return and refund possible scam

[wolfe.rache]

Hello 

I recently sold a pair of Tiffany pearl earrings, they were dispatched with royal mail and arrived safely.

The buyer then contacts me and says the size is inaccurate, and wants to return them as she has another identical pair and they dont match and she wants a spare. Sends me a photo of two pearl earrings different sizes. I do not argue with the seller and ask her to return them. I had said on the listing no returns and know my earrings size is listed correctly. 

Now i am concerned everything about this seems off, there is no one at Ebay to advise and this feels like a scam. Concerned i am not getting my original pearl earrings back and also feel railroaded into a return and had my time wasted. I try really hard to always insure my buyers are happy and have good feedback. Just feel very nervy about this and angry there is no one at Ebay to help.

Any advice greatly appreciated 

[rusticrye]

Ebay have no idea what you actually sent, or what condition it was in when sent, as they were not present when sent or received, so have no choice but to accept a buyer's word for it when they claim Not As Described, as per their Money Back Guarantee.  They cannot get into disputes between you and a buyer.  Only a judge can decide if a buyer is a liar or scammer.

You agreed to comply with the MBG when you registered your account. If you dig your heels in and refuse to offer refund on return, Ebay will either force you to pay for a returns label, or they will force the refund without the need for return. You will also have a damaging defect slapped on your account for failing to comply.

This may sound unfair, but it's the fairest it can possibly be.  The MBG is a very good thing (although you may not think that at present) as it gives buyers the confidence to shop with you and every other Ebay seller.  Without it, you'd be lucky to sell anything at all. In fact, without it, Ebay would no longer exist.

You will have to refund on receipt, and then report the buyer to Ebay for abusing the MBG by fraudulently claiming Not As Described (via the 'report' button on your ‘leave feedback’ page) if that is indeed what they have done. A few of those from different sellers, and their account will soon be toast. And add their Ebay ID and PayPal email address to your Blocked Bidders List so they can’t darken your doorway again.

If you get back something other than you sent, and/or want to recoup the return postage costs, you can deal with the buyer outside of Ebay as follows:

Send them a PayPal invoice to cover your losses, giving them 3 days to send cleared payment or you will be taking legal action and reporting them to Action Fraud (the police's online fraud unit).

If payment is not received within that timeframe, send them a 'before action' letter by Signed For post, giving them 7 days from receipt to make full and cleared payment, or you will report them to Action Fraud, and take them to Small Claims court to recover your money and all court and other costs.

If payment is still not received (unlikely, as this is generally enough to put the fear of god into small-time fraudsters), take them to Small Claims court if you wish.  Very easy to do, and the process can be started online.

@wolfe.rache 

[john1297576]

" I had said on the listing no returns" but have you ever read what it says beside this.

No returns cannot over rule the Not As Described Case, and if that is what the buyer claims you have no choice. As explained, ebay never sees what is sent or received back, so really has no choice but to accept the buyers word. Goes back to the innocent days when the "Buyer is always right" was the accepted attitude.

Appealing is unlikely to change anything, and it certainly would not get your money back.

It would help in my opinion if the correct method of postage was used, 2nd Class Signed For is only for items up to £50. Items over £50 and GOOD Jewellery should always be Special Delivery . 

Buyers who set out to con sellers see anything that shows lack of knowledge of correct methods as a sign of an easy target, I am afraid.

[red_magpie]

Any advice greatly appreciated

If this turns out to be a fraud, the bad news is that another seller in a similar position recently told us that eBay's response was: "As we didn't see the original item that you sent to the buyer and we didn't we see the item the buyer returned to you, we are not in a position to take sides in these situations and verify who has the valid complaint".

Don't be surprised if eBay's idea of not taking sides is to require you to refund the buyer. As eBay is unregulated there is no right to any independent appeal.

Good luck, anyway. If it does turn out to be a scam by the buyer, it will help if you would kindly let us know the outcome, as this helps us to advise other sellers.

[wolfe.rache]

Thanks Red Magpie
I will update if I can, everything is screaming at me this feels 'weird' I suppose I have been spoilt and always had decent buyers not really encountered this before.
Wish me luck and if this is dubious I will post and try to alert the community.

[tara*teller]

You'll have to get them back and hope that they are the ones that you sold as no amount of arguing with eBay will change that.

If the returned items are not the items you sent then appeal to eBay then.

eBay cases are pretty much automated and there's no choice, doesn't always seem fair but it's the way it is i'm afraid.

[wolfe.rache]

Thanks Tara Teller
All feels a bit off, just hope it all works out