Ebay officially treats sellers like dirt.

[Joel]

So I sold an X9SRL-F on Ebay, shipped it to buyer like a good little ebayer... All is well until the buyer claims that the motherboard is defective (hangs at POST with code B7, memory problem) and he "isolated the problem" to a certain memory slot.

I've had an similar issue before and discovered that I'd forgot to remove a brass motherboard standoff, so I ask if he had checked that. The buyer responds "Just tried it, no luck" (blowoff?).

So, knowing eBay's very one-sided return policy, I reluctantly accept the return. I did actually receive the motherboard back (the same serial number too), and I fully populated the memory with 128GB (8x16GB) and an E5-1620. Fired right up.

So I open a case to try to keep the shipping costs ($25 outbound, plus $11 return). Ebay's "very helpful" reply:

A pleasant day to you!


Thank you for contacting you regarding the " X9SRL-F" you recently sold to “buyer”. I understand the buyer returned the item to you but the item is in working condition and you feel that the buyer should be responsible for the $40.00 return shipping cost. It saddens me to hear that this transaction did not go smoothly as expected.


We greatly appreciate that you have approved the return of the item to resolve the issue. Please understand that we work closely with the eBay community to make the returns process as easy as possible. As part of this, once tracking shows that an item had been returned to the seller, we refund the buyer immediately.



I recommend you to anonymously report the buyer to us if you feel your return policy is being taken advantage.


Here is how:


1. Log in to your eBay account.

2. Hover your mouse to My eBay (which is on the top right side of your eBay page).

3. Click on Selling and look for this item.

4. On the right side of the item, click on "More Actions" button.

5. Then click on the option "Report this buyer".


We will use this data to help identify bad buying behavior across our marketplace and help protect sellers against buyers who repeatedly misuse the eBay marketplace.


You can also block this buyer or up to 5,000 members by adding them to your blocked bidder/buyer list. Members on your blocked list won't be able to bid on or buy your items or use the "Ask a question" link in your listings to contact you. However, they will still be able to contact you through the "Messages" section of My eBay.


Here's how to add a member to your blocked list:


1. Click the "Site Map" link near the bottom of most eBay pages.

2. In the "Sell" section, click the "Block Bidder/Buyer List" link.

3. Click the "Add an eBay user to my Blocked Bidder/Buyer List" link. You may need to sign in.

4. Enter the usernames of the members that you want to block, and then click the "Submit" button.


You can remove members from your list at any time.


If the blocked member tries to bid on or buy one of your items, they'll see a message letting them know that you have decided not to let them bid or buy.

To learn more about eBay Money Back Guarantee, click here:

eBay Money Back Guarantee | Questions | eBay



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Gee thanks. I don't care about reporting a "bad buyer" since I'll likely never see him again anyway, I just wanted my shipping costs back!!!

 

[mmo]

that's sad, that's why I am hardly selling stuff on ebay anymore and mostly I will just put down do not accept return. my friend told me a story in the opposite way, as he bought something from eBay worth thousands dollar and never received the package, the tracking number provided was clearly sent to somewhere else instead. eBay declined his claim because they said the item is shipped and tracking is provided and delivered. this is so BS and not only sellers, but buyers are not protected neither.

 

[T_Minus]

So I sold an X9SRL-F on Ebay, shipped it to buyer like a good little ebayer... All is well until the buyer claims that the motherboard is defective (hangs at POST with code B7, memory problem) and he "isolated the problem" to a certain memory slot.

I've had an similar issue before and discovered that I'd forgot to remove a brass motherboard standoff, so I ask if he had checked that. The buyer responds "Just tried it, no luck" (blowoff?).

So, knowing eBay's very one-sided return policy, I reluctantly accept the return. I did actually receive the motherboard back (the same serial number too), and I fully populated the memory with 128GB (8x16GB) and an E5-1620. Fired right up.

So I open a case to try to keep the shipping costs ($25 outbound, plus $11 return). Ebay's "very helpful" reply:



Gee thanks. I don't care about reporting a "bad buyer" since I'll likely never see him again anyway, I just wanted my shipping costs back!!!

Same thing occurred to me with an E5 CPU.

Buyer messages me after he pays "I need it by X", I don't think it arrived by that date. He filed claim it was DOA... it was NOT DOA, I questioned/helped with item and he thought I was fighting the return, he left negative feedback saying I was "refusing a return". I received the item back, tested it, re-sold it on ebay to someone else, got positive feedback from them, and ebay still refused to remove my negative feedback from original buyer.

 

[Joel]

Then there's all the stories I've heard about buyers buying something, initiating a return ("defective," or "item not as described" both of which override a "no returns" policy), and sending back an equal weight of rocks.

Maybe I need to forget my ethics and get some freebies?

 

[Peanuthead]

I had a woman keep a SSD for over 60 days, claim it was DOA, did a charge back, sent me back the SSD broken and still out of money.

 

[mstone]

well, this is the difference between buying and selling stuff on the cheap via the internet and buying and selling stuff in the real world. there's a reason actual stores have higher markups...

 

[Stephan]

I thought about this thread for a little and I think these days I'd prefer classifieds over ebay. Don't like a potential buyer? Don't sell. Thinking he/she is going to be underqualified to handle gear? Don't sell. Something else fishy or even your gut tells you something is not right, well don't sell. On the ebay bidding system you have no choice but to sell to the highest bidder, unless you resort to measures like "item no longer available". Do that a couple of times and I think ebay will flag you in their database or delete your account.

If you are a commercial shop selling over the platform, mark up and/or sell more to cover such costs through profits. IMO in any group, 10% of people simply are idiots and 1-3% are outright crooks or leeches.