eBay returns - how do I get their decision reversed??

[chabra.aus]

Hi,

Apologies in advance if this turns into a rant but I am steaming mad at the moment!!

A customer (feedback score of 2, so v inexperienced) purchased a hammock from my eBay store.  The listing states every single dimension that a buyer could need - fabric size, total hammock length including ropes, width of spreader bars etc.

She bought it to go on a hammock stand (that she purchased elsewhere), but it doesn't fit.  She emailed me and asked for a refund, to which I told her that we don't refund on a 'change on mind' basis.  She tells me that she didnt change her mind, the hammock just doesn't fit her stand.  To which I told her that she should have measured it before purchasing.  If she had had a little patience, I probably would have made an exception and refunded her if she sent it back - at her expense.

Anyway, now she has opened an ebay dispute which they have 'investigated very thoroughly' (!!), and found that the item description was indeed incorrect!!!  WHAT THE..??

So now, I have to pay HER return postage AND original postage, plus the cost of the hammock because she CANNOT MEASURE!!,

Oh, and if I don't send her an return address label, she just gets to keep it together with her refund.

Why does eBay allow us to write in our listings 'BUYER PAYS FOR RETURN POSTAGE' if they are going to override it??

I run 3 eBay stores, with thousands of positive feedbacks, yet this newbie chump gets to walk all over me.

Where do I go from here?  How do I get this decision reversed?  I'm seriously considering closing my eBay stores because theres no point, and absolutely no back up for the seller from eBay.  They might want to remember where they make their money from.  I can only imagine that the returns issues are going to get worse and worse for the sellers.

Thanks for listening!!

Chabra.aus.

[lyndal1838]

---

@am*3 wrote:

In that scenario at least the seller isn't out of pocket. 

If buyers put in excessive claims that will be noticed by Ebay. I think the buyer gets told when they are getting a discretionary refund, rather than an (ebay forced) seller refund.

---

That's true am*3 but it does not give any sort of message to the buyer except that if they make a fuss they will get their money back even if it is their fault in the first place.

The way I read the OP the buyer has already been refunded so they will never know if the seller is also given their money back.

[transport-posters]

Sorry this has happened, Chabra.  I hope you can get it sorted out soon.  I've read so many postings on this discussion form along the same problems as you are having.  I have been touched by this stupid new system too but thankfully it seems the buyer can't be bothered seeing it through.

The system is making us buyers stress out and waste a lot of time dealing with this stuff and it's starting to get depressing.  Many buyers are starting to leave this place in disgust.

I've made several suggestions to eBay over the years, with repeated requests to separate South America from North America for international postage because there's several dollars' difference, but they simply don't listen or care.

[saarzi]

I had the exact same thing happen and posted an almost exact same rant a few days ago 🙂

Ebay told me they will not remove the feedback.

Ive just had another return for item not as described, that states something that WAS described very clearly in the listing, so as soon as ebay **bleep**s that one up too, ill call them and wont let it down until they remove both of them.

Threaten them with the ACCC, as this is not a fair business policy. You made a legally fair sale, and Ebay does not have a legal right to force you to refund the buyer. Tell them that and threaten them with the ACCC if they try to.

Demand to speak to a supervisor (and keep demanding it and calling until they do), get names / times / dates of your phone calls and ask if they record phone calls - request that they do.

[go-tazz]

---

@ausbargainbasement wrote:

Actually they dont have the refund yet , Paypal removes it from your account and puts somewhere else, untill the dispute is sorted

---

Short term money market could make them a bit of extra cash.

So is this policy another attempted money grab?

[fubu-4021]

I hear you

Same thing happed to me, you may as well put your finger where it fits and whistle dixie for all ebay care.

Screw the Aussie Seller is ebays moto, there is always more Chinese Sellers to fill the gap

[cq_tech]

I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but this simply can't be allowed to continue. Every seller who is being unfairly affected by eBay's ridiculous MBG should sit down and write an official complaint to the ACCC and the Dept of Fair Trading, and once they start getting a few hundred complaints piling up on somebody's desk, they might just decide get off their backsides and do something constructive about it. What eBay is doing is illegal in every sense but until the ACCC and others have been made aware of what is going on, they will continue to illegally prevent sellers from recovering their own valuable property.

[chabra.aus]

Thanks for your support everyone, I'm clearly not the only one who has had this type of issue and I was all set to go to the ACCC with this, which is a great idea that I hadn't thought of. 

But, I'm really happy to report that I have just received an email from eBay to say that they have decided in MY favour 🙂

This is excellent news because I knew that my product description was 100% correct and that the buyer was at fault in this case. - it shows that it's possible to get the right result from eBay in the end.

This does still worry me for the future because I honestly think that we are going to get more and more of these cases which are stressful, costly and time consuming.  A lot of my items are shipped by courier which incur shipping costs up to $200 so to have issues like this with some of the bigger ticket items is not something we can just roll with. 

Keep on fighting the good fight people 🙂

Chabra.aus

[clarry100]

Ahhh! Very good outcome. Good onya for persistence.

Had you mentioned to them that if this case was not found in your favour you would pursue outside assistance from the ACCC?

[chabra.aus]

No, I was going to throw the ACCC into the mix in my next communication with eBay, but didn't need to in the end.

[twyngwyn]

---

@clarry100 wrote:

There are similar stoopid policies in both ebay and paypal.

I had a case just recently where a buyer raised an unauthorised use case against us with paypal. Not a bank chargeback case.

PayPal put a hold on all her transactions that had occurred at around that time, including mine.

When I got the notice from paypal I contacted the buyer with a please explain question.

She responded quickly and very friendly to apologise and to say that she had made a mistake and that there was no unauthorised use after all.

She said she had contacted paypal but the hold on my money remained. So I contacted paypal myself about it.

Their first question was tell us your tracking number.

I said there is none as we use regular mail, but that this is not the issue the buyer has received her item and has acknowledged that.

But because I could not provide a tracking number they were unable to close the case in my favour.

So they had to close it NO FAULT.

Now this means I got my money (only $4.00) released but the buyer was also issued a refund of the $4.00.

I contacted the buyer with this info and she was gob-smacked. And re-iterated that this was not the issue. And it had nothing to do with my transaction at all.

She called paypal again and they said this case was finalised.

According to the buyer the other sellers apparaently were treated in the same way as me.

So each seller got their money back (as did we) and the buyer was given a refund in each and every case as well.

Not a bad way to get multiple items for free.

---

Hi Clarry...I, too am involved in this same mess with the same buyer as you....but unlike you, they have reversed the payment to me as I couldn't supply tracking....so I am now in dispute with Paypal once again...it's never-ending! I have cut/pasted her response, telling me the funds would 'be released' and forwarded to Paypal....I hold little hope 😞