Buyer says not as described, what to do

1jim

Latest buyer message
Upon collecting the item, the dirt was visible but we assumed that it was just surface dirt & so would easily be removed, as you had so clearly specified it was in great condition. it was when we got home that we noticed the dirt was ingrained & scratched up.with regards to the cleaning of this item, the sanding was required to remove the scratches/scuffs all over it. there were scuffs all around the outer corners, (these are rough like the item has been stored or moved around on its side) the scuffs were uneven & sharp & as such not suitable for a child to play with, & so the areas were sanded to make them smooth & safe for play. the plastic has been damaged in no way. also i have never requested that we return the item to you after we have spent so much time & effort( as well as money on cleaning products)getting it into clean condition for use.we feel a refund of £7 is no compensation for the time we have had to spend cleaning it but it is clear you are intent on keeping the money

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Any suggestions for a reply?
Am I right in thinking that in dispute ebay will either find in my favour and tell buyer to go away, or in buyers favour and make them return the item at their expense (will they have to send using tracked method if they collected the item) and make me refund full cost? do they do partial refunds and if they do how do they work out what this would be?

emerald_starcat

They state the scuffs were uneven and sharp and it was not suitable for children to play with - have your children ever had an injury from it?
The buyer stated they 'assumed' it was surface dirt, so they are admitting they spotted a little dirt and still paid. Instead of assuming they should have raised the issue there and then.
It was their choice to clean it and spend all that money on cleaning products.
The playhouse left you in the state that was described in the listing, the playhouse is suitable for children to play in it as your children have played in it. The buyer checked the playhouse over at point of purchase in the daylight and it was fine. The playhouse is suitable as an outside toy and surface dirt and scratches should be expected.

1jim

I agree, my 2 children (5 and 3andhalf) have played with this and no injuries, no sharp edges either.

Do you know if I let this go to ebay adjudication if they only offer full refunds- can they make me issue partial refund?

masterbrown

1jim wrote: »

I agree, my 2 children (5 and 3andhalf) have played with this and no injuries, no sharp edges either.

Do you know if I let this go to ebay adjudication if they only offer full refunds- can they make me issue partial refund?

In a word, no

tabskitten

This has gone on ages now!!
Stand your ground!

Tea3

I think whatever happens you will get poor feedback on this - even if you refunded in full, gave them a brand new playhouse for free and made them a nice cake! They sound very unreasonable and although this is their fault for not checking the item on collection they will continue to insist it is everyone else's fault instead. Therefore due to the feedback thats no doubt going to happen I to would stand my ground and refuse to deal with this any futher. If ebay finds in their favour they will have to return the item to you and it would have to be by a trackable method I believe therefore they cant bring it back to you themselves so no risk of a face to face meeting. They should have contacted you BEFORE trying anything or made arrangements to return it without touching/changing it.

You met their £15 request half way so I would leave it at that. I really cant see them returning it as I bet their kid is already playing on it and had you posted or couriered it I could see their point but they collected in person!

PS - if you bought something that looked dirty and you 'thought' it may be surface dirt would you not try to wipe away the dirt as you were carrying it to your car to check? I know I would! They bought the item, collected and inspected the item at your house (not your fault they did a rush job) and dont want to return it and cannot send pics of the problem as they apparently cleaned/sanded it now - chancers!

pug_in_a_bed

At this point, I would say stand your ground and state refund on return at their cost, which will have to be at their cost and tracked. However, as they ahve now effectively damaged it by sanding it down it wouldnt be returned in its original condition which I guess would mean you could refund only part of the costs.

I think maybe you should just let it run its course, as ebay won't make you give a partial refund.

If they leave a neg, just be factual and calm in your response.

Think you have handled this very well and very politely.

pinkshoes

I would phone up ebay and ask them what to do. Tell them they've damaged the surface by sanding it (so you can't accept it back), that they inspected the item when they collected, and that they have refused your good will gesture of £7, even though you didn't have to offer it.

If the buyer leaves a neg, just respond to it.

forgotmyname

Shame you didn't file a non paying bidder claim at the start. How will they prove they did?

That will have foxed them.

If they collected & paid them its their problem.
I have bought stuff & thought why did i just buy that. But i did so paid up.

cyberbob

forgotmyname wrote: »

Shame you didn't file a non paying bidder claim at the start. How will they prove they did?

That will have foxed them..

So your recommending that the OP should have lied. Now that would have really helped matters.