mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999
@outsider626 wrote:So I sold an item on July 22. On July 27 buyer requested a return. Right away I approved it and provided a return label through ebay system. Now it's August 24th and I still haven't received my item back. Funds are frozen on PayPal. Few days ago I sent a message to buyer asking if he is returning or keeping the item but did not receive a response. Now when I click on "See return details" I see this "If you prefer, you can refund the buyer now. If there's a problem, you can ask us to step in and help on Aug 22, 2018. So should I ask eBay to step in or wait longer? Thanks!
I don't recommend just asking Ebay to step in. Then it is just up in the air if a human will review it or a bot. It could get closed in a way that it shouldn't.
Once you approve a return and provide the label, the buyer has 5 business days in which to get that item in the hands of the carrier. Clearly your buyer has not done that.
What I do when something like this happens to me is that on day 6 or 7 [business days] after the buyer has had the label and it doesn't appear they have used it. I call Ebay and while I'm on the phone with them we escalate the claim and get it closed properly in my favor. It does take a few minutes, but it is time well spent.
Once it is closed in your favor your feedback is protected as well.
Please do come back and let us know what you decide to do and how it was resolved.
@outsider626 wrote:If it gets closed in my favor can he still leave neagtive feedback? I'm worried mostly about that.
If he does, you can get Ebay to remove it. It is in your best interest to get it closed ASAP.
Thank you very much to everyone for adivce. I decided to take a risk and asked eBay to step in without actually calling them. I opened a case at 10:54 and at 11:11 it was closed in my favor. I received this message: This case was found in your favor. The buyer did not return the item to you within the required timeframe. This case will not affect your seller performance. Any feedback left for this transaction will be removed. Any remaining funds from this PayPal transaction are available. 
@outsider626 wrote:Thank you very much to everyone for adivce. I decided to take a risk and asked eBay to step in without actually calling them. I opened a case at 10:54 and at 11:11 it was closed in my favor. I received this message: This case was found in your favor. The buyer did not return the item to you within the required timeframe. This case will not affect your seller performance. Any feedback left for this transaction will be removed. Any remaining funds from this PayPal transaction are available.
You got VERY lucky. Don't count on that always happening. It is only a little of your time to call. I'm glad however that this one worked out for you.
