Item not as described, who pays return postage?

carrie483

Hi, i recently bought a coffee machine off ebay. I bought it on sunday with the description saying delivery 2-3 days and that it was an unwanted gift. and emailed the seller on weds to ask when he sent it so i knew roughly which day i had to stay in on. I never recieved a reply. I sent another one on thurs, apologising for emailing him so quick but it had gone the 2-3 days and i didn't want to miss the delivery. I recieved a message back saying due to postal strikes, the item would take 3-4 days instead but still never said when he sent it so i replied saying thats fair enough but which day was it sent; never got a reply. It turned up today, wrapped in a little bubble wrap and brown paper, was sent on thurs. The top of the package had a small whole in it and 2 big bits of plastic fell out when i opened it. Then i noticed the lid is missing the part that keeps it connected and comes off when you touch it.

I have opened a dispute as not as described, as the seller doesn't bother responding to emails. I have asked for a full refund.

The seller states he will not accept returns on the auction page but in this case, will i have to send it back to him?

I dont have a problem with this but i dont really want to foot the bill for the £8 postage so if i have to send it back, will i have to pay the cost or will he?

Sorry its long but i wanted you to have all the details.

Hintza

If you are hoping to recover something via paypal you will need to post it back at your expense. If it was a business seller I would hope they would cover your return postage. However from what you say they are a private seller.


Apart from taking them to court there really is nothing you can do about it.

TurkishDelight

You probably will have to send it back and you probably will end up paying postage. The only way I can see you coming out okay is if the seller is reasonable.

By the way I've had a few of these strike excuses myself- they are mostly BS. The last one who tried this on got a neutral from me because he sent a message saying it had been posted but could be delayed in getting to me because of strikes, and then a few days later he sent another one saying he's just posted it and apologising for the delay... "but it's because of the strikes". This was about a week after the strike action had finished :rolleyes:

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I've not heard of any strikes last week

carrie483

Sorry, forgot to mention i paid through paypal and that they are a private seller. That sucks. Don't see why i should be out of pocket for his incompetence, doesnt seem fair but i guess thats ebay for you.

cyberbob

Any good seller private or business will refund postage but they don't have to as paypal can't refund monies it hasn't received.

As I understand the Distance Selling Regulations business's should refund the return postage if the problem was there fault. This can be hard to enforce I am in dispute with a non ebay company whos item was faulty I returned it and they sent a replacement. They are refusing to refund my return postage so my next step is trading standards

cyril82

cyberbob wrote: »

As I understand the Distance Selling Regulations business's should refund the return postage if the problem was there fault.

distance selling regulations don't apply to auctions nor do they apply to private sales, from what the op has said it sounds like this sale falls into both of those categories and so the op has no recourse via distance selling legislation.

Op, as it stands you have absolutely no legal rights to a refund, the seller auctioned the goods as non returnable and he is legally within his rights to do so. The only time you would have recourse via the courts or trading standards is if the seller never sent what he said you were buying, that means you buy a coffee maker he sends a brick, if he sends a coffee maker that needs a slight repair I’m afraid that’s tough luck. the same as if you buy a house at auction and find out later it had hidden problems you can't go back to the seller and ask for your money back.

these are the risks you take when buying at auction.

However, the paypal system does allow buyers, (wrongly as it contradicts the law and paypal are not above the law) to wriggle out of their legal commitment and the risks they took by enforcing refunds on sellers who have no legal obligation to refund, taking that into consideration i'd advise you send the item back at your cost as the seller certainly is not liable to pay this for you, and be happy to get back the money the buyer told you was non refundable via paypal.

another consideration is that while the seller has no legal obligation to refund you and you would be exploiting loophole in the ebay/paypal system to forcefully demand something you have no legal entitlement to the seller does have a moral obligation to return your money if he lied about the condition of the item so i recommend rather than make demands for something you have no legal right to you communicate with him and appeal to his better nature, that said from your original post i would guess he may not be too cooperative which as stated above he has no legal only moral obligation to be.

in summary, ignore any advice about distance selling regs and trading standards or county court claims you will be wasting your time and money as you don't have a case.

From a legal point of view you have no right to a refund and therefore certainly no right to demand the seller pay for the return of the item. your only option is to pay that cost yourself and exploit the paypal loophole to get back some of the money since you’re really entitled to nothing, usually i'm against this but if the seller was dishonest, well what goes around comes around i guess.

yipstar

Yes auctions are not covered by the distance selling regulations but if the item was bought on "Buy it Now" then it is covered by them, which means that the seller would also be liable to refund return postage.

Paypal does not enforce refunds on sellers, it merely refunds customers when the seller refuses to do so.

hermum

yipstar wrote: »

Yes auctions are not covered by the distance selling regulations but if the item was bought on "Buy it Now" then it is covered by them, which means that the seller would also be liable to refund return postage.

Paypal does not enforce refunds on sellers, it merely refunds customers when the seller refuses to do so.

Hi, I don't know if you realise that the above thread is nearly 2 years old.

George_Michael

Op, as it stands you have absolutely no legal rights to a refund, the seller auctioned the goods as non returnable and he is legally within his rights to do so.
.
if he sends a coffee maker that needs a slight repair I’m afraid that’s tough luck

Absolute rubbish.
The Distance selling regulations don't apply to auctions or private sales, but certain parts of the Sale of goods act do, and if the coffee maker was described as new, then legally this is what must be supplied.

Dear Mr xxxxx

Thank you for your enquiry to Consumer Direct. Your reference number for this case is SE 499844 and should be quoted in all further correspondence regarding this case.

In reference to your query, when purchasing goods from a private seller your statutory rights are severely restricted. The two main terms of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 (as amended) which would apply to a private sale are that the goods are the seller’s to sell, and that the goods are as described. The term which states that the goods must be of a satisfactory quality (i.e. durable/free from minor defects) is not part of the contract, as it would be if the goods were purchased from a trader. Unfortunately, the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 are not applicable with any private sale.

If you are purchasing goods from a trader using the ‘Buy It Now’ facility, the Distance Selling Regulations would apply. If you are purchasing goods from a trader but in an auction, I would recommend that you check the terms and conditions of the individual trader to see whether these regulations apply to auction purchases.

If you require any further advice or information about this case, please do not hesitate in contacting Consumer Direct on 08454 04 05 06 quoting your reference number.



Thank you for your enquiry.



Yours sincerely,



Zoe xxxxxxxx

Consumer Direct South East

Tel: 08454 04 05 06

the same as if you buy a house at auction and find out later it had hidden problems you can't go back to the seller

But if a seller has intentionally misdescribed the house then you most certainly can go back and ask for a partial refund and if they fail to give it, your solicitor should be able to pursue the case for you.

RFW

yipstar wrote: »

Paypal does not enforce refunds on sellers, it merely refunds customers when the seller refuses to do so.

Sorry to add to an old thread, but I can't quite fathom what the difference is in the above. Surely Paypal is enforcing the refund on the seller if the seller is refusing to?