Understanding why sellers have a no return policy

[debbyk1952]

I've been on eBay for a number of years.  I sell on and off. Mostly low priced items. I enjoy doing it plus the little bit of extra money helps stretch social security payments.

Up until now I always wondered why so many sellers had "No Returns" as a policy. I always assumed eBay would step in anyway and force returns in most cases. 

Now within the last week I've come to understand why the no returns. 

First I had a woman ask to return shoes she said didn't fit. I hadn't even finished reading her message when I had a message come in from eBay telling me they had approved her return. 

I was going to accept the return anyway. I just expected the buyer to pay return shipping. The notice I got did not have anything on it except the price of the item. No mention of shipping. 

The label they sent her for the return said "No postage necessary"  I assume eBay picked up the shipping charges? I have no idea. Just got them back yesterday evening and am getting ready to refund.

I had someone here on the boards say that if you accept returns you pretty much have to accept for any reason.

I had some listings that were current at the time but as I did some new ones I decided to put "No returns"

I'm being extra extra careful about my item descriptions.

On Friday, I had a buyer start sending me messages late at night.  The first one said. "I'm interested in these" Immediately another came in that said "And these, the one on the left. "

I had some Christmas village miniatures listed with 2 packs in each listing. Each pack had 3 minis. They were all Buy It Now or Best Offer. 

I explained to her that she could try the best off thing if she wanted. She must have really low balled cause she then said it was declined and wouldn't let her bid again. She then did a buy it now on one listing and went ahead and paid. 

Then she wants me to hold off on shipping the item until the rest expire. I told her the next morning that I would have to go ahead and ship and anything else she purchased would be an entirely different transaction. I could not simply stick other items together and ship on the original label and tracking number. I also told her there was no guarantee the items wouldn't be purchased by someone else before they expired. 

I tried to explain that in order for her to purchase once the listings ended I would have to re-list just for her and it would not be worth the fees for me to do so. 

Once again I suggested she try the best offer option. I even told her if she purchased at least 3 more listings I would offer her free shipping. 

She immediately did the Buy it now on all three and sent me an invoice request. She was even asking me if I could reduce the price of the items on the invoice. I told her I could not do that. I said I can adjust the shipping however to free. This saved her $11.25. She agreed to whatever I could do for the "best deal"

I packaged and shipped that same day.

She received them yesterday and started back with the messages. 

Why did she get so many Santas? I said because you paid full price for all three listings and they were in the packs. 

She then said "Oh, that's why I didn't get a good deal" By now I'm trying to remain calm! 

I told her I thought I had given her good customer service by giving the free shipping. She agreed but said I didn't send her only the ones she wanted. (I'm still trying to remain calm!!")

She said if I had any questions about what she wanted I should have asked. 

I finally figured the best thing I could do is end the messages from my end. 

So just now I get 3 messages from eBay where they approved a return request from her on all 3 purchases. Her reason was. "Sent wrong items"

Now, how do you send the wrong items when someone does a Buy It Now. She received everything pictured.

So far I haven't heard about return shipping fees. If I get something saying I'm expected to pay it how do I appeal? 

None of this is big money here! The listings were only $5.75 each. She bid, paid and I shipped. The whole thing should have been over. Now I wish I wouldn't have bent over backwards to help her with the original shipping! 

Yes, I know I'm ranting but it's frustrating.

Just wonder how the No Returns thing is going to pan out. Probably no better if someone lies!

[sam9876]

No good deed goes unpunished.

[debbyk1952]

Thanks! Sorry for all the ranting. In 10 years I've never had a return before! Lol

[tori_729]

I'm pretty sure Ebay only automatically approves it if return shipping is not paid by you. I'm not honestly sure who it's paid by though. I didn't think it would be automatically approved for "sent wrong items." Mine gets approved for the non-SNAD things like "doesn't fit", "changed mind" etc. But not the SNADs. You should be able to negotiate that return. You may have some rules set up in your preferences under Return Preferences to automatically accept certain returns. You may want to check that.

In every sale, I include a note that mentions why I sell on eBay (to support my family while I stay home) and it says if there are any problems to contact me directly so we can work it out. Of course, they can choose not to do that and still go through eBay but I do think it helps personalize it a bit. You could mention that you love to sell and it helps you out as a retiree or something like that. Just a thought.

This is why don't do free shipping on categories where there's a higher return rate (specific items/parts etc.) because if they return, I'm expected to refund them the whole amount and I'm out shipping. I'm so sorry this happened to you.

[city*satins]

Addressing only the first part of your post, when your listings say that you accept returns, eBay now automatically accepts any return request that a no-fault reason (like wrong size, doesn't fit/just don't like it/changed mind/etc)   It doesn't wait the seller's approval since the seller's return policy allows returns for any reason.

The label that the buyer prints off eBay is charged to the buyer, not the seller.  All the return labels look like what you describe.  

When you go to issue the refund (this being your first one, I'm going to take the chance of telling you what you already know)

1. be sure to issue the refund in the Return Request screen, don't go to Paypal to do it or go to any other screen like ORDER DETAILS
2. When you go to issue the refund, eBay will show the s/h paid by the buyer (if any) as a separate line with a little radio button on the left. The default is that the box is blank. That means that when you hit REFUND, only the purchase price will be refunded.   If you want to also refund s/h originally paid to you by the buyer, you would X that box.   (I never do)
3. Be sure to do it within 2 business days of eBay notifying you of the return.  The deadline is quite tight and you want to be sure you meet it. FYI - if you don't have sufficient funds in your Paypal account to pay the entire refund, you need to put funds in there to cover it because otherwise the refund will go through as an e-check and if the e-check doesn't clear within that deadline, eBay considers the refund as LATE.

