Issued a refund but buyer not returned item

[nicdav_1182]

I sold an item but when the buyer received it they said it was damaged so I issued a refund but they haven't returned the item to me and won't reply to my emails 

[cobwebcottage]

The buyer should have opened an item not as described case. They will then be issued with a return label which is charged to you. You then refund when it has been returned to you. If you chose to refund before this happened or if you refunded before the buyer opened a case,  then you probably will not get your item back .

[floral.lines.supplies]

You don't refund until item is returned and the buyer is suppose to open a case first. You'll not get it back now.

[vikkipollardanddafyddthomas]

I assume this is your £80 bottle of coco chanel mademoiselle parfum which sold to someone with 4 feedbacks ? This is an expensive lesson unfortunately.

As others have already said, you did not follow the returns process. The buyer has to open a not as described case and then a returns label is issued to them, You aren't the first to fall for this and you won't be the last although I am sure that is little consolation right now.   

[fatbobfan]

As above plus

If a similar circumstance comes up and your not sure of something, post on these forums, generally you will get good advice.

Report the buyer, the system will log and if they do or have done in the past  the same thing Ebay may act. 

Good luck

[the-nutwood-collection]

You can email the buyer and say that if you don't receive the item, or proof of posting and a tracking number by a certain date, you will raise a Small Claim to recover your funds.  You should also write to them, send the letter Special Delivery and keep a screenshot of the RM confirmation of delivery.  This may galvanise them into action. 

Raising a claim will cost you £35, and it's a straightforward process that can be done online.  If they pay, you will receive the amount of the claim, plus the filing fee.  If they don't pay, and you get judgement, they will get a CCJ (unless they pay within seven days) which will impact their credit score.  You can take further action to recover the funds but, if the item value is £80, it's probably not worth the cost to take it further.

By mistake, I refunded a buyer before receiving the item and she didn't respond to emails.  I threatened Small Claims, and she sent it back - with a message to say that she'd been too busy to do it earlier.

[mcds958]

I too and it appears quite common, have fallen  in to the eBay trap! I received an " Item not as described" from the buyer. The item wording was actually correct, but without realising I'd used a photo of a same item I'd sold previously,  but it was for the left side of the car. I felt as the wording was correct the buyer, who it appears bought the item from my photo WITHOUT reading the total wording of the advertisement? should have contacted me for clarification of the situation, but I didn't argue the point.  I saw there was a choice  to "Return and Refund" so I assumed logically this was the correct action thinking the money would be refunded, but held in a suspense account by eBay pending the return of my item and once I'd received it and confirmed it was ok I clicked whatever and only then would eBay release the money, I really don't know what happened after clicking "Return and Refund" I assumed that was all I had to do as I thought eBay would set the process in motion, it also said something like, "don't worry if you haven't generated the return label as we will do this after a couple of days" I thought at that point, good this is a 'fail safe' and left it at that.  Well it appears the return label was never printed and whilst the buyer received his refund he has flatly refused to return my item on the grounds that I didn't generate  the return label?  He said I can pick it up from his place 460 return miles from my home!  I offered to send him the postal cost and requested his bank details but he has, despite doing this three times,  failed to reply to me!! He is a totally unreasonable person and it appears, a thief!! 

In view of my an others experience of this eBay trap, eBay should make it QUITE CLEAR what happens when AFTER you have clicked on "Return and Refund" so you can correct this action if necessary, currently  it is somewhat confusing. 

I have reported the buyer to eBay twice now, explained what has happened. I have NO idea if they wil take action in my favour or not as their  very short reply really gives me NO confidence at all!!  I've managed to find a phone number for the UK and will, if it's a live number? call them next week to discuss this appalling situation in the hope that SOMETHING tangible can happen in my favour!!  I'm not hold my breath though!!

[tressygirl]

Was this the return of one of the  last 2 items you recently sold?  Both were heavy items , when a return label is generated it's fit only for a 2 kg item, and here the buyer would need to contact eBay Customer Services for the correct label,  and that charge would be passed onto your account.

Something has gone awry here if there was no tracking to show a return,  and a refund was made.

Do contact eBay Customer Service they have full access to your account and should see the item was not returned as per MBG rules, but a refund somehow was made.

Not sure about the phone number for eBay UK you've found,  because there isn't one that works,  their main line of communicaton is through a Live Chat and sometimes there's a Call Back to select.

