Buyer refuses return because of custom duties. Item stuck in buyer country.

[authenticomega]

Seller in Japan here. I sold a $300 item in Feb to a buyer in Europe and shipped it promptly. A week later I received a message from the buyer

"I have told the courier company to return the item to you as there was a 71 euro charge on it for customs and taxes. I expected to pay some charges but not 71 euro. Can you please refund my card when the item is returned to you."

I  told him that this is unacceptable and that I inform all my buyers in each of my listings that they are responsible to cover all such costs. He replied that it was much more than he had thought it would be and did not intend to pay the courier which must be "having a laugh". 

The courier company then contacted me saying that the package was denied. They then told me that I had to pay return shipping if I want it returned, that there may be custom charges for me to pay when it arrived, and that the return may take 1 to 2 months due to COVID delays. Uhhhhhh what the hell? 

So here are my questions. 

Q1. I expect that the buyer has forfeited both EBay and PayPal protection by refusing delivery. However, he has indicated that he has paid via his card on PayPal. What happens if he opens a chargeback with his CC company down the line? Will eBay/PayPal protect me? Will the timeframe of the return back to me (1 to 2 months) hurt me in anyway? 

Q2. I have NEVER heard about having to pay custom duties on a returning item. I have asked my courier about this but they also seem to not know much about it and have pretty much said "you will just have to see what they will be when it arrives" (if I do decide to have the item shipped back to me). 

Thanks in advance. 

[titipeo]

Q1, I'm in the US, so not sure if rules are the same in JP or EU, but I do agree with your statement, however, this might be something that a JP/EU member can verify, perhaps you should check on your local board. 

Q2, return/refused goods do not carry duty, the courier should have a procedure in place for refused/undeliverable parcels. Maybe check with the JP side of the courier to see what they say. 

I find the 1-2 months time frame very extreme, seeing that it appears it took a week for seller to complaint about duty charges. If you refund, I will deduct the return cost from the refund, along with a handling fee for the inconvenience, a 10% minimum sounds right.  

To find out duty cost, check your country's Harmonized Tariff Schedule, (Japan's Tariff Schedule ( Statistical Code for Import ) : Japan Customs) and look for the item in question. I'm a Licensed US Customs Broker for a local courier company and deal with this, so I'm familiar with US HTS (for short) and yes, indeed no cost for return goods, also, verify your countries de minimis threshold, under which shipments are cleared without incurring customs duties or taxes. I believe that JP is 10,000 JPY, ($92.00), the US is $800 (87324 JPY) you might have courier use a value lower than the 10,000 JPY, but if you already declared $300 when you shipped it, that might be a problem. 

Another thing to consider if using a lower value is in case of lost or damage, you can only claim on the declared value. Hopefully with the information I've provided you I have pointed you in the right direction. Maybe check with Nippon Express ( I used to work with them 20+ years ago when I was in Chiba) or Kintetsu, Yamato....

Good luck. 

[nikkikautz]

You can offer to split the customs fee with the customer and hopefully ~$35 is better than going through the return.   That's what I would do.

[titipeo]

True, that might be lower alternative, but what if buyer then claims item not as described, or damaged, yikes, another mess. This is one reason I wont sell high value items internationally. 

[clemowbooks]

Undeliverable purchases (which is what a refused shipment is) are not eligible for the Money Back Guarantee.

You don't owe a penny.

[chapeau-noir]

The several times I've returned merchandise to the UK/EU I've needed to note that it is return merchandise.  in order that customs is not levied a second time.  Can you look into this with the courier and see if it is the case?  Is it handled by Japan Post once it enters the country?  (I've done business with Japan numerous times but it's always been through Japan Post).  At any rate, worth looking into how returned merchandise is handled.

[48hrs-clothing]

In my view this is a refused delivery.

Please check with eBay customer services/ return team to read the messages and advise if buyer is able to claim and win ITEM NOT RECEIVED (INR) case.

If answer is no then ask the buyer to open an INR case, upload tracking information and eBay will close the case without issuing a refund to buyer.

That is one problem solved.

If payment was through Manage payments then how buyer paid is not your concern as eBay will fight this.

If payment was via Pay pal then law governing banks distance selling rules require a completed delivery to address shown on order. This does not take into account any other issues that may arise including your buyer refusing delivery and when and if your buyer opens a Pay Pal Charge back claim then in my experience case will be found in his favour and your account will be debited.

You could ask the buyer to accept the delivery and after receiving his item check and make sure that everything is OK and that he will not be returning the item and on receipt of this confirmation as a gesture of goodwill you will pay an amount that you are comfortable with.

If goods are returned to you then there should be no duties payable as package will state return to sender.

[monster-deals]

Well....USA may be different but the buyer refused delivery and opted themselves out of the MBG.

[pjcdn2005]

If the buyer was on .com when they made the purchase and they file an item not received claim on eBay they would lose as you already know.  If they bought the item while on another site and opened an eBay claim, the rules of that particular site would be followed.  However,  If the buyer files an inr on PP or with their credit card, I suspect that they would win as I don’t think they would consider the package as being delivered. 

If you tell the buyer that you will refund them once you receive the package back then they might not open a claim at all.  When you get the item back you could refund them less all shipping costs and fees.