[city*satins]

As for your second issue

 I told her the next morning that I would have to go ahead and ship and anything else she purchased would be an entirely different transaction. I could not simply stick other items together and ship on the original label and tracking number. 

Actually that's not correct. You can manually enter the tracking number on any items that you're shipping together, even if they're not paid for together.

Frankly though,  I think you waited way too long to recognize that you were dealing with a potential buyer who was going to be a problem.  I would have put her on my Blocked Bidder List as soon as I got messages talking about specific things she was interested in for items with more than one piece and started in about 'the one on the left'.   That was a huge red flag, in my opinion and I would have blocked her before I'd finished reading the second message she sent.

[city*satins]

OK - one more thing....sorry.  Still working on my first coffee of the day.

If the return for "Sent wrong items"  was text that the buyer wrote vs the 'TYPE' of return, the return might actually not be a SNAD one.  If it were a SNAD return, it normally wouldn't be automatically approved because eBay would offer you the option of  approving the return/offer partial refund/issue refund

Since instead the return was automatically approved, I suspect that those 3 return requests are no SNAD type in which case the buyer has to pay for return postage.

[debbyk1952]

Personally I think the woman's either on something or needs to be on something. I went back and counted her messages. 19 total. 

She was trying to get me to sell them to her outside of eBay once the listings expired. 

She's gonna flip if she has to pay return postage and so far my messages say for me the amount of the items only. 

I like to be considerate to buyers and help them get things they want. Beings I just do it to help us a bit and am not a large store I try to communicate as soon as they message me. With her it was too much communication!!

I can't see how someone thinks they got the wrong things when they were all buy it now. 

Hopefully changing to No Returns won't be a nightmare. 

That's when people who know what they're doing try to take advantage of the SNAD thing.

Oh, well....I guess that's what happens when you choose to sell on here. 

Our oldest son would say....Suck it up buttercup! And he's an officer in the Air Force   Lol

[debbyk1952]

Yes, I issued the refund for the shoes this morning and did it exactly as you suggested. 

No problem. I can always re-list them.

Although refunding did hurt money wise.

I have a feeling when I get the Christmas village minis back issuing her a refund is not going to be straight forward. (Just a gut feeling.)

I also feel that she has probably opened them. 

I hate to start feeling that I have to be kind of standoffish and impersonal with potential buyers because of a bad experience with one. 

Will it be a problem adding her to my BBL now or do I have to wait until the return is complete?

[debbyk1952]

I meant to add that I also have a 2 day shipping policy and had I waited to ship out the first item it would have run beyond the time limit.

[city*satins]

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@debbyk1952 wrote:

I meant to add that I also have a 2 day shipping policy and had I waited to ship out the first item it would have run beyond the time limit.

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Ah!  OK - yes, if the first sales handling time elapses before the subsequent sales, that would mean not shipping everything together.

[city*satins]

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@debbyk1952 wrote:

I hate to start feeling that I have to be kind of standoffish and impersonal with potential buyers because of a bad experience with one. 

Will it be a problem adding her to my BBL now or do I have to wait until the return is complete?

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I'm not suggesting taking a standoff approach to all potential buyers.  I'm suggesting that you recognize the red flags and act on them quickly when you see them.   To me, that buyer's messages would have signalled DANGER WILL ROBINSON!   right away and I'd have blocked her.

You can definitely add her to your BBL now - you don't have to wait for the return to be completed. It won't affect the process or prevent either of you from communicating.

[debbyk1952]

No, I didn't mean you suggested that at all. 

I'm great at reading people in person just not through messages. Once I started getting bad vibes I felt like it was too late. 

Then when she suddenly did 3 buy it now's and suggested I give her whatever deal I wanted or I thought was best I thought maybe she wasn't so bad. Hence the free shipping! 

I guess things like this just makes us wiser. We'll always run into someone just like her from time to time.

I just know this won't be a done deal with her if she has to pay return shipping.

We'll see

You have a fine afternoon!

[city*satins]

You have a fine afternoon!

Thanks!  You too.

One of these days I'm going to write a book containing all the crazy messages I've received from buyers and potential buyers.

Some favorite examples:

• Can I play the cello in that dress?
• Is that blue a robin's egg blue or a cyan or would you even call it eggshell at all? It looks kind of aqua. By the way I love your seller ID it makes me think of the smooth feel of silk against my skin.
• I loved this movie when I was a kid and would like to watch it again but just once. Could I buy it and return it for 50% refund?
• I wonder if I could trade that dress for a weekend in my cabin by the lake?
• Please wrap these panties in a plain packaging. When will it arrive, it's a surprise for my wife.....later......the leg openings are too tight on my muscular thighs. Can I return them?  Also, they arrived a day early and my wife intercepted the package and is really angry at me. Thanks for nothing!
• Is that red burgundy? or more like brick?  Or cinnamon?  or Claret?
• Why won't you ship my Dilbert doll and 3 books by media mail?  You are a liar and ripping me off!
• These bright orange earrings r way to brite. No I don't want return them! You are horrible seller now liv me lone! You deserved your neg! 
• I can't pay for this. My grandmother was mugged.

[fern*wood]

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@debbyk1952 wrote:

I can't see how someone thinks they got the wrong things when they were all buy it now. 

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I've read this twice now in your posts and still can't figure out what that means.  What does the type of listing have to do with whether they received the correct item?

The reason they used in the return will determine who pays for the shipping.  If you are charged, it will show up in your seller account under seller activity after they use the label.

Also, if you have a return policy you must accept the return for any reason.