Ebay dispute - found in buyers favour

GamerInfo

Looking for some advice.

I am a private seller and sold an item (PC component) - the buyer received the item and within 24hrs emailed me and said he's received the item but was having some issues/errors. After asking some basic questions i was pretty sure that the issues he was having with the item were down to compatibility with the other hardware he was using. After an agreement from the buyer that this could be the case, he continued running tests. A further 24hrs down the line the buyer still agreed that the issues were probably down to compatibility - he said he'd contact me if anything changed. A few hours later he emailed me and concluded the the item is at fault and that he wanted to return the ite. Not convinced by this (and because all info he's given me lead to compatibility as opposed to fault) i told him i couldn't accept the item back due to incompatibility.

This kicked off and the buyer opened a case. To cut a long story short, the 8 days of the open case turned in to nothing more than a documented argument - with nothing i said/offered to do offering an acceptance of help from the buyer. As a private seller that clearly stated no returns in the listing, i said i would contact the manufacturer direct and try and get a replacement sent out - this was rejected repeatedly.

The case was escalated by the buyer and within 3 days i received an email that ebay had found in the buyers favour and that the buyer will need to return the item for a refund. I was told i cannot appeal this decision until ive received the item back and until the buyer has already been refunded. When i asked on what grounds was the decision found in the buyers favour i was merely told that the item description did not match what the buyer received (the item was listed as brand new and un-opened).

When i contacted ebay's resolution department the first time i was told the case hadn't yet been escalated, the second time i was told that when a case is opened the seller's return policy is classed as null & void - i was also told that the only reason ebay have instructed the buyer to retuyrn the item is so that i can inspect the item and to verify whether it is in the same condition that i sent it out in (although the buyer admitted to opening/testing the item - so im confused now as to how it can be in the same condition) - their words on the phone were that only i know the condition of the item when it was sent, therefore they have asked the buyer to return it so i can inspect it's condition, if the item is not in the same condition that i sent it, i can appeal the case - bizzarre since it's been opened and is now classed as opened and used.

What are my options now as a seller - obviously once i receive the item, how will i know if it's been damaged? things got pretty heated in the dispute and the buyer accussed me of doing all sorts (such as re-packaging the item and purposely damaging it) - what do i do about reimbursement to ebay? what happens with the £18 ebay fee's i paid through the sale of this + paypal fees?

Im a little lost on my rights as seller and where i go from here - 8yrs on ebay and never once had a case opened against me

forgotmyname

State what you like in the listing, Not enforceable at all. Attracts scammers and timewasters and people who just want to try the item.

How will you know its not been damaged, Test it yourself?

Send it back to the manufacturer like you told the buyer? Any warranty or contract is with you and your seller, Not the manufacturer/seller and your buyer.


You should have bitten your lip and said return for a refund. Now you have had a complaint and possibly going to get a nagative also.

GamerInfo

forgotmyname wrote: »

State what you like in the listing, Not enforceable at all. Attracts scammers and timewasters and people who just want to try the item.

How will you know its not been damaged, Test it yourself?

Send it back to the manufacturer like you told the buyer? Any warranty or contract is with you and your seller, Not the manufacturer/seller and your buyer.


You should have bitten your lip and said return for a refund. Now you have had a complaint and possibly going to get a nagative also.

Fair point re. attracting scammers - but i never put anything in my listing - when listing the item i selected the option: No Returns Accepted - i never added any additional wording to this - only ebays standard wording was used - this was also the case as far as describing the item - apart from the item name is the descriptionbox, the only words used to describe the item were under ebays own option titled Item Condition: New. As the item was brand new and un-opened the item was listed under the option condition as 'New'.

I never asked the buyer to go to the manufacturer for a replacement - i said i would go direct to the manufacturer to get a replacement - i never asked for the item back to do this as my intention was to get a replacement sent out direct to the buyer without them needing to spend money sending the original item anywhere - i don't think this is un-reasonable.

However the buyer went direct to the manufacturer themselves during the case and this in turn created friction for me - so i doubt they'll honour any warranty now.

