fraud return solutions ?

[time-to-go-hiking]

I am trying to understand further how I can not lose my shirt selling on eBay.

if I sell something electronic that works when I ship it and then the buyer says he can't get it to work wants to return it.

for example if I have to pay shipping both ways ($20 each way) which can almost equal the value of the item ($50)

and the item tests good when I get it back

how can I afford to sell on eBay ?

what rights do I have if the buyer just made up that it didn't work instead of saying he didn't like the product.

I can't afford to  lose $40 shipping both ways on a $50 item too often.

so what can I do if I get things back that work? from what I have read it sounds like I up a creek in the end ? did I miss a solution to this ?

[pburn]

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@time-to-go-hikingwrote:

from what I have read it sounds like I up a creek in the end ? 

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That sounds about right.

[rolenboy01]

The only solution I can offer is don't sell heavy electronics, that is probably not what you want to hear but I had to learn it the hard way and really cut back on my selling of such items for this very reason, the problem is scammers know they have you over a barrel on two counts, it's easy to claim electronics don't work and if they are heavy they know they have a better chance of scamming a partial because most people aren't gonna wanna lose 40 to 50 dollars in return shipping due to their false snad's, even legitimate complains will cost you dearly also gotta factor in idiots who quite simply have no business buying items they don't know how to operate but do anyway.

[time-to-go-hiking]

sounds like a very unfortunate truth to deal with....

[time-to-go-hiking]

if I were to sell a heavy stereo receiver and sold it local pickup or third party packing service and the buyer directly paid some local pakmail store to ship and then the buyer claimed it didn't work would I be responsible for shipping either way since I did local pickup or third party shipper ?

I am not trying to cheat anyone but I don't want to be cheated either.

[rolenboy01]

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@time-to-go-hikingwrote:

if I were to sell a heavy stereo receiver and sold it local pickup or third party packing service and the buyer directly paid some local pakmail store to ship and then the buyer claimed it didn't work would I be responsible for shipping either way since I did local pickup or third party shipper ?

I am not trying to cheat anyone but I don't want to be cheated either.

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If you sell local pick up you should only accept CASH no exceptions.

[kensgiftshop]

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@time-to-go-hikingwrote:

so what can I do if I get things back that work?

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Be glad you got it back and not a box of rocks.

Relist it.

[time-to-go-hiking]

thanks for the suggestion

I had not considered that

[jklfindings]

Your best option is to not sell heavy items.  Or more specifically don't sell items with purchase prices close to your shipping costs.  You would run into exactly the same issue selling $5 items that are 4 ounces and cost $2.66 to ship.  The real issue is not the shipping, but your profit margin and costs being to high for that item.  If you could sell that same heavy reciever for $500 instead of $50, that return shipping cost wouldn't hurt as much.