Ebay Stress Update Added

[joolz1910]

Well, I just got the verdict - paypal found in his favour. He has until 12th May to return the laptop to me. They obviously didn't ask him for any evidence of the alleged 'damage'.

I sort of expected it but now I'm worried on three counts:

1. He didn't appear to know anything about the laptop and had been trying to install an old operating system - possibly with the wrong discs - when the latest operating system had been freshly installed for him!!

2. What if he scams me and returns a shell or empty box?

3. What if he has tampered with it and wrecks it out of spite?

Please keep your fingers crossed that it works out ok!

 

[poppie123]

Well, I just got the verdict - paypal found in his favour. He has until 12th May to return the laptop to me. They obviously didn't ask him for any evidence of the alleged 'damage'.

I sort of expected it but now I'm worried on three counts:

1. He didn't appear to know anything about the laptop and had been trying to install an old operating system - possibly with the wrong discs - when the latest operating system had been freshly installed for him!!

2. What if he scams me and returns a shell or empty box?

3. What if he has tampered with it and wrecks it out of spite?

Please keep your fingers crossed that it works out ok!

I really do hope that it turns out ok and will keep my fingers crossed for you.
When the same sort of thing happened to my friend she insisted on opening the box in front of the postwoman, turned out her buyer had filled the box with newspaper and stones, you could always try that ask your postman/woman if they would witness you open it.

Having said that my friend never did get her money back (it wasn't as valuable as your item though, and i am not too sure if she pursued it)
Paypal are an absolute nightmare!!

 

[joolz1910]

Just got some advice from paypal that I would like to share, just in case anyone here finds themselves in a similar position.

When a buyer returns something to you, ensure that you open the item in front of a police officer ot Trading standards. That way you can get a witness statement if the box is empty or full of newspaper etc.

If the item has been damaged by the buyer, get an independent third party to provide a witness statement to support your appeal. Paypal will issue a refund to you and ask you to return the item to them.

 

[poppie123]

That must make you feel slightly better, i know it would me.

I would never have thought to take it into a police station to open it but it makes sense.

 

[joolz1910]

That must make you feel slightly better, i know it would me.

I would never have thought to take it into a police station to open it but it makes sense.

I'm so glad I rang them, as I was going to ask the postie to witness it!

I feel less stressed at the moment. The lady also said that many buyers keep the item because they don't want to pay the p&p. It cost me £21 to send it to him.

 

[Minniespal]

Just got some advice from paypal that I would like to share, just in case anyone here finds themselves in a similar position.

When a buyer returns something to you, ensure that you open the item in front of a police officer ot Trading standards. That way you can get a witness statement if the box is empty or full of newspaper etc.

If the item has been damaged by the buyer, get an independent third party to provide a witness statement to support your appeal. Paypal will issue a refund to you and ask you to return the item to them.

That sounds as though you might get a better outcome.

Keeping my fingers crossed for you.

 

[joolz1910]

Well, I felt more positive until I posted on the eBay forum. Apparently TS and the police will not get involved. I suppose you could empty the box and re-wrap it yourself, so they couldn't verify the contents.

 

[1andrea]

The buyer will have to send the item back by recorded delivery and provide evidence to Paypal that they have returned it and you are in receipt of the item and then Paypal will issue the refund, so if you refused to accept delivery then am I correct in thinking that Paypal would not issue the refund or is that just wishful thinking?

 

[joolz1910]

That's a good point. Trouble is, it's paypal who have got the money at the moment. Perhaps all they need is a signature to say it was refused.

 

[natalielongstaff]

this sounds like a nightmare !!!! i hope you get it resolved x

 

[joolz1910]

I wanted to say a big thank you to everyone for their help.

The seller had until 12th May to return the laptop to me. He didn't return it, so I was given the money back by Paypal. It looks like he was trying his luck all along. As a buyer, he had absolutely nothing to lose by going down this route.

I have learned a stressful lesson and I thought I'd share my new-found knowledge with you:

A buyer can start a dispute for 'item not received', 'not as described' or 'fake'. The most common is 'not as described'. It is best to offer a full refund to a buyer, as Paypal will almost always find in the buyer's favour and force the seller to refund the buyer on return of the item. The buyer must send the item back by trackable post at their own expense.

Paypal will accept proof of attempted delivery and refund automatically. They don't accept a postman as a witness to the contents of the parcel. If you refuse to sign, you will lose your money and the item.

If your buyer buys through paypal and uses a credit card, they can issue a chargeback to get their money back up until 45 days after the sale. Paypal issues a full refund to the buyer (you lose your money) for 'item not as described'.

If you lose money through paypal, it is best to contact the financial ombudsman to trigger an inquiry. This costs you nothing but they charge paypal £500 - so if your item is worth less than that, paypal will probably reimburse you.

Don't allow a buyer to pay for the item through paypal and then collect. They can appeal to paypal saying 'item not received' and they will get a refund as you cannot prove that you have delivered it. Apparently this is a common scam.

I will never sell another expensive item through eBay. I hope this might help someone out in the future!

 

[Cyrano]

Glad that you got through this Juilette. Sadly some jokers out there

 

[Pegasus928]

Pleased to hear that you won this round.
It is a shame that there are people out there that are more than willing to fleece those of us that are just trying to make a few quid selling our unwanted stuff.
Luckily we have never had any problems like this, and we do sell on ebay a lot, but it is good to see what you have learnt written down - so a huge thanks for taking the time to do this.

 

[natalielongstaff]

Im glad you won in the end

 

[tennisfan]

I'm glad its sorted now

 

[joolz1910]

Thanks guys! I had a look on eBay today and he has left me positive feedback - how weird is that? I wonder whether he had a crisis of conscience.

 

[Minniespal]

Glad you got it sorted out Juliette

 

[poppie123]

I'm so pleased you got it all sorted and it went in your favour

 

[Beep]

Glad you eventually got it sorted.

I wanted to add something for sellers. I recently bought an item from ebay and when it arrived there was a fault with it that the seller hadn't picked up on. It was a T-shirt with a couple of holes in the front.

I contacted her and she agreed to refund the money, including all postage, if I returned it to her. Once she had refunded the money, she then opened a dispute that I agreed to and she was credited her fees by ebay.

As long as you both agree to the dispute and the resolution the seller willget the fees back.