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Original poster

Urgent advice needed - buyer changed her mind once she's received item!

34 replies

descendingintomadness · 12/01/2010 14:50

Please help - i sold a genuine Christian Dior handbag, the buyer has received it today and sent me a really cheeky message (IMO!):

"hi,dear.i receive the bag today.really thank u for ur quick posting. but its too small for me.i really dont think i can use it. so i will return it back for u. and i dont mind to pay the fee for u post it for me.hope it dont give u much truble. thank u."

I listed the bag correctly, she saw what she was bidding on, and i specifically state on my listings that i don't accept returns. I've sent an initial reply back basically to that effect, but where do i go from here? As it was, i sent the bag by Special Delivery as she'd already nagged me to post it quickly which cost me considerably more than the P&P i'd charged.

Your advice please ladies. DP says i should stick to my guns on this one as i've done nothing wrong, but i don't like hassle. This is why i don't usually bother with eBay!

OP posts:
geordieminx · 12/01/2010 14:56

keep her emails. tell her to piss off.

Bleatblurt · 12/01/2010 14:57

She'll probably send a fake one back. Stick to your guns!

Heqet · 12/01/2010 14:59

I think that if she is offering to stand the postage both ways AND she pays any ebay / paypal fees then why not? Ok, you have to list it again but that's a small hassle and she's been polite about it and acknowledges it's her error.

I know you don't have to, but a bit of kindness never hurts. Good karma.

Original poster
descendingintomadness · 12/01/2010 14:59

I've not had any experience of this before. Can she retract her Paypal payment or anything over it? I have horrible visions of me being out of pocket and with no bag to try and sell on, not to mention the eBay fees i've already incurred with the sale of the item.

OP posts:
Heqet · 12/01/2010 15:01

Oh, changed my mind! check feedback - does she have a history of doing this? If so, then may be problem. If she's a regular buyer with no history of this sort of stuff, then I stand by my "be nice" You wouldn't be refunding her until / unless you got your bag so you'd be able to make sure it was the right one.

Original poster
descendingintomadness · 12/01/2010 15:04

She's only got a feedback rating of 2 - i stupidly forgot to amend my listing to only accept bids from people with a higher feedback rating.

OP posts:
geordieminx · 12/01/2010 15:06

Tell her that you want her to pay £x amount to cover fees/listing/postage, and that once she has sent it back to you - if its in the same condition, is your back etc then you could refund her - but you are opening a big can of worms as in - what if she sends it back and its damaged - who is reponsible then? Or if it doesnt arrive in the post?

Be waRY

geordieminx · 12/01/2010 15:08

Wouldnt risk it then.

Tell her that if it unsuitable then she will have to list it on ebay herself.

If she had wanted the luxury of return/refunds then she should have bought from a shop

Original poster
descendingintomadness · 12/01/2010 15:08

Against my better judgement, if she contacts me again, i will offer to refund on the basis that she returns the bag to me in its original state by Special Delivery at her own cost. I don't feel that i should have to, but like you say, good karma and all that!

OP posts:
Original poster
descendingintomadness · 12/01/2010 15:11

See, now thats what's worrying me, Geordieminx. Argh, what to do?!?

OP posts:
Disenchanted3 · 12/01/2010 15:13

I would tell her to sell it on if she doesn't want it as you clearly stated no returns.

SkipToMyLou · 12/01/2010 15:14

I would tell her to relist it herself too. If there's nothing wrong with the bag, she has no right to a refund. Tell her if she's not happy with that to complain to eBay, they'll set her straight.

YouKnowNothingoftheCrunch · 12/01/2010 15:17

I agree, don't give a refund. Save her email as evidence that she received it and it wasn't damaged and then say no she will have to relist it (all very politely). Unless it is damaged you have no legal obligation to accept the return of it.

Original poster
descendingintomadness · 12/01/2010 19:41

Well, she's not emailed me back yet. Watch this space, although I think I'll stick to my guns on this one. Thank you all for your help.

OP posts:
snowylass · 12/01/2010 19:43

tell her to sell it herself on eBay

octopusinabox · 12/01/2010 20:05

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

NorbertDentressangle · 12/01/2010 20:10

"Scam" was the first thing that sprung to my mind.

I remember reading about buyers returning goods but swapping the genuine article for a fake before returning it.

LadyBiscuit · 12/01/2010 20:17

Or doing what my buyer did and returning the bag filthy dirty

MrsToffeeCrisp · 12/01/2010 20:21

I also think you should tell her to sell it herself. This is her problem not yours. You don't accept returns and that should be the end of it.

I had someone ask to return something that didn't fit them once and I asked them to sell it on themselves. The whole point of selling it was because it didn't fit me - I certainly didn't want it back. TBH, unless it's an ebay shop, that's just the way it works and the risk you take.

brockleybelle · 12/01/2010 20:22

Thought her message to you sounded dodgy - like Norbert, scam?

It was up to her to make sure that she was happy with the size etc before she bid.

Sounds like you did everything properly your end so I really wouldn't do what she's asking.

Let us know how it goes.

BigBadMummy · 12/01/2010 20:24

Its a contract. She can eff off.

maxybrown · 12/01/2010 21:40

sounds like a scam to me

Original poster
descendingintomadness · 13/01/2010 09:39

Well, i've still not heard anything from her, despite her being VERY quick on the communication front prior to receiving the bag. If/when she does contact me again, i'll advise her to sell it on herself. My concern now is that she's already posted it back to me, having re-read the message ("so i will return it back for u"), as i didn't pick the email up until a few hours after she'd sent it. I'll let you know what happens.

OP posts:
SkipToMyLou · 13/01/2010 10:13

If she has sent you back a fake, that's easily dealt with - unless she sent it Recorded Delivery you didn't get it !

mygirllollipop · 13/01/2010 10:24

I think it sounds like a scam too. If you accept the return, it will probably be a fake bag returned. If you say no to a return I have a feeling she will claim she received a fake bag to paypal (if that's how she paid).

I would email her saying what the others have said, you do not accept returns for her reasons of changing her mind. She should have asked questions about measurements BEFORE bidding. If she doesn't like/want the bag, that's her problem, she can sell it on or whatever she wants.

If she has/does return it even though you say no, (I don't think paypal ask her to return it to you if she claims you sent her a fake) make sure it is your bag i.e. genuine before refunding. If she cliams she has sent it back but it never arrives, it's her loss (don't refund her) unless she claims through paypal and has a tracking number of her posting to you to back herself up.