Need help with a return request!!

[danzel1000]

Hello everyone,

So i'm having an issue with a buyer who purchased an item from me a few weeks ago. The sold item is a used mobile phone which was used by me for less than one month and a half, and the moment it was shipped to the buyer  the item was in full working condition, i am 100% sure about this. Buyer received the phone on september 9th and three days later, he left positive feedback that everything was working fine and that he was satisfied with the item. I thought that the sale was completely closed and that the buyer was happy with the item, until two days ago, on september 16th, without even making the smallest attempt to communicate with me first, the buyer suddenly opened a return request saying that the phone is full of problems and that now it's completely broken and won't power on at all. Since it's the first time i get a return request opened, i would like to hear your thoughts on how would you judge this case if you were in my place. I highly doubt that the buyer might have bricked the phone by himself since he did not provide evidence at all on the request, he's just using plain words to back-up his claim. What do you suggest me to do? Buyer has 100% positive feedback though, more than 230 feedbacks

[dtexley3]

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@danzel1000 wrote:

Hello everyone,

So i'm having an issue with a buyer who purchased an item from me a few weeks ago. The sold item is a used mobile phone which was used by me for less than one month and a half, and the moment it was shipped to the buyer  the item was in full working condition, i am 100% sure about this. Buyer received the phone on september 9th and three days later, he left positive feedback that everything was working fine and that he was satisfied with the item. I thought that the sale was completely closed and that the buyer was happy with the item, until two days ago, on september 16th, without even making the smallest attempt to communicate with me first, the buyer suddenly opened a return request saying that the phone is full of problems and that now it's completely broken and won't power on at all. Since it's the first time i get a return request opened, i would like to hear your thoughts on how would you judge this case if you were in my place. I highly doubt that the buyer might have bricked the phone by himself since he did not provide evidence at all on the request, he's just using plain words to back-up his claim. What do you suggest me to do? Buyer has 100% positive feedback though, more than 230 feedbacks

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So, bad news first, you are going to have to accept the return and refund the buyer when the package arrives.  The buyer is not required to provide any evidence, if they open a return request you are expected to honor it.

When the phone comes back (or is broken), test it out and if it's still in working order, relist it.

IF it's not the same phone, come back to this thread and we'll walk you through your next steps.

[danzel1000]

But this is not fair! Why should buyers be favorized like this? How can eBay take a 'fair' decision based only on plain words? Buyer might have broken the item by himself and he won't accept this, what do i need a broken item for now? As if this wasn't enough, i have to pay return shipping fees aswell!!! This platform is a total joke!!! 

[bonjourami]

If you bought an item and it was unusable after a few weeks, would you hold the seller responsible and try to get your money back? I would...

[no_zero369]

OK, I see your frustration with things.  I get it been there!

But whenever I hit one of these situations I have to force myself to take off my seller's cap and put on my buyer's cap so I can try to see things from the buyer's perspective.  Then I try to think, IF I were on the other end of this transaction what would I want the seller to do.  Then I try to do that!

So there is that to think of.  Also there are those pesky things around here called eBay policies.  Under the eBay Money Back Guarantee (MBG), when an item is Not As Described (NAD), then the seller is required to refund the buyer.  It seems unfair, but it is what one would expect if they were in the buyer's shoes.

Sad thing about eBay is they encourage people to sell their used phones and electronics.  Problem is that these are areas where less than reputable people await new or inexperienced sellers.  Problem is that retail selling is not easy and there are many pitfalls that a casual seller might no be aware of but eBay makes it sound easy!

Look, a return means you are going to lose money, how you handle it determines how much money you lose.  So in many regards, your choice as to how much you lose.

So you can do a few things here. First, do nothing or fight against the MBG at which point the buyer will have 'Ebay step in" and resolve the case.  eBay will take the funds from your account AND you will get an unresolved case defect on your account.  Buyer will not be required to return the item to you.

Second, you may wish to just refund the seller.  Do this if the  return shipping costs, initial shipping costs and eBay fees exceed the item's value.  Also might consider costs to repair/resell if possible?

Third, you can accept the return, issue a label to the buyer and wait for the item to be returned and then issue a full refund.  There is a SLIM chance the buyer will miss the 5-day deadline to ship the item and then you can get the case closed in your favor.   Also, if they return a different phone (assuming you have the serial number of the phone you sent?)  You can take steps regarding fraud and that can help you with an appeal with eBay.  (I won't go into all of that, cross that bridge when/IF it happens)  But getting the item back, perhaps one can resell it and recoup the sunk costs and break even over all? 

Also recognize that a buyer has 180 days to file a return with PayPal.  So often avoiding that could be considered?

So there are options you have in handling this situation.  Now is the time to try to set aside the indignation of the situation and make a good business decision!

Hope there is something in there that can help with the frustration and making the best decision for your situation?  Good luck!

[dtexley3]

Not trying to sound cold or unsympathetic, but you agreed to follow eBay rules and policies when you joined.  Do I like the way returns are currently handled? No, but I either learn to deal with them or go elsewhere to sell.  eBay is far more concerned with having as many buyers as possible, honest or not, so that eBay continues to make money.  They don't really care about the individual seller.