Since running a Resolver Story on Tori’s Vinted scam, and publishing our guide to common Vinted complaints, we have been flooded with even more tales of nightmarish scenarios and money lost to poor dispute resolution.
After reading your submissions, a clear pattern began to emerge – something far more troubling than the odd lost parcel or routine dispute: stories of money disappearing, disputes mishandled, and customers left exhausted and out of pocket.
From sellers losing bundles of items with no investigation, to buyers being charged twice for refunds that never fully arrived, these accounts suggest more than simple glitches. For many, the real damage wasn’t just financial. As well as the worry caused, weeks or months were spent chasing responses, submitting evidence, and being met with automated replies or outright denial.
Taken together, these stories raise serious questions about how disputes are handled on one of the UK’s most popular resale platforms, and what happens when ordinary users are left to absorb the losses while the system meant to protect them appears unwilling, or unable, to step in.
Nicola’s InPost malfunction
I’ve effectively lost five items for nothing, and one buyer has received them completely free…
I’ve been both a buyer and a seller on Vinted for a while now. The problem started when I was using an InPost locker to post and collect several items at once. The locker system kept playing up. Messages were flashing on the screen, I could hear the locker trying to open, but it just wouldn’t. I was standing there with multiple parcels, getting more and more confused and worried. Eventually the screen let me continue, so I assumed everything had gone through properly.
Later on, I discovered that two of my items had been delivered to the wrong address. One person received a whole bundle of my items. Another buyer I contacted was kind enough to cooperate and agreed to let the parcel be returned to me.
All of us contacted Vinted and asked for a return label. We were told to wait. We waited 35 days. In the end, refunds were issued, but no return labels ever appeared. The bundle of five items is still sitting at the wrong address. I’ve contacted Vinted around 30 times about this, and all they are offering me is a £1 refund for the returned transaction. That’s it. They won’t budge.
I’ve effectively lost five items for nothing, and one buyer has received them completely free. Vinted won’t investigate and just keep repeating that it’s a missing parcel or that I need to give them time. But they aren’t actually doing anything, and I’m getting absolutely nowhere.
Amber’s dismissed dispute
[This experience] left me with serious doubts about whether Vinted can resolve issues fairly or protect sellers at all…
I sold a pair of brand new Nike trainers on Vinted. I listed them carefully, including clear photos of all labels and details so there was no confusion about what the buyer was getting. After receiving them, the buyer told me they didn’t fit because she has wide feet. Instead of accepting that, she reported the trainers as counterfeit.
I raised a formal dispute with Vinted and submitted clear proof of purchase and authenticity. Despite this, Vinted sided with the buyer and authorised a return. When the trainers came back to me, they were worn and damaged. They were no longer in the condition I had sent them in.
I then raised another dispute about the condition of the returned item, but this was dismissed without proper consideration. The whole experience felt incredibly unprofessional and inconsistent. There didn’t seem to be any real investigation or balance in how the dispute was handled. It’s left me with serious doubts about whether Vinted can resolve issues fairly or protect sellers at all.
Marta’s double charge
For me, it’s about being fair and honest, not just the money…
I bought an item on Vinted that the seller never sent. I was told I would get a refund, but instead of being refunded, Vinted charged me again the exact amount they were supposed to return.
Eventually, they issued one refund and acted as if everything was fine. It clearly isn’t. The amount is small, but that’s not the point. If they do this to lots of people, it adds up. For me, it’s about being fair and honest, not just the money.
My card statement clearly shows what happened. On the 28th of December, £13.50 was taken. On the 5th of January, when I should have been refunded because the seller didn’t post the item, they charged me another £13.50. Later that same evening, they refunded £13.50 once. So I was charged twice and refunded once.
I’ve shown this to Vinted, but they say everything is fine from their side. It’s disgraceful that they can just get away with this.
Susie’s abusive seller
I’ve been on Vinted for eight years and never had anything like this before…
My recent experience of using Vinted has been the worst online buying experience I’ve ever had. I had a bad feeling about the seller from the start, and unfortunately I was right. I lost almost £40 on a bottle of Coco Chanel perfume that never arrived. I never received any tracking information, and the photo provided as “proof of delivery” wasn’t my address or even my area.
On top of that, I received 23 abusive messages from the seller. They were aggressive and wouldn’t leave me alone. Vinted sent me a claim form, which I filled in straight away. They told me they would investigate and get back to me. That was around eight weeks ago.
A few days ago, Vinted released the funds to the seller, who I strongly suspect is a scammer. They gave me no proper explanation, just claiming that I must have pressed the “everything’s OK” button, which I did not, or that I didn’t report an issue, which I absolutely did. I sent multiple emails, photos of my property, and pointed out that it does not match the green bin photo sent by the seller.
