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Original poster

advice to respond to request please

40 replies

kiwibella · 17/10/2009 17:21

I need help!

I recently sold my daughter's wool coat on ebay. I thought it was in good condition - it was worn for one winter. The winning ebayer paid £1.70.

It has probably been two weeks since the ebayer received this item and I have received this message today:

Hi, Thank you for the coat. However the coat has had some wear with bobbles showing and a few stains which you did not mention in your description. Futhermore there is an excessive amount charged for p&p and received late. I paid in total £5.20 but did not expect to receive the coat in this condition. I thought it was only fair to let you know before leaving feedback. To settle this issue i will accept a partial refund of £2.90 with no return of the jacket. Please let me know.

Is this fair? I want to reply to point out that she got a £40 coat for £5. There may be some bobbling but I don't remember it being troublesome. I would prefer to have her return the coat back rather than pay her £2.90.

Love to hear your advice / experience. Thanks

OP posts:
aristoBLACKcat · 21/10/2009 23:15

i'm a midlander too.........

stick to your guns kiwi,she might do this all the time

how can we search for her?

Ejm2009 · 22/10/2009 03:29

someone did this to me, I sold a soft toy and they said it was smaller than in the picture, how can you tell how big from a picture????
it sold for £30 and they demanded a £15 partial refund I said no, they opened a calim and escalated it but I had the option of tick boxes which were give the refund or to tick a box which offered a full refund on return of the item, which I ticked and suddenly she wanted to keep it and closed the dispute, she was just trying her luck! also the buyer needs to return the item via recorded delivery and give the proof of delivery to paypal!

Good luk and stick to your guns just offer refund on safe return of item in the same condition it was sent in! she could ruin it and post it back out of spite.

ILoveStripeySocks · 22/10/2009 10:26

Paypal will tell her to return the item to you TRACKED. If not tracked, no refund! And she has to pay return postage costs (not you). So you will get yoru coat back, and not be out of pocket at all (apart from maybe your fees).

Original poster
kiwibella · 22/10/2009 16:37

thanks for your comments... feeling much more hopeful . I will be looking for someone very deserving for the coat after this palaver!!

OP posts:
StrictlyAvadaKedavraarrrrghhhh · 22/10/2009 16:45

Just so you know, putting no returns on your listing means jack shit, everyone has right of return regardless.

I'd push for the return of the coat, tracked by recorded delivery before offering any refund

TheDevilEatsBabies · 22/10/2009 16:51

strictly, that's right - the no returns thing only covers the seller if the buyer changes their mind.
statutory rights cannot be affected by law.

Original poster
kiwibella · 24/10/2009 08:23

yeeha!!

We've determined that the buyer should receive a 5.20 GBP refund if they send the merchandise back to you. The merchandise will be in the same condition as when the buyer received it and the buyer is responsible for all postage and packing costs.

Thank goodness paypal made sense of this. Thanks so much for everyone's input. It helped me to argue this stupid situation. Will I ebay again .

OP posts:
bigstripeytiger · 24/10/2009 10:13

Thats great. I expect now that she will decide that she does want the coat after all.

Mspontipine · 24/10/2009 23:08

Hmm from the buyer's point of view though - she's bought a coat that is stained and bobbled but not advertised as so. If she returns it to you she will be severely out of pocket if you do not offer to refund her returning postage too which I beleive you are not (like a decent seller would - that's always agreed on here) and she'll have bugger all to show for it too! I think from her POV it's going to be more throwing more money away. If you got the coat do you really think you could sell it again - maybe looking at it with more objective eyes? I wouldn't have been happy with it and would have felt conned if all defects had not been mentioned, even pictured in the listing.
What she is suggesting is a compromise. For the sake of good sense, and good customer service I suggest you agree to it.

bigstripeytiger · 25/10/2009 08:25

Is she asking for a compromise or is she trying to bargain the price down after the fact by bringing up complaints.

I would have had more sympathy for the buyer in this situation if she had asked for a full refund and returned the item. Trying to keep it, but still get money back on it seems a little to me.

PoisonToadstool · 25/10/2009 17:38

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Mspontipine · 25/10/2009 20:34

Hmm when buying on Ebay you kind of add the p+p and auction price together - suppose it's a her calculation of roughly half. Something like that costing a bit more to post than lighter garments - not really worth faffing around with returning - only winner wil be Royal Mail. You'll still be down £3. Times two if you're coughing up the return postage too. If not like I say she'll be £3 down and nothing to show for it. Had you offered to pay her return postage too?

Original poster
kiwibella · 25/10/2009 21:26

thanks for these views.

Under the circumstances, I won't pay for her return postage. Firstly, it is not necessary due to the paypal outcome. Secondly, because I do not believe the coat to be of poor quality. If it was, I wouldn't have sold it on ebay.

I understand the comments about offering 'good' customer service.

I got to the point where I want the coat back on principle. She has made it clear that it is not suitable. Why would she want to keep it? I will be gifting it... which is what I should have done in the first place. Usually I pass all of my dd's clothes on to a friend - single mum with three girls who is always incredibly grateful. However, I'm not working so I chose to try and make a few bob. Big mistake - I didn't make diddly and am left with a bad experience of ebay.

I am pleased that paypal awarded in my favour. Obviously. But also because she seemed like an opportunist. Every communication from her stated that she would only accept a refund of £2.90. She was aware of the postage I was charging when she bid. She won the auction for £1.70. She wasn't budging... and threatened to leave feedback of her experience. I'm fine with the feedback - I have done nothing wrong here. What was she going to do with a coat that didn't meet her high standards if I had given her a refund?

OP posts:
SimpleAsABC · 25/10/2009 21:37

Stick to your guns!!

NickNemo · 04/11/2009 19:18

Kiwibella,

I had a similar experience on PayPal (paid with PayPal, not on ebay) so here's what you should know.

I bought from a big football store and elected to pay with PayPal. I received the wrong shirt, so I returned it by recorded delivery immediatlely at my cost and as the store was refusing to engage with me opened a PayPal dispute.

PayPal very clearly indicated to me that:

The return postage was my responsibility, as I had received the goods.
The seller was under NO obligation to refund, as I had received the goods, even though the shirt was completely different.
And the refund was at the seller's discretion in this case.

Therefore, you have substantial rights in this case. The buyer obviously recieved the item BUT is choosing to dispute this. So you are under no obligation to refund her at all unless she returns the coat (recorded delivery, you have the right to not refund otherwise).

What a shame that the buyer is trying it on, I can attest that the majority of buyers and sellers are honest people who are just trying to do what you did.

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