posted on May 31, 2006 09:06:19 PM new
I guess it was bound to happen. A rather new Ebayer won an item from me April 24th, paid immediately with PayPal, and I shipped the next day. Tonight I hear from PayPal that she's unhappy, says item significantly not as described (not true!), AND says she's sent me 3 e-mails (which I've never received) about her problem with the item.
I've replied to her in the resolution area of PayPal and told her to return the item for a full refund. There's a button on that page where I can issue a full refund--but I'm afraid I'd never see the item again. What would you do? Refund now or wait?
posted on May 31, 2006 09:16:19 PM new
Ditto what Paloma said. Wait till you get it back. Then make sure it's the same item you sent her and she didn't pull a switch. She may seem like a newbie, but it could be a recently created account being used to hide from an unfavorable reputation she has developed on another account.
If Murphy's law is correct, everything East of the San Andreas Fault will slide into the Atlantic
posted on May 31, 2006 09:21:50 PM new
Thanks, guys. It helps just knowing I have pals here who understand. I haven't developed a tough Ebay hide yet and I guess I'm too sensitive, but getting a message like that out of the blue really disturbed me. Adrenalin flow and all that. A real downer.
Maybe some of you have gotten these in the past and are used to them??
posted on May 31, 2006 09:32:43 PM new
Road I don't think you really ever get use to them. Or maybe I am not toughened up enough as I feel terrible on anything like getting a neg, unhappy email or anything like that, so far I have not gotten a Paypal dispute but know someday it could happen. I will probably have a nervous rigor when that happens. I better knock on wood just for mentioning it.
Don't refund until item comes back and checks out. Good luck.
**************
Some minds are like concrete,
thoroughly mixed up and permanently set.
posted on May 31, 2006 09:46:24 PM new
Roadie, I think I would also email the buyer directly just to be sure you and she can communicate via emails. Let her know that you were not aware of a communication problem and had not received the 3 emails she told PayPal that she had sent.
I think it is only natural to feel an adrenalin rush when you were not expecting trouble, but don't jump the gun yet. Most of these things can get worked out fairly easily once the buyer knows you are not trying to rip them off.
On the other hand, if the buyer tries to rip you off, let us know. I'm sure Sparkz will be more than happy to write a nice little communique` for you <g>
. When your ship comes in.... make sure you are willing to unload it. .
posted on May 31, 2006 09:49:35 PM new
LtRay: I've already e-mailed her directly to see if it goes through, and I told her I'd not gotten any of the three she'd sent. It's AOL, by the way, dang it. Those AOL and Yahoo e-mail buyers are so hard to communicate with!
posted on May 31, 2006 09:58:54 PM new
AOL and Yahoo both have the best spam filter systems on the internet. She's either running an obsolete version of AOL that doesn't have access to the spam folder, or she's too stupid to figure out how to set it up properly.
If Murphy's law is correct, everything East of the San Andreas Fault will slide into the Atlantic
posted on May 31, 2006 10:06:26 PM new
Send her an email directly from your Email addy to hers. Do not use the word "Ebay" "Paypal" or item number in the subject line or the message. Explain to her that she needs to upgrade her version of AOL, or open a Yahoo or Hotmail account to to communicate properly in her online auction purchases. Again, be very careful to not mention Ebay in the message. Her spam filters have "learned" this as a spam subject and she never corrected it.
If Murphy's law is correct, everything East of the San Andreas Fault will slide into the Atlantic
posted on May 31, 2006 10:08:17 PM new
AOhell's mail delivery system is the pits in either direction. I dropped them when we figured out that my AOL emails were not going through to my husband's knology account.
When I complained to AOL, they said it was a knology problem. Funny, I received all of his emails, he only received about 75% of mine. Once I started checking, some of my other friends did not always receive some of my emails as well. Bye, Bye AOL!
