My eBay Story

[HorrorFrogPrincess]

I've been looking for a new used phone. One with a Qwerty pad. I watch a few eBay auctions for one I've heard good things from and isn't too expensive (for the product).

Anyway, I win the auction, and send payment immediately through Paypal. I always pay very soon after winning something, and sellers appreciate that (they want their cash, I want my thing, win-win). Shortly after, I get an e-mail from the seller.

He already sold the item off-site.

Now I'm pissed. The transaction has already gone through via Paypal. I ask him to send my money back, open a dispute with Paypal, and notify eBay that he was NOT selling in good faith. Didn't even bother to remove the listing...

Anyway, I called up Paypal to make sure I wouldn't get screwed. They upped my dispute to a Claim, so I should have my refund in 11 days unless he sends it back earlier.

I cannot STAND people who don't do business in good faith. That is probably my biggest peeve EVER. I never bid on something I don't intend to buy. I never offer something and sell it to someone else. I send out the thing the day after I get paid for it.

Serves me right for taking a chance on someone without any feedback. But NOOOO, I gotta give him the benefit of the doubt. "No one has feedback to begin with," I said. "Won't it be nice to give this guy his first Positive?" I said.

Jerkwad...

Fortunately, I have enough to buy a different phone I was watching. Still, that pisses me off something awful.

[Kogarashi]

I'm sorry that happened to you.

My worst eBay experience was with trying to buy a new game for my recently-purchased Dreamcast (some five-six years ago). I found a powerseller with a good price on a used copy of the game I was looking for, I bid on it, and I won.

Cue three months of spotty communication as I tried to get them to actually send me the game. At first they claimed they had just barely run out of stock on that item and were waiting for a new shipment. Then all the new copies of that game were broken. Then they offered a refund if I wasn't happy, but when I asked for it, they kept hemming and hawing and trying to get me to wait for a working copy of the game (while they received a second faulty shipment). Throughout this, I watched as their feedback, which had been full of positives for a whole year up to when I won the auction, started getting a slew of "never sent item" negatives. Silly me, it never crossed my mind to contact Paypal or eBay over it, because I was trying to give them the benefit of the doubt (and was still a little eBay-naive).

They finally told me they had a working copy in. At that point, pushing four months later, I informed them that I had since found a better deal on a new copy from another seller and purchased it, and would just like my refund thankyouverymuch. The one they'd been promising me for almost two months. They finally sent it.

A week or so later, I received the game from them in the mail as well. I marked it Return to Sender and returned it unopened.

Sadly, too much time had passed to leave them a negative feedback, though I suspect I would've received a negative of my own for my trouble with the way they were acting, and I have a nigh-unto-spotless record and like to keep it that way.

[HorrorFrogPrincess]

Up to now my worst experience was with someone who took FAR too long to send something. I left a neutral when I finally got the thing. They left a negative with a lot of bitching.

Fortunately, that was a while ago, so my record is back to 100%. Mostly high praise for my fast payments. Not leaving a feedback on this guy until I get my money back.

[siead_lietrathua]

I left a neutral when I finally got the thing. They left a negative with a lot of bitching.

i always found the best responde was to reply to their neg. feedback with a neutral response, stating that they are giving you negative feedback because you gave them a neutral one for such-and-such reason. though i think ebay has it now that they cannot give you neg. feedback anymore.

[AriRashkae]

The one time I auctioned something and couldn't send it, it was because my husband (not knowing I had listed it) had sold it to one of his friends. As soon as I found out, I apologized profusely and sent the $$ right back. Fortunately the customer was very understanding.

[HorrorFrogPrincess]

The one time I auctioned something and couldn't send it, it was because my husband (not knowing I had listed it) had sold it to one of his friends. As soon as I found out, I apologized profusely and sent the $$ right back. Fortunately the customer was very understanding.

Well, that's one thing. Better than knowingly accepting an offer offline so you can get a better price. ><

i always found the best responde was to reply to their neg. feedback with a neutral response, stating that they are giving you negative feedback because you gave them a neutral one for such-and-such reason. though i think ebay has it now that they cannot give you neg. feedback anymore.

