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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

CF eBay chancer: AIBU/WWYD?

356 replies

ZazuMoon · 04/06/2019 13:05

First time poster.

I sold a Dyson airwrap last week as unused (which it is, it was an unneeded gift). Buyer messaged the day after purchase asking when it was arriving despite me providing delivery information. I paid almost £30 for delivery to cover its insurance. The package was lost over the weekend due to an admitted fault by Parcel force. Buyer emailing all weekend chasing despite me reassuring that I'd spent 2-3 hours on the phone/going to the post office to chase. It arrived today, one day after the estimated delivery time. She is now claiming the item is used. I asked for photos and they are not of my hair and not the condition the item was sent in. I know this but I can't prove it to eBay. She wants £100 refund and has sent a string of nasty messages all morning. I have acknowledged to her that I accept that she is unhappy with the whole experience but that I felt this was too high. Privately, I feel that she is seeking compensation for the late delivery or trying her luck but I have no way of demonstrating this to eBay. I am heavily pregnant and whilst I would Ordinarily be disputing this, I am considering relenting. AIBU/WWYD?

OP posts:
DontCallMeShitley · 04/06/2019 13:51

Also contact live chat or phone Ebay, be very calm, friendly and patient as you sometimes have to explain very carefully due to them mostly not having English as first language. I usually find them a bit slow but very helpful.Ask them to read the messages in your Ebay messages.

Original poster
ZazuMoon · 04/06/2019 13:51

@Kenny wow I would never even have thought of that.

I'm going to ask her to return. Dreading her response.

OP posts:
Antigon · 04/06/2019 13:52

Hell would freeze before I'd let the cunt keep the hairdryer. I'd rather lose the money and swear off selling ever again rather than let her win.

Sindragosan · 04/06/2019 13:59

Call Ebay before she can and get in there first to complain about potential fraud and ask for advice. Hit and miss how helpful they are, but can and do side with sellers sometimes.

LiverpoolVictoria · 04/06/2019 14:00

I also sold a patio heater once, the buyer (local) got someone to come and pick it up (not her) took it home and the next day said it didn't work.
She opened a case and said she wanted 50% back.
I said no, that she can return the item for a full refund as it worked fine with me, and she then said she'd already got someone to repair it and needed it for a family BBQ she had planned that weekend so wouldn't.....but still wanted the 50% back?!

eBay did find in my favour that time as she refused to return it.

I would say to send it back, call her bluff.

Sparklybanana · 04/06/2019 14:09

It's a scam in all liklihood. Get her to return it. I'd pay for a return with tracking to your house. If ebay enforce return she could send a random item and change the address to random address in your town which will trigger a refund automatically as they only track 'delivered' not to the actual address. Keep phoning ebay and tell them youre being scammed. They will sound helpful but everything they say they won't do (like automatic refund) will happen anyway. You have to prove its a scam so organise it your end. I hope I'm wrong but this exact scam happened to my oh and his phone and it was a nightmare. I would never ever sell anything remotely expensive on ebay again as its too easy to get scammed. If anyone does sell - always check the reviews of the buyer and if its new and has lots of good reviews for low value items KEEP AWAY! it's a fake account. Especially if they ask you to send to a click and collect address. Not worth it.
Hopefully you'll get something back op but you really need to push ebay and prove she's a scammer otherwise they'll be on the buyers side.

Original poster
ZazuMoon · 04/06/2019 14:20

I have reported her to eBay. Not heard back from her yet.

Normally I would be all over fighting this kind of situation but with a difficult pregnancy I don't feel as inclined as usual! Thanks everyone for inspiring me to call her bluff.

OP posts:
awalkintheparka · 04/06/2019 14:20

Get her to send it back. You have proof it's brand new and it's now the principle. I would never sell an item that expensive on eBay unless collect in person. Too many CF out there! Get it sent and sell on Facebook or gumtree

Fluffycloudland77 · 04/06/2019 14:38

We sell everything buyer collect, cash only. People still buy it and I make them sign a receipt to say it’s as described and any future damage is not our fault.

Ariela · 04/06/2019 14:39

SOunds like she'll return a different, faulty one.
I'd pre-empt this and get on the phone to ebay and say you think you're being scammed and why.
If she does return it, make sure she knows you will be checking the serial number of the returned one vs the one you sent her (even though you might not actually have this information) AND you want all the original packaging.

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 04/06/2019 14:42

You could totally call her bluff and say the item is marked with Smart Water (don't say where - it could be on the item/packaging/label) for fraud detection and could she ensure it's returned exactly as sent in the original packaging.

That sounds a very good idea. In fact, in future, if you don't want to be technically lying, they sell a brand of mineral water called Smart Water, so you could always buy a bottle of that for 65p and dab a little bit on each of the next 500 items you sell Grin

I thought similar to Kenny. An honest seller will think that the buyer must have 'doctored' the item that they bought and received from them before taking exaggerated photos - or even just used Photoshop. However, somebody buying a hoover from you probably isn't buying the very first hoover they've ever owned. What's to stop them from buying a new replacement from you for their old same/similar model that's broken or worn out and then passing off the old duff one as if it were the one you'd sent them and claimed was a new one? Or, finding an old one in a skip or charity shop and pulling the same scam?

