Selling used parts on Ebay, what would GRM do.

So 25 days ago I sold an abs module from a c5 corvette on Ebay.  It was rebuilt,  I know this because I paid to have it rebuilt. 

I never got the chance to reinstall it because a tree fell on my Corvette smashing it during the hurricane last year.  Fast forward to me selling it on Ebay.

18 days ago the buyer received it.  Today he emailed me requesting a refund, stating it doesn't work just like the one he is replacing.

Is he mis diagnosing the problem?  What are the odds both my rebuilt module and his are bad.  Should I refund his money?  Am I a being a jerk?  I have no way of testing the module to verify if it works or not now that the Corvette is no more...

He spent $375.00 for the module.  I sold it as rebuilt, I am out $25 in shipping. I can't remember what I spent having it rebuilt as it was at least a year ago.  The auction terms say no returns.

How was the listing?  Used as is or Used rebuild with warranty?

Rebuilt.  No returns.

No return on electronic devices.  He mis-diagnosed the problem, you sold him the thing he wanted. Tell him to order one from NAPA and try to return it. And, if he did need the module, why did it fail?  Is there a shorted solenoid that is killing the module?

Tell him to pound sand in a rathole...except maybe a bit more polite than that.

“Sorry but the listing stated no returns.  If I can help you get in touch with the company that rebuilt it let me know.”

After recently dealing w/ a customer who couldn't figure out how to connect a laptop to his internet...

I've learned that even though your listing says No Returns, eBay will gladly step in and force a refund.

Sadly, you might just have to bite the bullet.

What is the assurance that he will not be returning his bad unit and keeping your good unit?  

Said another way, could he fraud you and send you his truly bad unit while keeping your truly good unit?  

That seems pretty cut and dry to me. He took a gamble on a used rebuilt part rather than buying a new one. 

I'd be willing to bet if you did offer returns he'd clean his old one up and send it back to you and try to pass it off as the one you sent him.  There's too many scumbags out there in the world of used cars and car parts.

He's probably misdiagnosing the problem.

If you sent it to him with the bill for the rebuild, I'd say you absolutely shouldn't refund him. He has evidence that it should work, if he doesn't like it he should take it up with the company that did the rebuild.

If not, the auction terms say no returns so you could cite that if you want. If you want to help him out, I think it would be fair to refund him the full amount if he pays to ship it back to you. You'd be out the cost of sending it one way but so would he. He also can't be sure whether the unit is bad.

No returns does not equal no refunds on ebay.

I think the issue is that if you fight him on it, ebay may rule in his favor and force the refund without requiring him to return the part. If it were me, I would offer a refund upon return of your original part in the original packing, confirm it is in fact your part once received, and before you relist it maybe figure out a way to test it to confirm it is functional. 

What does the buyer's feedback look like? I would refuse it, but he will likely just file an INAD, and force the issue through eBay. 

Be prepared to spend some time on the phone with eBay straightening it all out if he sends something else back. 

He has good feedback as do I. 

I found the receipt where I had it repaired, the shop that repaired it bench tests it before shipping it back out.  I literally received it, set it on a shelf in the garage until I pulled it out to take the pictures for the ad.

I believe he is misdiagnosing the problem.  What makes me mad is I have no way of verifying if this guy is crazy or incompetent.  I can't sell it to someone else in good faith without verifying if it works, so I guess I am out my shipping cost, my time and I now have an unsellable $350 abs module.

What feedback has he left for others?

If he has left consistently good feedback, at that point I would take it back.  

I try to not sell anything that I can't easily verify like this on eBay for this exact reason 

In reply to pimpm3 :

Does your receipt state that it was tested and functional? If so, perhaps present him with that and inquire as to what he prefers to do at this point? Don't get me wrong, it sucks all the way around, but at least there is the possibility that he may return your functional part and you could relist it if you choose.

Ebay really sucks in this regard.  He can set up a return (even if listing said no returns) and say something along the lines the item description did not match up.  There is very little if nothing you can do if the buyer chooses this route.

Share a scan or photo of the receipt for the rebuild with him. If he insists he wants to return it, have him ship it back at his cost. Once you get it back refund him and relist it. It works he’s just misdiagnosing. Don’t feel like you can’t resell it. If you know someone with a c5 maybe you could test it on theirs if you’re really worried. 

Ordinarily id say no way on the refund but eBay might force you to take it back. 

I had someone return a voltage regulator , I sent NOS German , he returned cleaned up Brazilian made one , 

Nothing I could do but now  I  them mark with a drop of purple nail polish to show it's mine......

eBay and PayPal are not helpful , 

You are gonna eat the E36 M3 on this one - Your best hope is that you have the serial number off the module you sent, since he is gonna send you back his dead one.

Then MAYBE you can get some help from Ebay.  If you have no record of the S/N of the unit you sent, prepare to be out the module and the money.

Ebay is great 99% of the time.  The other 1% of the time is pretty awful.  Best of luck.  

Stories like this are why I sell on Craigs for less money.  Cash n carry.  

In this situation I would have the buyer return the module (at his cost) and then have the same company check the module and go from there.

Paul B

Well Ebay decided to refund him the money. 

To add insult to injury they are sending him a prepaid packing slip which they were kind enough to charge me for.  I don't even have the option to appeal.

So at the end of the day I am out $20.00 in shipping plus whatever they decide to charge me for the return packing slip for the buyer to mis diagnose his car.  Awesome!

Thanks alot Ebay...

Ebay really gets my blood boiling sometimes.  What a pain!  What if he returns his old broken module, Is there anything you can do?

Thanks for posting this and reminding me why I don't sell on ebay anymore.

I have a vintage Greddy controller that I was just thinking about putting on there...

The Bay really seems to have taken a leaf out of the Amazon playbook that says 'it's always the sellers' fault'.

Anybody got a recommendation for a better outlet for selling car parts? This is becoming a bit pressing for me as we're likely to move fairly soon and I'd love to unload some of the stuff I have squirreled away.

Hmm... I wonder if something like this happens, can you freeze your PayPal account so eBay can't charge you?

I'm in a similar boat as Tim and have a house full of crap I need to unload.

In reply to Ian F :

Paypal is just as bad as ebay when it comes to refunding a buyer. Even if you have used the send to friend option.