eBay return request: how to handle one step by step as a seller

What happens when you get an eBay return request?

An eBay return request is the buyer's formal ask to send an item back, opened from their purchase history. eBay emails you, the request appears in Seller Hub under Returns, and a clock starts. Under eBay's Money Back Guarantee, sellers must respond within 3 business days; after that, the buyer can ask eBay to step in. Responding on time, and in the right way, keeps the decision with you instead of eBay.

Every request has a reason chosen by the buyer, such as a change of mind, the wrong size, a fault, damage or 'doesn't match description'. The reason decides who pays return postage and what your options are, so it is the first thing to read. Here is the whole process, step by step.

Step 1: read the reason, the message and the photos

Open the request and note three things: the reason the buyer chose, any comments they wrote, and any photos they attached. Then open the listing and the order. Compare what the buyer says with what the listing promised: the title, condition, photos, item specifics and description.

The reason matters for postage. eBay's help page on return postage for sellers says that if the item is damaged, faulty or does not match the listing, you are responsible for the return postage costs, even if your returns policy says you do not offer free returns. For other reasons, such as a change of mind, the buyer pays for return postage unless your returns policy offers free returns.

When the reason looks wrong

Sometimes a buyer picks 'doesn't match description' for what is really a change of mind. Do not argue in the first reply. Ask a simple, polite question, such as a photo of the label or the fault, and keep it on eBay. If the item was accurately described, you have the listing and your photos as evidence if eBay is later asked to step in.

Step 2: choose your response within 3 business days

Seller Hub shows the options eBay offers for the request. The main ones are:

eBay's help page notes that eBay may automatically accept a return request on your behalf if an eBay postage label is available, depending on your settings. Check your Returns preferences so you know which requests will be accepted without you.

UK business sellers: the right to cancel

If you are a UK business seller, a 'no returns' listing does not end the matter. GOV.UK says a buyer of goods from a business online can cancel up to 14 days after delivery without giving a reason. GOV.UK's refunds guidance adds that you must refund within 14 days of receiving the item back, and refund the cost of standard delivery if the customer paid for it. Our guide to the right to cancel online orders in the UK covers which items are excluded.

Step 3: provide the return label

If you accept, the buyer needs a way to send the item back. An eBay return label is the simplest: it carries tracking, and the cost is charged to whoever is responsible under the rules above. If you provide your own label, upload it promptly and make sure it has tracking. Check the return address in your account before you accept; an old address is a common reason returns go astray.

Step 4: track the return and inspect the item

Watch the return's tracking. The deadline that matters most comes when it arrives. eBay's help page says that once you have received the item, you have 2 business days to review it and issue a refund. If tracking shows the returned item has been delivered to you or your address and you have not refunded it, eBay will automatically issue the refund on your behalf after 2 business days.

When the parcel arrives:

1. Open it promptly and take photos as you unpack, especially if something looks wrong.
2. Check the item is the one you sent: model, serial number if any, and all parts.
3. Check its condition against how you sent it.
4. Record the outcome on the order: resaleable, needs repair, or write-off.

What if the item comes back used or damaged?

If the item comes back in a worse state than you sent it, through no fault of yours, gather photos straight away. GOV.UK says UK business sellers cannot deduct fees from a refund for a cancelled online order unless the item has been used or damaged. Use eBay's tools for refunding less than the full amount, give the reason with photos, and do it within the 2 business day window. If the item came back empty or with a different product inside, contact eBay rather than refunding.

Step 5: issue the refund and close the request

Refund from the return in Seller Hub, not by any other route, so eBay records the request as resolved. Refund the right amount:

• Faulty, damaged or not as described: the item price and the original postage, and you bear the return postage.
• Change of mind, UK business seller: the item price and the cost of standard delivery the buyer paid, within 14 days of getting it back.
• Change of mind under your eBay returns policy: as your policy states, with return postage paid by whoever your policy names.

Resolving the request yourself matters for your seller performance. eBay UK counts cases closed without seller resolution, with a limit of 2 cases or 0.3% of transactions, whichever is higher, for Above Standard. Our explainer on cases closed without seller resolution shows how to keep that number at zero.

Worked example: one request, start to finish

Example: suppose a UK buyer orders a jacket for a hypothetical £40.00 plus £3.50 standard postage. Four days after delivery they open a return request: 'too small'. Your listing offers 30-day returns, buyer pays return postage, and you are a business seller.

• Day 1: you read the request. The reason is a change of mind, and your listing's measurements were correct. You accept and the buyer buys an eBay return label at their cost.
• Day 5: tracking shows the jacket delivered to you. Your 2 business day window starts.
• Day 5: you unpack it, the tags are still attached and it is unworn. You refund £43.50: the item and the standard postage.
• Day 6: you relist the jacket.

Had the jacket arrived with a broken zip, the reason would have been a fault, you would have paid the return postage, and the refund would have been the same £43.50.

A return request checklist

• Read the reason, comments and photos, then the listing.
• Respond within 3 business days, every time.
• Pay return postage for damaged, faulty or not as described items, whatever your policy says.
• UK business sellers: honour the 14-day right to cancel, refund standard delivery and refund within 14 days of getting the item back.
• Use tracked return labels and check your return address.
• Inspect and refund within 2 business days of the return arriving.
• Refund through the return in Seller Hub so it closes as resolved.
• Look for patterns: repeated returns on one listing point to a listing or product problem.

For every option on the return screen in detail, see our guide on how to accept a return on eBay. eBay's full rules are in its Money Back Guarantee policy and the GOV.UK guide to accepting returns and giving refunds.