OT - I can't believe that PayPal allows this !!

[girli565]

**** UPDATE **** UPDATE *****
This has turned into quite a saga !! I just got this message via eBay:

Phil, Lets just forget my disappointment. I hope you send a brand new laptop in factory packaging. I will sign for the Laptop when it arrives. I will give it as a Christmas gift since I have 2 coming now. Happy Holidays and take care of yourself OK Rick D****
207-***-****

Now what do I do ??
Send it, hope hes not "bluffing" and hope he signs for it ?
Or refund his money based on his earlier messages that there was no way he'd accept it ?

Nah, refund and move on. Email him back and say that you will refund his money and will open a case in the resolution center to get your fees refunded. Tell him all he needs to do is accept the cancellation and everything is back to normal. I don't even think feedback can be left when that happens so negative feedback won't be an issue.

 

[Lewisc]

The problem is you think the buyer is evil, mean and was looking to screw you. I think you'd be happier giving him a refund and moving on.

My opinion. The buyer didn't realize your unit only had 2GB of RAM. You were partially responsible. The buyer said what he had to say to be in position to file a dispute, if necessary. The buyer is partially right. 2GB is obsolete for a laptop. That's why BB offered it as a Black Friday deal.

Are you calm? Would you rather have the money now? First find out when the unit can be delivered. Go to the website (FedX, UPS, whatever you want to use). Ship it Thursday and you'll probably have to ship it 2nd day air for delivery by Christmas. Then calmly call the buyer. Find out if the shipping schedule works, if someone will be home to sign for it and if he understands there is a possibility carrier delays might cause delivery after Christmas. If you're convinced there was mutual misunderstanding and the guy sounds OK go for it.

 

[6bowmans]

**** UPDATE **** UPDATE *****
This has turned into quite a saga !! I just got this message via eBay:

Phil, Lets just forget my disappointment. I hope you send a brand new laptop in factory packaging. I will sign for the Laptop when it arrives. I will give it as a Christmas gift since I have 2 coming now. Happy Holidays and take care of yourself OK Rick D****
207-***-****

Now what do I do ??
Send it, hope hes not "bluffing" and hope he signs for it ?
Or refund his money based on his earlier messages that there was no way he'd accept it ?

Intesting...

While you were busy being upset about an understandable mistake (for which the buyer gave you sufficient warning) and trying to decide how to best screw him, Rick decided to be the bigger person and accept the laptop.

Perhaps now you should do something better and call him to ascertain whether or not he really wants the laptop. If not, refund his money ASAP.

 

[PurpleDog]

I've refunded the gentleman his money.

End of story. Game over.

Thanks to everyone for your insight and opinions. I wish everyone a Happy Holiday season, and a healthy and prosperous 2013.

 

[EclecticWAHM]

One nugget of advice -- in all retail (to include e-commerce sites such as eBay) -- "The Customer is Always Right"...

Worst advice ever. The customer is NOT always right. The customer is often a moron.

 

[Lewisc]

He told me he was going to contact Visa and dispute the purchase within 18 hours of paying me. He's apparently not aware that while he may of used a Visa card to pay, the payment was processed by PayPal.

I'm quoting this in response to the next poster.

Worst advice ever. The customer is NOT always right. The customer is often a moron.

You should never tell the customer he's a moron or treat him like a moron. Customer is always right means you give him the benefit of any doubt. You make adjustments which might not be legally required.

Some ebay sellers who post don't know everything. I won't go so far as to call them morons. A buyer links his paypal account to a real credit card. He can file a paypal dispute. If he loses he can then file a dispute with his credit card company. He could file a credit card dispute first but I think he then loses the right to file a paypal dispute. You do have to wait for the charge to show up on your cc bill before you can start the dispute.

 

[sissy_ib]

.

 

[Lemonademouth]

I bought a tshirt off of eBay around this time last year. I still have not received it, and eBay and PayPal both dismissed my claim. I do not deal with ebay any more.

 

[nunzia]

What burns my rear is that I've spent 11 years earning a 995+ perfect rating. This guy just joined eBay - first purchase was from me - and yet eBay would take his side in a dispute.

There has been many many times since I joined eBay that I wished I had not made a purchase. But no, I played by the rules and paid for the item and then resold it ... sometimes at a $$ loss to myself.

Now I know all I have to do is make sure the purchase is paid for with my Amex through PayPal and I can just not accept it.

I still sell and have had idiot buyers from time to time. Just recently..sold a lot of watches AS IS..buyer left me a negative because some didn't work without even contacting me and even after I disputed it it is still there. I have almost 4K feedback and am a Power Seller..this guy had under 100. I also sold a Disney 100 Mickeys watch..the lady got it and said..eh..her son didn't want it so she was sending it back..just like that. No..sorry, can I return it? Just flat out stated it..Ebay doesn't list buyers remorse as a valid return reason. I told her I'd refund her money but that she might want to be sure about buying before hand in the future. Afterall, sellers are out original shipping cost since we must now refund that. OK..so the tin comes back with a small scratch on the top. Oh well.. Bad experience, but really, all you can do is just give them what they want and move on. Just like with retail stores..customers will scream and have fits and get what they want if it's right or not.

