Bad Ebay Selling Experience

nitr02007

I'm not going to sell stuff on Ebay anymore - after one transaction went bad. I sold my Dell Laptop - as faulty. I said in the auction that I didnt know what the problem was but there's definately something wrong and described the symptoms. I thought someone could use it for spares or maybe repair it.

It sold for £100. I had no contact from the buyer - except the paypal payment - and the laptop was sent off. A few days later I find the buyer had opened a dispute and was demanding his money back because the laptop's motherboard was faulty and he wanted a working motherboard to fix his own laptop. :mad:

After several really nasty emails threatening to take me to court and that I had purposfully stitched him up with a worthless laptop, etc. I asked him to send it back in the same condition and I'd give him his money back. He sent the laptop back - but the graphics card had been switched for an inferior model (this particular laptop had had an upgraded graphics card). I couldnt believe it. I dont know what other components had been switched.

So I opened a dispute against him.

There followed about two weeks of horrible and threatening emails from the buyer saying that I'd known about the motherboard problem all along and I'd be paying his lawyers fees, etc.:eek:
Ebay was asking for independent evidence and police reports. I wasn't sleeping well and it was constantly on my mind so I just gave up and sent his money back and tried to forget about the whole episode. It simply wasn't worth the £100 disputed - and he harvested whatever parts he wanted from my laptop for free.

I could possibly have won if I had stuck to my guns as I was innocent, but the worry and the time off work getting police reports and independent evidence wouldn't have been worth the £100 and what if I'd lost? I may have had to pay out even more.

Its really put me off selling stuff on ebay now. I've still got the laptop I don't know what to do with it tbh don't really want to take it to the dump...

Any advice about how I should have handled this differently or is it just one of those things people accept about Ebay?

Brooker_Dave

nitr02007 wrote: »

Its really put me off selling stuff on ebay now. I've still got the laptop don't know what to do with it tbh don't really want to take it to the dump...

Any advice about how I should have handled this differently or is it just one of those things people accept about Ebay?

Unfortunatly because ebay forces sellers to accept paypal which is hoplessly open to abuse, selling anything on ebay is a lottery.

Try flogging it in loot, and either get cash on collection or a cheque, both of which are far safer than taking paypal.

frivolous_fay

I would have carried on fighting until there was no longer any hope... but that's just because [EMAIL="I@m"]I'm[/EMAIL] stubborn

Going_Digital

eBay are terrible for buyers and sellers, I have just closed my account because I'm totally fed up with being scammed. The best way to save money is avoid eBay altogether.

soolin

Going_Digital wrote: »

eBay are terrible for buyers and sellers, I have just closed my account because I'm totally fed up with being scammed. The best way to save money is avoid eBay altogether.

Unfortunately many of us need ebay as we are used to the extra income it brings in. I continue to sell there as I earn enough to take nice 'extra' holidays that I couldn't otherwise afford, while I continue to bring in the money I will continue to trade.

I do agree though that it isn't for everyone and I think ebay and paypal are at fault for suggesting that anyone can use it simply and easily, that is not true. However, take a look over on the 'debt free wannabee' board at their ebay challenge thread, there are people there turning over hundreds of pounds worth of stuff a week and getting themselves out of debt..so it isn't all bad.

nitr02007

soolin wrote: »

However, take a look over on the 'debt free wannabee' board at their ebay challenge thread, there are people there turning over hundreds of pounds worth of stuff a week and getting themselves out of debt..so it isn't all bad.

Before this happened I sold loads of stuff like my old DVDs and CDs with no problems whatsoever - however this incident really knocked my confidence - maybe I shouldn't have given up so easily - but this one unscrupulous person really knew how to get me worried and how to work the dispute system.

I just can't look at Ebay as the great boon I once did. I know people get scammed in all walks of life but I feel that its really unfair as I did everything right - at least in my eyes - but to Ebay I was the guilty party, on this persons word alone, and had to shoulder the cost and inconvenience to prove I wasn't.

I hope anyone reading this would think about the possible problems they may have regarding an Ebay sale and try to take all steps to protect themselves, cos Ebay and Paypal sure aint gonna do it for you.

Anyway thanks for the replies and I wish I was on this forum when it was happening - maybe the outcome would have been completely different.

Smits

Well, i would of personally not given uo since he has stolen a graqphics card and still expects a refund. You should of refunded the price minus the price of the graphics card.

He'll only be encouraged to do it again considering he won.

I like ebay personally, i've made 80+ quid from the last 10 days selling old games and old clothes. People pay alot for old USED clothes

nitr02007

Smits wrote: »

Well, i would of personally not given uo since he has stolen a graqphics card and still expects a refund. You should of refunded the price minus the price of the graphics card.

Maybe if the person was at all reasonable about what had happened - a friend of mine saw the emails I was getting from this person and said maybe I should think about going to the police about harrassment. They were nasty and he would accept no fault at all - he certainly wouldnt have accepted a part refund. In the end he was threatening me with tens of thousands of pounds of lawyers fees, etc. I'm afraid I bottled it.:o

steviebabes

I wouldn't get too downhearted about ebay, its the scum that now use it that's the problem. Usualy these sort of people have done it before, this is the downside of buyers not being able to be given negative feedback. Hopefully paypal will notice a lot of claims from this person and keep an eye on their account in future.

oliver2008

nitr02007 wrote: »

Maybe if the person was at all reasonable about what had happened - a friend of mine saw the emails I was getting from this person and said maybe I should think about going to the police about harrassment. They were nasty and he would accept no fault at all - he certainly wouldnt have accepted a part refund. In the end he was threatening me with tens of thousands of pounds of lawyers fees, etc. I'm afraid I bottled it.:o

I think it would have been an empty threat, son't let one person spoil ebay for you!

Curious_Moose

What was his feedback like?