Nonexistent protections and being taken for a ride: when the seller is cannon fodder.
I've been a pro seller for two years, so I've been paying every month for the shop and the very high commissions on every sale.
A Spanish user buys a projector lamp, then asks for a return because, he says, the lamp doesn't work... but in the photos he attaches it's obvious and indisputable that the lamp is working perfectly. I try to explain it to the buyer, I ask him to kindly do a test, I send him an article explaining that the defect he sees is not due to the part we sold him, but nothing: the buyer doesn't even reply and has vanished into thin air.
I wait a few days and open a dispute... to keep it brief, I'll just tell you that I bitterly discovered the dispute is fake, because according to eBay procedure when you open a dispute you have 5 days to facilitate the return (which you don't want to accept since the buyer is clearly in the wrong and anyway refuses to respond to any attempt to communicate), at that point they take the money from your account without any possibility of objecting and without the item being returned to you.
I talked countless times with customer service (yes, in quotes) which keeps giving me non-answers to my questions, refusing to explain why they didn't even want to consider my reasons, telling me it's my fault because I should have accepted the return within the time limits they set and kept quiet. Yes, I have to say we're paying for a truly excellent service! Chickens to be plucked first and then fed to scammers.
It's not about the money, it's about the principle. Lots of words, but in the end, concretely, for us sellers there are zero protections and procedures that are in fact just fake ones.
Ah... the insult of being told by two operators (out of the many I spoke to) "yes, from what we can see, you are right".
I'll migrate to other platforms... as a seller, that is... as a buyer instead, after this recent experience that made me discover in depth how eBay works... I think I'll stay...
daxsisko
·2 years agoother users have already replied, I’ll just summarize a few things :
opening a dispute as a seller on an item not as described = suicide ;
migrating as a seller to other platforms...... doesn’t fully solve the problem of items judged by buyers as not as described...... ( try it to believe it.... )
staying only as a buyer DOESN’T make you discover in depth how eBay works : I’m of the opinion that those who buy and sell ( and obviously, inform themselves and/or take in the rules ) understand it better..... moreover, since the rules are "hanging" , you also have to keep yourself, as far as possible, up to date if you want to stay on the platform......
heavenwelkin
·2 years agoA Pro seller should know that a percentage of sales are returns.
Returns due to second thoughts or returns for non-compliance completely made up so as not to pay the return shipping costs.
These are situations that a good PRO seller must face and must know how to handle.
Ebay is right when it asks you to facilitate the return....... unfortunately there is nothing else you can do...... you have to facilitate the return, avoiding getting in the buyer’s way or arguing with ebay support.
Best regards.
tecnoroll_bmb_warehouse
OP2 years agoRight, you're absolutely right.
A pro seller should know that part of sales involves returns... and this isn't the first one we've dealt with.
What I didn't know was the zero protection you get in return for the commissions and monthly fee you pay for the shop. I had no idea about the "quality" of the service and the "transparency" of the procedures and responses.
Allow me to point out: regarding an obviously fraudulent return request... made for an item that the buyer himself had unequivocally shown to be perfectly working and after using it for a few days.
But now I know! 😉
heavenwelkin
·2 years agoThe strategy that works best is the following:
The buyer opens a claim for item not as described.
The seller, without even writing a letter in response, immediately attaches a return label directly.
In this case there are 3 possible scenarios:
A) the buyer expects a response from the seller that never arrives, but there is only the attachment which they don't see or don't pay attention to, so the buyer lets the available days expire and the dispute ends in the seller's favor; the seller, having not used the return label, gets it refunded.
B) the buyer expects a response from the seller that never arrives, sees the return label but decides it isn't worth dealing with all the bureaucracy needed to get a refund, the dispute expires and the seller wins the dispute; the unused return label can be refunded.
C) The buyer sees the return label and decides to complete the whole process that leads to the refund.
In this case the seller has to refund.
If you learn to use this system / strategy instead of getting into arguments with the buyer, you can have many more chances of success.
Best regards.
sika700
·2 years agoBut are you sure you sold the item on eBay?
Can you explain to me how YOU could have "opened a dispute" as a seller?
If you managed to do that, you really shot yourself in the foot!
Kind regards.
tecnoroll_bmb_warehouse
OP2 years agoYes, I’m sure of it... I don’t use drugs!
The buyer asked to return it because in his opinion the item was defective, attaching photos to the request that instead clearly showed beyond any shadow of doubt that the item was working perfectly.
At that point we sent several messages asking the buyer to do a quick check, clearly explaining what the supposed defect was due to (among other things, absolutely not attributable to the part we sold) and asking to be contacted again.
Since after the return request the buyer kept ignoring us, after (if I’m not mistaken) 5 days the option appeared to open a dispute over the return. We explained our reasons, spoke with numerous eBay operators by phone (as I said, a couple of them told us we were "definitely right") but nothing.
There was no way to get even a minimum of protection and, what made us even angrier, a response or any real, detailed explanation whatsoever. Nothing.
They keep repeating that we had 5 days to accept the return. But then why give me the chance to contest something if in reality I still have to accept it with no chance to defend myself?
I’ll also add that the last communication received from eBay’s Spanish team was "we’ll contact you again in a few days!" when has anyone ever heard from them again? vanished like the buyer... it must be something tied to Iberian culture apparently... ahahahah
As I said maybe in the previous message: we got it "up the ass"... ok... fine... from now on we’ll act accordingly as professional sellers and as soon as we’re ready we’ll move on to other shores.
Now at least I know in detail how eBay works! (a word to the wise...)
sika700
·2 years agoFrom experience, I’ve noticed that fake returns die out at birth when you accept the return by providing a prepaid label.
If the customer is acting in bad faith, they won’t even ship it and you’ll be in the right.
You were wrong to think eBay would help you... it’s better to help yourself and learn the lesson at your own expense, unfortunately.
Kind regards.