MBG Found a better price

[rocket2retro]

Just got done over by a buyer who opened a return request for 'found a better price'.

It was opened before they'd even received my item and they did not need to provide any proof that they had found a cheaper priced item (even Officeworks etc 'beat any price' promo require a receipt).

I know for a fact that there aren't any cheaper replacements available in Australiia (I import the item that I sold).

Of course I had to refund the buyer for the original postage & the brand new tough bag

So basically I'm out of pocket and I've spent time packing, responding, etc to the request. I'm losing about $15.00 an hour on this transaction and my 15YO daughter is now earning $25.00 and hour more than me! 

You'd think at least in this scenario the buyer would have to incur any costs to the seller.

I was hitherto under the illusion that I sell on eBay to make a small profit on the things that I sell...

[pennyforum14]

This is not what I was given to understand when I discussed the MBG with the CS rep who sends me all those nice emails about how they can help me improve my listings.  It is also not what I read in the MBG guidelines eBay posted when they were about to introduce the MBG, which is what prompted me to ask the CS rep about it. The guidleines stated that sellers must accept returns for INAD or faults, but said that it is up to the individual seller whether they accept change of mind returns or not.  They "encouraged" sellers to do so as a customer service, but it was not compulsory.  I was advised that the MBG only promises that the buyer will get what they purchased and as described, it only covers change of ind returns if the seller's policy accepts them.  Furthermore, if the return does not fall within the sellers return policy, (time period, unused etc) but fits the MBG T&C, eBay would fund the return.

[pennyforum14]

This is from the info page for the MBG,   Buyer's remorse is not covered.  Finding the item at a cheaper price and wanting to cancel/return the item so you can take advantage of that is Buyer's remorse.

What's covered

Most transactions on eBay.com.au are covered by the eBay Money Back Guarantee.

Not covered

Buyer's remorse Any reason besides not receiving the item or receiving an item not as described in the listing (see the seller's return policy for return options) Items damaged during pick-up or postage Items not delivered when the buyer arranges pick-up or delivery of the item (for instance, the buyer arranges freight) Duplicate claims through other resolution methods Click & Collect items that weren't collected by the buyer Local pickup items that weren't collected by the buyer Items sent to another address after original delivery Vehicles, Real Estate, Websites & Business for Sale, Classified Ads and services, Tickets, Digital Goods and Intangibles, Gift Cards

Covered

Purchases are covered by eBay Money Back Guarantee when: An item isn't received or it isn't significantly as described in the listing. A buyer reports that they didn't receive an item or requests a return within the eBay Money Back Guarantee timelines. The buyer made the purchase on eBay.com.au via checkout or an eBay invoice with one of the following payment methods: PayPal transactions made from a verified PayPal account Credit/debit card transactions processed through the seller's internet merchant account Paymate

[rocket2retro]

Thank you all for the advice. Perhaps I did not have to accept the return after all. I know now to look further into it next time. The whole system sucks.

You need a law degree to understand the complications.

Even to fight it (over a relarively small amount of money) requires so much time speaking to eBay customer service etc that you can't win either way.

[digital*ghost]

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@pennyforum14 wrote:

This is not what I was given to understand when I discussed the MBG with the CS rep who sends me all those nice emails about how they can help me improve my listings.  It is also not what I read in the MBG guidelines eBay posted when they were about to introduce the MBG, which is what prompted me to ask the CS rep about it. 

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CS reps, and eBay for that matter, and correct (or at the very least, consistent) information is almost a contradiction in terms, unfortunately.

You may not find the policy I'm referring to under the MBG guidelines, but you will find it here:

http://pages.ebay.com.au/help/sell/return-policy.html

C&P

What rules apply to returns?
Your returns policy on eBay	Returns Accepted: A buyer can return an item for any reason, even if they change their mind about a purchase. You can specify return requirements (for example, returning an item within a certain timeframe and meeting item condition requirements) for situations where a buyer has changed their mind or chosen the wrong item.	Returns Not Accepted: You don't accept returns because a buyer has changed their mind or chosen the wrong item.

[digital*ghost]

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@pennyforum14 wrote:

This is from the info page for the MBG,   Buyer's remorse is not covered.  Finding the item at a cheaper price and wanting to cancel/return the item so you can take advantage of that is Buyer's remorse.

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Buyer's remorse isn't strictly covered, because a seller can say "no returns", but it's like any other physical shop - the second a shop puts up a sign that says "returns accepted for any reason" which is what accepting returns on eBay means, that business is then legally obliged to honour that.

COM requests can still be escalated and a refund forced by eBay, because the seller is offering a refund (that is the important part), and the buyer could return it and then get nothing (voluntarily) from the seller.