Trying to convince an AOL user or rep that AOL has a problem is usually pointless. I would not have believed it if I had not experienced it first hand.
posted on May 31, 2006 11:16:04 PM new
Sparkz: I've done what you've suggested here. I have a hunch, though, that she's going to take it the wrong way. Oh well.
posted on May 31, 2006 11:30:10 PM new
If it is an expensive article. Dont forget you do have the option to place a phone call to them. Sometimes this works better then all the emails.
posted on June 1, 2006 06:44:01 AM new
If you have agreed to issue her a refund,Paypal will automatically remove the fund from your account when it read that the DC she used to return your package has been scanned at your post office.
If you are not happy with the item returned ,you can contact Paypal and give your reason why.
/ lets all stop whining !! /
posted on June 1, 2006 07:11:08 AM new
Does the buyer even have to say why it's not as described? Sounds like she was waiting for the pictures to be deleted or something.
When is paypal or ebay going to stop this madness?
posted on June 3, 2006 04:54:46 PM new
I also am dealing with one of these. Respond in the paypal dispute thread you have not heard from them etc. Also offer a full refund in the dispute thread.
After a week I expressed concern in email and the dispute thread I have not heard from you.
Mine finally answered his father was ill and that was the reason for the delay. Then another week goes by and he finally emails the shipping info etc. my item is being returned.
Do not give them a refund until you have the item!!! I also hate to have someone dispute my merchandise but there are all kinds of people in this world.
posted on June 3, 2006 05:01:11 PM new
What's a "nervous rigor"??
____________________________________________
Now We Know... Uninformed People Elect Uninformed Presidents
posted on June 3, 2006 07:35:55 PM new
Maybe that term is a southern slang don't know I just know my Mom used it a lot and it stuck. In other words nervous rigor is in my case just short of a heart attack.
Road did you ever hear back from your buyer with that email you sent?
**************
I married my wife for her looks...but not the
ones she's been giving me lately!
posted on June 3, 2006 07:53:37 PM new
Y'all have to hear the latest. After I offered to refund the buyer's money after she would send the item back to me, a day later she e-mailed that the item had grown on her, liked it anyway, and what could I do for her. I refunded half the total, including shipping, and she's promised (let's hope) to leave me a positive feedback for resolving an issue.
I told my husband yesterday that I think sometimes I'm a Positive-Feedback Whore!! I'll do almost anything to avoid a neg. This particular battle was not worth protracting any longer from my perspective.
posted on June 3, 2006 08:17:16 PM new
"a day later she e-mailed that the item had grown on her, I hope you sold her a wart or a big ugly nose mole with hairs..
I hope you refunded from her payment page to show that restitution was made to her for paypal's sake along with explanation. Sounds like she has done this before getting refunds or partial refund which makes her a dishonest buyer to say least. Well come to think of it if you refunded by Paypal then you have your proof. Hope she closed claim at Paypal. Happy things are working out for you.
**************
I married my wife for her looks...but not the
ones she's been giving me lately!
posted on June 3, 2006 09:08:28 PM new
Sounds like you came out of this one o.k. Roadsmith. I think I would be tempted to block her from further bidding. When she leaves you positive feedback, be sure to leave her a positive as well. Word it like this: "Thanks!!! Decontamination and disinfecting instructions will follow shortly." Then have a couple glasses of 2 buck chuck and get a good night's sleep. It's a cinch she won't.
If Murphy's law is correct, everything East of the San Andreas Fault will slide into the Atlantic
posted on June 3, 2006 09:11:23 PM new
Damn! Now I've got a great idea!
Let me preface this rant with you certainly have a right to do what you feel is right for you - just know that it hurts me a bit.
Now - my idea:
Next time I buy something from Eddie Bauer or Land's End - that doesn't quite fit, I'll call them and tell them it doesn't fit just right, but if I work out a few more days at the gym, it just might....
But, since I won't be able to wear it for a few weeks until I trim a few pounds - "What can you do for me?"
After calming down the hysterical tele rep on the phone, I'll calmly explain that if they don't give me a discount for the weeks I can't wear it, I'll call my credit card company and tell them that their big, mean corporation won't accomodate my fat butt - as I'm sure they should have known I wouldn't fit into my purchase - especially after my honest admission to them when I called... right?
Obviously, you have a right to run your sales as you see fit, but when you offered a refund when you knew you weren't at fault - and you didn't require them to return the item - you set expectations that are unrealistic for the rest of us.
