ebay advice- retruned item not arrived

malmesbury_2

hi everyone, after a bit of ebay advice as i am not sure what to do.

i sold an item, described it accurately, but buyer read description wrong, so it wasnt fit for his needs, so i agreed to refund him if he returned it. (i am a private seller)

he says he sent it back to me last monday first class and gained a certificate of postage but didnt send it recorded delivery.

at this point in time, i havent receievd the item back, so what happens now? i feel it would be unfair for me to have to refund a £30 item when he has sent it back not recorded. where do i stand in ebays eyes?

is it his responsibility as the sender to make a claim via royal mail for the loss of the item and then he can get compensated that way?

thank you for your advice in advance

bris

Don't refund, if the item is lost they will be able to claim on the POP. Ebay will not make you pay if they failed to deliver, it's up to the buyer to make sure it gets to you.

Crowqueen

Refund if/when it turns up (may just be delayed), otherwise advise the buyer to claim from RM. In an INR situation people are usually asked to check their sorting office. Maybe that would be a good idea - it's a lot of money for the buyer to lose and you need to make sure it is definitely lost before refusing to refund. You're going to be open to a neg if you mishandle this and inadvertantly convince the buyer you're not being honest. It's going to take a bit of diplomacy.

Buyers don't have to return items recorded unless it is during a dispute - recorded can get lost just as much as ordinary post, it's just that eBay require proof of delivery in a dispute. If you had an amicable agreement and weren't going to scam whether it got sent recorded or not then it really didn't matter. This must happen as regularly as INRs happen for buyers, notwithstanding the scammers on both sides who take advantage of things not being sent recorded - so I would placate the buyer and explain the situation gently rather than just turn them away empty handed.

Reassure them you will refund if it turns up.

malmesbury_2

thank you to your replies- yes i am still hoping/ half expecting it to turn up which will be great as i will just refund. things have been quite amicable which is good, so i will check the sorting office in the next day or two to see if it is there instead.

if not i will follow your advice.

thank you again

Crowqueen

Good luck. Hopefully the buyer will understand. I can't say I wouldn't be annoyed - so brace yourself - but I'd accept that it wasn't your fault/liability and I had to claim.