Won't send photos of damaged item

[heapsa_bargains]

Sold an item. Buyer claims it arrived damaged but will not send photos of item as says cannot attach to message & has asked for my email address (which I obviously cannot send). Do I just cut  my losses and refund, I don't know if its true or not (item is damaged) - have sent this item before several times without issue. Guessing I am going to wear the loss as its the buyers word against mine.

[lyndal1838]

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@yeoldecoinco wrote:

Try not to insult me, otherwise I might just insult you back.

In my experience, which is of nearly 20 years of online selling and slightly more than yours, it is usually the case.

Asking for photos generally annoys people.

If they say it is damaged and you ask for a photo, what are you saying? That they are a liar?

If they want to return it, they will, unless you don't have a return policy, in which case they might just get to keep it for nothing.

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How have I insulted you?

With all your stated experience you should be well aware of the scammers who will try to get a freebie by claiming damage without proof.

The only people who would be annoyed by being asked to provide proof of damage before getting a refund are those who are trying to get a freebie.

[digital*ghost]

Dang it - that's the second time I've clicked post before I've typed anything....

But, there are plenty of reasons to request photos of damage. I only have 5 solid years selling experience, which isn't as much as 20, but I still think it's long enough to determine the easiest way to go about things.

I ask for photos so that I can visually asses the item and determine the most efficient course of action, which means if the damage is bad enough, I won't even ask for the item to be returned and just refund or replace. That makes things easier for the buyer. 

Some sellers also have suppliers who require images of damage or faults so that the seller can receive credits for the items - getting that moving (without return, especially) is also helpful.

[yeoldecoinco]

"The only people who would be annoyed by being asked to provide proof of damage before getting a refund are those who are trying to get a freebie."

That may be what you think, but is has not been my experience.

ALL the people (and there have only been a few) in MY sales who have contacted me about damaged goods have been genuine. One can only go by their own experiences, I suppose.

I never asked for a photo, would not dream of it, they sent the item back, I replaced it, simple as that.

In EVERY case it was damaged by Australia Post, OR by me overlooking something in the packaging, which caused the damage to then occur in the mail.

Whilst I have been scammed a couple of times over other matters, no-one, so far has EVER said something was damaged in the post when it was not.

That is because, in my experience, so far, touchwood, most people are honest.

[oddsandendsoz]

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@davidc4430 wrote:

as a buyer if i recieved an item that was damaged i would photograph it as soon as id opened the package.

contact the seller alerting them to the problem including the photo or photos.

i did this just a few weeks ago, the item was new, sealed in original packing. seller promptly replied, sent me a replacement part.

great service, no arguments.

as a seller i'd expect photo evidence and if i recieved a complaint without a photo i'd be asking for a photo.

nothing to be annoyed about in a damaged item case from requesting a photo.

its a very common area of scamming that i'm sure 99% of buyers and sellers know about.

its not about trust or calling anyone liars. its about evidence, thats all.

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I could not agree more! Have had a couple of experiences receiving parcels that have been damaged and the first thing I have done is to take photographs and let the seller know (not on eBay BTW). One was obviously dropped as it was completely squashed on the corner, and luckily the bottle inside was undamaged. I took a photo at the PO just in case, and sent to the seller, not for compensation or a discount, but just to highlight that perhaps there was an improvement that could be made in the boxes they use?

And would agree with others sentiment, doing nothing and just accepting a buyers word is just being potentially complicit in fraud of other unsuspecting sellers. You can imagine there must be some 'buyers' out there who are creating a living out of this. Why make things easy for them.

[englishrosegardens]

As a seller, if you have photos of the damage you can also see whether you need to change the way you pack things, or whether it's worth making a claim through AP.

It doesn't apply to this buyer, but some buyers wouldn't have a camera to be able to take a picture of damaged goods.  If that applied to me I'd try and find a friend who had one, but that's not always easy if you live out of town and have to travel any distance to a friend's house.  Over ten years ago I had an ebay seller accuse me of lying because I didn't immediately supply them with a photo of some damage to a very poorly packed ornament, but I didn't have a digital camera back then and I certainly wasn't going to use up a roll of film and drive 50 kms each way to get it developed.

[englishrosegardens]

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@yeoldecoinco wrote:

"The only people who would be annoyed by being asked to provide proof of damage before getting a refund are those who are trying to get a freebie."

That may be what you think, but is has not been my experience.

ALL the people (and there have only been a few) in MY sales who have contacted me about damaged goods have been genuine. One can only go by their own experiences, I suppose.

I never asked for a photo, would not dream of it, they sent the item back, I replaced it, simple as that.

In EVERY case it was damaged by Australia Post, OR by me overlooking something in the packaging, which caused the damage to then occur in the mail.

Whilst I have been scammed a couple of times over other matters, no-one, so far has EVER said something was damaged in the post when it was not.

That is because, in my experience, so far, touchwood, most people are honest.

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How can you prove it was AP?  Some buyers would happily drop it while it's still in the box or stomp on it just to 'prove' it was damaged when it arrived if they'd changed their mind and decided they didn't want it after all.

[davidc4430]

in my case it was nobodys fault,

i had bought 3 oyster fluro lights 30watts

the lights were very well packed, in their own very good boxes then in a large carboard box.

when i opened them on recieving them one had a cracked plastic dome.

the seller would not have known unless he opened every box and removed them from the packaging.

a quick photo and a message to my seller, all sorted in quick time.

happy customer, no need for claims, refunds, sending back, how it should work

[rocket2retro]

Send a ph*to of your email in the attach phot* to message section.

[bsal6160]

why is it everyone first assumes the buyer is trying to scam?

[jellybirddesigns]

Probably because so many buyers do try scam sellers and look at Ebay as a way to shop for free. Just recently a buyer of mine put in a return request, but will not give me any information or let me know what is wrong with the item. Apparently she has sent it back, but for all I know I could be getting a used tea towel.