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Ebay annoyances


Butler Henderson
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Everyone makes genuine mistakes now and then, you cannot do anything other than try and resolve the matter. I would stand my ground, return the item for a full refund

 

Was your description of its condition accurate, and did the photo back up your description/clearly show its condition ? if so all you can do is offer to accept it back and refund the payment.  You could go the extra mile and ask what the buyer wants, whether you accept his request is another matter.

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Yep, absolutely; loads of pictures, accurate description, and whilst I didn't use the word "used" in the description I was happy I described it accurately. I didn't even notice the condition was wrong until I actively went looking for it in the listing. I'll confess I didn't want to get into partial refunds, I'd sooner have just had it back, which is why I immediately offered that, as well as offering to sort any issues should they arise down the line. Didn't feel I could do anything else, as you say, a genuine mistake.

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17 hours ago, njee20 said:

Yep, absolutely; loads of pictures, accurate description, and whilst I didn't use the word "used" in the description I was happy I described it accurately. I didn't even notice the condition was wrong until I actively went looking for it in the listing. I'll confess I didn't want to get into partial refunds, I'd sooner have just had it back, which is why I immediately offered that, as well as offering to sort any issues should they arise down the line. Didn't feel I could do anything else, as you say, a genuine mistake.

Rather hinges on what they paid. If it was typical for a used item then they dont really have grounds for complaint. If they paid nearer new price without checking properly then it's a bit greyer.

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It wasn't cheap, because it's a desireable item, but I was happy it was the going rate. Frankly it was more than the new price, but like so many things (it was railway related) it was something produced in one batch 10 years ago, so there are no longer any new ones and people pay above retail for them.


I understood his grievance, hence offering to have it back, completely unconditionally. Communication ended with "I think I just need to chalk it up to experience", but he's yet to leave feedback either way! Having made the mistake I'm unsure what else I could have done. 

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2 hours ago, njee20 said:

It wasn't cheap, because it's a desireable item, but I was happy it was the going rate. Frankly it was more than the new price, but like so many things (it was railway related) it was something produced in one batch 10 years ago, so there are no longer any new ones and people pay above retail for them.


I understood his grievance, hence offering to have it back, completely unconditionally. Communication ended with "I think I just need to chalk it up to experience", but he's yet to leave feedback either way! Having made the mistake I'm unsure what else I could have done. 

 

As I thought a chancer, something which was produced 10 years ago is very unlikely to be a new item, yes it could be in a mint condition or as new. But unless you are a retailer its going to be second hand. As you say its a desirable item, therefore attracts a premium and above all the intended recipient is more than happy.

 

Forget it no one pays any attention to someone's feedback rating anyway, I would charge him extra.!!  

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Another peculiar incident has occured.  I got a discount offer on a US HO scale boxcar I was watching, thought about it for a hour or too then accepted the offer and paid up.

 

Ten minutes later, the sale is cancelled without any given reason other than an automated 'Item no longer available' or some such and minutes later the very same boxcar is relisted at its original price.

 

I don't think that seller will be receiving any further business from me....

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Many years ago when I decided to go DCC and get rid of all of my stock which was mostly Lima Loco’s & Wagons. I was offered stupid money at a swapmeet so decided to give Ebay a try.

I put  45 items on and sold the lot for triple the swapmeet traders offerings, It was an absolute nightmare, I hadn’t thought it through II never had enough packaging and had to go to Tesco & Sainsbury’s on a Sunday afternoon and scrounge boxes and I find somewhere open to buy Tape. Me and the wife were at it for ages (packing) and then came the Post Office Queue.

I am better equipped now and use Ebay a lot, I have a policy, all of my stock is on my layout so if I want to buy something new I have to sell something to make room (nothing in boxes)  mostly I sell on special offer weekends. I would never sell any other way except maybe Gumtree, but models don’t seem to sell well on there but it’s handy for bigger items, furniture etc and its free.

Bob

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2 hours ago, Dieselbob said:

Many years ago when I decided to go DCC and get rid of all of my stock which was mostly Lima Loco’s & Wagons. I was offered stupid money at a swapmeet so decided to give Ebay a try.

I put  45 items on and sold the lot for triple the swapmeet traders offerings, It was an absolute nightmare, I hadn’t thought it through II never had enough packaging and had to go to Tesco & Sainsbury’s on a Sunday afternoon and scrounge boxes and I find somewhere open to buy Tape. Me and the wife were at it for ages (packing) and then came the Post Office Queue.

I am better equipped now and use Ebay a lot, I have a policy, all of my stock is on my layout so if I want to buy something new I have to sell something to make room (nothing in boxes)  mostly I sell on special offer weekends. I would never sell any other way except maybe Gumtree, but models don’t seem to sell well on there but it’s handy for bigger items, furniture etc and its free.

