Malicious Customer,advice Needed.

[Redochre]

Hi there.

I sold a wallet on etsy a few weeks back & I was a little suspicious because the address listed was a trading address in an industrial estate but I went along with it because a sale is a sale.

After the wallet arrived I had a less than polite message saying that there was not enough pockets & they had been sewn too tightly, claiming she couldn't get the cards in.

I pointed out that I state how many pockets there are, that the pockets would be slightly tight but will stretch with use & that the last picture on the listing was of the wallet with cards in it.

After that she said it was her husband who wanted more pockets & she changed her story to instead of being unable to insert cards she now finds them too difficult to get out. At this point she was demanding a refund.

I contacted etsy because I found the whole thing suspicious & they said to go with my instincts & they would back me.

She has now threatened me with a negative review against my shop. Which is blackmail & slander. There is no way I'm willing to tolerate that.

If I had made a mistake then I would gladly refund, instantly, Id even refund or exchange if she simply changed her mind. I just don't understand the rudeness & the lies. This is only my 4th sale & I'm very disheartened by it.

Apolagies if my typing is poor, I'm using phone & the keypad is glitchy.

I would love any feedback or advise please.

Andy.

[camano ridge]

It sounds to me like probably her husband was not happy she bought it and now she is trying to come up with an excuse to get her money refunded. Don't feel dishartened you are dealing with people, and from time to time things like this will happen. The only reason you feel dihartened is because you take pride in your work and feel you did everything right. One of the problems with ebay, etsy etc. is the feed back, you can feel like you are hostage to it and have to do things you don't want to. You have two obvious choices give the money back or accept the negative feed back and move on ( you have already told ETSY what is going on). Be aware that even if you give the money back you may still get negative feed back from someone like her. Also as an aside do you have a return policy stated and is that return policy being adhered to by both of you? If you do not have a return policy you might want to create one.

Edited June 28, 2014 by camano ridge

[Kustom]

Just have her return it for a refund. Good news is you're getting the jerks out of the way up front. I've had over 1500 sales on esty and only two nasty customers.

[blue duck]

You should ask etsy about thier comment policy. Some sites (not ebay for sure) are willing to stand by you. Sounds like they might also. If you get bad feedback for unreasonable reasons, they will/can delete it or do something to protect you from this badwill (how many mistakes in English does that sentence have?). Yes, there are jerks and you found one right off. Just don't let them sour you. Enjoy what you do because when you start stressing about things like this, it then becomes a dreadful job. You don't really want one of those now do you?

[WinterBear]

You should only offer a full refund only if the wallet is in perfect condition and can be resold. If she's unwilling to do so because she's ripped the pockets by jamming 3 or more cards in each pocket, she may go away at this point.

I and several other people I know have had experience have had experience with someone who screws up something they've bought, and have gone on the attack to try and recoup the money that they've spent now that the item is ruined. They screwed it up within hours of buying it, but they are demanding their money back because of their carelessness, not because of bad work.

[barehandcustoms]

As long the item is in the same shape that I sent it then I always give full refunds even if I have to cover the shipping. It's just not worth the time of going back and worth with someone over specifics or combating false reviews of your product. Sometimes you have to eat a few dollars and move on. I used to get bitter about it when people got upset over things clearly in the description. Now a days I just offer full refunds if they aren't completely happy with a product.

The last thing I want to do is sell someone a product they are not happy with. Even if they are being overly picky or didn't read the description. Just issue a refund a move on. Custom or personalized items are a whole different story though.....

Just know those types of customers are very rare so don't be discouraged.

Edited July 1, 2014 by barehandcustoms

[JLSleather]

Etsy is a strange place. I did a search earlier today and found a couple of people selling very basic, very simple projects that cost $3 to make for $50 range. And selling HUNDREDS of them. You couldn't GIVE me one of those things (thank you anyway). And right next to their listings, someone else with the SAME item, in the same (pathetic) color, done the same way -- none sold. No accounting for it that I can see, but then - not really my concern.

Make what you like to make. Try to keep in mind that over there, you're dealing with people who are often shopping for cheap plastic jewelery. It's almost nonsensical to even list anything leather over there (though I know a chubby girl who does).

[NVLeatherWorx]

Having looked at what you make and reading the details of your items listings on Etsy I would have to agree that you have found that "chronic complainer" that we have all dealt with before, and are sure to deal with time and again. However, you do need to put some policies on your shop so that people know right up front exactly what to expect when conducting business with you and how to PROPERLY address issues or complaints. You can take a look at my shop and see what I mean about having straight forward policies in place. You can search Etsy for RHardieCustomLeather; also look at some of the other shops that are offering similar items and see what their policies are.

Good luck on this one and if you were to decide on leaving this particular person standing in the rain with the wallet that she now owns I don't think anyone would say it was a bad decision. I have had people comment on how tight the card pockets are when brand new and I have had them complain about how stiff a belt or other thicker leather item is at the beginning, yet every single one of them has always been told up front to expect certain things and when they start crying about it I just remind them of the conversations and posted information in policies and listings and ask them if they recall them. When they say they do, and they just about always do, I ask them what the course of action should be then being as they have knowledge of what the policies are and that their order submission was acknowledgement of such policies and posted information and warnings to which they typically respond, "it is my fault for not providing the right information", or, "I wouldn't refund the money in this case either". There is something to be said for being the one who owns the business and sets the rules, if you make them to protect your business then you have to enforce them to ensure your business is protected.

[Studio-N]

If you used paypal for your etsy payment, you may not have a choice. Being an eBay company, they will NOT protect the seller.

All the whiner has to do is well, whine to paypal and open a case and paypal will yank the money from your account.

I'd say have them return it (part of the condition in the case if opened), and refund it and move on.

[dcobranding]

Etsy is owned by eBay? Seriously? I didn't know that.