 

[DianeV]

For what its worth Phil, as a fellow ebay seller with over 8000 feedback I think you were screwed and that is the way with buyers anymore. Ebay has them so spoiled that they think ebay is like a regular store where if you dont like something when you receive it you can just send it back. Or if you win something and change your mind for whatever reason you can be let out of the sale.

Ebay has created this problem and its really pretty unfair to sellers who realize that their items were listed as an 'auction' where the buyer has the control over bidding or not and what they want to pay

It is the buyers responsibility to read a description fully before bidding on anything and to say that this seller was intentionally trying to deceive buyers because they didnt put the 2GB in the title just isnt right. As long as it is in the description and item specifics the buyer should be smart enough to see that and I am really surprised ebay or paypal would say they would refund a buyer who didnt read the description of an item

I hate when sellers feel they have to give into buyers like this because it only makes them worse for other sellers. The more they get away with the more they do but then again you have to think of yourself and getting screwed by ebay/paypal if they choose to accomodate a stupid buyer. Also evidently when a credit card is involved paypal/ebay dont want to deal with it because most times the credit card company is going to side with their customer

Sad but true how the new ebay is

 

[richmond282]

I still sell and have had idiot buyers from time to time. Just recently..sold a lot of watches AS IS..buyer left me a negative because some didn't work without even contacting me and even after I disputed it it is still there. I have almost 4K feedback and am a Power Seller..this guy had under 100. I also sold a Disney 100 Mickeys watch..the lady got it and said..eh..her son didn't want it so she was sending it back..just like that. No..sorry, can I return it? Just flat out stated it..Ebay doesn't list buyers remorse as a valid return reason. I told her I'd refund her money but that she might want to be sure about buying before hand in the future. Afterall, sellers are out original shipping cost since we must now refund that. OK..so the tin comes back with a small scratch on the top. Oh well.. Bad experience, but really, all you can do is just give them what they want and move on. Just like with retail stores..customers will scream and have fits and get what they want if it's right or not.

This is not accurate information. You do NOT have to refund original shipping costs for buyer's remorse.

 

[horseshowmom]

Okay - you are going beyond mean and being rude by posting their user name! That is against DIS policies and that is just NOT nice at ALL! SO WHAT if they purchased another laptop - at least it had the more RAM that they were concerned about! Sheesh. Just give them back their money, block them, and be done with it. Stewing over it is just making you more angry and is so unnecessary - you HAVE to give the money back anyway so why not do it and be done with it.

And you really should edit your last post to remove their user name - that is uncalled for.

I don't really understand why it's mean to post the user name of somebody who cost them a definite sale (the other poster was only $1 less than the winning bidder). The buyer was going to receive just what they bid on. When I purchase on ebay, I make sure I read everything because I consider it to be a contract when I purchase. I expect them to deliver what was listed - not what I "think" was listed. This is prime selling time - after Christmas not so much. (I do understand that it's apparently against Dis rules so it should be removed, but I still don't see it as being "mean and rude".)

I've refunded the gentleman his money.

End of story. Game over.

Thanks to everyone for your insight and opinions. I wish everyone a Happy Holiday season, and a healthy and prosperous 2013.

You did the right thing. There's no way I would continue to deal with this guy. All he had to do was open the laptop and claim it came that way. Ebay would have sided with them.

I once had a buyer buy a LOT of horse show items (two pairs of leather chaps and lots of show clothes). It was a BIG box and a significant amount of money. I got an email from the buyer after the package arrived telling me that the items smelled of cat urine and asking me what I could do about that?

I knew it was a lie, and they trying to get money out of me. I called UPS, talked to them, and then contacted the buyer to tell them that UPS wanted to set up a time to pick the items up since they were covered by insurance, and they didn't leave my house in that condition. I almost immediately got an email back saying not to worry about that, they would just wash everything, and they were sure it would be fine. Never heard from them again.

I seldom sell on ebay anymore because of how easy it is for the seller to come out on the short end.

 

[ellone]

I still sell and have had idiot buyers from time to time. Just recently..sold a lot of watches AS IS..buyer left me a negative because some didn't work without even contacting me and even after I disputed it it is still there. I have almost 4K feedback and am a Power Seller..this guy had under 100. I also sold a Disney 100 Mickeys watch..the lady got it and said..eh..her son didn't want it so she was sending it back..just like that. No..sorry, can I return it? Just flat out stated it..Ebay doesn't list buyers remorse as a valid return reason. I told her I'd refund her money but that she might want to be sure about buying before hand in the future. Afterall, sellers are out original shipping cost since we must now refund that. OK..so the tin comes back with a small scratch on the top. Oh well..

I think the holidays bring out more if the wacky bidders. Today I had a lady buy a cheap set of books pay for media mail and then message me and tell me to ship first class since its only a a few pennies more since she needs it for Christmas. There was priority as an option for $2 more but she didn't choose that. Oh and that I had to ship it out today.

Message her back within minutes and told her sorry the books weigh 15 ounces without packing material so they don't qualify for first class (max weight is 13 ounces). And that our mail pick up is once a day in the am so they would go out tomorrow. Of course I offered a refund & cancel transaction. Been a few hours and no response from her yet.