What happens when more buyers figure out more sellers will do what you did? You - and we - will get similar requests and when someone stands up to them, there'll be even more negs to go around.
If little miss scammer (and that's what she is) or any of her relatives or friends buys something from us, they'll get a rude awakening. If they find a problem, they'll find a cheerful refund once they return the item they purchased.
No return, no refund! It's that simple.
Wayne
Never explain -- Your friends do not need it and your enemies will not believe you anyway.
~ Elbert Hubbard
posted on June 3, 2006 11:27:02 PM new
Wayne, I can see why you might think I did the wrong thing here. The truth is, the item had cost me, years ago, about $20. I'd gotten tired of it and wanted to unload it somewhere and was VERY happy when the bidding went up near $50.
My attitude about troublemakers is that I don't want them to have power over me, and when I fret and stew about a troublesome person, that's exactly what's happening. I try to stay as positive as I can, life being what it is sometimes. I'm not a pushover, as my family and friends can attest, but sometimes I don't need extra negative junk in my life.
This is the first time I've caved on an item I've sold and decided to refund some of the $$. I sure don't intend to make it a habit!
posted on June 3, 2006 11:36:59 PM new
LOL Wayne. That reminds me of a friend who years ago worked in the Mens Dept at Nordstroms (notorious for their Customer First policies). He told me that a customer bought a tux, had it fitted, returned it (it just didn't feel right) with wedding cake still in the pocket. My friend smiled, refunded the money and asked the jerk to shop with them again... wonder if they still have the same policy?
posted on June 4, 2006 08:23:11 AM new
When the Nordstrom store opened in our city, in 1982, I was working for the chamber of commerce and attended a breakfast for the new manager. He talked about Nordstrom's no-questions-asked return policy, which was hard for all of us to believe. Someone asked him what the most outrageous return had been; he said a little old lady came in with 40 pairs of shoes, said her husband had died and wouldn't be needing the shoes any longer. He'd bought them all at Nordstrom's, and they credited her account for all 40.
I myself was going up and down with my weight, and at one point found in my closet some clothes I'd bought hoping they'd fit. Never wore them. Brought them to the store; the clerk gulped and said some of these are four years old, and I said yes they are. My account was credited immediately. (I never pushed it again, though.)
Nordstrom developed a fanatic following because of their great customer service, and I don't know if it's still the same service. I don't shop there now--our little mountain town doesn't have one, LOL, and I get my clothes here and there, including QVC (which also has a wonderful return policy).
posted on June 4, 2006 09:46:52 AM new
I can't remember the last time I had to return anything to Nordstrom but I do believe that their liberal return policy is still in place.
They are liberal in other ways too. When my daughter was small her feet grew at oddly different rates. If the difference was one size or more, Nordstrom would split two pairs and sell us one pair of two different sized shoes at the regular price. It didn't matter if it was a $50 pair of shoes or a $300 pair of shoes, the price would stay the same.
They sent the leftovers to a place that provides free shoes to people who only need one shoe or who have similar problems with sizing.
I bought my husband a watch at Nordstrom and when we brought it back several years later to have some work done they gave us a "loaner" because they had to send the watch elsewhere for service. The loaner was worth about 10K, lol. It was used, yes, but it was still much more valuable than my husband's watch. We didn't even have to sign anything other than the work order. They just handed over a ten thousand dollar watch and actually apologized for the time it would take to have the original returned.
posted on June 4, 2006 09:49:20 AM new
When a Nordstrom store opened near us there was the same flurry of stories including one about someone returning some snow tires (which they don't sell) and getting a refund. Now that one I don't believe since how could they know how much to refund.
I don't shop there often and am by no means a regular that a salesperson might remember but I did have a brush with their extraordinary service. I was looking for a designer scarf with a particular subject matter. The young lady took my name and number and two years later I got a phone call that a scarf had come in from that designer with the widget I wanted printed on it. There was only one but she would put it aside for me and hold it till the next week when a 1/2 off sale was starting on the scarves! Now I consider that service.
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“The illiterate of the future will be the person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as of the pen.”
Maholy-Nagy, Vision in Motion, 1947
