annoying ebay seller

ard123en

A few days ago i won a satellite reciever on ebay for £123 its one month old I know the seller will of paid over £200 for it

so bargin I thought, but hes refusing to send it now saying its now damaged and he could not end the auction

now my gut feeling is he just dosnt want to send it that cheap ive asked him what the damage is but hes now ignoring me.

ive already paid for the item so by my understanding the goods are leagally mine

What presure if any can I put on him to send the goods for my inspection ?

vickyj

the best thing for you to do is open an ebay dispute. It does sound like he just does not want to be out of pocket by this much and as understandabl as that is he has always had the oppertunity to add a reserve price.
Good luck

mpython

I think you'll get a much better response if you post in the ebay forum below.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.html?f=40

ohdearme_2

ard123en wrote: »

ive already paid for the item so by my understanding the goods are leagally mine

I suspect you quickly sent paypal payment to him without him emailing you first.

You offered to purchase the goods from him for a set amount, he has declined that offer (saying the goods are no longer for sale).

As long as he refunds your money there is nothing you can do.

dmg24

ohdearme wrote: »

I suspect you quickly sent paypal payment to him without him emailing you first.

You offered to purchase the goods from him for a set amount, he has declined that offer (saying the goods are no longer for sale).

As long as he refunds your money there is nothing you can do.

That isn't the case with auctions.

In an auction, if you make a bid and that bid is the highest, then a contract is formed.

However, if the seller is saying that the item is damaged, unless you are able to prove to the contrary, then the most you can do is get your money back (even if you took it further this would be the most you could sue for, just the amount that puts you back to your original position).

Sorry I can't offer better news x

rdwarr

You can report to Ebay (who will insist they are not an auction, merely a "venue") as a non-performing seller and also leave negative feedback. Not much help to you I know but at least it will give others "fair warning".

ohdearme_2

dmg24 wrote: »

That isn't the case with auctions.

In an auction, if you make a bid and that bid is the highest, then a contract is formed.

Whilst I agree that this is the case with auctions, Ebay is not an auction.

Even Ebay t&cs agree to that ('Although eBay is often referred to as an online auction web site, you acknowledge that we are not a traditional auctioneer. Instead, the Site is a venue').

Ebay do not have an auctioneer.

dmg24

ohdearme,

With respect, do you have any formal knowledge of consumer law? If you did, you would know that you cannot pick out the bits of the t & c's that suit your argument, and ignore the rest.

The excerpt that you are referring to actually states:

You will not hold eBay responsible for other users' actions or inactions. Although eBay is often referred to as an online auction web site, you acknowledge that we are not a traditional auctioneer. Instead, the Site is a venue to allow anyone to offer, sell, and buy just about anything, at any time, from anywhere, in a variety of pricing formats, which include auction-style and fixed price formats. At no point do we have possession of anything listed or sold through the Site.

eBay also state is their t & c's:

You can't cancel a purchase via the eBay website after you've won an auction or clicked "Buy It Now". A bid or Buy It Now purchase on eBay is considered a contract and you are obliged to complete the transaction.

ohdearme_2

dmg24 wrote: »

ohdearme,

With respect, do you have any formal knowledge of consumer law? If you did, you would know that you cannot pick out the bits of the t & c's that suit your argument, and ignore the rest.

The excerpt that you are referring to actually states:

You will not hold eBay responsible for other users' actions or inactions. Although eBay is often referred to as an online auction web site, you acknowledge that we are not a traditional auctioneer. Instead, the Site is a venue to allow anyone to offer, sell, and buy just about anything, at any time, from anywhere, in a variety of pricing formats, which include auction-style and fixed price formats. At no point do we have possession of anything listed or sold through the Site.

eBay also state is their t & c's:

You can't cancel a purchase via the eBay website after you've won an auction or clicked "Buy It Now". A bid or Buy It Now purchase on eBay is considered a contract and you are obliged to complete the transaction.

Beleive it or not, Ebay do not make the law in the UK, Parliament usually does that. Ebay has terms and conditions that exist if you want to be a member of there site. Ebay acknowledge they are not an auctioneer, and UK law states the 'seller' doesn't need to sell.

"auction-style" sums it up nicely, it is an auction style, not an auction.

"A bid or Buy It Now purchase on eBay is considered a contract"

Ebay may consider it a contract, but its not a contract in law, which takes precidence over ebays terms and conditions.

My site has t&cs that state you can drive at 120mph on any A-road. Strangely UK Law tends to differ and it does actually take precidence (strange that!). Even though you may sign up to my t&cs, it doesn't make it Law.

"pick out the bits of the t & c's"

I chose one which informs people that even ebay admit they are not an auction site, which is what this is about.

"we are not a traditional auctioneer. Instead, the Site is a venue"

If ebay were an auction then you would be correct in you assumption about the seller having to sell, however, ebay themselves admit they are not an auction site, and do not have an auctioneer. That is why I chose that particular bit of there t&cs.

dmg24

As I asked earlier ohdearme, do you know anything about consumer law?

ohdearme_2

dmg24 wrote: »

As I asked earlier ohdearme, do you know anything about consumer law?

Unfortunately, yes. I need it for parts of my work.