Buyer wants refund - 'item not as described'

[stylelookbook]

Hi all,

I've encountered a problem with a recent buyer and thought I'd come on the boards for some advice.

This buyer purchased an authentic branded belt from me after many negotiations of prices, and saying that she seems to have seen some marks (which I cleaned and showed her afterwards), she eventually agreed and purchased the item.

When she received the item however, she sent a message which had some very random accusations:

1. I sold a skinny belt - she claimed that the 'skinny' was not mentioned nor described - but it was clearly shown in both the title and the description. She also got back to my response in  a later message claiming that I deceived people of the way I had photographed my images, and that I made the belt look thicker than it is from the way I have placed it on a box when taking my photos.

I had kindly asked her as to why she hadn't asked all questions before she made the decision to purchase - seeing she had gone out of her way to bargain for an item that is barely worn and was already listed at a very valuable price for the condition it was in.

2. She claimed the belt was not in a near-new condition (as I have described) because apparently the leather of the belt is so soggy already and the area around the holes are bent - this is definitely not true. I asked her to provide photos, and she claimed that she also found scratches on the leather and so on.

HOWEVER, when looking at the photos she sent, it matched her claims as I can see from the pictures, but the key point is - it definitely isn't in the same condition when I packaged and sent it. I had all members of my family check over the belt - it was fine.

Now she wants a partial refund or a full refund because - she thinks that it was not worth what she paid for - she claimed that she only spent around $400-$500 on a brand new one purchased at a boutique - which I doubt.

The nagging thought is - even if I had agreed to a refund and she had send back the belt - it would not be in its original condition and I'm afraid I can't even resell it again, as I can tell from the latest photos she sent. I'm very disappointed as to how this turned out, I had a bad feeling when she kept wanting to negotiate, but I'd thought since she had finally agreed and purchased the item, it has to be fine.

Any advice is extremely welcome, thank you for reading.

[happylouie08]

hi, its a hard one. in this situation it does not matter if your in the right. in the old days i would have said fight for what you think is right, but now if you can not sort out buyer issues by yourself, and the buyer gets ebay involved, it can affect your account negatively, ive learnt the hard way. if you want to sell on ebay, the deal is, if a buyer wants a refund. just refund them. don't wait for them to get ebay involved, as it can affect your detailed seller percentage. i feel for your situation, but on ebay buyer is KING. good luck

---

@stylelookbook wrote:

Hi all,

I've encountered a problem with a recent buyer and thought I'd come on the boards for some advice.

This buyer purchased an authentic branded belt from me after many negotiations of prices, and saying that she seems to have seen some marks (which I cleaned and showed her afterwards), she eventually agreed and purchased the item.

When she received the item however, she sent a message which had some very random accusations:

1. I sold a skinny belt - she claimed that the 'skinny' was not mentioned nor described - but it was clearly shown in both the title and the description. She also got back to my response in  a later message claiming that I deceived people of the way I had photographed my images, and that I made the belt look thicker than it is from the way I have placed it on a box when taking my photos.

I had kindly asked her as to why she hadn't asked all questions before she made the decision to purchase - seeing she had gone out of her way to bargain for an item that is barely worn and was already listed at a very valuable price for the condition it was in.

2. She claimed the belt was not in a near-new condition (as I have described) because apparently the leather of the belt is so soggy already and the area around the holes are bent - this is definitely not true. I asked her to provide photos, and she claimed that she also found scratches on the leather and so on.

HOWEVER, when looking at the photos she sent, it matched her claims as I can see from the pictures, but the key point is - it definitely isn't in the same condition when I packaged and sent it. I had all members of my family check over the belt - it was fine.

Now she wants a partial refund or a full refund because - she thinks that it was not worth what she paid for - she claimed that she only spent around $400-$500 on a brand new one purchased at a boutique - which I doubt.

The nagging thought is - even if I had agreed to a refund and she had send back the belt - it would not be in its original condition and I'm afraid I can't even resell it again, as I can tell from the latest photos she sent. I'm very disappointed as to how this turned out, I had a bad feeling when she kept wanting to negotiate, but I'd thought since she had finally agreed and purchased the item, it has to be fine.

Any advice is extremely welcome, thank you for reading.

---

[phorum_junkie*]

 if you want to sell on ebay, the deal is, if a buyer wants a refund. just refund them. don't wait for them to get ebay involved, as it can affect your detailed seller percentage.

So sellers should just roll over and be shafted without even trying to do anything abour what they think is a scam? Surely that just encourages buyers to keep on scamming. If I am sure a buyer is pulling a swifty then I will call their bluff every time. It hasn't happened often but I have only once not 'won' and nothing affected my ability to sell.