A not so good experience on E-bay
Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 12 Mar 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.
| yve |
12 Mar 2004 |
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I've done a lot of transactions on e-bay and have had only a handful of bad or not so good experiences...I guess my time was up for another one. First I bid on and won a mythic tarot deck in which the seller described the condition of the cards and book as "great condition". I got my first surprise when I was charged. $14.50 shipping and handling which brought the grand total up to $24 CDN...Now I could have bought this set new on Chapters for only $25.15...so I figured, oh well, it's my mistake for not checking this out first, and then again for not getting a shipping quote before I bid...but I figured, if it's in "great condition" as the seller claims, then it won't be so bad...well, got the set a couple of days ago...the cards were carelessly jammed into it's box...when I took the cards out, I found that the devil card was so badly bent it has a crease on both sides of the card. As well, the rest of the cards were in good condition, obviously well used, but not in "great condition"...Now needless to say, I was very disappointed, but decided to give the seller the benefit of the doubt, so I e-mailed this person explaining my disappointment. Well, i got this very long e-mail, trying to put a guilt trip on me by saying that they had never had anyone complain about the condition of the items they bought, and being an e-bay transaction, it's one's word against another, and by the way, they never indicated the cards were new or perfect, only "great". Then this person went on to say, that even though they can't afford to, as e-bay is their source of income, they may consider refunding the auction price (not the shipping cost) via paypal...Well, that was the last correspondence yesterday, and i'm still waiting to see if they honor their word...but any comments? Would you classify a deck as being in "great" condition when one card is badly damaged and the deck is obviously well used? I guess we take our chances on e-bay, it's buyer beware isn't it?
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| brandi124 |
12 Mar 2004 |
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Wow, I'm sorry you had a bad experience on ebay! I am a total ebay addict (more selling than buying) and in my opinion it is never worth it to exaggerate your goods or to haggle with someone if they are unhappy with a purchase. They should do the honorable thing and refund your money if you aren't completely happy.
If they aren't willing to do it voluntarily I believe there is buyer protection through PayPal (I see you mentioned PayPal)-- maybe you could go through them to get a refund.
Oh and as a buyer and seller I would never consider a damaged item to be "great". Hope it works out for you.
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| Majecot |
12 Mar 2004 |
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I have done some buying and selling on Ebay, I would never treat anything so callously as that and I would not sell something that was damaged in anyway. I would never consider that "great condition".
If someone was not satisfied with a product I would ABSOLUTLEY refund them.
I have had some not so good experiences tho and like you, have learned the hard way to read the fine print (and the feedback) before I bid.
Good luck, I hope you get your money back!
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| MeeWah |
12 Mar 2004 |
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Yve: Ye were ripped off in goods *and* in shipping & handling fees! Some sellers pad the postage fees to make more money.
The seller is wrong about it being a matter of one person's word against another. Such a statement is a snow job & suggestive of one who has fielded complaints.
Report the seller *immediately* to both eBay & PayPal & include reference to the auction number. They will follow up as they are interested in not only customer satisfaction, but in maintaining a legitimate business. They will remove any seller (or buyer) who is not on the up & up or who does not fulfill the transaction.
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| HudsonGray |
12 Mar 2004 |
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That shipping fee is way too high. I got taken on my first purchase, some guy charged me $8 to mail a 3 ounce item out in a used (recycled) envelope because he had to 'make a trip to the post office' to do it. ??? Since then I've always checked the shipping charges before putting in a bid.
Ask to return the item for a refund (I'd quibble on the shipping & want that refunded too since it was excessive--unless he was sending from Europe or something, if he was in the US, a deck only costs $4 to ship to Canada).
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| Le_Corsair |
12 Mar 2004 |
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Yve, Ebay prohibits feedback extortion. Since your seller hinted in his email that this was something he would engage in if you dispute the quality of his goods, I would forward his email to Ebay as an example of feedback extortion.
Bob :THERM
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| yve |
12 Mar 2004 |
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Thanks all. You've made some valuable suggestions and comments...you are all right, and i guess I've learned something new...I can't help it though, I am an e-bay addict, and since i've had more good than bad experiences, this probably won't slow me down, only educate me a little more on procedures and methods to protect me better. I have gotten so very good deals and treasures in regards to tarot cards from e-bay, so in the long run, I guess I am ahead...
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| dolphinprincess |
12 Mar 2004 |
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If you do not get satisfaction, I would definitely leave negative feedback, as well as report the seller to Ebay. .. I'm an Ebay junkie too.. Luckily, I've only had one bad experience... but it is so disappointing when you do!
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| Ilithiya |
13 Mar 2004 |
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Oh, yeah...
Excessive shipping charges is also against the eBay TOS. You can report them for that, too. Usually just the weight and equivalent mailing costs is enough to prove it.
Illy
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| Shannah |
14 Mar 2004 |
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yve, I'm sorry to hear about that unfortunate experience.
I agree with with what a lot of what has been said here. If it doesn't work out, definitely report them. You will be not only be standing up for yourself, but for others who have been (or run the risk of being) in this situation.
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| miss_apples |
14 Mar 2004 |
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Definatly give them negative feedback. Thats just awful! Usually the seller will post in their discription of the item how much they will charge for shipping and I know that when my boyfriend sold his bass guitar, he based the shipping on how much it would cost to ship to CA and FL which cost more to ship to than other places in the USA. So I think that most people probably quote a dollar or 2 more than what it may actually cost just to cover any extra shipping expenses depending on where they end up shipping it to. But $14 for a deck of tarot cards is unbelievable. My boyfriend only paid about $25 to ship his bass to CA and a bass weighs a lot more than a deck of cards!