Being a Sunday , lines open a little later today at 9 a.m.   I strongly suggest to call very first thing when the lines open at 9 a.m. as there's more chance of Dublin answering.

Good luck hope you get it resolved in your favour.

To Contact Customer Services, I find the quickest way to contact them, either for a Live Chat, or you can select to speak and request a Call Back, to click on this link:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/eua?id=5275&mkevt=1&mkpid

On weekdays lines open between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m.

On weekends they open between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.

[madprofessor49]

I sold a sat nav unit that unbeknown to me was faulty.

I issued a full refund to the buyer within an hour of his message to say the item wasn't as described.

At no point during my decision to refund my buyer did any ebay prompts or messages during the refund process appear to say that you should not refund the until the item has been returned from the buyer, using the ebay generated returns label. This label is charged to the seller, which I appreciate. But ebay did NOT prompt any procedure for issuing a refund, how to do it or how the refund procedure works or any time line or order of doing things.

This isn't good enough Ebay.

Now I'm seemingly out of pocket for my item and an my postage to the buyer, as I offered fre postage on my sale.

Sellers beware.

I'm now at my wits end with selling through ebay.

The profit margin for the seller is nearly nothing on low value items after the chunk they deduct and the if they are not gong to advise on selling and refunding during the process, then what is the point.

I think I will now sell any future items on other internet outlets.

[myriad*seller]

If you refund before the buyer opens a case, they are told by eBay that they do not have to return the item

This is why the buyer has not returned the item, eBay told them they didn't need to

If you want your items back you need to make the buyer open a case and return the item BEFORE you refund 

[madprofessor49]

It's a pity that this is not explained earlier.
This is the first time I have had to issue a refund.
The refund screen should NOT be made available to the seller until the best
procedure is made clear to the seller by Ebay and be advised NOT to make a
refund until the buyer has opened a case.
I stand by my original message, that this is NOT explained during the
refund process.
Does this mean that all sellers who refund for the first time get caught
out by lack of information from Ebay until they learn their lesson by trial
and error ?

[myriad*seller]

Probably.

Always use the Money Back Guarantee to ensure you get your item back

You will have to pay for return postage, but this is better than not getting your item returned

[*vyolla*]

---

@madprofessor49 wrote:

Does this mean that all sellers who refund for the first time get caught
out by lack of information from Ebay until they learn their lesson by trial
and error ?

---

It does if they don't bother to read the eBay guidance page on handling returns before clicking on buttons:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/selling/managing-returns-refunds/handling-return-requests?id=4115

With respect, common sense should kick in here - you can't turn up at M&S and tell them that the coat you've bought is faulty and they, in turn, issue a refund without first getting their item back to examine it.

[madprofessor49]

Thanks for the replies.

Maybe Ebay should ditch the name and call the site " Give Your Items Away
for Freebay "

I'll go and put some ointment on my burnt fingers.

I've resolved not to sell on Ebay again now.

Thanks again.

[the-nutwood-collection]

Have you offered to send - or sent - a return label?

[dch2112011]

It is not compulsory to channel all returns and refunds through the MBG returns system, it depends on the situation, the trust and rapport between buyer and seller and what suits the situation best for both seller and buyer.

What we find best is to try and resolve any returns very quickly without resorting to cases which count against the seller metrics.

Direct contact from buyer -

we ask for photo of damage  explaining we may be able to claim from carrier or manufacturer without the need to return

 Photo received -  access damaged item for resale value - if value is unviable to resell profitably offer full and immediate refund or replacement with upgraded delivery (to minimise time customer is without useable item) No return of damaged item required  - ask customer to dispose /keep damaged item

If we want the item returned we can send a return label and bag  to return either independantly or follow through the ebay return system leaving it for the buyer to decide -

If  buyer chooses independant return the refund is made on activation of the tracking code on the return label - this incentivises the buyer to return quickly, buyers love not having to wait.

Before anyone posts - yes it is a risk that someone sends an empty bag back but as you have the buyers address, contact details etc it is a risk we take  and if it is through the MBG you quite possibly will have to refund anyway 

Quick easy, stress free and a happy customer and no ebay involvement or metrics penalty.

Occasionally the photos show a deliberate damaged item (abuse / misuse) which we can deny and if the customer chooses to follow the MBG return we can inspect closely on return and then make a decision on the level of refund - 

This happens very occasionally  and only when it is an obvious attempt to pull the wool over your eyes

i