Damaged item returned at my expense now how do I get eBay to get my refund after 6 days?

[6684susan]

Hoping someone here can help or advise me please. I could write a short essay on this situation, so I'll try to keep it as brief as possible, hopefully you will read between the lines as to how frustrating and stressful this situation has been.

i recently purchased a timber jewellery box for a gift which arrived damaged and with a missing foot.

I contacted the seller immediately, took photos with the original packaging etc, clearly showing the damaged base and asked her for a full refund. No response.

Eventually, I sent her a message saying how disappointed I was at her lack of response and that I had lodged a claim with eBay/Paypal for a refund.

She replied saying she never received anything from me (even though it is clearly in the return folder, photos and all) it wasn't her fault, Australia Post obviously damaged it and I since I didn't request insurance, too bad. But, I could try and claim from them. I replied that the packaging was NOT in fact damaged and the foot was actually missing, so Aust Post couldn't be responsible. I was polite telling her I had no idea what had happened, but at the end of the day, this was not what I purchased and I simply wanted a refund. 

Long story short, many frustrating messages later, telling. Me what a fantastic seller she is, she agreed to a refund when I returned it. Okay, here's the naivety of me now, I paid $20.50 postage to return it to her, registered mail and enclosed it in her original packaging. She received it last Thursday. I sent her a message asking for my refund. She replied that she was told by eBay she did not have to refund me unless and until Aust Post compensate her! I told her this was completely unfair and she had mislead me, even though I showed good faith sending it back so promptly and at my expense! 

In hindsight, I believe she was trying to provoke me as she started ending her messages stating, please don't email me about my character. I replied that I didn't need to say anything about her character as her action spoke for itself. Next thing I get a "courtesy" email from eBay basically telling me she had complained and I should work with her in a polite and professional way! *sighs oh, and if Aust Post are responsible, the seller is NOT held liable by eBay. **bleep**? 

So, now I'm out of pocket for the original item, postage and return postage - do I have any rights here as the buyer at all? 

Thanks for any help here.

Susan 

[6684susan]

This was the solution thanks.

calling eBay and having them close the case and get my refund was painless in the end.

sadly though, they were unable to get my money back for paying for return postage ($20.50) so, lesson learned there. So, this ebay seller got her item back at my expense and not even so much as an apology offered 😕

I beleive she deserves negative feedback, in order to warn other potential buyers, but am unsure of what to say. Any suggestions would be appreciated. 

Thanks.

[justkidzbiz]

If you ever need to return an Item Not as Descridbe/Damaged etc you can always use PayPal to lodge the claim, then if you pay the return postage you can claim it back via PayPal.

[6684susan]

Thanks for your response, I did first go through Paypal when I opened the parcel and found the damage, but they won't let you lodge through them when purchased via eBay. This is the message when you open the payment section:

Need help?
If you have problems with an eBay transaction or want help settling a dispute with an eBay seller, go to the eBay Resolution Centre. You should attempt to resolve issues directly with the seller whenever possible.

Perhaps they've changed the rules now? 

[lyndal1838]

If you have opened a dispute in paypal your cannot now open a dispute in ebay.....but you can do it the other way around.  If an ebay dispute fails you can then go through paypal.

If you have already cancelled the paypal dispute you now have no way of getting your money back.

If not cancelled just continue with the paypal dispute.

[6684susan]

I received a refund via eBay resolution system after the seller failed to follow through and refund me after receiving the item back. 

Hiwever, the lady from eBay told me they had no way of getting a refund for my return postage costs. She said that I should not have sent it back at my expense.

But, as the seller had assured me she would refund me in total when she got it back, and I was hoping for a quick refund and no further problems, I took her at her word. Sadly, not how it turned out, my mistake.

[black*poppy]

Just for future reference, you have to agree a specific dollar amount with the seller prior to returning it (if they won't provide a label). Then if the seller won't pay up, eBay will reimburse you for that agreed amount. I'm not sure if they bill the seller or pay out from their own coffers.

You could try getting reimbursed by PayPal. They have a scheme where they will pay the return postage for up to 4 purchases a year, but I think you might have had to be opted in before the transaction. You also need receipts and evidence that the postage was for sending back to that seller.

[6684susan]

Thanks for that info...I'll look into the Paypal option. I actually paid my postage through Click and Send via PayPal.