Very strange buyer causing problems

bap98189

This is a little long, but I'm new to selling on Ebay so could do with a little advice. I started selling some products on Ebay. They are spray paints for use on fabrics, which I started listing on Ebay about 3 weeks ago.

Everything has been going well, until last week. I received a question from a lady asking if the sprays would work on plastic. I sent a reply saying no, they are not designed for plastic, they are meant for use on fabrics such as cotton etc. It's all clearly stated in the auctions, but we get some odd questions, so I thought nothing of it. The next day, she ordered one. I didn't twig that it was the person who asked a question the day before.

Anyway, she received it, and then sent me an Email complaining that it wouldn't stick to the plastic panels in her car door and she wants her money back. I should have probably just given her a refund to make the problem go away, but because she is using it for a purpose it is not designed for, after specifically being told it was not suitable, I only offered a refund on the price of the spray as a gesture of goodwill, but to no avail. Next thing I know, I have a negative feedback. It's the only negative, but as I have only about 30 recent feedback in total, this doesn't look good.

Then I receive an Email from Paypal saying she has filed a dispute, not for a faulty product, but for unauthorised use of her Paypal account. So I've just spent about 2 hours discovering the joys of Paypal's dispute handling service. It was sent to her confirmed Paypal address, but as the sprays cost less than a fiver, I don't send them recorded, so it looks as though she will win the dispute and get her money back as I have no proof of delivery. The fact she has ackowledged she has received the product, and even left neg feedback to that effect on Ebay seems irrelevant to Paypal so I assume they will give her the money back.

And just now, I discover, she has bought another one from Ebay. Is there any way I can cancel this sale without giving her the opportunity to leave further negative feedback. I can easily refund the money via Paypal, but I expect she will then leave further negative feedback and I would like to avoid that if possible.

I shoul add, I have no idea what this woman's motives are and I really don't care about the Ebay fees at this point, I just want to ensure she can't leave me more negative feedback.

Sparky09

Welcome to the dark side of ebay! Unfortunately these occasions will arise but don't be downheartened, I sold 3000 items on ebay over a 2 year period and only had 6/7 problems over that time, you've just been unlucky in experiencing one so early but yes, your feedback score will be badly affected.

Why she would purchase another item while filing a claim is a ludicrous, but I still think your best bet is to refund her for the previous item, and any new payment she has made citing any reason such as out of stock. Block her on ebay immediately so she can not purchase any more items. She will not be aware you have done this unless she tries to purchase more. After the refund, email her appealing to her good nature saying there has clearly been a misunderstanding, you have refunded the money, and could she remove the negative feedback. This can be done by filling out a mutual withdrawal form via ebay, which she will just need to confirm.

If she ignores this, email Ebay as many times as it takes asking for the feedback to be removed, with all necessary references to show the money has been refunded, and proof of original email showing the buyer was informed the item was not suitable.

Over the years I sold on ebay, I had about 6 comments removed to leave me with my 100% record, 4 were mutually withdrawn by customers and 2 via ebay. I know its frustrating having to provide a refund but it will be worth it in long term...a good feedback score is so important! I hope things work out and good luck in future ebaying!

richard1018

Also it may well be worth adding strong buyer requirements. This I learned the hard way when I first started out on ebay - somebody buying all my items, not paying and leaving neg fb on all items!
Search for buyer requirements on here or ebay - it will explain how you can cut down the risk of idiots buying your stuff i.e on my reqs they must have a cred card on file, have fb over 5, for the auction to end they must pay immediately by paypal, and they cannot buy more than 1 item from me in a given period unless they ask permission first. Its a helpful tool well worth looking into - I get no more buyers not paying for example.

amcluesent

Lesson learned - when I get daft questions I block them as bidders. If they're too stupid to read the description...

soolin

One thing here, if the claim via paypal is for fraudulent use of a card then you can defend it easily. For a fraudulent use claim all you need is to upload your proof of posting with her address and nag paypal to remind them of their new rules about seller protection. If however this is an item not received claim then you are correct in that only proof of delivery is accepted.

What feedback has your buyer got, what does she usually buy? if this buyer is newish then you might be bale to get her on the malicious bidder reporting tool.

Finally, learn where your blocked bidder list can be found, it is very useful! Also make sure you have your seller preferences set as strongly as possible, it might not have helped here but it might help in future:

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/sell/buyer-requirements.html

Start from here to set buyer requirements to exclude overseas bidders or bidders with NPB strikes etc.

pinkshoes

bap98189 wrote: »

Anyway, she received it, and then sent me an Email complaining that it wouldn't stick to the plastic panels in her car door and she wants her money back.

:rotfl: Well of COURSE it won't stick to a car door. Not even fingerprints stick to the silly plastic they use to make the interiors of cars! Really silly design in reality... (but very cheap mouldable material!).

Point out to ebay that this woman had already questioned the suitablility for this, to which you replied it was NOT suitable. She has used the product, so cannot return it.

The negative won't put most buyers off; you just need to reply calmly to it (NO CAPITAL LETTERS or swearing!) stating the facts. "Buyer notified fabric paint not suitable for plastic before purchase but bought anyway"

I would also report her as a malicious bidder.

supermezzo

If she won't remove the neg, my reply would be along the lines of 'Left neg but then claimed non-receipt as well' as a warning to others.