eBay

sean0008pzs · ‎10-09-2019

Earlier this Summer I sold an item to a buyer. A couple of weeks after the buyer received it, he requested a return. I was on vacation and could not respond for a week. During that time eBay refunded the buyer the amount and instructed the buyer to ship the item back to me. The item never arrived. I found out that it was shipped to my old address (I had updated my shipping address with eBay, but not my "Return" address).

I tried to contact the buyer multiple times to get a tracking number so I could file a claim, but never got a response. I called eBay and they gave me the tracking number, but said USPS sent the item back to the buyer. I still get no response from the buyer.

I opened a claim with USPS. Their database says the item was not insured, and they are going to check to confirm that it was sent back to the buyer. I seriously doubt that USPS is going to do anything since they will say this is a dispute between me and the buyer... and because the package was never lost. It was simply returned to sender.

What options do I have when the buyer will not return my messages after many weeks of multiple communication attempts? I have refunded the money (almost $200) and the buyer still has my item (according to the USPS). From where I'm sitting it looks like I just have to chalk it up to a loss. I suppose I could file a complaint with eBay... they should not allow this buyer to continue buying or selling if they can't return messages.

monster-deals · ‎10-09-2019

@sean0008pzs wrote:

What options do I have

You have no options. You just learned an expensive lesson.

View Best Answer in original post

lamber9347 · ‎10-09-2019

I'm so sorry this happened to you. I'm also sorry because you're not going to like my response as this isn't what you want to hear at the moment.

No one can be forced to respond to messages by eBay, not the buyer or the seller. There is no reason for eBay to restrict anything on this buyer's account. The buyer opened a return, which they are allowed to do. The time went by with no response from the seller. The buyer was refunded and instructed by eBay to return the item-- which they did! That's the part you are missing. The buyer did exactly what they were supposed to do.

The issues seems to be that you forgot to change your return address- not the buyer's fault, and not eBay's fault. It's very unfortunate for you that this error occurred but it was your error. To top that off all this occurred while you were on vacation and away from your messages so you couldn't respond or correct the return address before it was shipped out. That's life and timing really.

The buyer is not at fault and the buyer did nothing wrong in this scenario. You are angry to have lost out on this amount, and I don't blame you for a second, but your anger is misplaced. Again I'm sorry to post this reply as this isn't what you want to hear. Best of luck to you....

sean0008pzs · ‎10-09-2019

Thanks for the response. Yes...I understand this all comes back to being my fault in the first place. I accept that it was my mistake for not having my information up to date. eBay's interface could have made that more clear or obvious...and maybe it does today. This change was 12 years ago and I have bought and sold many items on eBay since then. It just never came up because this was the first return I had to process in the last 12 years. My profile was completely up to date as far as I knew, but I did not know that return address is a field separate from profile address and primary shipping address. Still, I'm willing to accept that I should have read the manual more closely.

I'm also willing to accept that eBay processed a return on my behalf while I was out of communication. However, I would have hoped that they would provide more than 5 business days for response. The buyer had the item for two weeks, and I responded within one week of the return request. I don't make the rules... so again I was not upset about the refund. I would have offered the refund anyway since I'd rather avoid disputes.

As someone who has bought many things on eBay, I do think the buyer still has responsibility in this situation. If I was given a refund, shipped the item, and had the item shipped back to me, I would contact eBay to find out if they have the correct address information. I wouldn't simply ignore the seller's messages for week after week. So yeah... I am angry at the buyer, but I'm not going to lose sleep over a $200 transaction. I'm more concerned about the lack of response. I would never want to sell to this person again, and I don't think others would want to either. I will report him to eBay since I have given ample time for a reply, but I don't expect that action to have any real consequences.

I did not think there would be anything else I could do to recover my item, and I don't really expect eBay to do anything other than try to contact the buyer on my behalf (or maybe they won't)... but I figured it was worth asking since I'm sure others have run into similar issues. Unless someone has other suggestions, I will wait for USPS to confirm the location of the item (that it is back with the buyer) and I will report the buyer to eBay and just be glad that the same thing didn't happen for one of the much more expensive items I recently sold.

frodobagginskennedy · ‎10-09-2019

I will report the buyer to eBay and just be glad that the same thing didn't happen for one of the much more expensive items I recently sold.

What are you going to report the buyer for? They have done nothing reportable!

This quest stands on the edge of a blade...stray but a little and you shall fail to the ruin of us all.
"The Lady Galadriel"

lamber9347 · ‎10-09-2019

@sean0008pzs wrote:

As someone who has bought many things on eBay, I do think the buyer still has responsibility in this situation. If I was given a refund, shipped the item, and had the item shipped back to me, I would contact eBay to find out if they have the correct address information. I wouldn't simply ignore the seller's messages for week after week. So yeah... I am angry at the buyer, but I'm not going to lose sleep over a $200 transaction. I'm more concerned about the lack of response. I would never want to sell to this person again, and I don't think others would want to either. I will report him to eBay since I have given ample time for a reply, but I don't expect that action to have any real consequences.

