Please help me ..again!!!

wendiewoo

Ok When I last posted someone had "wrongly" bid for 2 items I was selling. I gave them the benefit of the doubt and as the auction had ended sold them the goods.

The buyer appeared to be grateful as she wanted them for a class trip to a zoo. They are now saying one piece is missing and they are not happy as they wanted them for gifts. The piece as far as I was aware was there. I have emailed them saying I will go to the shop I bought them and see if they can help me.

NOW the person was not very friendly when they emailed me and implied the goods were no good if broken, fair enough but they got 2 for the price of one and it’s cosmetic rather than broken. Of course if I got something broken I would expect a refund but the way they emailed me got me angry. I am guessing unless I refund they will give me negative feedback.

SOO here’s the thing if the shop cant help do I ask for the buyer to send them back, who pays the postage and what do I do???

Am I right that I will have to refund the returned item and the postage?? I think I am…I guess I am angry the way they bid the wrong price then send me nasty emails!!! I think I know what I have to do and I guess I am ranting, maybe its time I threw pc out of the window and got some real friends!!!! ;-)

pesky2

Hi Ask the buyer to send them back to you, they will have to pay the postage back to you and you have the right to receive the item back in the condition it was sent in, obviously there is a dispute about the missing piece but tell the buyer you will refund them the purchase price but not the postage price that they paid. This is the normal procedure on Ebay. Add it to your future listings as your return policy that if they need to return anything it is thje final price to be repaid and they forfeit their postage price.

soolin

If the item is broken then the buyer can expect the full amount to be refunded including the original post and packing charge. This is what she would get back if she claimed via paypal or from an online shop (except DAbs...grrr)

However, no one can force you to refund her her (except paypal) So if you think she is trying it on and the item is complete then just refuse to refund and accept the neg. The neg will look bad for a while, but only if she words it cleverly. Buyers tend not to like to see negs where other buyers have received broken items and no refund.

If there is any possibility though that the item was incomplete and this was not mentioned in the listing then you really ought to refund in full. If a buyer came onto this board and asked what they should do if they received an incomplete item we would be telling them to go for a full refund and if this was not given complain to ebay and to keep complaining until someone listened.

Hope it gets sorted out.

Soo

dragonfly02

I had this problem once before when i sent a pushchair a small black plastic piece had broken off, not sure if it happened whilst i was packing it or in transit.
I asked the ebayer if they couldd possibly take a picture of the offending piece for me to proove it was broken and then i sent then a spare piece i had.
noone was really out of pocket (maybe about 50p but that was better than them spending 8 pound or so sending it back)
Just a though as i don't know what the item is you have sold.

Maybe they could send you a pick, they might agree to take a partial refund to save sending it back?

Hintza

This highlights a couple of points:-


1. Check, double check and check again items before posting, there will always be someone that tries it on and you need to know for sure. "To the best of my knowledge..." is probably noit enough.

2. If you are sure that it was complete and you are sure the buyer is at it leave your feedback first.

3. If you are unsure of any of the above you will have to refund with grace and if I was the buyer I would expect you also to cover my P+P charges. If something genuinely arrives broken I would insist on this.

Not on EBay but I had a part arrive for the fridge today recorded delivery and knew by the feel it was broken, so opened in front of the postman to have a witness. I have phoned the company and they will replace and reimburse my P+P. I will also post back recorded so there can be no excuses of lost in the post.

This is the least I expect from a company/EBayer

Cat72

HI
I have had this similar problem a few times, and it always irrates me ! Get the buyer to return the item. Also check out their feedback comments- is this common ? look at the feedback they recieve AND leave for others for clues. If it seems to have happened a few times - then I personally would not refund postage costs.
However if everything seems ok then in this case you should refund, the postage I guess will not be a lot so it would be up to you if you want to refund this too. Unfortunately it seems all too commom that buyers claim, lost, broken or damaged items that the seller feels 100% certain that the buyer is lying. Unfortunately we will never know.A COP helps for the damage / lost claims.
As for the feedback point of view I would not go jumping through hoops etc to please the buyer, if they sound a bit nasty, as they will have probably decided what kind of seller you are and what feedback comments thay have in mind. Just deal with the sitaution the way you feel comfortable with and if you leave feedback ( be it positive , neg, neutral ) mention the buyers claims, or that a refund was given. Just to warn other sellers. Good luck , Ebay aint easy sometimes

wendiewoo

I think I knew all along what I really had to do...If nothing else I am an honest seller..so will offer full refund and settle for that being the end. As I stated if Id recieved it broken Id want money back, HOWEVER I would email the seller politely and they would offer me a refund and we would leave it all amicably I was angry at the nastiness of the email from the buyer and in the sober light of day can see its the only solution ...I can get a spare but wont offer it the seller as they have been hassle so will relist it back on ebay one at a time!! Thanks again guys you are invaluable!!!