Bob

Well said there sir! Made my wife a similar promise in 2004, which means one in one out! 

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12 minutes ago, MartinWales said:

Well said there sir! Made my wife a similar promise in 2004, which means one in one out! 

You need to have an under baseboard hideout like the box tunnel strategic reserve fleet where you can hide them. Or build another layout for them.

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2 minutes ago, G-DIMB said:

You need to have an under baseboard hideout like the box tunnel strategic reserve fleet where you can hide :scratchhead:them. Or build another layout for them.

Have you been to our house then.....?:blink:

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3 hours ago, G-DIMB said:

You need to have an under baseboard hideout like the box tunnel strategic reserve fleet where you can hide them. Or build another layout for them.

 

So that's what hidden sidings are for. :)

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On 07/05/2021 at 12:21, big jim said:

There we go, 2 mins after submitting 

 

We’ve looked carefully at this feedback and see that it doesn’t qualify for removal.

 

so basically you can base feedback on a lie, get your money back and keep the items 

Been there and got the tee shirt multiple times. You will almost never win a case like that. eBay will almost always side with the buyer in absolutely every conceivable dispute. You have practically no recourse as a seller.  All you can do in your neutered arsenal is block them while they gladly shaft you and walk away Scot free.

 

It makes me livid. 
 

I suppose you could send them a piece of dog poop in the post!!!! 
 

(Don’t obviously - just chuckle to yourself at the idea of it! It’s very therapeutic l)

 

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On 07/05/2021 at 15:53, njee20 said:

Yep, absolutely; loads of pictures, accurate description, and whilst I didn't use the word "used" in the description I was happy I described it accurately. I didn't even notice the condition was wrong until I actively went looking for it in the listing. I'll confess I didn't want to get into partial refunds, I'd sooner have just had it back, which is why I immediately offered that, as well as offering to sort any issues should they arise down the line. Didn't feel I could do anything else, as you say, a genuine mistake.

Never agree to part refunds. Open to abuse. I always offer full refunds and return the item only. This quite often leads to remonstrations but they then just go away and keep the item instead which speaks for itself. 

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3 hours ago, ianmacc said:

Never agree to part refunds. Open to abuse. I always offer full refunds and return the item only.

I agree wholeheartedly.   Some years ago I sold a Hornby class 47.   Several weeks later, and after I had left positive feedback assuming their had been no problems, buyer messaged to say armature needed replaced and asked for £7 part refund to cover cost of new armature.  I pointed out that he had a month's use of the loco and it was unfair to other bidders to now seek reduction on price.  He said he wanted to keep the loco and as a gesture of goodwill I sent him the £7.   I expected good feedback for my generosity, instead I got a negative "unhelpful seller, accused me of breaking it myself".   So, never again.   Once bitten twice shy.    If the buyer is not happy they can return the item and I will pay return postage, but definitely no partial refunds.

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Not too long back I listed a rake of Dapol MBA’s. Brought new, I never used them, so after a few years I listed on eBay. It was a rake of 6, I’d decide my minimum amount was a few £‘a below what others wanted. One buyer kept putting the same offer. When I rejected for the last time her ended up bidding and paid nearly £40 over what I would have taken. A week after he had them, he demanded a partial refund, stating the wheels were faulty and kept derailing. Strangely enough, he wanted the same amount he’d paid over his offer. I said no, send back for full inspection and refund, sharing with him all the photos I had taken to prove their condition pre sale. Never heard a peep after that email. Reported him but he’s still active now. 

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14 hours ago, ianmacc said:

Never agree to part refunds. Open to abuse. I always offer full refunds and return the item only. This quite often leads to remonstrations but they then just go away and keep the item instead which speaks for itself. 

 

I have like most received items which have been damaged in the post, usually because the item had not been packed very well, they tend to fall into one of 3 groups, however I do nothing until I report the damage and usually await a reply from the seller. As my area of interest is whitemetal kits, they have to be packed accordingly, but some times an odd item falls off du to the joint failing

 

1  Minimal damage, if the item was well packed and a joint failed. I usually don't mention it, or if its an easy minor its no problem

 

2 A total write off, very rarely the damage is so bad its not worth the bother, its down to the sender to claim

 

3 A higher level of damage requiring a reasonable amount of work and or new part(s), usually this is down to the seller, clearly the item is not in the condition as sold and if I either think I can repair it or some parts are worth having for spares, then a deal is possible. But it depends on both parties coming to an amicable arrangement for both parties.