 

[PurpleDog]

I'd say that 99% of my sales have had no problems, but I guess it's that 1% that will drive you crazy huh ?

I have worked hard to maintain a perfect feedback 995 score. I've never had a negative or even a neutral. I always double and triple check that my listing is accurate. I also find that the more photos you include, the more likely you are to make the sale. And I always ship with a delivery confirmation number.

I guess before this all happened I was a naive seller that thought as long as I listed something accurately that I would always be protected by eBay and/or PayPal. When a PayPal rep told me that anyone who pays with a credit card can dispute that charge up to 90 days after the item was delivered I was shocked to say the least !!

I'd switch entirely to Craigslist, but CList seems to consist mainly of people that want to offer you a low ball price for whatever it is you have listed. However, there is something to be said for meeting someone at a local public place, showing them the item, and then being handed cash. =)

Horseshowmom's comment about what was listed vs what the seller "thinks" was listed is so so true ! You hit the nail on the head there.

 

[nunzia]

This is not accurate information. You do NOT have to refund original shipping costs for buyer's remorse.

I don't know where it says that..seems to me Ebay made a big deal awhile back of stating that the original shipping cost would be inluded in refunds (probably since so many jokers were selling items for $1 and charging $20 shipping). I do state that buyers must pay to return the item, but some have even screamed about that, so I cave...Buyers have all the power since they can give negatives while sellers cannot. Bad system, but they are really the only game in town for auctions. BTW..I never even SAW Buyers Remorse as a legit return reason..so if you can point me to that, I'd appreciate it.

 

[Lewisc]

So many errors posted by ebay sellers in this thread. So many cases where difference in interpretation is being used to basically call buyers stupid.

nunzia--Some sellers offer a refund for any reason, including "buyers remorse" Some not as described claims might be better categorized by others as "buyers remorse". You don't always have to refund shipping costs.

PurpleDog--You made some comment about your "buyer" not knowing what he was talking about when he said he would dispute the charge with VISA. He has 60 days from the statement date. Could be as many as 90 days. I agree his complaint is "buyers remorse". I agree with your decision to refund rather then go through the process of fighting it, and probably losing.

horseshowmom I'm not 100% sure but I think posting another persons ebay user name violates DIS rules. I don't think the OP is misstating any facts but the fact is the "buyer" isn't here giving his side.

Lemonademouth--Not sure why you lost your claim. Seller generally has to prove the items was delivered.

Ellone--Go to the PO and tell them you want to mail a 1lb package first class. You'll told you're being given a complimentary upgrade to priority mail. That's now part of the first class rate structure. At one point it was actually part of the first class rate charts. The higher weights just showed the priority mail rates. I think they stopped that when priority mail changed to distance based rates. A buyer isn't stupid just because they don't use the exact same terms you use, or even if they use some terms wrong. Your buyer was shortsighted in not paying for faster shipping. Not everyone knows, or believes, how slow media shipping can be. If you were able to ship it fast enough for Christmas delivery great. If not too bad. Buyer wasn't wrong for at least asking. Sometimes tone doesn't come across right in emails.

THIS IS NOT AN ATTACK ON ANY OF THE ABOVE POSTERS, but Sellers are quick to complain about buyers who don't know, or follow policy. Sellers aren't perfect.

AT LEAST WE'RE NOT hearing from sellers who don't understand why a buyer who doesn't buy insurance gets a refund if the item is lost in the mail.

 

[richmond282]

I don't know where it says that..seems to me Ebay made a big deal awhile back of stating that the original shipping cost would be inluded in refunds (probably since so many jokers were selling items for $1 and charging $20 shipping). I do state that buyers must pay to return the item, but some have even screamed about that, so I cave...Buyers have all the power since they can give negatives while sellers cannot. Bad system, but they are really the only game in town for auctions. BTW..I never even SAW Buyers Remorse as a legit return reason..so if you can point me to that, I'd appreciate it.

It is right there on the listing page. If you offer the 14 day refund option in your listing, there is a drop down that asks who will pay for the shipping. You can also add comments right there. It's why I quit offering free shipping b/c I couldn't figure out how to prove the cost in a refund situation w/o a buyer balking. I just type that the buyer will pay for return shipping. The entire purchase price less the original shipping cost will be refunded upon receipt of the item in the same condition it was sent. Easy Peasy. I know people who even charge a 20% restocking fee.

 

[bpesch]

I don't allow returns;

If you sell on Ebay and take PayPal, yes you do. Your terms may say you don't accept returns, but Ebay and PayPal policies trump any terms you set. And they say a buyer can return whether you like it or not.

 

[bpesch]

I don't even think feedback can be left when that happens so negative feedback won't be an issue.

Totally wrong. The only time feedback can not be left by a buyer is when they don't pay, have a UID filed against them, it is closed out with no payment and they get a strike from Ebay. Every single other situation, they can leave feedback.

 

[bpesch]

It is right there on the listing page. If you offer the 14 day refund option in your listing, there is a drop down that asks who will pay for the shipping.

That's return shipping not original shipping. It's under the return policy terms.