what should i do in this situation, (buyer claiming defective product)

[oniesbizarre]

-buyer purchased a microsoft keyboard.

-item was delivered aug 17th.

-september 10th buyer claims item does not work and requests for me to resolve issue.

-i tell buyer if item is defective once returned i will issue a refund. (which i feel i shouldnt have to because almost a month has passed since item delivered)

-buyer tells me return is not possible and that he is in india and used a freight forwarding company (which i had no clue of) to recieve item and paid customs duty.

-then he proceeds to make statements item is not as described (which is untrue) and i refer him to the add and all the pictures addressing his claims.

-he responds with he is okay with the product realizing it is as described and that it is defective and for me to resolve.

-i tell him the item he purchased from me was delivered on the 19th and i never sent anything to india. i ask if he has me confused with another seller and i suggest to him that he contact the seller and/or freight company that transported the item to india. and that im sorry this has happened.

is there a process i need to take or what do i do now? im a new seller and have no idea if i am following rules, i hear ebay is pretty strict.

[soh.maryl · Accepted solution]

Have you read the Money Back Guarantee for buyers? Evidently your buyer hasn't, or he'd be taking the appropriate action which would be opening an item not as described case.  Incidentally, he has 30 days to do this with eBay.  

However, if the buyer used a freight forwarder, his claim is with them.  Your responsibility ended when the item was delivered to that freight forwarder.

ALL sellers need to read the MBG, preferably before beginning to sell here.  

[lakefor94]

You don't have a problem unless the buyer files a return case. The buyer has 30 days from the date the item was delivered to the FF to file a return.

[heckofagame]

As @soh.maryl  stated, the MBG is voided when a buyer uses a freight forwarder.

[sextons-sweet-deals]

Go back and review the order and shipping address. 

Google Map the shipping address. That should tell you if it was an actual F.F.

electronics are aways a target for scammers.

[oniesbizarre]

this is what was said about "not as described"  can he claim not as described?

"Till date, there was no issue with the drivers. Also the image of the
product says white Microsoft box but the actual product was received in the
brown box without any brand name on it."

the brown box is in the pictures, it is the 4th picture. on the barcode it has a microsoft labewl/logo and microsoft model # of what is in the box. The white image is that of the brochure which came with the keyboard, as you can see from the fold in the center of the white image on the listing that it is clearly a paper and not a box. The item is as exactly as described in the listing. please revisit the listing and read it in its entirety. so there is no confusion about anything.

he responded he is okay with product but it is defective

[joseh1445]

You are off the hook with ebay.  That is, as long as this amazing buyer doesn't file a dispute with his/her credit card company, if that's how he/she paid (He/She has 6 months to dispute).  But most likely, this will not happen either.  

Good luck on your selling journey!

[duffy4444]

    With all the changing stories from the buyer and his pathetic attempts at trying to fool you, it certainly sounds like a scam attempt to me.

    In the future, check to see if the shipping address is to a freight forwarder, which can usually be identified  by a reference number before the US address, often in Delaware, Florida or Oregon. If it is, click on the feedback rating of the buyer's ID and see if he is in a country you don't want to ship to. Then you can make a value judgment as to whether to ship it or cancel the order because of "problem with buyer's address". But be careful, as too many of this type of cancellation will get eBay's attention and could come back to harm your performance metrics or eventually shut you down.

    I will not ship to many countries, India included, because of a high rate of fraud and scams. But l will ship to a freight forwarder (FF) in instances where my business model can afford the risk of losing the item and the buyer's payment for it. Fortunately, the Money Back Guarantee for the buyer is voided when an item is shipped to a third-party FF address, as others have told you here.

    Hopefully you can wait out the 30 days the buyer has to file a Item Not As Described (INAD) claim. If he does before the 30 days is up, you may want to consider letting him know that eBay is investigating his claims. Sometimes that totally solves the issue as the buyer just fades away or cancels the claim. But be sure to respond to the claim if he does file one.

Cheers, Duffy

[ittybitnot]

@oniesbizarre 

Your buyer has 30 days on eBay to file a "not as described" claim.  If they are just messaging you, I would suggest sending one message only:

Dear buyer, 

Sorry you are not pleased with your purchase. Please return for a refund.
Sincerely, 

You

You are not required to explain the process to this buyer.  If they file with PayPal (if they paid that way) return shipping is on the buyer's dime. 

Should your buyer file an eBay claim, it is UP TO THE SELLER to inform eBay that this is a freight forwarder situation. There are additional seller protections available, but you must help yourself first.   eBay will not intervene automatically, rather initially the opposite happens.  Providing this information is best accomplished by contacting eBay through one of their social media portals.  Regular customer service is basically useless and it is often worse for you if you follow their oftentimes incorrect advice.  Use the blue message button at the top of this page: 
https://www.facebook.com/eBayForBusiness

OR

https://twitter.com/askebay

Keep in mind that there are time restraints for you to reply to a claim (aka request) should your buyer actually file one.  DO NOT LET THESE TIMELINES PASS.  If your buyer files an eBay claim for 'not as described' and there is no time left, accept the return and issue a return label.  This will only be from the freight forwarder address back to you, and you are NOT required to front shipping costs from their country . 

They typically won't use that label, so you will not be charged.  They may use it and tweak the information, send a the proverbial "box of rocks" to an address in your zipcode, or they may just purchase a cheap trinket on the net and have it shipped to a Walgreens or gas station in your area to satisfy eBay bot's return requirement.  That scenario can be taken care of as well, and come back here if you need extra help. 

[oniesbizarre]

Thank you everyone, this information has helped so much. there is alot to learn. im still learning how to navigate the giant ebay platform. so many pages and so much content