I did. They pretty much bitched at me more in BOTH feedbacks. The account was closed shortly after (I'm hopping he was banned).

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Moral of the story for all ebay sellers: Do not list anything for sale on ebay that you are also trying to sell through other venues. Once you have a winning bidder, you are obligated to them.

Moral of the story for all ebay buyers: It isn't a very good idea to buy a high-ticket item from a zero-feedback n00b. I know this sounds kinda presumptuous, but many zero-feedback sellers, such as this one, don't know how selling on ebay really works and you can end up with situations like this one.

I might trust a newbie seller for a cheap item under $20 or so. But not for a cell phone.

[HorrorFrogPrincess]

This is true. And I have to wait a week at most to get my money back. ><

But I got my phone from the OTHER seller today. I like it. She was good.

[Peppergirl]

I closed my ebay and paypal account after my experience with them last year.

I sold an old blackberry to a seller with, as I recall, spotty feedback. He payed right away, but then the questions began. Every five minutes, a question about this or that.

He gets it, signs for it, etc. Then I get an email from him that the charging port is broken. Um, no...no its not. It was perfectly fine when I shipped it. I know this because it was dead and I charged the fucking thing before I shipped it, as a courtesy.

Long story short, I tell him it wasnt broken - it was sold 'as is', with no returns. He BROKE the damned thing, probably attempting to shove the charging end in it incorrectly, then says it came that way.

He disputes it on paypal and ebay, they take his side...despite my always positive feedback since 2002 versus his spotty feedback for a couple of months.

Sent it back with (now) bad charging port. Fucking thing is STILL shoved in a drawer in my kitchen.

I was so disgusted I closed both accounts.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

And the hard lesson we learn from Peppergirl is: If you're selling on ebay, there's no such thing as "as-is" and "all sales final" where Paypal is concerned.

In a situation such as hers, Paypal will side with the buyer every. Single. Time. That doesn't mean it's right, that's just the way it goes.

[Peppergirl]

And the hard lesson we learn from Peppergirl is: If you're selling on ebay, there's no such thing as "as-is" and "all sales final" where Paypal is concerned.

In a situation such as hers, Paypal will side with the buyer every. Single. Time. That doesn't mean it's right, that's just the way it goes.

Yup. Found out the hard way. A buyer can break your shit and send it back, and get a full refund.

To add insult to injury, when I asked ebay for my listing fee back, the asshole disputed it. Yep, he got his money back in full, but decided to be an asshole about ebay questioning him about me wanting my listing fee back. I got it back after awhile, but it took a few days. If he hadn't fought it, it would have been a same-day thing.

I did the right thing and voted with my feet, though. Im sure my business isn't missed, but it made me feel better and truthfully, I don't even miss it all that much.

[EricKei]

IPF is right -- selling on there obliges you to ship, just like winning an auction obliges you to pay. Saying they "sold it to someone else" is fine
(if really, really annoying) on Craigslist -- where you should always be paying in person, at the time you get your stuff-- but not on any site where money changes hand online as a result of the ad.

[XCashier]

Anyway, I called up Paypal to make sure I wouldn't get screwed.

Good. Be sure you notify eBay about this scammer as well. They don't like it when sellers don't follow through with their sales, either. It makes them look bad by association, and they will take action against someone who does that stuff.

(You probably did, I just didn't see that in your original post.)

[HorrorFrogPrincess]

Good. Be sure you notify eBay about this scammer as well. They don't like it when sellers don't follow through with their sales, either. It makes them look bad by association, and they will take action against someone who does that stuff.

(You probably did, I just didn't see that in your original post.)

I think I mentioned it later, but yeah, I reported him for not following policy. I wouldn't call him a scammer, but even I knew not to sell things somewhere else when it's posted on an auction. People don't even bother to SKIM the rules! And once I get my money back, I'm leaving a negative review. That'll learn 'im.

Well, it might get him to figure out how the damn system works, at least.

Actually, I wish I knew the number/info of the eBay CSR we have here.

[cinema guy]

I wish I knew the number/info of the eBay CSR we have here.

His/her username is Nightwatch, IIRC.