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| Mystic Chris |
16 Mar 2004 |
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Hello yve,
I am sorry to hear about your bad experience. I, too, have had my share of bad experiences and wasted a good amount of money as a result. So I have come to the conclusion, when I want an item brand new - no hassles - I'll pay the extra price and go shopping at reputable vendors online. eBay is for when I want to get a good bang for my buck and maybe some fun shopping online. Because of some of my experiences there and stories like yours, I do not go on eBay so much anymore.
:)
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| Dark Inquisitor |
16 Mar 2004 |
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I have done a lot of deck buying on ebay and rarely had trouble. I am very careful to check feedback, and if the seller doesn't have a rating over 95 % with no recent bad history , I won't buy .
I have noticed an alarming increase in shipping demands. The item will be listed relatively cheaply , and they will try to stick you for 9.00 to ship it. When it comes, it says right on the flimsy envelope (no wrapping involved) that it cost 2.00 Media Mail rate.
Sellers should realize they only make enemies and sell less items that way. If I have a choice of the same item from 2 different sellers, I am going to bid on the one with reasonable shipping.
However, for every bent up devil, there is an angel too. I recently got a Lynn Andrews Power deck/book set for 12.00 from ebay. It was in great shape, but when I counted the cards, there were 10 missing !! I notified the seller and she was very apologetic and embarrassed. Said she hadn't looked at the cards in years and had no idea. She refunded my money right away and told me to keep the set too !!! Because she was so nice about it, I gave her a free tarot reading .
Tarotphelia
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| crystal cove |
18 Mar 2004 |
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How infuriating!
You don't owe him because his only source of income is ebay! Plus, I don't believe that it is. Where do people get their sense of entitlement these days?!
I'd complain big time. Something just doesn't sound right.
BTW, a bent card does NOT constitute "great" condition!
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| northsea |
19 Mar 2004 |
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Sorry to hear about your bad E-bay experience. It's good to check seller feedback, shipping cost, not too much legal jargon and disclaimers, etc., but sometimes one is going to get burned on Ebay no matter what one does because there's shifty people who want to unload their garbage on it. Ebay doesn't seem too concerned about it, so I seldom buy anything, mainly things I can't find in a store. {edited for spelling and brevity}
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| yve |
19 Mar 2004 |
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It seems that e-bay can't help because buyer protection only covers $25 and over. I didn't pay with paypal, I used credit card, however the good news is that my credit card company is sending me a form to pursue collection...I've never used the credit card protection, so i'm not sure how effective it will be....This seller actually did have 100% feedback when i checked before my bid, but I do see now that there are some new negative feedback....So, I guess the only way a person is to be 100% sure, is to not take a chance...Perhaps I'm an inherently positive person and want to believe that those shady people are few and far between, and not everyone is out to take advantage of others...
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| Khatruman |
19 Mar 2004 |
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I concur with others in that I always check the shipping charges that the seller is asking before I put in a bid, and even make that part of my decision on how high I will bid.
I was recently bidding on the DVD set for Season Two of the show "24." I lost a couple bids but there were plenty out there to be bid on. Shipping rates varied from seller to seller. If a seller didn't list rates, I e-mailed to get a quote before I bid. I also had an idea what a good price would be and whether shipping would bring it up to what I would be purchasing it on Amazon for anyway.
Also, be wary of half.com. Before I went to e-bay's auction, I found a very good price for a new DVD set of 24 from a seller who had a good rating. I put in the purchase and was promptly charged for the set. Three weeks later, it still hadn't arrived, and this was after the estimated delivery date. I get the form to leave feedback and I can't. I e-mailed the seller, as is procedure, but got no response. Then I checked his rating again and I found 40 messages within that week from others who did not receive their products from the seller. E-bay had taken him off their list as a seller (which is why I couldn't rate him), but I wasn't allowed to file a claim until after 30 days.
Now, I have filed a claim and e-bay says it will take 30 days to process it. They also say that if I even e-mail them about this claim it will take longer.
So hopefully in another two weeks I will finally get my money back.
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| Khatruman |
19 Mar 2004 |
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Originally posted by MuffinTops
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2993135207&category=19271
Well here's one...Is there something missing? $8,000.00 for a rider deck?
Look at the Buy it Now. Arrrrgghhh, I am more scared of the "Have a Nice Day" smiley face next to it!!! Gives me flashbacks to the 70s.... Maybe she is afraid she will be sent by the Devil card to the Disco Inferno!!! })
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| yve |
19 Mar 2004 |
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Hmmm, Khatruman, you have had your share too...I too got completely stiffed once too...the seller had 100% feedback, then all of a sudden they stopped sending the items he/she sold....it was too late for me, I was one of the first he/she stiffed...e-bay didn't help because it was under the limit for protection...this person discontinued that e-mail address and all e-mails were returned...however the consolation was it was a very small purchase I was out ($1.00 for the item and $4.00 shipping because it was 2 hardcover books)....Unfortunately e-bay didn't stop them/cancel fast enough before he/she had about 6 people stiffed....so feedback isn't a foolproof indicator either...WOW, that's a first twenty-one! Haaa, they couldn't be too scared or they would give it away!
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The A not so good experience on E-bay thread was originally posted on 12 Mar 2004 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.
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