I Hate eBay! ...They do NOT honor the money back guarantee.

[Falcon69]

 I'm tired of ordering from eBay.  I order, mostly because I don't know anywhere else to get some items.

So, I order a new power supply, 100w 12V for outdoor use.  It was suppose to be RAINPROOF.  They sent me the non-rainproof model.  Now, after spending several days arguing with them, they sent me an email asking for me to return the item, and they'll refund my money, except, I am responsible for the charges to mail the item back. 


WTF!!!!

It was their mistake, why should I pay for the shipping to send back?  That's a bunch of BS.  Now, the shipping costs nearly what I had paid for the item.

I could understand if I had ordered the item, and simply just decided I didn't want it.  Then I can understand being responsible for the shipping to return the item.  but in this case, they sent me the wrong item to begin with. An item I did not order.

So, now the only recourse I have is to leave a negative feedback.  Like that does any good.  I guess next step would be to contact the credit card company have the charges reversed. But would that be dishonest, since I would still have the item?  Doesn't make sense to ship it back, when shipping will nearly be what I paid for it.

[TheBorg]

Just recently bought an LVDS cable for a laptop from eBay... I was sent the glass panel, not a cable.
Now I have to ship it back at my own cost. I mean, it's only $4 and it did say in the listing buyer pays return shipping, but I think these issues are a matter of principle. I make sure to pay return shipping on items that were faulty or my error in the first place.

[senso]

Just recently bought an LVDS cable for a laptop from eBay... I was sent the glass panel, not a cable.
Now I have to ship it back at my own cost. I mean, it's only $4 and it did say in the listing buyer pays return shipping, but I think these issues are a matter of principle. I make sure to pay return shipping on items that were faulty or my error in the first place.

Fold it neatly and put it into the smallest letter you can find?

[Falcon69]

Yes, I sent a photo to prove they sent the wrong item. They still insist on me paying the return shipping, and that it conforms with eBay's policy rules. Their words, not mine.

So, it is eBay's fault as well.

That is a F'd up policy.  I get no item, and I'm out the cost of shipping?  Makes no sense.

[David_AVD]

If you paid using PayPal, initiate a claim there right now.   That will get you a better result.  I've been in the same situation a couple of times and escalating to a PayPal dispute solved it.

[zapta]

If you paid using PayPal, initiate a claim there right now.   That will get you a better result.  I've been in the same situation a couple of times and escalating to a PayPal dispute solved it.

+1

You have limited time so make sure to do it before it's too late.

[Falcon69]

That is why I sent in a picture of the item received, as well, I sent them a copy of the picture on their ad to confirm.  they clearly don't match and no way serves the same purpose (outdoor vs. indoor)

I'm sure sellers deal alot with false claims, but in my case, it is legitimate.

I am just frustrated with the lack of intelligence at these places when picking orders. No sense of quality control or double checking order. 

I am in dispute with another as well. I ordered 6 led flood lights, they sent 3.  And the 3 they sent are not as pictured, although, i can modify them to work.

How does someone look at an order, and see the number 3 instead of 6?  This particular order came from China.  Are they THAT stupid over there? My 5 year old nephew can distinguish between 3 items vs. 6 items.

[all_repair]

If you do send back, use a mail that can show receipt of your item.  I sent back with picture of the item dropping into the letter box so to save postage, as I could not take the seller words that they going to pay returned postage.  And sellet also agreed to the mode of postage .  Ended up the seller disputed that she did not get it, and paypal and ebay sticked to their f...up policy than the messages exchange.  I decided not to waste more time to fight ebay or papal.  The best thing that happened was I learned to buy direct from China than through the traders on ebay. 

[Falcon69]

Went to PayPal.

When i goto details on the transaction, it is only giving me the option to open a case via eBay. Which I've done.

I can't find anywhere on PayPal how to open a dispute against the seller.

[ConKbot]

Call your credit card company, dispute the payment, and start a dispute with paypal too.  You paid for a rainproof power supply, and never received it. Its as simple as that. Doesnt matter if it was the wrong item, non rain-proof power supply, block of lead, bag of dog shit, a pound of silver, all equally useless.  Maybe if the seller doesnt have his money, he'd be more inclined to pay return shipping.

You did pay with your credit card and not let paypal have your bank account info, right? 

[Falcon69]

But the mistake was theirs to begin with. If the correct item was sent, there would be no reason to go through any of this.

