Unpaid items

[collect247]

Just wanted to know what others think?

I've had buyers that I had to open unpaid item cases on and with these buyers I have had some trouble with because I open the unpaid item case on them.

Some have tried it on saying the item isn't as described or it was damaged in transit and so on.

What I'm asking is do you think I should just wait until the buyer has eventually paid so hopefully eradicating any false claims or still keep opening cases?

It annoys me because ebay have this policy in place but on the other hand buyers are becoming angry that a case has opened against them.

[imastawka]

Can you make your items Immediate payment, or are they auctions?

[collect247]

It's happening on the auction listings and only when I open a case,I even allow an extra 2 days so giving the buyer 6 days to pay and they still get angry lol.

As we all know fees need to be paid so receiving payment would be great wouldn't it haha.

[digital*ghost]

My strategy may not work for all, but I personally wait at least 2 weeks before opening a UPI, often closer to 4 weeks because I don't stay on top of it all that much, but always make sure I don't run out of time to open them.

NPBs don't really affect me too much because they are not taking one-off items "off the shelf" so to speak, so there's no loss of sales, and the FVF charges are typically pretty low (particularly as a percentage of total fees I pay), so paying them to perhaps get a credit a couple of weeks later isn't an imposition. 

Of the buyers that don't pay immediately, about 80% pay anywhere from 3-14 days later, with a couple even making payment about 3 weeks after the purchase was made - in those cases I just ship ASAP as normal, there's been no other issues and i'd rather have the money than anything else. I don't send any reminders as eBay send one out after 2 days anyway, and that's enough for me. Occasionally people will message and ask to cancel before I've done anything, which I'm happy to do as that is preferable to anything else (aside from payment).

One of the reasons I leave it as long as I do is because at a certain point, it moves beyond defensiveness ("seller is impatient and threatening my eBay account") and into contrition ("oops, I fogot - sorry" - that is, because many buyers wear the "I've got 8 days to pay" thing as entitlement armour, that's the kind of timeframe you're most likely to come up against resistance, but very few buyers can blame a seller for reporting an item as unpaid 3 weeks after it was purchased, and if they tried, I feel I could mitigate any argument they had .....unless they were completely irrational ).

I have heard of buyers being miffed the seller didn't remind them, but I've never encountered one. In fact by the time I do open a case, most get closed without any contact from the buyer, a few will just pay, and a few will apologise profusely and ask to cancel, but if the case is already open I just say that the cancealltion process has already been initiated and they won't need to do anything further, as the transaction will be void after X date. 

[collect247]

I'll wait longer from now on and give them more time that's fair for the buyer and myself.

I know that there may be alot of factors as to why buyers pay when they do, and it's because I've been stung in the past that I'm just a tad paranoid about it lol.

[eol-products]

Sometimes i will send a polite message if they need more time or want to cancel before starting a UPI. No one responds and after 1-2 weeks will open one up. Funny thing is a day before it is to be cancelled 50% will pay.

[collect247]

That's true what you're saying.

I don't understand why buyers get angry or lie about the transaction when I open UID when I have every right to do so.

I've had to fight ebay on many occasions because ebay believes the buyers when they start lying lol.

There are many scammers out there and I try to protect myself at the highest level.

I have many repeat buyers and always hope they're the ones that win the auctions lol,it's when I get someone new that wins I hope it all goes well.

I do have BIN and auctions,auctions are really good for me apart from the 1% that try it on lol.

[eol-products]

Auctions bring out a different type of buyer and it makes it hard for sellers for whom they never intend on paying and buyers who have to bid against them. 

[countessalmirena]

I would expect each seller to have their own procedure in place, and it's good if a seller can and will decide on their procedures and policies based upon what works best for them, rather than upon an idea of how buyer behaviour ought to be.

Many sellers will (of course) use the tools eBay has given them for opening up Unpaid Item Disputes four days after the sale, and closing them four days after that. It still keeps items out of circulation for 8 days (which may already cause the seller quite a bit of disruption), and there may also be implications to re-listing the item if it was originally listed during a promotion period, etc. For those sellers, being unable to relist for 8 days is already an imposition, and I feel somewhat embarrassed that any buyer would feel justified in carrying on like a deprived toddler if the seller opened a UID.

... But it's not an ideal world, and human behaviour is not idealised... and people are very good at talking themselves out of responsibility.

That means sellers should expect the occasional rant and tantrum from a buyer who hasn't paid and has a case opened.

For sellers who can wait, incorporating it into the way they do business, there is obviously pay-off in a more relaxed approach.

It really comes down to sellers making decisions based upon their intimate knowledge of their own business, and upon how they prefer to handle life situations.

[purplemon18]

I haven't been getting that many UPIs lately, but I also have BIN. When I do have an unpaid item, I usually send them a payment reminder at least once and add this message to the bottom:

If you no longer wish to purchase this item, please follow these 4 steps so we can return the item to sale.

1. Go to Purchase history and find the order you want to cancel.
2. From the More actions dropdown, select Contact seller.
3. Choose Request to cancel this order, then Contact the seller.
4. Explain to the seller why you need to cancel, and select Send.

Please note that not paying for the order or failing to complete a cancellation request may result in an unpaid item strike. Many sellers place limits that prevent buyers who have unpaid item strikes from making a purchase.

I also have the automatic UPI system turned on. I haven't noticed any corelation between UPI and other problems, but I haven't been looking.