AP Extra Cover Lesson

[tastek]

eBay item number: 143604835528

I, the seller, was bullied into making a full refund for one of two fragile crystal glasses (adequately packaged but broken in transit) with false assertions from the buyer that the AP claim was the seller's responsibility.  The buyer refused to follow the AP claim process for compensation and disposed of the evidence and packaging after getting his refund.

REASONING - Being my first breakage (a newbie) after sending over 80 fine crystal pieces Australia wide (all with extra cover), getting repeated eBay "Return requests" for this item, with no suitable options (Accept return/Full Refund/Partial refund/Message buyer)  to settle the case, exhaustive messaging with the buyer, my eagerness to retain my 100% feedback rating and the fact I am still holding a AP receipt which reads inter alia "Extra Cover - Article Value $300.00 ... You need to retain this invoice in order to make an extra claim", I relented and gave the buyer a full refund.

To top it off, I received my first negative feedback for a throw away comment in my final message to the buyer after learning of his actions, voiding any possible claim. Further, I can't leave negative feedback for the buyer who misled me. eBay would be nothing without sellers, is this what I pay my 13.5%  (final value fee on item + postage) for? Where are the seller protections?

The lesson is: 
NEVER, NEVER, EVER GIVE A REFUND TO A BUYER FOR A BREAKAGE IN TRANSIT, WHERE YOU HAVE EXTRA COVER WITH AP (Its the Buyer's responsibility to claim compensation from AP)

[tastek]

Thank you for your helpful reply, you have nailed it, there is no incentive for a buyer to enter a claim's process with AP when they already have eBay's "Money Back Guarantee".  The AP claim process may be long (i don't know) and have a strong likelihood of rejection. It follows, that the SELLER, of any valuable article (fragile or not) on eBay, that is packaged properly,  sent with AP including extra cover and is damaged in transit, HAS NO PROTECTION. So why ever purchase AP extra cover again?

[jellybirddesigns]

I guess there is a choice to be made. You have had a successful run of over 80 transactions with 1 issue. You can either continue in the same way, knowing that 99% of your items will not have a problem, OR you can stop sending fragile items and make them pickup only.

You can, however,  mark this loss down on your taxes.

[tastek]

Thank you for your helpful reply, I have spent too much time on this already but I may follow your advice and contact AP, although as you will have read on AP's website, the onus is on the recipient (buyer) to claim for a damaged item and the sender (seller) to claim for a lost item.

[jellybirddesigns]

Definitely worth it to contact them tomorrow. They are really busy though and may take a day to get back to you, but you have nothing to lose.

I think that once you explain that you have no protection because the buyer has already been automatically refunded and refusing to co-operate further, then hopefully they will understand your predicament.

[tastek]

I have sold over 80 glasses in less than ten transactions, not all on eBay. The market for hand made crystal in Australia is small and I doubt "pickup only" in regional Tasmania would succeed. I am not in business, I am just selling my mother's collection. Thank you for your input.

[jellybirddesigns]

Understood.

Let us know what AP says!

Oh, and put that buyer on your blocked list.

[gutterpunkz05]

The AP claim process is totally irrelevant to the buyer, as you are responsible for ensuring the item is  received in the condition as listed.   Your responsibility to the buyer does not end with handing the item to AP.

[sugar249]

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@gutterpunkz05 wrote:

The AP claim process is totally irrelevant to the buyer, as you are responsible for ensuring the item is  received in the condition as listed.   Your responsibility to the buyer does not end with handing the item to AP.

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Exactly,  and it is interesting that the OP still blames the buyer for receiving the broken item.   But I guess it is easier to deflect blame to everyone but themselves for shody packaging.

[e_purchasing]

Firstly , why did you give a refund? As with all states, there is a provision in their respective goods acts that state in basic terms that if delivery is by carrier (ie Aust Post) then goods are deemed delivered when you hand it to the carrier. Here is the provision for Tassie

https://www.legislation.tas.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-1896-014#GS37@EN

It is also a term in  Aust Post agreement that where damage has occurred in transit, the addressee (ie  receiver) is required to lodge a compensation claim.

As long as you genuinely packed the item for reasonable handling and transport, there are no other ifs or buts.

Let me also say that even if your buyer escalated the matter and EBAY gave them a refund, you could take eBay to fair trading citing the same legislation. Ebay is not entitled to refund from your pocket regardless of what they state in their user agreement as eBay's terms do not override legislation. Ebay can give a refund out of eBay's pocket , but not yours.

[e_purchasing]

One  extra note, don't waste your money on extra cover , unless the value is $200 or more (as Auspost has $100+post cost as standard cover), you are better off to double box glassware for extra protection that cannot be disputed