Hi ladies,
This may be long so please read it with patience. I want to know if requesting for refund on return shipping of a fake bag is considered unreasonable. My issue is not about the money but what should be a proper way to handle fake purse purchases on eBay. I am including actual emails to avoid ambiguity in my explanation or any bias I might create with my own words.
I have bought a fake Dior Gaucho from a seller with 100% positive feedbacks. She mainly sells Coach and her auction stated that the Gaucho was a gift. Since she had a nice feedback and her auction said "bid with confidence. 100% positive feedbacks", I bought the purse from her for over $400.
When I received it, I immediately knew it was fake. According to the eBay Gaucho guide from a wonderful tPF member, I knew the things to look for. I sent an email to the seller and this is what I said:
I wrote:
This bothers me a lot because I unintentionally bought three fake purses on eBay in the past and got refund on both on merchandise and return shipping. It's not about wasting $15 but I don't see why this seemed unreasonable to the seller. I can see that she didn't know about the bag being fake but if I were her, I would definitely issue a refund on return shipping and apologize. Do you think leaving her a negative feedback is not fair? I want to know what you think and if you had a similar experience. Thank you.
This may be long so please read it with patience. I want to know if requesting for refund on return shipping of a fake bag is considered unreasonable. My issue is not about the money but what should be a proper way to handle fake purse purchases on eBay. I am including actual emails to avoid ambiguity in my explanation or any bias I might create with my own words.
I have bought a fake Dior Gaucho from a seller with 100% positive feedbacks. She mainly sells Coach and her auction stated that the Gaucho was a gift. Since she had a nice feedback and her auction said "bid with confidence. 100% positive feedbacks", I bought the purse from her for over $400.
When I received it, I immediately knew it was fake. According to the eBay Gaucho guide from a wonderful tPF member, I knew the things to look for. I sent an email to the seller and this is what I said:
She replied:Hi -----,
The Gaucho came today but I am quite upset about it. I thought you sold an
authentic Gaucho but this bag is a replica. The label is wrong and the coins
also have the wrong details.
Since you got the bag as a gift, I am sure you didn't know that this was a fake.
I ask that you issue me the full refund plus return shipping cost. If you don't
agree, then I will file a claim through PayPal. Please let me know what you
want to do. If you want to read some tips on how to authenticate Dior Gaucho,
there are two guides on eBay. Also you can just take the bag to a Dior dealer.
Please respond soon so that I can take an action.
Thanks,
So I sent the package insured. She filed a dispute to get her fees back so I did that too. Then she saidHello,
I am sorry. Please return the purse to me and when I receive it I will issue you a refund.
You may want to insure it, just in case.
Thanks,
I even agreed to that because I felt bad for her. She thanked me and I thought it's settled. Several days after, I received the refund on the purse and not on the return shipping. When I asked her, she said she contacted PayPal and they said buyer pays for the return shipping.I ask that when you leave feedback to not mention it being a fake. I was not aware of it being fake and I am not going to list it on ebay again. I have 100% feedback for a reason. I am a good seller and I am very upset that this happened.
I wrote:
She wrote me back:Hi ------,
This is what you wrote on the refund:
<img alt="" border="0" height="5" width="1">I called PayPal this morning and they told me "It is the buyer's responsibility to pay for the return shipping costs if they want to return the item. PayPal will not allow you to refund for more than original transaction."The only reason I returned the bag was because it was not authentic and there is no
reason for me to pay for the return shipping. I could have just filed a claim and got my
money without returning the bag. You wanted it back and asked me to insure it.
In the past, the sellers who sold me replica bag issued a separate payment on return
shipping. I can provide you with records of it. I know you haven't been in this situation
before but refund on a return shipping is usually paid by the seller when the item is not
as described in the auction.
Please issue me a refund on return shipping. I am not wasting both my time and money
on a replica bag.
Thank you,
After this, it just got worse. I told her that I will leave her a negative feedback and don't mind a retaliatory feedback from her since I don't think I was wrong. She told me to do what I wish to do. She said she stuck to her words then sent me another emailI suggested you insure it so that both of us would get what we wanted- I would get the bag back and you would get your refund. I never said you had to. I understand that in the past that is what other sellers have done. I asked PayPal what to do and that's what they told me to do. They said if you would've filed a claim you would've received exactly what I refunded you. It would've made no difference. The other sellers you are talking about, did that because they wanted to not because that's the policy. You didn't want the bag and I didn't make the sale. SO, you got the refund in which I paid for the shipping to you and didn't get back and you paid for the shipping to return it to me. That is fair. I supplied plenty enough pictures on the auction, you could've requested more, but you made your decision to bid based on what you saw. It is not my fault that you did not like it. I stated I received it as a present and as you said "HawaiianGirl06, you didn't know it wasn't real". I had to pay for shipping fees to you, paypal fees, and ebay fees for this transaction. You had to pay the return fees in order to get a refund. I said I would give you a refund, I never said I would refund the return shipping. I have all of our emails that say so. Paypal said that is the policy. I am following the policy.
Do you think she was clear with her words when she said she would issue me a refund? I didn't think I assumed things. I told her that I would file a claim if she disagreed with my terms and she just told me to return it. She said I didn't have to send the bag back, but how else could she make sure for herself that the bag was fake without comparing it to the guides? She also said she would issue me the refund after receiving the bag, so what she says doesn't make sense.You assumed I would give you a refund based on my reply- 'I am sorry. Please return the purse to me and when I receive it I will issue you a refund.' You shouldn't make assumptions. I was clear in what I said and I did what I said I would do. A FULL refund is refunding you what you paid. I could've refunded you minus the shipping because I am out that amount and didn't receive that back. But, I was nice and refunded you exactly what you paid. As Paypal said, it's the buyers responsibility to pay for the return shipping and use whatever carrier and extra services they wish. If you want to see this as me being mean then fine. I am not mean. I am being fair. I shouldn't have to pay double in shipping to resolve this transaction when it's YOU who wanted to return it. That was your choice and I indeed gave you a full refund of the original transaction. Exactly what I stated I would do. I didn't lie and I am a fair seller.
This bothers me a lot because I unintentionally bought three fake purses on eBay in the past and got refund on both on merchandise and return shipping. It's not about wasting $15 but I don't see why this seemed unreasonable to the seller. I can see that she didn't know about the bag being fake but if I were her, I would definitely issue a refund on return shipping and apologize. Do you think leaving her a negative feedback is not fair? I want to know what you think and if you had a similar experience. Thank you.