Reversal of Refund

[tigger6744]

Had to issue a refund after buyer claimed non delivery, however item tracking shows delivered following day - how can you reverse a refund? 

[tressygirl]

You cannot reverse a refund.

This does sometimes happen, but when it does, there is nothing which can be done through eBay, as that transaction was closed with a refund. 

Send the buyer a message. Say you are happy to see that tracking has now shown delivery perhaps here you can apologise for the lateness of that delivery. Ask for them to please now repay you for the item.

 This can be done with the buyer sending you a Friends and Family payment through PayPal, they will need a PayPal account for this, Or, you an send them a PayPal invoice for this amount. They do not need a PayPal account for this and can pay you there by various card payments.

 One tip, if PayPal is used email addresses are required, make it very clear in eBay messages the purpose for asking for the email, so it cannot be mistaken for the beginnings of an off eBay sale.

Or, they can send a cheque to cover the amount, whichever suits you both. Nothing can be done, unless you take a legal route, to enforce the buyer to pay, but most people are honest and do not want an item for nothing.

@tigger6744 

[red_magpie]

there is nothing which can be done through eBay

This is true, but only because eBay itself chooses to do nothing.

They allow buyers to claim a full refund if an item is even one day overdue for delivery - which I doubt that any postal service anywhere in the world offers. Yet if the buyer claims a refund and then keeps the item as well when it arrives eBay does nothing at all to support the seller - even with tracking proof of delivery.

There are two things that eBay could do to prevent this. The simplest would be to extend the time before a buyer can claim a refund for non-delivery to a more realistic period.

Or if eBay still wishes buyers to be able to claim when an item is only a day overdue, they could easily amend the user agreement to place a duty on the buyer to return either the refund or the item if it arrives within say 14 days of the buyer being refunded. If the buyer prefers to return the item, the seller could be responsible for providing a prepaid label.

eBay sets debt collectors on sellers who don't pay their fees, so why do they seem so reluctant to make buyers liable to action if they refuse to repay refunds? Admittedly it's not quite as simple as can be explained in one sentence, but it could be done.

Only eBay could explain its one-sidedness in favour of the buyer, but it's been evident for a long time now that their lack of concern for sellers even extends to turning a blind eye to even proven dishonesty by buyers.