Was just about to send the same!

It was the seller and Ebay who suggested I refuse delivery...not my idea. I'm screwed either way: If sent it back by refusal, it takes up to 3 months, is free of cost or I send it back at my cost and pay the postage outbound and return which will mean the total postage will probably come to more than original cost for the item and postage so in effect, no actual refund.

As for the guarantee.....Ebay have already voided it by extending the due date to 14th March because the seller sent it eventually, even though the claim was for a refund not a 'replacement'.

Wait until you receive the item. It might be what you wanted or it might not. If not, open an item 'not as described' case.

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@id43564 wrote:

I think this comes down to two questions.

1. Does the seller have to abide by a claim for a refund for item not received and does sending the item void the claim for a refund or does it still stand?

2. Where there is a claim for a refund for item not received and the seller ignores making the refund and sends anyway (especially where they lied and never sent the item in the first place), can Ebay disregard their own item not received guarantee and extend the due date if the seller has sent the item after the claim for a refund for item not received by the original due date?

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1. I would think it comes down to what ebay rules on this and in your case, it seems as if ebay has given the seller extra time for the package to arrive.

In my opinion, if you opened a claim and there was no tracking number in the system at that time, you should have been given a refund, but obviously that seller has hightailed down to a post office, as you say, then got online to provide a tracking number in his reply. Very annoying.

But I am not ebay & ebay has given them an extension.

Had there been no tracking number provided at all, I think ebay would have awarded you the claim and the seller would have had no choice but to abide by that.

I suspect that your claim is still open, it has not been voided as such. If the seller's item is not there by the extnded date (14 March) then you should be able to finalise your claim. If it arrives before then, then yes, I think your claim is void in ebay's eyes.

2. It would seem so, wouldn't it! As someone said, so much on ebay is automated these days. I would think the system just took into account the tracking number without looking too closely at the exact time or date it was generated. In any case, the seller has been given an extension..

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Whatever you do, do not  just return the item to sender or refuse to pick up from PO.

You'll likely lose everything, money plus the items. It will be deemed your fault you didn't get them. Remember, the official date now is the 14th as far as ebay is concerned. Ebay isn't considering the earlier dates.

So take possession of those items, examine them carefully. Slightest deviation from the ad and you can open a different claim-for item not as described, faulty, whatever. You'd be likely to win that one!

Thanks for your reply which shows good sense.

Things have moved on since yesterday.

Now that the item has arrived and the original case closed, Ebay is insisting that because the original due date was missed, that the seller needs to provide a full refund plus the return postage in advance.

You are correct that the AI probably didn't take into account the original untracked issue or that the actual tracked posting happened after the claim was received by the seller.

Nevertheless the item had to arrive for it to be returned, hence the extended due date so that the claim was put on hold until then.

Judging by the reaction I got from the agent who explained all this and arranged for this to get sorted, the agent was furious with the seller and this matter is going to have repercussions for him having been reported to Trust and Security.

It's right that sellers like this don't keep getting away with gaming the system because it creates so much hassle for everyone.   It's going to cost him a lot of money for postage both ways so hopefully he will never do this again to anyone else.

Wow, I must admit, I didn't see that coming.

I assumed that if the item arrived, ebay would be happy with that outcome and deem it as problem solved.

You are right, the seller will learn a lesson if he has to provide return postage and full refund.

What is baffling me is why any seller would do all this. If the seller was prepared to dash to a post office and send it once you opened a claim, then why not send it earlier, on time, and avoid the problem?

The only conclusion I can come to, and it's a bit of a worrying one, is that the seller is playing Russian roulette, in that maybe many buyers complain to him but don't know enough to actually open a claim in time, so the seller gets away with keeping the item plus the money. But if a buyer opens a claim, he immediately sends the item in the hope he can stay under the ebay radar?

It would be a risky game to play though.

Either way Ebay are going to go back and review all his past transactions and reviews to see if there is a pattern.

If this sort of behaviour started to catch on because sellers found that they could get away with it, Ebay would become a no go zone for many buyers.

The total cost of the postage both ways which he has to pay, is about $180 AUD (about 90 Pounds) so it was a gamble which backfired badly for him.

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@id43564 wrote:

Either way Ebay are going to go back and review all his past transactions and reviews to see if there is a pattern.

If this sort of behaviour started to catch on because sellers found that they could get away with it, Ebay would become a no go zone for many buyers.

The total cost of the postage both ways which he has to pay, is about $180 AUD (about 90 Pounds) so it was a gamble which backfired badly for him.

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I hope you receive a refund.

There is no way that eBay can force the seller to provide return postage.

Much of what you were told was to placate you & get you off the phone.

Is there a current case open?