 

As I said usually the damage is down to poor packing, in some cases a partial refund is the best course of action for both parties. But it must work for both equally well

 

As for feedback, as a buyer I give feedback ASAP, as a seller I wait for the buyers feedback first 

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On 11/05/2021 at 09:47, hayfield said:

As for feedback, as a buyer I give feedback ASAP, as a seller I wait for the buyers feedback first 

I seem to recall a thread a while back where someone claimed this was the very height of poor form! I pointed out it was common sense and got my head bitten off.

 

Just to offer an alternative perspective on this chat though, in 1000 transactions, I have bought  handful of items that were not quite as described, eg the classic "new" item that was not only obviously used but then turned out to have a small detail missing. This is very annoying as a buyer - not worth returning but you'd probably have bid less and for which a partial refund would have been fair. In a couple of cases the seller has admitted they werent actually familiar with the item and funded the repair. In a few the seller basically went into RMWeb mode and denied any responsibility Once obvious I wasn't going to get anywhere, I have just cut my losses and kept it. 

 

That doesn't make me a chancer and I think there is a danger we are polarising everything into good seller v bad buyer.

 

Edit. I don't disagree its about balancing risk though and personally I wouldnt offer a partial refund either. Just pointing out it isn't always someone trying it on and in those cases you may well get negative feedback as a result 

Edited by Hal Nail
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On 10/05/2021 at 18:42, ianmacc said:

Never agree to part refunds. Open to abuse. I always offer full refunds and return the item only. This quite often leads to remonstrations but they then just go away and keep the item instead which speaks for itself. 

 

Works the other way as well.  I rarely accept partial refunds.  If the item is damaged on arrival, not functioning correctly or is not as described then I raise a return request and 99% of the time I will decline a partial refund because for me life is too short to fix stuff that should be intact, working and the thing I thought I'd bought when it arrives at my door.

 

In the case of low-cost items far east sellers this usually means they eventually give up and just give me a refund because it's obviously not worth their while to pay the return postage.  But I certainly don't do deliberately to 'con' the seller, whatever they may think, and I feel bad enough about it that I very rarely buy from that part of the world these days for this very reason.  I will actually pay more for the same item credibly advertised as being UK stock (per the guidelines outlined by TheSignalEngineer earlier).

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20 minutes ago, Hal Nail said:

I seem to recall a thread a while back where someone claimed this was the very height of poor form! I pointed out it was common sense and got my head bitten off.

 

Just to offer an alternative perspective on this chat though, in 1000 transactions, I have bought  handful of items that were not quite as described, eg the classic "new" item that was not only obviously used but then turned out to have a small detail missing. This is very annoying as a buyer - not worth returning but you'd probably have bid less and for which a partial refund would have been fair. In a couple of cases the seller has admitted they werent actually familiar with the item and funded the repair. In a few the seller basically went into RMWeb mode and denied any responsibility Once obvious I wasn't going to get anywhere, I have just cut my losses and kept it. 

 

That doesn't make me a chancer and I think there is a danger we are polarising everything into good seller v bad buyer.

 

Edit. I don't disagree its about balancing risk though and personally I wouldnt offer a partial refund either. Just pointing out it isn't always someone trying it on and in those cases you may well get negative feedback as a result 

 

If you are buying an item from a private seller it is second hand, even if its in its packaging unopened. Especially if the item is not currently available or in older packaging 

 

These automatic drop down boxes are often incorrect as templates are often reused and not every box has been altered

 

Firstly I look and the photo's quite often these will indicate the items condition

 

Secondly I read the description, with kits I am more interested in seeing the word complete, as I can see the condition

 

If its not clearly stated in the description ask the seller

 

If you do not want to take a chance, don't buy from a private seller 

 

However if as a seller I make a mistake on listing an item, I accept the issue has to be resolved between me and the buyer

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Hi

Beware, this week is one of Ebays special offer weekends £3 max fees.

But it is only different from a normal week when you sell for More than £21 inc postage which is the point whery things get better.

Anything lower than £21 then the fees are standard 12.8%+30p.

They are trying it on.

Bob

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Hardly "trying it on" - it's exactly the same as max £1 selling fees, except that the price point where it becomes beneficial is higher.  And I can't see anything in eBay's messaging about it that could in any way be construed as misleading.

 

What I'd like to know is whether the change from "max £1" to "max £3" is likely to be permanent.  If so then ☹️

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On 14/05/2021 at 11:15, Dieselbob said:

Anything lower than £21 then the fees are standard 12.8%+30p.

What is the problem?

 

£21 x 12.8% +30p = £3.00

 

Anything less than £21 will attract fees of less than £3.

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