when the seller has been cheated? Of course we issued the refund. We added them to our Blocked Buyer List. Good luck to you.

[pikabo-icu]

Very well done!!

I'm happy for you!! Hopefully you'll see that refund (repayment) soon. 

[isaiah53-57]

---

@skeletonstore wrote:

Ohhh....Still though quite a heist...and now she risks being banned on ebay if she goes to the well too often. 

---

Sorry, I DO NOT believe anything about this statement in the least - I was the victim of a scammer over a year ago by a Littlest Pet Shop Buyer on a $189 Lot - Made every false statement in the book - I got back about 80% of them, of course all the most valuable were gone(I did get my money back after much work including filing criminal reports and hounding ebay) - I started emailing sellers he/she had received feedback from and found that almost every one of them had a similar experience - thinking I was doing something to help clean up the site, I inquired with them to file reports and most said they already had or that they would -

Guess what?????? -  OVER A YEAR LATER that Person is still buying and also selling their ill-gotten items on the same account - They have TONS of "False Positive" feedback using the words "Scammer", "Thief", "Steer Clear of", "False Reports", etc, etc...

Nope - I dont believe anything about that statement...not on any level...

[bitpistol_solutions]

Very true and well said.

[downunder-61]

May 2021 thread, can we please lock this

[kh-vince]

Hi everyone,

Due to the age of this thread, it has been closed to further replies. Please feel free to start a new thread if you wish to continue to discuss this topic.

Thank you for understanding.