"We're reviewing the buyer's return" - what gives?

[retroman303]

I received my first return request yesterday morning.

I accepted the return and sent a label to the buyer through eBay (through gritted teeth - not happy at paying £3.25 to have a DVD that I sold for £10.99 returned to me, if indeed I receive the same item back).

This afternoon I received an email from eBay stating:

"We're stepping in to help resolve this return.

Hi [Seller],

We appreciate you trying to work things out with the buyer. They've asked us to step in and help resolve their return request, so we're going to take a look at the details of the case and decide what the next steps should be.

You can expect an update from us within 48 hours. There's nothing you need to do right now, but if you have questions, you can contact us. Thanks for your understanding."

I don't get this at all. I accepted the return and issued the label yesterday morning, the very same day I was notified of the return request. How, then, can the buyer escalate the case and ask eBay to step in? At this stage, I can do nothing more than what I did yesterday morning, so what is there for eBay to step in regarding? The next step in the process is up to the buyer - to use the label provided to return the item to me in order to get their refund (and they have until 25th November to return it - why such a long time?).

Is this normal (despite not really making any sense), and am I worrying over nothing?

The buyer did not respond to my polite request to know what the issue was (they had opened a INAD case, but submitted no further (optional) information). Now, with this latest email, it seems that they are determined to make things as awkward and difficult for me as possible, despite my accepting the request (while still firmly believing that I had described the item accurately).

This email from eBay has me worried that some kind of defect could be applied to my account, despite my fully complying with the return request, and not presenting any kind of barrier, objection or challenge. As mentioned before, I did politely ask the buyer if they could state what the problem was, but I figured that they were unlikely to reply, and I knew that I would have to accept the request regardless (or lose the sale proceeds and the item), so shortly after that I just went ahead and accepted it, and issued the buyer with their return label. I have the email from yesterday confirming that I had accepted the return.

I know that a buyer can ask eBay to step in if the seller has not responded or issued a label within four (?) days of the request, but that is not the case here.

Any insight into what's going on (particularly with reference to the buyer being able to ask eBay to step in despite my actions) would be much appreciated. Thanks.

[maarsy]

i have had about 3 or 4 cases in the last year where the buyer starts or talks about INAD  while in the old days i gave in and refunded without returning the item ( as is often as costly as just refunding ) i got on wise its a scam and trick to get the item for free . if they ask to step in when you offered to take it back it rather feels like they had hoped that you would just give them a refund .

only a few weeks ago a buyer talked to me for 3 days / some 10  messages about a part that did not work as soon as i said to send it back there was no more issue .

[4_bathrooms]

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@retroman303 wrote:

I don't get this at all. I accepted the return and issued the label yesterday morning, the very same day I was notified of the return request. How, then, can the buyer escalate the case and ask eBay to step in?

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The "Ask eBay to step in" link appears once a return label has been provided or following the third day after the case was opened. I believe this is in order for the buyer to report a label that cannot be used - i.e. the label isn't suitable for the size/weight of the package - or the carrier refused to accept the item due it being something like a lithium battery being sent in isolation.

What specific reason did the buyer select for the item not being as described? This will be something like "Doesn't match description or photos", "Doesn't seem authentic", "Wrong item sent" etc.

[retroman303]

Update: eBay has funded the refund themselves, and I have the case outcome shown in the screenshot.

Presumably, this means that I won't have the £3.25 for the return label deducted from my balance (or will receive a refund if already taken - which it doesn't appear to have been).

I'm relieved at the outcome, but still have no real idea what happened for eBay to decide that I was not liable. I had considered the possibility of the package getting damaged in transit, then remembered that it was sent with custom postage, not Simple Delivery.

[retroman303]

Thanks for your reply.

In this case the buyer didn't start talking about anything - they went straight for the jugular and opened a return request. No communication whatsoever.

What I'm struggling to understand is why eBay even has the mechanism for the buyer to ask eBay to step in when the seller has already taken all actions necessary to facilitate a return (and has done so within four days of the request being opened) - surely, that mechanism should only be available after the four days have elapsed (and the seller has not issued a return label or responded in any way to the case).

[4_bathrooms]

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@retroman303 wrote:

In this case the buyer didn't start talking about anything - they went straight for the jugular and opened a return request. No communication whatsoever.

When a buyer opens a return request they have to select a reason for doing so; this reason is given in the first message you received about the case. 

In the now closed case there should be a link at the very bottom-right that states "Return details". If you click that link a pop-up will appear with a "Return reason" label; the reason selected by the buyer will be below this.

[retroman303]

Always a relief to see your username here!

I was having trouble trying to buy a label through Royal Mail (a separate issue), so I decided to keep it simple (albeit more expensive) and selected the option to have eBay send the buyer a label. I know that these eBay labels are not always suitable for the item to be returned, but in this case the item was a DVD, sent Large Letter, up to 250g, so I imagine that a label costing £3.25 would have covered the return of this item.

The specific reason given was 'Does not match description or photos'.

One might argue that this is all academic and redundant now that eBay has decided in my favour and refunded the buyer out of their own pocket, but I'm naturally curious, and would like to know - as far as possible - what has happened. At the very least, it might be useful for future occasions.

[retroman303]

@4_bathrooms

As you may have realized, the post you quoted from in your post #6 was in reply to post #2 by 'maarsy'; I answered your question in post #7.

