Currency conversion and refund

[TheVanguardSix]

Wise MNers…
Long story short, I am (happily) refunding an American buyer who purchased an antique a year ago (Nov 2021).
The reimbursement is via PayPal.
Last year, I sold the item for £400 (I’m a UK seller). In US dollars, this was $561+
If I reimburse him £400 today, his £561 is now worth something like $463 (I need to check). It’s a big loss for him. Do I reimburse him at today’s rate or last year’s rate? That would mean I’m out £85 if I reimburse what he paid in US$ last year, which is a big loss for me, on top of losing the £400 profit. One of us had to lose money. 😳
Advice is incredibly appreciated!

I wouldn't give a refund for something bought a year ago.

Why are you doing that

If the contract was agreed in £ then you refund in £. It’s a pain for the buyer but they chose to buy something from the U.K.

Thank you so much, both. Yes, my gut was telling me ‘he bought my item in pounds, not dollars.’ His risk, right? It has been the weirdest transaction. He literally disappeared off the face of the earth, emails to the guy were coming back as failed delivery, he never responded or read my messages. Anyway, he popped up (new email) when he heard through the antique community (it’s a niche piece) that I’m planning on donating the piece. He has no intention of ever collecting it. And I can’t pass it onto any organisation while it’s ‘his’, hence the refund.
I’m annoyed with myself because he first bought the item in September 2021. 8 weeks later, feeling a bit jacked around by him (he was meant to come over and collect it, then his friend was, then he was going to arrange shipping, then radio silence),I refunded him and said the sale was cancelled because he hadn’t collected (the initial agreement). He then pushed hard and said I had to honour the sale. I was being unfair by cancelling after 8 weeks. His dad had been ill. So I reinstated the sale last November and heard nothing for a year. That’s when my emails to him were coming back as ‘failed delivery’. Really odd. I’m just a hobbyist really- not running a small business but I do need a better business head for things like this.

If I reimburse him, he can’t claim the piece in the future if it’s in the science museum, for example.

Can you charge him storage fees?

Presuming the advert was in pounds, you refund in pounds.

And given the back story, definitely don't take the hit on the exchange rates.

normally items are displayed in the local currency so if you had to refund you would need to refund the amount that he paid in his currency.
However, in your case you are doing him a favour and I would most certainly not be taking the hit for it. I would just refund the amount I had received and he takes the loss on both conversions and all fees.

Thank you again, very helpful and kind MNers. I hadn’t considered storage fees! I might have to write those words to him. He’s not been the easiest to deal with in all honesty. And his recent messages are strong. He’s angry and would like to be refunded what he paid last year in dollars. He’s threatening legal action if I reimburse £400 as opposed to what he paid on US $ last year. I do see his point. Nobody wants to lose… including me. 😬
The sale was advertised in £ but of course, on his end, looking at the site in the States, he’d have seen it in $, I believe (but he is fully aware of the conversion and that this was a UK sale).

Does the site you're selling on have rules about refunds and foreign currency conversion? Does it also have any rules about when a sale can be cancelled? It sounds like you were well within your rights to cancel the sale the first time and shouldn't have reinstated it without proof he was actually intending to come to collect it.

Do you know whether UK law or US law governs the transaction? (Again this should be covered in the terms and conditions of the site).

Finally, do you have any proof that the person you're dealing with now actually is the person you were dealing with back then? The whole email bouncing/new email thing, plus all the weird excuses, make me very suspicious.

You can't refund more than was paid, it could be seen as money laundering. You can only refund the amount that you charged, i.e. £400.

Personally, unless the site you sold via has specific rules about timescales for collection/refunds, I would refuse to refund at all, and give him a deadline to arrange collection or you will start charging storage fees.

I wouldn't refund him. Its his now. Just tell him the storage costs or the postage and packing costs.

Why are you refunding him after a year? What platform did you sell it on? I don't know about anywhere else, but eBay is 30 days through them, or 180 days through PayPal or other payment method, so he'd be well out of time. If you are going to refund I absolutely wouldn't refund more than the original amount.