Buyer received refund then he acknowledged item had been delivered.

[halthemag]

Item was tracked with signature  but Australia Post couldn't find it. After 21 days the buyer asked for a refund. I paid the refund then two days later Australia Post said the item was delivered.  I asked the buyer if he had received the parcel and he said he had. I've asked him to please pay for it,  but have had no response.

This is almost $1,000.

What are my options?

[Anonymous]

Depending on the payment method, if the payment was through PayPal, contact them.
If the payment was through a credit card, contact your bank to see if the refund has cleared yet.

If the refund has already cleared, you can take it to court.  Make sure you have all supporting documentation to show that the buyer has acknowledged that they have received the parcel but have not repaid the money 

[halthemag]

Thanks for your help.  As ebay/paypal are no help to sellers, only buyers, I have considered court as an option.

[jpkmba4880]

Hi

I would go and give australia post a real kicking, their service stinks if you are not in one of the 3 main cities.

Waiting 3 weeks is a fair call, if auspost can't do the job in a reasonable published time we all need to find someone else but be warned, startrack and fastways are no better,  and some out of country conman are using freight forwarders to apear to be local (in australia)   and they can take months to deliver making buyers very nervous 

ive fallen into the same trap, send and deliver on time as you have  stated 

[jellybirddesigns]

Did the buyer open a case, or did you just refund upon request?

If they had opened a case, you would have had at least 4 days before it could be escalated.

You can write to them and tell them that you are considering small claims court for redress.

Was the item sold on another account - there's nothing in your sold history of that value.

[countessalmirena · Accepted solution]

Message through eBay to the buyer:

Dear [buyer name]

In reference to the [item name], item number [xxxx], for which you received a full refund from us as you'd reported not receiving it and Australia Post could not locate the parcel at the time, we subsequently received notification from Australia Post (2 days later, on xx/xx/xx) that the parcel was successfully delivered to you.

Australia Post records show that you signed for the parcel. You confirmed in subsequent conversation [message received xx/xx/xx] that you in fact received the item.

Please pay the outstanding full amount of $xxxx.xx within 7 days, or return the item to us by trackable post in the condition in which it was sent. We would appreciate your contacting us within 48 hours to confirm your preferred option.

We remind you that you are not entitled to keep both the item and the refund given in good faith.

A certified letter will be sent to you with this information; please ignore the letter if when you receive it you have already resolved this issue as outlined.

Yours sincerely,

[your name]

You should include the methods by which you can be paid, including repaying through PayPal, paying by credit card, etc.

Then prepare a letter with roughly the same wording to send by certified mail tomorrow morning, but you may wish to reword it as follows:

Dear [buyer name]

Ref: transaction number [xxx], refund ref. number [xxx], follow-up regarding payment

In reference to the [item name], item number [xxxx], for which you received a full refund from us (refund transaction no. xxxx) as you'd reported not receiving it and Australia Post could not locate the parcel at the time, we subsequently received notification from Australia Post (2 days later, on xx/xx/xx) that the parcel was successfully delivered to you.

Australia Post records show that you signed for the parcel. You confirmed in subsequent conversation (message received xx/xx/xx) that you in fact received the item.

Please pay the outstanding full amount of $xxxx.xx within 7 days, or return the item to us by trackable post in the condition in which it was sent. We would appreciate your contacting us within 48 hours to confirm your preferred option.

You can make your payment using PayPal [include the payment link] or by [etc.].

We remind you that you are not entitled to keep both the item and the refund given in good faith. Failure to return the refund (to pay for the item) may result in legal action being taken, including your being reported to the Australian Cyber Security Centre.

Yours sincerely,

[your name]

If the buyer doesn't co-operate within the next 3 days, I'd certainly be taking legal action. I would also not wait, but report the buyer to local police in order to get a case number, and to the Australian Cyber Security Centre using this link: https://www.cyber.gov.au/acsc/individuals-and-families/report-a-cybercrime.

Armed with that, you could report the buyer to eBay (https://www.ebay.com.au/help/selling/resolving-buyer-issues/report-issue-buyer?id=4084 - on the basis of misusing the MBG system).

Hopefully it won't get to that point. Just calmly set deadlines and offer reasonable options as shown in the exemplar I've included, keep your cool, and get that letter sent off tomorrow.

[twyngwyn]

How long have you been waiting for a response? How old is the transaction? What is the item number?

A police report number might help 😈

[domino-710]

Not sure the ACSC - would have much to do with this matter.

There has been no cyber attack.

I would firstly make a report to the police with supporting documentation.

Then using the Countess' outline for a letter - which is a ' letter of demand ' - ask for immediate payment.

[countessalmirena]

domino, the ACSC does include ❝Online shopping fraud❞, but you're right; this particular situation is probably best handled by reporting to the police using the non-emergency number.

Police Assistance Line (131 444)

[domino-710]

Probably best handled - over the counter.

They scan the documentation - and give a report number.

Go in person.