Refunding a deactivated account

[hel54904]

I bought an item from a user, but I decided to refund the item before it arrived, because i thought it may have been a scam, since the user was no longer registered. The item has now been arrived and I have also recieved a refund. I cannot contact the seller because they are no longer a registered user on ebay. I now have the item and all of the money back. How should i return the money?

[**peaseblossom**]

You would have to repay outside of ebay so, for instance, you'd need the email address seller uses with Paypal or their bank details.   If you click on their ID is there no contact link?

[hel54904]

When i click on their account it just says that they’re no longer a registered user, there’s no way of getting their details

[tressygirl]

How much was the item,  and what was it?

Perhaps keep the item for a certain amount of time,  if there's no more contact  to or from the seller, once removed you cannot contact them without eBay's help, and doubt they would give out a member's personal details,   no matter for what altruistic reason, then perhaps give the item to a charity shop....  depending on what this item is ! 🤔

@hel54904 

[hel54904]

It was a retro football shirt for £27, so it’s not a highly expensive item but i’d still rather give the money back to the seller if possible.

[**peaseblossom**]

Is there a return address on the package or seller details inside?   You could maybe send them a cheque.

[hel54904]

I can’t find any sign of any contact information on any of the packaging

[**peaseblossom**]

You'll have to wait to see if they contact you.   Or there's a chance ebay may reactivate their account.   

[hel54904]

Okay, thank you for your help

[**peaseblossom**]

You're welcome.   It's nice that you're keen to pay them.   Some people wouldn't bother.

[red_magpie]

It was a retro football shirt for £27

Make sure it's genuine before trying to refund them. When a sellers suddenly ceases to be registered it's often because eBay has removed them from the site.