Why should I be out the shipping charges?  That's just throwing money out the window for THEIR mistake.

[ConKbot]

Call your credit card company, dispute the payment, and start a dispute with paypal too.  You paid for a rainproof power supply, and never received it. Its as simple as that. Doesnt matter if it was the wrong item, non rain-proof power supply, block of lead, bag of dog shit, a pound of silver, all equally useless.  Maybe if the seller doesnt have his money, he'd be more inclined to pay return shipping.

You did pay with your credit card and not let paypal have your bank account info, right? 

I can't see the credit card company or PP for that matter doing anything here. The vendor has asked for the item to be returned. The listing as I understand it required that your return the item at your expense. You refuse to do that. That's where the credit card company will tell you to that they can't take the matter any further.

If I'm wrong I'd certainly like to know.

Depends on consumer protection laws etc... locally.  I have zero confidence in paypal (hence my previous comment). However I'd have full confidence that AmEx (who I use for online purchasing, because of stuff like this)  would have my back. Ive gotten refunds on an electric shaver what was broken out of the box despite the merchant having it marked as all sales final because it was a store closing sale.  The store provided the receipt.  I came back with "The receipt is for a working shaver, the boxer didnt contain one" and got my cash back. 

Credit card companies have laws, contracts, and internal policies to follow. Not ebay auction listings.  If they tell paypal to get stuffed or just eat it themselves, I dont know. I'd be sure to put emphasis on the fact that you never received the item you paid for.   

Failing that, I'd be tempted to ship some random items from around the house back instead of the power supply, then demand the seller pays return shipping on them.  :p

[David_AVD]

When I go to details on the transaction, it is only giving me the option to open a case via eBay. Which I've done.

I have a case that I'm negotiating with the seller at present.  If I go into the PayPal transaction there is a link to the "Resolution Centre".  I completed the first few steps to see what happened and got to the part about claiming a refund.  Not sure why yours doesn't have the same.

[Falcon69]

I found it, but, when I click it to dispute, it comes back and says that I already have the case open in eBay regarding it.

Ya, I will call the credit card company tomorrow about it, if I don't hear back from the seller.  I'll be damned if I'm going to be out ANY money, and not have the item I paid for. i.e. shipping costs to return.

[edavid]

When I go to details on the transaction, it is only giving me the option to open a case via eBay. Which I've done.

I have a case that I'm negotiating with the seller at present.  If I go into the PayPal transaction there is a link to the "Resolution Centre".  I completed the first few steps to see what happened and got to the part about claiming a refund.  Not sure why yours doesn't have the same.

Because you are in Australia and the OP is in the US.  The dispute systems are different.

[edavid]

Ya, I will call the credit card company tomorrow about it, if I don't hear back from the seller.  I'll be damned if I'm going to be out ANY money, and not have the item I paid for. i.e. shipping costs to return.

If you escalate the case to eBay and complain about having to pay the return shipping, they will often (but not always) pay it.

Do not call the credit card company to initiate a chargeback - always do it in writing.

Be aware that if you do a chargeback against PayPal, they will probably close your account.

[nanofrog]

But the mistake was theirs to begin with. If the correct item was sent, there would be no reason to go through any of this.

Why should I be out the shipping charges?  That's just throwing money out the window for THEIR mistake.

Odd this should come up, as I've run into this same situation with the last two eBay purchases I've made this past couple of weeks. Both cases were the result of substitutions made by the sellers without any prior notification/agreement (didn't match description & photos).

Fortunately, one has been solved (didn't have to pay return shipping), and it currently looks like this will be the case with the other as well (just shipped it out today).

[mzzj]

But the mistake was theirs to begin with. If the correct item was sent, there would be no reason to go through any of this.

Why should I be out the shipping charges?  That's just throwing money out the window for THEIR mistake.

If your package was without tracking its best to claim that it never arrived. 

I have  already some experience with ebay:
- lost couple of shipments
- got 1 fake coin instead of high power flashlight
- one shipment returned back to china because local post office never send me the notification (got tracking number from seller later on that shows the package returned from local post office)
- major cock-up with wire wrap fro UK seller. Countless wasted hours with illiterate ebay/paypal customer support ( I bet they work with 5 cent per support case!)

[tszaboo]

Ya, I will call the credit card company tomorrow about it, if I don't hear back from the seller.  I'll be damned if I'm going to be out ANY money, and not have the item I paid for. i.e. shipping costs to return.

