Buyer saying item not received

[shelley19710_1]

I sold an item on the 8th August.  The buyer paid and left positive feedback as to the items arrival and condition.  Now nearly 3 months later they have raised a dispute that the item has not arrived and they want a refund.

I no longer have the tracking details as I got rid of them when I received positive feedback.  

Please help.  

[rusticrye]

The buyer has 30 days from the delivery estimate on the order in which to open a case on Ebay that they can escalate. After that timeframe, opening a case is for communication with the seller only - it can't be escalated to Ebay.

Tell the buyer that they left positive feedback on x date, and that they must be mixing you up with another seller they've bought from more recently. It happens. That is all you can do. The case will auto-close in your favour after 30 days. (Note that if the buyer had opened the case in time, his feedback left would be of no interest to Ebay, as feedback can be left in error.)

The buyer could go on to open a PayPal case. PayPal allow 180 days from purchase date, but that is generally for international orders, which can take months to arrive. So if this is a UK to UK transaction, PayPal are likely to wonder why it's taken the buyer this long to realise his order hasn't arrived, and may therefore find against him. It's impossible to know for sure, though.

In future, keep all your POPs for 13 months. Unauthorised Account Use claims can be made for up to 13 months because many people only receive their bank and card statements annually. A POP proving dispatch to the address on the PayPal payment confirmation email is the only thing that will be accepted. Without it, you would lose your money, and be charged a hefty admin fee into the bargain.

@shelley19710_1 

[ruby*tuesday]

They can't claim through the EBay Money Back Guarantee. Has to be within 30 days of Delivery. They can Claim through PayPal, they have 180 days.

You should always keep your Proof of Postage for at least 13 Months. Buyers can Claim Unauthorised Use though their Bank up to 12 months later.

You will only have to Refund here if your Buyer has opened a PayPal Case.

[red_magpie]

I no longer have the tracking details as I got rid of them when I received positive feedback.

You won't do that again!

You obviously didn't realise that PayPal gives buyers up to 180 days - that's six months! - to claim that an item didn't arrive.

Just think about it. If you sell an item today, the buyer leave it until May 2021, and then claim not to have received it. If you couldn't provide a tracking number to prove delivery, you would have to refund them.

So keep thise postal receipts in future!

[john1297576]

If you had tracking why didn't you mark it on Ebay?

That is all you need the number, no one will ask to see the piece of paper except Royal Mail if you were claiming but if tracking shows as delivered you can't claim.

If buyer realises and opens a Paypal case, unless you provide the tracking then you will have no choice but to refund.

You could politely point out to the buyer that they left feedback, they may have made a mistake with the item they have not received.