Reclaim PayPal fees - Collection only item - buyer wants refund as they are too far away to collect.

[knobbly]

Reclaim PayPal fees - Collection only item - buyer wants refund as they are too far away to collect.

I listed an immersion tank on eBay, big item so made it 'Local Pickup only. cash on collection'

The buyer, paid using PayPal (he did this after I messaged him to remind local collection only and cash on collection). He is around 180 miles away and decided it's too far to drive, and no longer wants it. If I refund him then I lose PayPal fees and eBay FVF. 

Is there anyway of reclaiming these?

Many thanks

[**peaseblossom**]

You can cancel via More Actions, right of the item on your sold list > Cancel order > Something wrong with buyer's address (as it's too far away).   Then you should get the ebay fee back but Paypal no longer refund their fee so no way of getting that back.

[roger_roger_over_and_nowt]

If a buyer pays by Paypal and the deal falls through you don't get the Paypal fee's back,it all changed a while back.

To cancel the sale properly you have to do it via a cabcellation request from the buyer to get your seller fee's back.

If you refund through Paypal you don't get your fee's back and you gain a defect,

On the buyers purchase history page there is a drop down to the far right of eaxh item bought.

One of the options is "send cancellation request".They have to send that request from their end.

[knobbly]

Thanks for you answer.

That means that the buyer messes up and the seller loses out?

[red_magpie]

This is a good example of how difficult it is for sellers to recover any loss from a transaction, compared to how easy it is for buyers.

The irony is that you're not even required to refund the buyer. PayPal's buyer protection specifically excludes items sold for collection, and eBay's money back guarantee excludes cases where the buyer fails to collect.

In commonsense terms, you should simply be able to refund the buyer, less any costs and fees incurred in selling it. However, if you accept a cancellation request eBay will not allow you to refund anything less than the pull price paid. You will get a credit for your selling fee, but PayPal's fees are non-refundable.

Neither can you simply send the buyer a Paypal refund, less costs, even if they agree to this. You wouldn't get any return of fees from eBay and, much worse, eBay is liable to treat it as a seller-initiated cancellation and place a damaging defect on your account.

Unfair or not, in practice there isn't much that the sellers can do in this situation, except send the buyer a cancellation request and stand the loss.

In your position I would message the buyer to point out that your PayPal fees for the sale are non-returnable, and the buyer may wish to send you a family and friends Paypal payment to cover this.

[rusticrye]

Because Ebay sellers can't prevent buyers from paying with PayPal for collection items (leaving them wide open to Unauthorised Account Use claims that can't be contested without proof of posting), and PayPal no longer refund any part of their payment processing fee (not surprisingly, as they did after all process the payment, and then have to process it for a second time), listing for collection on Ebay simply isn't viable.  I suggest you list on Gumtree, Ebay's sister site, where you'll have full control over how you're paid (which should be cash or bank transfer only). Plus, you can leave the ad running till someone has actually turned up, paid, and taken the item away. 

If you're still within 32 days of purchase, cancel the Ebay transaction ('problem with buyer's address'). That will auto-refund the timewaster in full, and credit the selling fee back to your Ebay account.   And add his Ebay ID to your Blocked Bidders List so he can't mess you around again.

@knobbly 

[tsmgmd]

PayPal items excluded on there buyer protection.

These are the purchases PayPal Buyer Protection doesn't cover.

Real estate.

Motorised vehicles and industrial machinery.

Custom-made goods that are significantly not as described.

Stored value items such as gift cards and pre-paid cards.

Items that violate our policies.

Anything bought in person (not over the internet).

Send Money transactions to friends or family.

Disputes filed more than 180 days after the purchase for item not received and significantly not as described claims.

Items that have sustained normal wear and tear and items that were described accurately by the seller.

Now it could be argued regarding bought in person..The sale and payment were made via eBay..So the item was BOUGHT over the Internet.  The fact the item was collected by the purchaser shoul be irrelevant..PayPal wording is BOUGHT IN PERSON.

[fargvs]

For info:- Using this Collection in Person listing method, the Buyer is prompted to make contact as below >>

You can contact your seller to arrange to pay for and collect your item.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/buying/postage-delivery/changing-delivery-address-method/collection-pers...

[john1297576]

While you can't refuse Paypal, you should always put in the Description of a Collection Item "Payment in Cash on Collection preferred".

Then if buyer not happy you cancel the sale "buyers request" and get ebay fee refunded. No paypal fees involved and at least you are not out of pocket. Paypal fees have not been refundable for some time now.

[knobbly]

Thanks, I get that. I put in the description "Collection only, Cash on collection"
But the buyer ignored both, so I pay for their error?