posted on August 16, 2001 08:20:01 AM
I recently had some surgery and the drugs are making me unable to think straight. I have a buyer problem that I need to work out but I cannot figure out what my options are. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
I recently sold several items to a person in another country. I mixed up one item and had already e-mailed them that the wrong item was coming and we would work that out.
The buyer received the package and e-mailed me stating that the wrong item was in the package (which we already established) and that one of the other items was damaged. He said that there was a broken off piece but that the broken piece was not to be found in the packing suggesting it was damaged when I sold it as mint. He also is inquiring (not upset) that I had charged him $37 for a package that cost $27 to ship but he did mention it so I am sure it is an issue.
Here are some of the "facts" as I see them:
1. I had already acknowledged there was an incorrect item in the package and we would work this out. The other buyer who also received an incorrect item is more than willing to ship the piece they received to the correct buyer. I am happy to reimburse both buyers the shipping (plus a little extra) to take care of sending the right item to the right person.
2. All of these pieces were inspected by 4 different people prior to shipping. If there were a piece broken off, I feel that one of us would have caught it. We do mark all of our pieces with an invisible ink stamp, so we could ask him to return it to us but the postage might not be worth it. He paid approximately $50 for the item and it is not the most expensive item of the lot that he bought. I tend to believe he is telling the truth.
3. Because of the size of the order, I had to buy a special box for shipping. Between that, bubble wrap and peanuts, the excess pretty much covered my expenses for handling. My auction stated shipping, handling and insurance.
4. The buyer paid with PayPal.
When I have ever had a situation arise with a buyer, I like to present them with options on how to resolve the issue(s) which I feel gives them some "buy in" on the resolution. Any options you all come up with I will be glad to consider. And, as always, thanks for your help.
Edited with the help of Percoset.
[ edited by dixiebee on Aug 16, 2001 08:22 AM ]
posted on August 16, 2001 11:07:54 AM
The 1st order of business is to see that both customers get what they ordered or a refund. It does not look like this is going to be a profit making venture for you. in the following plan Customer A has the good package. Customer B has the broken package.
Have Customer A forward Customer B his package. If you have another one of what customer A ordered in stock send it to them, if not issue them a refund. You also owe customer A postage for remailing B's package. Decide if you want customer B to return the damaged goods to you. If so you owe them return postage as well.
