Seller lied about condition of returned item

[ltbriarwood]

I'm posting here in case anyone else has had a similar experience....

I bought a sweater (pre-owned) which was listed as being returnable (free 30 day returns).  When the sweater arrived, it did not fit properly, so I started the return process.  The seller contacted me via Ebay message and said that he would take a 50% restocking fee from the refund amount.  No where in the listing or his seller page did it say anything about restocking fees.  I replied to him as much.  He said too bad.  I posted in this community about it and was told that ebay did away with restocking fees in June 2018.  I emailed as much to the seller and he said, "So?"  I told him that I would open a case if he did not refund the full amount.  He replied he did not care (very nastily at this stage) and then said that the returned sweater had to be returned in perfect condition.  I said of course it would be - I did not wear it after all, just tried it on.  I returned it in a priority box.

Of course you see where this is going.  Once the seller received the item, he refunded only half.  When I opened the case against him, he stated that the sweater was returned in such poor condition that he could not resell it and had to discard it ?!?!??  Ebay then closed the case in his favor. ???

I've been a buyer and seller on Ebay for years.  Yes, I have come up against the odd angry or dishonest individual, but this takes the cake.  Has anyone else had this issue?  I'm completely appalled, as the sweater was never worn, just returned.  The seller very obviously did not want the return (why offer it then?).  But I am also shocked that Ebay closed the case in his favor, with no evidence.  Any suggestions?

[missjen831]

@ltbriarwood Did the seller offer free returns? I am surprised eBay sided with him. You have a couple options—you can try to file an appeal with eBay. If you do this, I would call customer service and have them read his messages to you where he says upfront he’s going to charge you a 50% restocking fee. Or if you paid with PayPal, you SHOULD be able to file a dispute with them to get the rest of the payment refunded. Last option is a credit card chargeback if you paid with one. A chargeback would result in PayPal charging the seller an extra $20.

[ltbriarwood]

Thank you, @missjen831.  You give some good options.  I forgot to mention in my first post that I had called Ebay customer service and let them know what was going on and they said it was absolutely not kosher.  And yes, he did offer free returns.  I paid through Paypal, so I will open a dispute there.  I was just shocked that Ebay closed the case with no evidence.  The Seller provided no photograph or anything.

[southern*sweet*tea]

Bad sellers abusing the free return rules...who'da thunk it?

[orangehound]

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@southern*sweet*tea wrote:

Bad sellers abusing the free return rules...who'da thunk it?

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It is a dumb policy simply because bad sellers have access to it and can abuse it.

eBay needs a trusted seller program that rewards sellers with a proven track record of honesty and good customer service, giving them the authority to judge and handle customer returns.

[missjen831]

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@southern*sweet*tea wrote:

Bad sellers abusing the free return rules...who'da thunk it?

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Right? Doesn’t surprise me one bit that it’s being a used. But what does surprise me is that eBay isn’t siding with the buyer.

[lunalapin1912]

Open a SNAD with Paypal and put in the tracking number of the original return. If that doesn't work, do a chargeback. The seller is a scammer and shouldn't be allowed to get away with his scams.

[mam98031]

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@ltbriarwood wrote:

Thank you, @missjen831.  You give some good options.  I forgot to mention in my first post that I had called Ebay customer service and let them know what was going on and they said it was absolutely not kosher.  And yes, he did offer free returns.  I paid through Paypal, so I will open a dispute there.  I was just shocked that Ebay closed the case with no evidence.  The Seller provided no photograph or anything.

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While I certainly don't agree with what this seller did to you and I certainly would never even consider doing this to one of my customers, Ebay doesn't require evidence in most cases.  Sellers lose cases all the time that they shouldn't and it is because whatever the buyer states in a case is what Ebay goes by no matter how much actual evidence that a seller may have.

You got caught in something more unusual.  Something I consider to be a flaw in how they have the new Free Return policies written.  I am sincerely sorry this happened to you and I hope that Jen's advice works out well for you, as it should.

[lintbrush*]

Sellers who offer free return shipping are allowed to withhold part of the refund for item condition, but not for restocking fees.  Before you go the PayPal route, call eBay and appeal this.  You have his messages.  While I think it's initially closed in his favor as an automatic feature, you should win on appeal.

Also, have the info in front of you.

The answer is in the FAQs:

https://pages.ebay.com/seller-center/seller-updates/2018-spring/simplified-returns.html#m22_tb_a2__6

It's spelled out clearly here:

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/managing-returns-refunds/handle-return-request-seller?id=4115#sect...

Misuse of this feature

This feature is incentive for you to provide buyers with exceptional experiences, such as offering free returns. This feature may not be used to recoup market losses on items returned in the same condition or recoup return shipping and restocking fees. It may only be used to recoup losses when an item is returned in a different condition than the original item. Sellers who misuse this feature may be subject to a range of actions, such as losing access to this feature, or suspension from buying, selling, or using other site features.

 @ltbriarwood Call.  Appeal.