Want to refund but buyer non responsive

JPS29

Hi.
Sold a car wheel the other day, immediately followed by an email from the buyer asking how much to include a set of wheel nuts for the wheels he had just bought as he was converting from steel to alloy. I replied back stating that I would throw him the nuts in free of charge but he had only bought one wheel with tyre (£60 delvered). If he has made a mistake then I was happy to agree to cancel the transaction and refund him. He replied back confirming he had made a mistake, and having read the advert and looked at the picture of one wheel he now realises it wasnt for the set. Could I cancel the sale and refund his money, sorry for any incovenience.

I sent a mail saying no problem, please agree to the mutual cancellation which I will open and I'll refund your money immediately.
No further contact from buyer, sent another email just politely asking buyer to click the agree to cancel link so I can refund him (as i dont want to get hit with the fees) and still nothing.

Tried the number I got from contact details, wrong or disconnected.
Any advice
I could reverse the paypal payment but as he is so unresponsive their will be no urgency for him to agree the cancellation and Im left with the fees, circa £5

I don't think I'm being unreasonable but have never come across this before, normally if someone orders in error I file the mutual, they agree, I refund, everyone's happy (all i am out of pocket is the listing fee)

tania-jo

Personally I would refund the money. I don't even know if ebay will let you cancel a transaction that has been paid for but not refunded. Sure there are more knowledgeable people on here, but i'd refund.

Janey21

JPS29 wrote: »

Hi.
Sold a car wheel the other day, immediately followed by an email from the buyer asking how much to include a set of wheel nuts for the wheels he had just bought as he was converting from steel to alloy. I replied back stating that I would throw him the nuts in free of charge but he had only bought one wheel with tyre (£60 delvered). If he has made a mistake then I was happy to agree to cancel the transaction and refund him. He replied back confirming he had made a mistake, and having read the advert and looked at the picture of one wheel he now realises it wasnt for the set. Could I cancel the sale and refund his money, sorry for any incovenience.

I sent a mail saying no problem, please agree to the mutual cancellation which I will open and I'll refund your money immediately.
No further contact from buyer, sent another email just politely asking buyer to click the agree to cancel link so I can refund him (as i dont want to get hit with the fees) and still nothing.

Tried the number I got from contact details, wrong or disconnected.
Any advice
I could reverse the paypal payment but as he is so unresponsive their will be no urgency for him to agree the cancellation and Im left with the fees, circa £5

I don't think I'm being unreasonable but have never come across this before, normally if someone orders in error I file the mutual, they agree, I refund, everyone's happy (all i am out of pocket is the listing fee)

Hi
Contact Ebay, tell them a buyer has cancelled a transaction and wants a refund as they purchased in error, this means you have not sold the listed item so therefore could they cancel the fees as you are issuing a refund, I am not sure if Ebay will cancel your sellers fee for the tyre so if they do not then Ebay may be able to advise on whether you can actually claim the fees from your buyer, on a £60 sale I would imagine you are right the fees are going to be over £5, better in your pocket than Ebay's. You may have to explain to your buyer that although you can cancel his transaction and issue a refund, because he is at fault you will have to deduct the Ebay fees. Did he really think you were selling a set of tyres for £60? by the way.
Regards
Janey

vickypark3

I don't think I'm being unreasonable but have never come across this before, normally if someone orders in error I file the mutual, they agree, I refund, everyone's happy (all i am out of pocket is the listing fee)

Although I can see where you are coming from by with-holding the refund until the buyer has agreed to your mutual cancellation request, AFAIK it is usual to refund the buyer first

The buyer has up to 7 days to respond to your case. If you haven't heard back after 7 days, you can close the case and you'll receive your final value fee credit.

If the contact information is incorrect you can if you wish report it to ebay

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/identity-false.html

soolin

If you are not going to see why are you holding the money?

refund the money ASAP as otherwise I can see your feedback being hit, then after 7 days if buyer does not repsond to your mutual cancellation it closes in your favour anyway.

Oliver14

Why are you blackmailing you buyer? Refund them or I would expect to suffer.

Crowqueen

Refund them now.

It's not fair to hold on to someone's money if you are not going to complete the sale.

You may be used to doing it that way but it may be that they don't like being held to ransom in this way - I wouldn't, I'd have politely asked you for the refund first.

JPS29

Crowqueen wrote: »

Refund them now.

It's not fair to hold on to someone's money if you are not going to complete the sale.Complete the sale? What and send the buyer somtehing they have purchased in error. I advertised ONE wheel, he wants FOUR.

You may be used to doing it that way but it may be that they don't like being held to ransom in this way - I wouldn't, I'd have politely asked you for the refund first.

Held to ransom? Bit harsh, Their mistake not mine. Listing was clear and accurate buyer just didnt read it. Photo was of one wheel not four

JPS29

soolin wrote: »

If you are not going to see why are you holding the money?Dont understand this comment unless its a typo and you mean sell? In that case I could have sent him the goods he ordered, ONE alloy wheel as per the ad, he wants FOUR

refund the money ASAP as otherwise I can see your feedback being hit, then after 7 days if buyer does not repsond to your mutual cancellation it closes in your favour anyway.Based in this I have refunded as I was under the impression that only NPB cancellation requests got a refund of your fees, thanks for clarifying this for me

Comments above

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JPS29

Janey21 wrote: »

Hi
Contact Ebay, tell them a buyer has cancelled a transaction and wants a refund as they purchased in error, this means you have not sold the listed item so therefore could they cancel the fees as you are issuing a refund, I am not sure if Ebay will cancel your sellers fee for the tyre so if they do not then Ebay may be able to advise on whether you can actually claim the fees from your buyer, on a £60 sale I would imagine you are right the fees are going to be over £5, better in your pocket than Ebay's. You may have to explain to your buyer that although you can cancel his transaction and issue a refund, because he is at fault you will have to deduct the Ebay fees.Thanks but I wouldnt do this, easier if he just clicked the button agreeing but hey ho, Did he really think you were selling a set of tyres for £60? by the way.No, worse, a set of FOUR alloy wheels, FOUR legal tyres and free courier:D
Regards
Janey

Thanks, commentsd in red

Crowqueen

JPS29 wrote: »

Held to ransom? Bit harsh, Their mistake not mine. Listing was clear and accurate buyer just didnt read it. Photo was of one wheel not four

Yes, but when you are dealing with customers, whether it's their mistake or not, you have to make them feel comfortable to trust you.

Look at it from their point of view - it's more in your interests to get them to trust you, rather than the other way round. If I was holding someone's money and they didn't want the item - for whatever reason, including their error - I'd want them to trust me enough to do what I ask of them, so I'd refund well in advance of asking for a cancellation. In some circumstances your buyer might have a right to a refund under these kind of circumstances, so in that situation it's probably not a good idea to annoy them.

Just my opinion, but I think it's backed up by a lot of other people from the look of this thread.