The specific return reason was 'Doesn't match description or photos'. Beneath this it says ' Comment: item not as described'.

[4_bathrooms]

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@retroman303 wrote:

@4_bathrooms

The specific return reason was 'Doesn't match description or photos'. Beneath this it says ' Comment: item not as described'.

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The buyer is normally required to upload at least one photo when they choose an INAD reason; were there no photos uploaded? The photo(s) should be underneath the "Comments" section.

[retroman303]

I've attached a screenshot of the return details in full (with some info which I don't think anyone needs removed).

The photo of the DVD is the one I used on my listing (identifiable straightaway due to the rather unique background). I don't know if this photo is 'from' eBay (i.e. they supply the image as part of the case details), or whether it was uploaded by the buyer, but even if it is the latter, the photo is not one that was actually taken by the buyer.

[retroman303]

Aaargh, using a library computer, and it's all going pear-shaped!

Will supply the screenshots when at home on a familiar computer!

[retroman303]

@4_bathrooms 

What a palaver! Sorry about that.

Just remembered that only one attachment per post is allowed, so...

The attached image ('1') is the 'This return is now a case' page, with the 'Return details' link in the bottom right corner that you had previously referred to. The photo shown is the one I took and used on the listing.

There are two more posts with attachments to come, so you may wish to wait until I've done them before responding further, to avoid the confusion caused by overlapping posts!

[retroman303]

@4_bathrooms

Attached image '2' shows the 'Here's the case outcome' page which appears after clicking the blue 'View case details' button.

[retroman303]

@4_bathrooms

And, finally, image '3' attached shows the pop-up that appears after clicking the 'Return details' link in the bottom right corner.

In all cases, the photo displayed is the one I took and used on the listing.

I've looked everywhere I can think of, but can see no section where there is a photo under a comment.

[retroman303]

"In the now closed case..."

I'm not convinced that the case actually is closed yet.

All the indications are that it is, but I have had no email or notification informing me that the case has been closed, nor is there any such message to this effect on the pages or the pop-up that I've posted screenshots of; indeed, the most recent 'event' given on the pop-up is "The buyer opened a case".

I guess I need to put this down to eBay's customary sloppiness, and get on with my evening, but it's frustrating trying to work out what has happened with this sale.

At least neither I nor the buyer leave empty-handed. They have a free DVD, and I retain the funds from the sale (and have another addition to the BBL).

[Edit: On the 'Here's the case outcome' page, it does say '6 Nov The case was resolved', so I was wrong when I stated that none of the messaging indicated that the case was now closed. And there cannot even be an outcome if the case was still open, so...

But I do wish that there was greater consistency between the different pages I've viewed. And I would have expected to receive an email informing me of the outcome by now. There is no outcome message in my Outlook inbox or in My eBay Messages.]

[*vyolla*]

My money's on that buyer opening too many returns without providing a good reason, and that's why eBay have ensured that you've not lost out there.

[4_bathrooms]

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@retroman303 wrote:

@4_bathrooms

And, finally, image '3' attached shows the pop-up that appears after clicking the 'Return details' link in the bottom right corner.

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That pop-up is where any buyer-uploaded photos would have appeared; it seems eBay have removed the requirement for at least one photo to be uploaded to an INAD case. Well, it seems you'll never know what the buyer's issue was or if there was indeed an issue at all.

[vinylscot]

There must have been some sort of red flag for eBay to jump in early, or to allow the buyer to do so.

Perhaps the buyer has a habit of raising these cases, and eBay has become involved to let them know that it has been noticed. Perhaps eBay made the refund in this case, but have warned the buyer about his future behaviour.

I would imagine it's something along these lines, but due to privacy issues, eBay can't tell you that. They need to severely limit the amount of information they provide. You can then surmise the rest.

As an aside, I presume you have added the buyer to your blocked list?

[retroman303]

Thank you for all the replies.

I know that a return case is hardly a novel thing in the world of eBay - quite the opposite - but something about this one seemed odd (I don't have any previous return cases to compare with, but I've read about plenty of cases on the boards), specifically the fact that I got the email (about eBay being asked by the buyer to step in) so soon after accepting the return and issuing the return label.

Whether this case was anomalous or not, I'm grateful for the responses on what is a pretty low-level matter (although it didn't feel like that when I first got the return request email!).

@*vyolla* - It could well be that, although if so, it's a bit disappointing that the buyer still got their money back (albeit from eBay, not me). But who knows, perhaps their account will now be under closer scrutiny. I'm glad that eBay had my back on this occasion.

@4_bathrooms - Perhaps. I've just initiated a return myself, and had to provide photos, but I selected 'Item damaged' as the return reason (since I suspect that the damage to the item occurred in transit), not 'Item didn't match description'. The requirement to upload at least one photo was present when I recently  initiated a return with the latter reason, so if eBay have removed that requirement, then it must be a fairly recent change.

Like you say, I'll probably never know what happened. I do love a mystery - but only if it gets solved!

@vinylscot - What you suggest seems likely in the absence of anything concrete. I acknowledge your point about eBay needing to keep any info they provide to a minimum. I still think that they should, at the very least, send me an email confirming the case outcome, and to let me know that they will not now be taking £3.25 from me for the return label (or that I will get a refund of this if already taken).

Oh yes, they're definitely on my BBL - I added them before I even accepted the case!