Paypal dispute w/ buyer - what options do I have?

[theyare]

I had a buyer open a significantly not as described case (SNAD) asking for a partial refund of an item I sold due to some damage. It was a NWT item that must have gotten damaged somewhere in the mailing process. I believe I mailed it to a freight forwarder which was then shipped abroad. The address I shipped to was the ebay/paypal confirmed address. I received pictures of the damage that were clearly not there when I shipped the item out.

I am fine providing some compensation because I realize stuff happens, but the partial refund requested is more than I would l really like to refund. There is an option to negotiate the partial refund amount. If I offer a lower partial refund amount and he doesn't like it can he just escalate to a claim and request a full refund / reimbursement? I'm trying to avoid that route as who knows what I will end up with when the item comes back.

I'm going to open an USPS insurance claim but I have heard those are huge pains to realistically get paid out for a damage issue.

Has anyone had any experience with these types of issues? I

I totally understand that paypal pretty much always sides with the buyer, I'm just trying to figure out if my worst case scenario now that a case is open is the partial refund he requested or a full refund for return that he had not originally requested.

 

[theyare]

I reworked the original post for more details.

 

[sns23]

take the partial refund offer even though it was more than you want to give. Paypal literally almost always sides with the buyer, which would equate to full refund.

 

[GBR]

Write it off and if you can get away with less than 100% you have done well. I have to say if an item arrived damaged rather than BNWT, nothing less than a full refund would satisfy me. If you can claim against the carrier so much to the good.

 

[theyare]

Thanks for the replies.

Weird, I didn't even know partial refund request was an option until today.

 

[sambb]

There is no recourse for the dreaded SNAD - it can be legitimate, but often a scam - google it

 

[McPryon]

Ugh...as a fellow seller I feel your pain.

I think you can request to have the buyer upload pictures to prove the damage. A friend of mine had an item he sold, it broke before he could send it, and the buyer requested pictures. It might be worth asking about.

 

[SpooPoker]

**DO NOT LISTEN TO ANY OF THE ABOVE***

(no offense guys)

This exact situation happened to me - Call paypal and tell them the delivery address that the buyer supplied through paypal is a freight forwarder. Tell them to google it to see for themselves. Freight forwarders have a responsibility to note any damage upon arrival to them. Explain to paypal that any damage incurred from the forwarder to the client is not your responsibility, and if it had been incurred prior, the forwarder would have noted it.

Instant ruling in your favor while you wait on the phone. Trust me.

 

[rsuhandy]

I want to know how this turns out.
I'm going to assume you took Spoo's advice since he knows what he's doing.

 

[GBR]



**DO NOT LISTEN TO ANY OF THE ABOVE***
(no offense guys)
This exact situation happened to me - Call paypal and tell them the delivery address that the buyer supplied through paypal is a freight forwarder. Tell them to google it to see for themselves. Freight forwarders have a responsibility to note any damage upon arrival to them. Explain to paypal that any damage incurred from the forwarder to the client is not your responsibility, and if it had been incurred prior, the forwarder would have noted it.
Instant ruling in your favor while you wait on the phone. Trust me.

If the forwarder was the address to which you were contracted to deliver, then I would agree with Spoo that your responsibility would have ended at that point. Now proof that they were not damaged by then anyway - how good is the forwarder at checking and accepting responsibility...

 

[theyare]

Thanks Spoo.
Unfortunately, they are not as kind to me.

Think it's time to cut the losses where they are.

Here's the item in question (cross posted from the question thread). It's basically take a $250 hit on this, but probably the smartest move at this point. As opposed to having it shipped back to me in who knows what shape, then trying to re-sell a repaired / damaged item.

This a jacket I have that has a small tear in the fabric. It's 48/38/14 linen / wool / silk blend.

Do you think this is something that could be easily mended? If so, who does this type of work and is there a ballpark cost?

Thanks!