I hear it's quite a common scam pulled against people selling expensive designer goods. Instead of claiming that the genuine item you sent never arrived (you have tracking and a signature) or that it arrived damaged (OK, return it for a full refund, then), they simply buy a similar-looking knock-off one from the market and claim that that's the one you fraudulently sent. They get their money back, 'return' the fake one and end up getting to keep a very expensive handbag for the few quid they paid for the counterfeit. Actually, they probably then sell on the genuine one that they stole from you for its true value and hope that their buyer doesn't try the same scam on them....

NotFuckingCis · 04/06/2019 14:43

Hi, I've sold a lot on ebay but stopped about a year ago over something similar. Ebay is terrible for sellers because you can't leave negative feedback on the buyer and the second a case is opened they put your money on hold. I ended up having to leave positive feedback but with a very negative comment to (hopefully) warn other sellers. I would never use ebay again.
This is definitely CF on the buyers part. Don't do a partial refund, get the item back and only then do a full refund. If/when you relist add the postage onto the listing so you won't be too out of pocket.
Draw a line under this one, accept you'll have to pay the return postage and move on. Any messages you send the buyer just keep them simple, factual and polite. You'll probably get negative feedback anyway so don't bend over backwards to help more than is necessary. Don't rise to any nasty comments and if you receive messages from buyer just keep saying 'I will refund in full including your postage costs as soon as I receive the item'
Unfortunately if you don't this you could end up with no item and no/less money. Life's too short...walk away.

Looking4wards · 04/06/2019 14:43

I'd say to the buyer to return for refund and be sure to check serial numbers to ensure you get your one back.
I've heard of cases where buyers who have asked for refund and not getting it then going on to say that the item was broken / fake. As a result ebay allows them to keep the item AND refund them the money.

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 04/06/2019 14:44

LiverpoolVictoria

It's amazing, isn't it, how often people are horrified by the 'absolute useless rubbish' that you sent them and demand their money back for it.... and yet, having secured a refund, will fight tooth and nail for you NOT to take that 'absolute useless rubbish' back off their hands Grin

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 04/06/2019 14:48

I ended up having to leave positive feedback but with a very negative comment to (hopefully) warn other sellers.

I never would have thought of that! Obviously wouldn't work if people purely look at the upfront stats, but anybody who bothers to actually read them will understand!

Original poster
ZazuMoon · 04/06/2019 14:51

She claims she has now activated the warranty and does not want to return it and that the heat mat is missing and she will just ask paypal to review.

OP posts:
fedup21 · 04/06/2019 14:54

Hmm, sounds very fishy!

insecure123 · 04/06/2019 14:55

Oh god I had this with a scarf I sold. Perfect condition and when it was recieved I got a message saying it has snags and holes in it and she "offered" me a price she would accept to compensate.
Well she could do one

I sent her all the pictures of the mint condition scarf and said happy to refund if you return the item in the same condition I sent it....never heard from her again.

Stand your ground

Starlight456 · 04/06/2019 15:02

This is why I don’t sell on eBay and relating to another thread partly why I ghosted someone as this was something she did a lot.

missbattenburg · 04/06/2019 15:15

I have become properly disillusioned with eBay recently.

Me too.

I recently tried to sell a used Dyson vacuum.

I had someone bid just to take it o the market. They won but did not pay. Their account had 0 feedback so am guessing it was a dummy account used for this purpose.

I relisted it and it sold to someone else who paid. Then a few hours later opened a return request, despite the fact that they hadn't received the item. When questioned they said they "changed their mind".

It's on for a 3rd time but if it doesn't sell I'm going to give up on eBay altogether, I think. It's no longer somewhere useful to sell on 2nd hand items for their reasonable market rate, imo.

GrimDamnFanjo · 04/06/2019 15:18

I once sold a very high end pram system. Excellent condition. Buyer said RM damaged it beyond use. I had to file for a claim to refund her. A month later she was selling my pram as unused!

thegreatcrestednewt · 04/06/2019 15:20

Me too. Sold an item of sportswear with postage clearly marked. Seller then - after auction had ended - sent me stupid messages asking what colour and size the item was - clearly on the listing, then went silent. Didn't hear from her for 3 days.

I opened a case against her then got a flurry of illiterate messages saying she's in Australia and had thought it was free postage Hmm and she can't afford the postage and to cancel the purchase. Stupid cow.

Pinkvoid · 04/06/2019 15:20

Selling on eBay generally sucks. They always see in the favour of the buyer and with the amount postage costs and after eBay and PayPal fees, it’s barely even worthwhile.

I had a buyer once leave positive feedback on something then request to return it a month later. I refused because she had obviously damaged it herself and was now being a complete CF, I’m not a shop... She won the case and I had to refund her the £50 and accept a faulty item I couldn’t do a thing with.

MadSweeney · 04/06/2019 15:27

She claims she has now activated the warranty and does not want to return it and that the heat mat is missing and she will just ask paypal to review

Ha she's a knob. And a chancing one at that.

She never had any intention of returning, and if she tries to now you can successfully argue with eBay that she's accepted it when she activated the warranty and you will not receive it back in the same condition.

Paypal and eBay will take the stance of 'no return no refund'

Don't forget to add her to your blocked bidder list.

stayhomeclub · 04/06/2019 15:29

eBay is awful for sellers, I once sold a small item for about £2 and had loads of fuming messages from the woman claiming it was used. It wasn’t but she was the same, hopping mad with loads of messages. I just stonewalled her and told her to return it. She wanted a partial refund. I sent her a postage label and she still didn’t return the item, claimed she’d not realised it would expire. It was madness really over such a small cost but I think this is what these people count on, it being too much hassle to deal with them. Have never sold since on eBay.