Best way to respond? Updated

lindseykim13

Not had this situation before.
Buyer recieves item damaged, they message me and i offer full refund and return postage costs, apologise etc
2 days later buyer opens a pp dispute stating that it's damaged but fixabe and they want a full refund as it wasn't as described but they want to keep it so as not to upset their child!

So they want full refund & keep the item.

I'm trying to avoid myself a neg here but i don't get why they went to dispute when i replied to them. Whats the best way to proceed here?
I was planning on giving a full refund and then claiming from the courier for the damage. If they keep the item and i refund i'm left out of pocket for something i could have claimed for/fixed myself. :mad:
We are talking £14 here so i'm feeling it's either loose the £14 or get a nice neg.

soolin

Stay firm and tell them (and via th epp dispute page) that th eitem can be returned for a full refund. Paypal will either find for you (unlikely) or for the buyer in which case they will have to return it tracked for a refund.

Sometimes I htink it worth staying firm even if you do end up with a neg, especially when faced with such an unreasonable buyer. The only time i refund in full without getting the itme back is if itme is so badly broken that there is no point in having it back.

Crowqueen

If it's fixable offer them a partial refund to cover the repairs.

porto_bello

I had exactly the same situation a month ago. The buyer claimed the item was broken but refused to provide any photo evidence of the damage, which I had requested to enable a claim against the PO.

They followed this up with a very long version of I was not entitled to ask for evidence, that they want to keep the broken item, and they wanted a refund or they'd leave negative feedback - and they are sick to death of all the crooked sellers on eBay.

[It was no surprise to receive the inevitable negative feedback, which I'm disputing after taking advice from eBay. And it was equally no surprise that this buyer regularly leaves negs for sellers, claiming items were damaged and refunds were refused].

To be honest, it sounds like you have a similar chancer on your hands - possibly the same one?!! I'd stand firm on principle, but as a private seller, I guess I can absorb negs better than a business seller.

I would like to think eBay would remove negs under the circumstances you describe, but I can't say for sure, as my appeal is still a 'work-in-progress'.

Maybe there are other sellers have had similar experiences, who have had negs removed on appeal?

Mrs_justjohn

YOu could give a full refund and let them keep the item and STILL get neg feedback.....nothing you can do will guarantee otherwise....Then how will you feel?

Bear that in mind and stand firm...full refund on return of item!

~~Diane~~

So if the item was received damage why give it to the child? Sounds like they want the item and the money.

kazwookie

I had the same problem, I offered a full refund inc p & p, he kept item annd gave me a neg, but I was not going to give in,as he made it clear he wanted the item and a full refund, to me it is a neg, but I have broad shoulders, there are worse things going on in life, a neg to me is not the end of the world.

Taadaa

I agree, I don't think that many buyers take half as much notice of fb as some sellers think. As long as it is not really bad, I think they hardly notice tbh. So let him get on with it and stick to no return, no refund.

lindseykim13

Just an update and a little advice needed- i offered a partial refund as they buyer said they could fix it. They complained it would take them time/money so i offered £4 for the 5 mins it will take and the tiny bit of super glue they need!
They declined my offer and still insist on a full refund, with this message
the fact that i want to keep it doesnt matter, i wudnt of bought it if we didnt want it but i bought it as one piece not 5, so the fact that i have to repair it is a breech of agreement
I explained this wasn't going to happen even if she escalated as it was unfair to expect me to be without the item, money and unable to claim for the damage without the item/packaging. I repeated that i am willing to pay all return costs and their initial costs and that my partal refund offer was more than fair. I then get this back
no problem, ill get the refund through my bank instead.

So what the heck does that mean? Is she in some lala land where the bank pays out on SNAD claims or is she thinking of doing a chargeback? In which case i have tracking/proof i sent it. This is all in the pp dispute surely if she's going to try a chargeback pp wouldn't be too happy about it knowing she has the item and trying to get her money back too!

forgotmyname

Unless they tell the bank the transaction was fraudulent i doubt they can do anything.

As long as you have tracking details you will be fine, Insist on the items return.

Phone ebay and explain the threats the buyer keeps sending you. But seller refuses to return your item.

pug_in_a_bed

looks like they might claim fraudulent use of their card. Keep all their emails esp. the one stating this. To fight this kind of claim you need proof of postage. Looks like you could be in good stead because of their email and I'm guessing you have both proof of delivery and postage

Stand your ground!