Hi All, looking for some advice after a less than pleasant experience with a buyer that I just know is going to backfire on me.
I have 17 years experience on eBay and take pride in being an excellent, transparent and very fair seller.
I recently listed an item for U.K. postage only, buy it now. An Australian lady contacted me and asked me if I’d change the listing and send it to Aus and if so, she would buy it immediately. Not once at that point did she mention any price sensitivity around postage, but I wanted her to be aware of how much postage might be, so said I’d check estimated price on Royal Mail website first and add to listing. It appeared it would cost at least £20, so I updated the listing and she purchased immediately. ‘After’ buying, she started asking questions about the item. How old did I think it was, what type of board had it been painted on, did it have any odours like cigarette smoke. I patiently answered her questions, even though they were post purchase. Alarm bells were starting to ring for me, just from the tone of her messages, I asked her politely, if she still wished to proceed as given the postage cost, I wanted to minimise the risk of a return. She said she did. She then started sending me ‘demands’ of how it should be packed to avoid damage. Double lined cardboard, ‘do not bend or fold’ notices etc. I assured her that as an experienced seller, I would of course insure it was appropriately packaged to minimise the risk of any damage. I spent the due time, care and attention to pack it, with the alarm bells ringing loud. Double lined cardboard and bubble wrap. When I had finished, I could see the parcel was likely going to cost more than £20 to post. I sent her an image and let her know it may cost more when I took it in to the post office, and what would she like to do under the circumstances. She replied that it would depend how much more, which is reasonable. When I did get to the post office they quoted £8 more. I decided to go ahead and post anyway, out of goodwill. I would take the hit if necessary but as I had followed her exacting instructions, I felt it reasonable to message her to request that she contribute only the extra amount she would have stretched to for postage, no more. I didn’t demand, I just politely asked her to consider. She replied to say that yes, she would. The next day she messaged me again, by this point, her tone was rude and hostile. She said she wasn’t going to pay any extra, the item had already cost her more than it was worth and now she was criticising how it had been packaged (from a photo!!!!) and that it would highly likely arrive damaged and not to message her again. Having done this for 17 years, I can spot a potential, unfair claim a mile off. Not only have I made a loss on the item at this point but she’s clearly preparing to make a claim as soon as it arrives, knowing it’s not worth me asking her to return it because of the cost of the return postage. I contacted eBay to report her as a buyer ahead of a very likely claim. I then spoke to someone at EBay who reviewed the messages and was very supportive of my concerns, saying she had violated at least one policy already, asking questions about the item post sale. BUT I know that eBay always favours and protects the buyer when they do make a claim. I also know that I acted in good faith, never demanded more money from the buyer and packed the item to her exacting requirements, which, ironically, backfired on me. Any thoughts or advice to navigate this very likely claim and negative feedback from the buyer appreciated. And yes, in hindsight, I should have waited for her confirmation on extra postage before posting. It’s less about the money and more about kit her conduct and fact she is clearly preparing to make a claim before even receiving the item. I suspect she’s a re-seller and got cold feet when she reflected on the costs involved, even before knowing about the extra postage.