Thank you for your well worded reply. This paragraph just goes to show that you are a person of integrity. I also would have answered your messages and tried to get the item back to you a second time, as long as you were willing to pay the additional shipping charges of course. You just need to move on and it seems you are still hanging on by continuing to want to report the buyer- but they didn't do anything wrong. Really, they didn't.

It's like they found your wallet with $200 cash. They turned it in to your home but no one was there to take it. They turned it into the police, who told them to keep the money but mail the wallet back. They mailed it back only to have it return back to them. Finally they got fed up because they felt they had done enough to try to get it back to you. Now you want to fault them because they are tired of the messages?

Things happen to us which we use as a learning technique to avoid a recurrence. Use this as a lesson and just move along. Now your address is changed everywhere and perhaps on your next vacation you should think about checking your messages more often. I travel quite a bit myself and I do check messages every 3 days because life goes on. You never know when something very important has occurred and an important message is sitting there waiting for you to read it.

Best of luck to you....

monster-deals · ‎10-09-2019

@sean0008pzs wrote:

What options do I have

You have no options. You just learned an expensive lesson.

sean0008pzs · ‎10-09-2019

You don't think there is anything wrong with the buyer keeping the refund and the item and refusing to respond to my messages? Or are you saying that, dishonest as that may be, it does not violate any eBay rules of conduct since this is all post-eBay transaction?

I might agree with the latter (definitely not the former), which is why I don't expect eBay to do anything. Still, I would at least want the incident recorded on the buyer's account in case other sellers have issues with the same buyer in the future. If a buyer did this to you, I would not want to deal with that person as a buyer or a seller. Maybe I just have unrealistically high standards for conduct. Honestly I'm more disappointed in the buyer's lack of integrity than I am about the $200.

frodobagginskennedy · ‎10-09-2019

@sean0008pzs wrote:
You don't think there is anything wrong with the buyer keeping the refund and the item and refusing to respond to my messages? Or are you saying that, dishonest as that may be, it does not violate any eBay rules of conduct since this is all post-eBay transaction?

I might agree with the latter (definitely not the former), which is why I don't expect eBay to do anything. Still, I would at least want the incident recorded on the buyer's account in case other sellers have issues with the same buyer in the future. If a buyer did this to you, I would not want to deal with that person as a buyer or a seller. Maybe I just have unrealistically high standards for conduct. Honestly I'm more disappointed in the buyer's lack of integrity than I am about the $200.

As a person with integrity of course I think it is just wrong of the "buyer" to keep the item and the refund. However as far as e bay is concerned the buyer has not done anything wrong. They followed all the rules to the letter. If it were not for you failing to change your return address all would be OK.

The buyer nay feel they have been put out enough with a) getting an item not correct (in their eyes) b) having to file a claim c) packing the item d) trekking to the PO e) waiting to get their money back.

When all is said and done they have done no wrong per e bay.

This quest stands on the edge of a blade...stray but a little and you shall fail to the ruin of us all.
"The Lady Galadriel"

ste-9405 · ‎10-09-2019

@myboardid wrote:
You can create a label, send it to a pdf file, and 1. email it, or you can print it to paper and 2. snail mail it.

You can use 3. PayPal shipping or 4. USPS to create the label.

It is likely the buyer will not return the item since he already has his refund, but it is possible he might.

monster-deals · ‎10-10-2019

@sean0008pzs wrote:
You don't think there is anything wrong with the buyer keeping the refund and the item and refusing to respond to my messages?

None whatsoever. Rules & procedures are there to protect you, I suggest you read up on them so you don't fall prey to something like this again.

no_zero369 · ‎10-11-2019

I am sorry. I am reading this thread and just shaking my head.

You have been selling for 12 years and this is your first refund?

YOU HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY LUCKY!!! Run out & buy a lottery ticket!

But the responses here are what we see from new sellers dealing with their first refund: shock, anger & disappointment as the realities of eBay policies smack them in the face. Selling on eBay is a business, period. As such one needs to do the things successful business people do, one of which is stay up on the "rules" governing selling here. There are updates to policies twice a year and as a seller you should read those and jump in and ask questions when the new policies come out. So you fell in a trap that many succumb to - ignorance of the law is no excuse.

Now as far as your continued pounding the table on what the buyer should have or should be doing.... You can not legislate morality. Period. But if you had run me around like you did with NO RESPONSE, getting the item back, and endless emails, I too might be inclined to ignore you and let this experience be tuition paid in the school of eBay selling. So continued pounding on what the buyer should do, just looks like displaced anger.

Hey, just a view, as flawed as it may be from this seat. fwiw.