So, I sold a “PSA 10 GEM MINT Full Art Charizard GX Hyper Secret Rare Burning Shadows #150” on Ebay to a buyer in Singapore for $470. I took extra steps to ensure it was packaged safely. Buyer claims he received a different item, which he describes as “psa 8 evolution charizard”. I am 100% certain that I sent him the correct Charizard since I took extra steps to make sure the card was safely packaged that I normally wouldn’t since it was a pretty high priced item. I really feel like the buyer is trying to scam me by claiming he received some different card that I know for a fact I didn’t send to that address. Am i screwed? What should I do? IF the buyer is able to successfully scam me here I am probably done with ebay…
Edit: A different account from Singapore did buy a psa 8 charizard on the same day as the psa 10 secret rare one was purchased though, I am still positive that I didn’t get them mixed up as I packaged them way differently and even shipped them out on different days. I find it odd that two different accounts from Singapore bought Charizards on the same day as I have never shipped there before, so I think the accounts are either the same person or two different people working some scam together… Really don’t know what to do about this, help?
Update: Been over 24 hours and buyer hasn’t provided pictures of what he says he received. He also mentioned he is “outstation” at the beginning of our conversation. I am thinking because the PSA 8 Zard that I shipped to the other address in Singapore hasn’t been delivered yet and he is waiting that out. My guess is pictures will suddenly show up after the delivery of that other Charizard, hopefully that will be solid evidence for me if he opens up a case.
He will likely force a return for INAD (item not as described). It doesn’t matter if you “don’t accept returns” on eBay. There is no such thing. It sounds like he will likely return a psa 8 evolution charizard. It will be your word against his and unfortunately eBay may side with him. A video of you opening his returned item may or may not help in this situation, couldn’t hurt to take one and share with eBay. They do have a tendency to side with buyers even when all things point to them being in the wrong. Be firm but polite in all your dealings with him. eBay will see all your correspondence so don’t give them reason to dislike you. They do have a fund at times where they reimburse buyers out of their own pockets instead of from the seller. This is too common of a scam unfortunately. Whatever you do make sure to report his account even if you lose the case and get it on his file. If he has done it in the past and has a mark on his file already you will be more likely to win your case.
This is why I always take several pictures while packaging expensive items. I take pictures of the product next to the packaging with buyers name and address on it, also of pictures through the packaging process and of the final package. It’s never a guarantee but the more evidence you have the better. I’d just send anything and everything you have as far as evidence goes to them and video you opening the package if they require him to send it back to you. It’s sad that you can’t sell products online with peace of mind anymore.
Next time Create a video of you sealing the box on video in front of a notary at UPS and have them notarize a document that this is what you are shipping with them right there at that moment… Sign the box with a unique symbol where the box would be opened as well so if they film a scam unboxing video of a wrong product (using their own box/product), it doesn’t hold water either. That’s as solid legally as you can get. Ebay might still side with the buyer because why not.
Step 1) Provide as much evidence as you can to support your claim.
Ask the buyer to provide pictures of the card and package he claims to have received. At the very least, he should have the box/package with your return address on it, the label you used, the tracking number of the shipment, etc. He should also have a picture of the card he claims to have received.
If the seller fails to provide either of these, ‘I threw away the package’, ‘I don’t have a working camera’, etc. you know he’s attempting a scam. If the seller provides evidence of a picture or a card that you either did not send out or have never owned (i.e., a different PSA number than the card you had listed), respectively, you know he’s attempting a scam.
If the seller provides a picture of the other card that you sent out, then it’s possible that you made a mistake, or, that it’s a coordinated attempt to complete the scam. Contacting the buyer of the other card will be important - he may admit to the mistake and agree to forward the other card. Or, if it is indeed a coordinated activity, there may be history from eBay of similar attempted scams between the two users. This is where eBay’s fraud team will help out, they keep a lot of information about just everything that a user does on their site, including your own. If you have a site reputation of sales with happy customers, you will have a much better chance at receiving a judgment in your favor.
Step 2) Work with eBay’s customer support openly and honestly
If the buyer is attempting a scam, do not fret. Provide all the evidence you have attained from the above actions and then contact eBay’s customer support when the buyer opens an Item Significantly Not As Described case. The customer service rep will either make a determination one way or another or they’ll give you a good idea where the case is headed. Keep a neutral voice and level head during your contact. If you are earnest and honest with your information, and have done your due diligence in trying to suss out what is actually going on with the buyer, you shouldn’t have any problem with having the case resolved in your favor.
If the buyer is not attempting a scam, and you did mistakenly mail the wrong card to the wrong buyer, then you’re going to have a bit more difficulty. At that point it technically is your fault that the buyer did not receive the item as described and you are at the mercy of the buyer who received the wrong card. Personally, I’ve been lucky that the only time I did this the cards were relatively close in value and both buyers were okay with forwarding the card (of course, I gave them partial refunds and paid for their forward shipping for the mistake). This kind of thing can happen to the best of us - I learned the hard lesson to never prepare 4 different orders at the same time on the same desk with similar looking shipping labels and items in each pile
These two suggestions are just wastes of time. Nobody from eBay will watch them or really take the time to understand all the details of what you did to “prove” yourself in the right here. Even if they do there is always questions of what happens when the video goes off. The problem is for some of the scumbag buyers out there there also are scumbag sellers who actually ship the wrong items on purpose and claim they sent the proper ones. It is always he said she said when it comes down to it. Best you can do is have a clean record and a calm head in all your conversations and take video if necessary of opening the return package.
This is why I never sell items out of the US. If they want something bad enough they will contact a shipping company to ship the item to them from the US. I’ve seen to many scams and such on ebay in the last year to want to deal with the hassle. Also before shipping always take a picture of the item with the packaging and shipping label. Or if the item has a serial be sure to include a picture of the serial in the listing in case they try to return a different item to you. Learned that one the hard way with a graphics card.
As if nobody in the US would be able to do a similar kind of scam…
I understand if you don’t want to ship outside of the US. But it doesn’t matter where your buyers are from, they might still scam you, unfortunately. Dishonest buyers and sellers are the worst.
Ebay scam is universally rampant and not only restricted outside the states. I’d love to see a data comparison of the number of person who have been scammed in the states vs overseas…
Yes. Didn’t mean it only happens to those in the US. Just saying why I don’t ship outside the US. I wish ebay had an option to limit bids on items to buyers with larger feedback scores and such. The one’s I dealt with were usually newer users with less than 10 feedback and from countries with low incomes. Just my experiences anyways.
It is easier to resolve issues domestically. All scams I have experienced were international due to the lack of tracking or inability to communicate with the shipping agency.