Bad ebay experience buying Greenwood - beware this seller

earthair

rif said:
So eBay refunded me and closed the seller's case. And now the seller wants me to reimburse him for damage to the deck. Ironically he now acknowledges the bent card but claims I damaged the box. Apparently it doesn't matter that he shipped it to me so that the top cards shifted loose. Those 90s boxes aren't sturdy at all and I doubt it got damaged further in shipping, and I also don't think that my removing the deck a couple of times would have either.

I'm actually becoming uncomfortable with the situation as this seller has my name and address having mailed something to me. I am going to share his letter and wonder what you all think.

Letter starts below:
I am disappointed at the condition that the Greenwood Tarot set was returned in. While one card was bent on one corner when the deck was sent to you, you have returned the deck with tears to the inside box that will further decrease the value of my item. As a collector, you know that an intact box can be up to 50% of an item's value. While I do not expect a 50% reimbursement, I believe that you should compensate me for the damage that you caused. I am asking that you take this opportunity to make this situation end in an equitable manner.

The attached photos show the condition of the box when it was sent to you, and the condition of the box as it was returned to me by you. The damage is clearly visible.

Thank you,
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Eeeeek. It almost sounds like another scam.... don't pay rif!

Outer boxes, containing lots and LOTS of bubble wrap, and properly insured postage would stop many damage related issues from happening in the first place. It really bugs me when sellers charge £4+ then just chuck a deck in a pre-used bubblebag and hope for the best.

There is such a difference in the standard of wrapping between ebayers and the good people of this forum! We should do an official AT 'how to pack/post a deck' tutorial.
 

The Happy Squirrel

gregory said:
That's great. The only dispute I ever opened with ebay they found the seller at fault but "could not refund my money" - so I got it back from my credit card - as you can under UK law - at which point ebay emailed to say I should have gone through their dispute process... WTF :confused:
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Wow that is good G! Must find out what is the law of my land is.....

I wonder if that means your credit card company basically forced ebay's hand and charge them for your refund. Good on the UK law!!!
 

The Happy Squirrel

Damages often happened during the item's travel from one point to another. What you can do is tell the seller that this is the only possible explanation. And the only thing you can do is claim insurance with your local post service provider. Make it clear that the decision on claims isn't yours to make, as the damages were caused during transit, and as a seller who uses the post a lot he should know this.

From my own experience, because of my location, shipping can often be expensive and can be minimised by abandoning tracking and insurance. With more expensive items I can insist that I ship only with tracking and insurance. For the prices of decks of cards I can't. And this is where everyone's understanding is essential that once the item left one party's hands and handed over to the post, we can't be responsible for what happen to it. If they want us to be responsible for it then they have to pay that extra fee to post the item tracked and insured, in which case shipper is always the one to follow up on claims. Of course we are taking postal damages and not things like ripped cards since that couldn't possibly occurred during transit.
 

mydearruby

The Happy Squirrel said:
Damages often happened during the item's travel from one point to another. What you can do is tell the seller that this is the only possible explanation. And the only thing you can do is claim insurance with your local post service provider. Make it clear that the decision on claims isn't yours to make, as the damages were caused during transit, and as a seller who uses the post a lot he should know this.
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Yup, this is the way to go. If he continues to pester you just ignore. Don't flinch from the fact that he knows your address. A lot of people do know our address and if anything close to a threat coming up you can always report to the authority. Stay firm because you didn't do anything wrong.

Given what had happened so far, I guess this seller is certainly not without reason. He just needs more time to wrap his mind around it.
 

rif

Hi Happy Squirrel and all,

First, I appreciate everyone's comments. Thanks for sharing your experiences, or just encouraging words.

I haven't responded to this last query from the seller. I don't want to, but may do so tomorrow. I also considered reporting it to eBay, as it seems against policy, but since the seller was polite I hesitate to do so for this one message.

A question for Happy Squirrel...

The Happy Squirrel said:
Damages often happened during the item's travel from one point to another. What you can do is tell the seller that this is the only possible explanation. And the only thing you can do is claim insurance with your local post service provider. Make it clear that the decision on claims isn't yours to make, as the damages were caused during transit, and as a seller who uses the post a lot he should know this.
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In my case, this was an ebay return. I received a shipping label to print from eBay, and I didn't incur any cost. Where is responsibility of insurance — if any — in that case? And would I file a claim myself, or is it the seller's responsibility? To be clear, I'm not on the hook from eBay's viewpoint. But IF this guy is truly wronged through nobody's fault, I suppose I would be willing to help.

Despite the fact that if his product description were accurate in the first place, I wouldn't be here writing this sordid tale at all. :p
 

The Happy Squirrel

The seller could have made it less personal and more neutral by speaking about it in terms of processes rather than faults or blames. I found that the difference between good sellers and bad ones is that the good ones have experienced enough to know that confrontation using a personal tone like that isn't productive for anyone in the long run. No matter how they feel or think, their choices of words and a consistently unemotional, neutral tone, while addressing all points of concerns is what separates the good sellers from the bad ones.
 

rif

Sounds just like what's necessary to be successful in the workplace!

I just looked at USPS and it sounds like most priority mail includes $50 insurance.

Since he (via eBay) "paid" for the return, I believe he needs to initiate an insurance request. Plus he has the photos and item itself for his claim.

I may suggest that tomorrow. When I have some emotional distance after a night's sleep. ;)
 

Tarot1844

EEK! Was browsing Ebay looking for ideas but now I'm scared to get anything, lol
 

Debra

Ignore his request. Do not respond. The matter is ended. The case is closed. If he continues to email you, block his email and report it to ebay.
 

DownUnderNZer

I took photos. Even when renting apartments I do the before and after as well.

Best to always cover yourself as you never know who you are dealing with and he should never have sold a deck with a bent card in the first place! That would devalue it just as much I reckon whether a collector or not.

rif said:
Sounds just like what's necessary to be successful in the workplace!

I just looked at USPS and it sounds like most priority mail includes $50 insurance.

Since he (via eBay) "paid" for the return, I believe he needs to initiate an insurance request. Plus he has the photos and item itself for his claim.

I may suggest that tomorrow. When I have some emotional distance after a night's sleep. ;)
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DECK OF THE MONTH: JUNE Unwise questions