eBay UK Returns and Refunds: Seller Rules and Buyer Requests
Quick answer: On eBay, the first question is often which seller supplied your item and why you want to return it. The listing governs many change-of-mind returns; if the item arrived faulty, damaged or unlike its description, eBay directs buyers to open a request through their purchase history and explains the relevant Money Back Guarantee process.
Before opening a request, check the listing you actually bought from
Two identical-looking products can be sold by different eBay sellers with different voluntary return terms. Go back to your order, read the seller’s returns section and check whether the purchase was made from a business or an individual. A listing that does not accept changed-mind returns should not automatically be treated as the answer to a complaint about the wrong item arriving.
How the buyer request works
Open the item in Purchase history, choose the appropriate request and describe the issue accurately. eBay advises buyers to contact the seller through its system first. In its buyer overview, the platform asks sellers to respond within three business days; where the issue remains unresolved, there may be an option to ask eBay to step in. Check your case screen for the actual available date and deadline instead of guessing from the order date.
Use eBay’s buyer returns and refunds overview to reach the appropriate process. If you checked out as a guest, eBay has a separate guest-purchase route using the confirmation email. A guest order will not necessarily appear in the purchase history of an account you later created.
Who pays to send it back?
The postage answer depends on the return reason and the listing’s policy. eBay says the seller covers return postage when an item is faulty, damaged or not as described, or when the seller offers free returns. If you simply changed your mind, inspect the individual listing and the instructions issued with your return request. Do not buy your own label before checking whether an authorised label has already been provided. Keep your posting receipt and upload tracking where eBay asks for it.
Practical example: the colour is wrong
Suppose the order confirmation shows a navy jacket but the parcel contains a black one. Compare the listing and order details, take clear photographs and select the reason that reflects the discrepancy. This is not the same issue as deciding that the correctly supplied navy jacket no longer suits you. Choose the genuine reason and use the seller conversation attached to the transaction.
Follow-up without starting a duplicate case
If you have already opened a return, return to the same request to check messages, label instructions and the date by which the item must be posted. The detailed return-postage guidance explains that requests can close if a return is not sent by the specified date. Avoid closing an unresolved request merely to start again; the site warns that closed requests cannot simply be reopened.
Policy information checked 2026-09-19. Independent guide; official eBay buyer returns overview.