advice on returns - when is it okay to say no?

[Former_Member]

Hi all & thanks in advance for any support,

I'm relatively new & I got my first unhappy customer today. She ordered two items and sent me photos of one of them - very blurry since it's small - claiming a stone was broken. (happens to be the one in my icon) You really can't tell from the photos, but I'll give her the benefit of the doubt & accept that there must be something wrong with it.

I replied within 20 minutes & offered to repair it for her free (paying shipping both ways at a loss) and she said she wanted a refund instead and is returning BOTH of the items. I'd *like* to say she can't return both, but I don't want to be a bully and the second, unharmed item is my best seller so I expect I can resell it.

Still, my policies actually state returns are only good for exchange value, so presumably I could have told her tough luck? I'm surprised she did not check this before contacting me but her English is extremely poor and this arouses a natural sympathy in me. I don't want her to feel stuck with items she doesn't want, but I also know I need to protect myself from potential bullshit.

Looking for general advice on dealing with returns. I expect it makes all of us feel bad. What's the general standard on etsy? I don't want to be a monster, I certainly don't want negative feedback, but I don't want to be a pushover either. Where's the balance?

Is it acceptable to simply put no refunds in your policy and quote this at people? I don't want to deter potential customers and I never mean to deceive anyone, but I feel at a loss to defend myself. I OVER package my items to prevent damage so I'm not sure how this happened at all. =(

[RunkPockDesigns]

There is no standard Etsy return policy. It is up to the shop holder. However if you refuse their return, they can always go through Etsy or Paypal to open a dispute against you, along with giving negative feedback. This method really needs to change as the customer can basically blackmail you into getting what they want by threatening negative feedback.

If this was not a custom order, why not have her send the items back (she pays for shipping) and then refund her the cost of the item, minus the shipping and then fix the broken item and sell both items again in your shop?

Don't refund her until your items are back to you, and she should understand that she needs to pay for shipping both ways since she has decided against the item that she purchased.

[Former_Member]

Thanks, Rozena!

Currently, she's been promised a return and is paying the shipping, but I was definitely caught off guard and that blackmail is terrifying to someone with only 18 sales! That's why I'm wondering if it's the norm to do whatever you can as a seller to make people happy or acceptable within the community to put your foot down and say no when you know you're truly not at fault?

[Former_Member]

Hi, to be very honest about this: Anytime you have any problem with a customer, it's on you. Anytime someone wants a refund/return, I just comply. I can get upset over it but I still go ahead and do as customer says....

It is just not worth a bad feedback, and believe me, there is a lot of people out there who are eagerly waiting to put you down. Fortunately, they are minority...... Also, it is a small price to pay for having online shop. Just imagine that you'd actually had to set up a brick shop......