I recently had a small influx of returns initiated in the past couple weeks. This happens every once in a while (4-5 returns within a short period and then nothing for months). However, I am concerned with these returns. I have taken the hit on a few returns before simply to keep my seller rating high. However, it is getting a bit out of hand in my opinion.
For example, one buyer purchased a new door knob and claimed it "didn't fit" so I accepted the return as a courtesy. I did not offer a partial refund to begin with because I had not seen the item in person yet (to see if all pieces were there, any damage, etc.). Now that I have the item back, I refunded the buyer most of the original purchase price, subtracting my original shipping costs (I just now read it is against the rules to do that). I did this to be kind to the buyer and not take off a larger chunk of the purchase price for the item being used. But, eBay does not give me any options to offer a partial refund after I received the item? I used Paypal to give a partial refund, but eBay is still requesting the full amount be sent to the buyer.
Any way to get around this or do I need to call?
Then I have a few more returns where the buyers are claiming the products are defective. Two of the items were well tested and one was brand new/still sealed. One product (a Nintendo Wii), I know the disc reader can randomly go out and so I've worked with the buyer and offered a replacement- but still have to test the original to make sure it's actually defective).
The other two items should not have any issues. One buyer has been giving me a few problems (they bought a video game, but did not have the appropriate equipment to actually play said video game, so I sold them the appropriate controller much cheaper than any other seller. Problem is, their kids are the ones claiming there's an issue, but it was tested multiple times. There's no way for me to receive the item before deciding fully on what to do for the buyer.
Finally, the last item was sealed and is apparently having a connection issue with an application for a phone. This is 100% a manufacturer issue and I would like to not accept the return due to the item being opened/used. I would be willing to offer a partial refund once the item is received and I can confirm all contents are there and downloadable content is still available.
Ebay simply does not allow for any of this. I'm being forced to give buyers full refunds once the item is received, regardless of condition when received. I was able to make deductions on a couple items in the past, but I did not do so at the time. I don't understand why this option is seemingly unavailable.
This is more of an endless rant I suppose. I like to help my customers as much as possible, but I don't like being ripped off without any sort of seller protection.