If you escalate the case to eBay and complain about having to pay the return shipping, they will often (but not always) pay it.

Do not call the credit card company to initiate a chargeback - always do it in writing.

Be aware that if you do a chargeback against PayPal, they will probably close your account.

I've found if I use the magic "eBay money back guarantee" words in my dispute, I've got a refund right away. Dont accept (them) sending the thing again, as it will take longer than the dispute, and maybe nothing will arrive. If it doesnt work, or not the same item or it doesnt arrive in like 6 weeks: press them until you get your money+ sipping back. Do not agree for anything less. It is simple as that.

[Falcon69]

Interesting

doing alittle more research on eBay. This is what I found

Per eBay's policy.

When an item doesn't match the listing description
The cost of return shipping is the seller's responsibility. For return of items with a total cost of $750 or more, we require signature confirmation.

The seller pays for any customs charges on the returned item.

In some instances, we may not require that an item be returned to the seller. In these situations, we refund the buyer and  may seek reimbursement from the seller, for example if:
The seller chooses not to accept a return request or provide a return shipping label.


So, it looks like I am NOT responsible for the shipping, however, i'm not sure how to go about it.  I read that eBay is suppose to make out the shipping label for me and they charge the seller for it, but I can't figure that out yet, and I doubt they pay for delivery confirmation/tracking.

It also looks like that if the seller refuses to give a prepaid shipping label, eBay will require them to give refund, without the items shipped back. Am I reading this wrong?

I am all fair, but If they refuse to send a prepaid shipping label, then I am not returning the item.  I refuse to be out any extra money because their mistake.

[Falcon69]

Hmm, also found this in the seller's section.


Who pays for return shipping with hassle-free returns?
If your policy indicates that you pay for return shipping, then you will be charged for return shipping. Otherwise, the responsibility for return shipping charge is determined by the reason the buyer chooses when requesting a return. If your buyer indicates they are returning an item because they changed their mind, they are responsible for return shipping. However, if the buyer requests a return because there’s a problem with the item or the item is not as described, then you will be responsible for return shipping

So, it looks like that regardless of what the SELLER's policy is, in this situation, it's null and void.

[miguelvp]

I guess you don't Hate eBay afterall

[Falcon69]

I hate the process that is now (got the stuff on Friday) , well, in process. It took my 5 minutes to order the stuff, but taking several days to get refunded. It's a slow process and shouldn't be that way.

When you buy something from the store that turns out defective, you return to the store, you get refund right then and there if you provide the receipt and are returning it in a timely manner.

But, with eBay, it's a different story. I needed the item last weekend so I can install my LED's.  Now, it looks like, that I won't have it for this weekend either.  If I order again, I'll have to come up with additional money (while I wait for refund) and then wait another week to two weeks for delivery.  Is I crappy process.  I just wish I knew where to purchase this crap locally, if there is a place.  I rather spend a few dollars more to get locally, then go through this BS with eBay sellers.

[Psi]

yeah, when stuff goes wrong on ebay/aliexpress some sellers don't care about fixing their mistakes.

However, i look at it like this... Since i'm paying like 30% of the retail price for stuff, it doesn't matter if every 1 in 10 orders get stuffed up, i'm still way ahead

[grumpydoc]

Hmm, also found this in the seller's section.


Who pays for return shipping with hassle-free returns?
If your policy indicates that you pay for return shipping, then you will be charged for return shipping. Otherwise, the responsibility for return shipping charge is determined by the reason the buyer chooses when requesting a return. If your buyer indicates they are returning an item because they changed their mind, they are responsible for return shipping. However, if the buyer requests a return because there’s a problem with the item or the item is not as described, then you will be responsible for return shipping
So, it looks like that regardless of what the SELLER's policy is, in this situation, it's null and void.

Ebay changed all this recently - I don't know about the US but in Europe it's simply in line with online selling regulations. In fact ebay is in the process of moving to managing the whole returns process for sellers.

Of course this is ebay engaging in self-preservation because sellers such as the one Falcon69 is dealing with are exactly why "ebay"¹ has a poor reputation for customer service.

As a seller I'm not at all fond of this - I try to deal with returns fairly and always pay for the return if there has been a problem (thankfully not too many) but the loss of control of the process is irritating. Also there has to be at least some temptation for buyers to simply put "not as described" when they had, in fact, just changed their minds.

1] Quotes, as I know it's the individual sellers. As it happens ebay itself doesn't have that great a reputation for customer service either.