eBay

trigirl1234 · ‎12-23-2018

Hello,
A seller has requested a return for an item she says it "not what she expected." It's a silver necklace she says has a small tarnish spot on it. I do not offer returns, but she seems geniune...and young...so I accepted the return request (I know there is nothing wrong with the necklace...tarnish is typical with silver...so I'll have no issue selling again). She sent the necklace back to me at her expense.

So...can I deduct the ebay commission/fees that I paid on the sale (plus the PayPal fee I was charged)? I also paid the shipping cost at the sale, so can I deduct that from the return amount as well? Thanks for anyone's advise on this. I'm not a very fequent seller, and this is the first time I've done a return. The buyer even asked for a lower price on the sale, which I agreed to. And now that she's changed her mind, it's really annoying...

thanks!

dtexley3 · ‎12-23-2018

@trigirl1234 wrote:
Hello,
A seller has requested a return for an item she says it "not what she expected." It's a silver necklace she says has a small tarnish spot on it. I do not offer returns, but she seems geniune...and young...so I accepted the return request (I know there is nothing wrong with the necklace...tarnish is typical with silver...so I'll have no issue selling again). She sent the necklace back to me at her expense.
So...can I deduct the ebay commission/fees that I paid on the sale (plus the PayPal fee I was charged)? I also paid the shipping cost at the sale, so can I deduct that from the return amount as well? Thanks for anyone's advise on this. I'm not a very fequent seller, and this is the first time I've done a return. The buyer even asked for a lower price on the sale, which I agreed to. And now that she's changed her mind, it's really annoying...

thanks!

No you can't deduct the fees, but once you issue the refund you will get your fees back, less the $0.30 paypal transaction fee.

Member of the Grumpy Old Man crew

lintbrush* · ‎12-23-2018

Did the buyer open a return through the eBay platform? and you accepted the return?

If so, then when you go to refund through the return platform, you will be automatically credited your selling fees. If it was considered a remorse return, and you charged a seperate fee for shipping, you will be able to issue a return for the item price alone.

If the buyer chose a not as described return, you may not deduct original shipping.

If it was a free shipping item, you may not deduct the cost of shipping (as there was no shipping expense) regardless of the reason.

If the buyer hasn't opened a return but simply sent it back, they still need to do that. Issuing a refund outside of the return platform can result in a defect.

@trigirl1234

trigirl1234 · ‎12-23-2018

Thanks for the quick response! The buyer's reason on the "reason for return" is "just didn't like it." Not sure if that was an option that Ebay gave, or if the buyer simply wrote that in as the reason.

I did sell it as free shipping, but I did have a shipping expense of $6.74 because I shipped it with insurance. The buyer did send the item back to me, after submmitting a return request thru Ebay. But it appears the buyer didn't mail it back to me thru Ebay, because Ebay showing that the item has not shipped.

If I issue a refund to the buyer for the full price, I'm out the $6.74 I paid for the shipping (disregarding the fact that the buyer paid to ship it back to me....I figure it's not fair for me to loose my shipping cost due to the buyer changing their mind).

The only option I can see to refund the buyer only allows for the full amount. I don't see how I can refund a partial amount.

Had I of known I would be out any amount of money, I would NOT have accepted the return, since I clearly state no returns and there is nothing wrong with the item...

sam9876 · ‎12-23-2018

I wouldn't do anything.

dbmm-media · ‎12-23-2018

fyi: on ebay, no returns does not mean no refunds

lintbrush* · ‎12-23-2018

As far as eBay is concerned, your didn't charge for shipping and therefore you cannot deduct it from the refund. Yes we know that Free Shipping really means the shipping price is rolled into the item price, but that's now how it works here.

Be happy you got it back and your buyer was honest in their return.

If you don't do a full refund, you don't get your selling fees credited back.

Polish it up nicely to get rid of the spot, tack $10 extra to the price and relist it.

@trigirl1234

juststuffisell · ‎12-23-2018

If you have the item back, you need to issue a full refund. Unfortunately, you can't deduct the cost of shipping on the item. After you issue the refund, you should receive your fee credits - check you account to make sure, though I have never not received them back from eBay on returns done through the return system.

Kind of how it goes. Personally, given the gripe was tarnish, would block the buyer....just not a legitimate reason IMHO for a return. Can't win sometimes with sterling bits - you polish them, they complain, you send them seasoned, they complain... Kind of how it goes. I like to not in my listings the tarnish and unpolished aspect so buyers know I did not polish the bit which has stopped the issue that you have with this bit.

Cheers