As for biting my lip and accepting a return - why should i do this when i believe the issues the buyer was having were down to compatibility which is the buyers responsibility before purchase. I do not have any control over the other components used the buyers end and as no questions were asked either before/after purchase re. compatibility then im led to believe the buyer knows what he's doing - i shouldn't have to accept a return on an item that was essentially 'bought in error' - im not a business and so do not have to offer no quibble returns for buyers that want to try before they buy do i?

If i test the item when it's returned and found to me as described - where does that leave me in terms of a closed case?

techspec

You can't win i'm afraid.

These days you should see ebay as a way of giving away your goods - with the hope that the person who receives them will send you a donation and let you keep it.

amcluesent

things got pretty heated in the dispute

EBay's not for you!

hermum

Both ebay & paypal will almost always side with the buyer.
It's always best to just accept the item back & give a full refund.
It might be annoying but that's how it is on ebay.

Crowqueen

If the risk is not worth the reward, then using a platform to sell items at a distance, where the buyer cannot see the actual item before they buy it, is probably not a good idea. I've always found the balance more than adequate for the return on what I put in to eBay as a seller, and usually do my homework before I buy and eat the costs of mistaken purchases, but being fully clued up to the rights and responsibilities each party to the transaction will usually pay off. When money is involved the whole ball game changes, so this is something that is not necessarily your fault, but certainly your responsibility to take on board.

It is not easy sometimes, but that is the nature of the beast, and there is no such thing as a free lunch.

GamerInfo

amcluesent wrote: »

EBay's not for you!

That's a matter of opinion - it never got heated from my part - but i was met with a buyer consistently making demands that were far beyond my control, and demanding answers i couldn't give him - oh well such is ebay. 1 dispute in 8yrs ain't bad i suppose!!!!

Can somebody answer these questions for me:

- why do ebay allow sellers (and charge them a fee for doing so) to list an item and select the No Returns Accepted option if in a dispute process this is ignored? When a buyer hits the bid/buy button they agree to ALL the terms set out in the listing - so why does a 3rd party come along after the contract is accepted and are allowed to change certain aspects of it?

- If i go in to Argos tomorrow (or any other shop) and purchase an item and am told before handing over my cash that it is exempt from returns - but i agree to this and still proceed with the transaction, can i just take the item home open it up use it for a few days and still demand to return it for a full refund?

macfly

Crowqueen wrote: »

If the risk is not worth the reward, then using a platform to sell items at a distance, where the buyer cannot see the actual item before they buy it, is probably not a good idea.

It is not easy sometimes, but that is the nature of the beast, and there is no such thing as a free lunch.

It's a computer component, not an item you need to see before you buy.
No free lunch? Millions of people are on them, because some are prepared to take a risk and start a business.
I do agree with "it's not easy sometimes", or ever, but how would you know?

shaun_from_Africa

- If i go in to Argos tomorrow (or any other shop) and purchase an item and am told before handing over my cash that it is exempt from returns - but i agree to this and still proceed with the transaction, can i just take the item home open it up use it for a few days and still demand to return it for a full refund?

If what you buy is faulty or not as described then yes, you can take it back for a refund.
This is all that has happened in your case.
Even though the item you sold was new and unopened, it may still have been faulty, and as this is what the buyer has claimed, Paypal have no option but to allow the return as they have no way to prove that the buyer is mistaken or lying.

GamerInfo

macfly wrote: »

It's a computer component, not an item you need to see before you buy.
No free lunch? Millions of people are on them, because some are prepared to take a risk and start a business.
I do agree with "it's not easy sometimes", or ever, but how would you know?

100% true - it's not an item you need to see before you buy, however it is one that you need to do your homework on before purchase. The item i sold was by an unknown manufacturer, required other high spec hardware for it to run with, and was only recently released - so compatibility was a very real possibility - but then the buyer knew they would never get a refund based on his lack of research so had to 'gloirify' the situation to fit in with ebay.

What happens when i get the item back and:

- the item works perfectly and is as i described it?
- the item is severely damaged?

Why should i be penalized by ebay through a buyer that simply didn't do his homework? What are the chances of winning an appeal based on either of the 2 options above?