Unpaid Item Process for Non Paying Buyers on eBay
Buyers on eBay that purchase and then fail to pay are the eBay seller's worst nightmare. Since eBay put an end to seller's ability to leave (anything but positive) feedback, many newer eBay sellers feel they have no recourse against these types of buyers. Fortunately, the non paying buyer is a very small percentage of people on eBay and the majority of buyers are honest and trustworthy. But without feedback, what do you do about non paying buyers?
If a buyer fails to pay for an eBay item, don't be afraid to use the unpaid item complaint. You must wait 7 days after the listing has ended to file this complaint. It is found in your "Resolution Center" at the bottom of most eBay pages. You must be logged in to use it.
You can select the bullet option "I haven't received my payment yet". It will walk you through the process. Once the unpaid item complaint is made, eBay will attempt to contact the buyer and notify them that they are responsible for making payment. While this sounds like a lot of work, it really isn't that bad.
And there are 3 good reasons why you should always file an unpaid item complaint. First, it can guard against retaliatory feedback from the buyer. If the buyer fails to respond to the unpaid item complaint within 7 days, you can close the complaint. In that case, any feedback they left for you (positive or negative) will not count in your overall feedback score. This will help guard against having your feedback score dragged down by these kinds of buyers.
Second, your participation in the unpaid item process helps to alert eBay to fraudulent buyers by creating an unpaid item strike on their eBay record. If enough strikes are made against a buyer, that buyer will be suspended from eBay. So in that way, you can participate in helping to clean up habitual deadbeat buyers from the eBay marketplace.
Third, you can get a credit on your listing fees for the item if the buyer doesn't pay. This happens automatically when you relist the item (and it sells the next time around).
Below is a link to eBay's help page on dealing with unpaid items.