I’ve been on Vinted for eight years and never had anything like this before. In the past, when items were lost in transit, Vinted reimbursed me without issue. However, things seem to be getting worse: items go missing all the time and I think the couriers steal the goods. I’ve had three bags go missing, and while Vinted refunded me on all occasions it was a lot of worry.
Since contacting Resolver I’ve had to deal with another dispute over a cracked ceramic lamp that arrived badly damaged. The seller wouldn’t refund me and Vinted were extremely slow in getting the dispute sorted. I kept being asked to send more and more photos of the packaging and the damaged lamp. I even cut my finger on the broken edges. Even though I did eventually get a refund, it’s upsetting because the item was clearly not as described, and I had to spend so much time and energy on the dispute when I feel I should be refunded automatically.
At this point I’m at the end of my tether – I’ll never buy from Vinted again.
Patricia’s unscrupulous buyer
Her attitude convinced me that this was an unscrupulous buyer who had deliberately scammed me… but because the transaction was cancelled, I wasn’t able to leave any feedback…
My problems with Vinted began with my account. I opened one but didn’t use it for several months, and when I later tried to log in, a second account somehow appeared. I still don’t understand how this happened, but I ended up using the new account for months. Then I was asked to submit my telephone number, which was refused because it was apparently linked to the original account that I can’t access.
I emailed Vinted repeatedly and was repeatedly told to close one of the accounts, even though I can’t properly access either of them. I continue to receive emails saying there are updates and messages waiting for me, yet I can’t see any notifications, reply to people trying to contact me, or access money in my account. Buyers must think I’m a terrible seller when in reality I simply can’t respond, and I don’t know where else to turn, which is why I’m contacting Citizens Advice in desperation.
On top of that, I believe I’ve been scammed by buyers who claimed an item was damaged and then refused to return it, even admitting they’d given it away.
I advertised a Lego construction kit for £9. It had originally cost £19 and was unopened, still in the original wrapper. My daughter carefully wrapped it in bubble wrap and strong brown paper. When the buyer received it, she claimed it was damaged. Vinted contacted me and sent a photo of the still-wrapped box, which showed a very slight dent where someone appeared to have squeezed one corner. The box wasn’t crushed or broken, and in my view there was no way the contents could have been damaged. There were no photos of the box without the wrapping, which I believe would have shown the item itself was completely intact.
I explained this to Vinted and received a computer-generated reply advising me to ask the buyer to return it, though she was under no obligation to do so — something I hadn’t known!
After I contacted the buyer, she said she couldn’t return it because she had already passed it on. I explained that I have three grandsons on the autistic spectrum and that we sell unused, brand-new gifts to raise money to replace them with more suitable items.
She responded with a very nasty message, accusing me of trying to guilt-trip her and saying she would not correspond with me further. Her attitude convinced me that this was an unscrupulous buyer who had deliberately scammed me.
I wanted to leave feedback to that effect, but because the transaction was cancelled, I wasn’t able to leave any feedback at all.
The Lego kit was a massive bargain and in mint condition. Even if the box had been damaged, it could still have been sold with other Lego, but I am convinced it was completely intact. If it was damaged, why give it away? Experiences like this are exactly why I would never sell anything of high value on the platform. Vinted offered no real help, so I have deleted my account.
What happens when online marketplaces get it wrong?
The experiences shared here are not just isolated complaints about lost parcels or awkward disputes. Taken together, they point to deeper structural problems in how responsibility, risk, and loss are handled on large resale platforms like Vinted. These platforms present themselves as safe, community-driven spaces where buyers and sellers are protected by clear systems and safeguards. But when something goes wrong, those safeguards can feel flimsy or entirely absent.
In each case, the burden of proof and persistence falls heavily on the individual. Users are expected to document endlessly, wait weeks for responses, repeat themselves, and accept decisions that often appear automated or inconsistent. Missing items, damaged returns, double charges, abusive behaviour, and frozen accounts become the user’s problem to solve, even when the platform controls the systems that caused the issue in the first place.
Ultimately, these stories highlight a troubling imbalance of power. For a company operating at scale, a lost bundle or a disputed refund may be negligible. For the person on the other end, it can mean real financial loss, stress, and a complete loss of trust. If online marketplaces want to maintain credibility, accountability cannot stop at scripted replies or partial refunds. Transparency, fair investigations, and meaningful redress are essential — because when systems fail, it’s ordinary people who pay the price.
With Resolver Stories you can read real experiences of people fighting for fairness and share your own. Whether you scored a big win or are stuck in a never-ending nightmare, we want to hear from you!