Ebay BUYER trying to rip me off! Help!

Drone31

So, I recently sold a 5.1 set of speakers plus subwoofer on Ebay for £300. Condition was great, a few tiny scratches here and there barely noticeable but completely sound and 100% working. Buyer receives the package and leaves this feedback :

great seller, very prompt and efficient. Item arrived as promised. Recommended

...Atfer the order is received, best part of a week and a half ago.

Yesterday I receive an email - an action has been opened via Ebay, and magically three of the speakers apparently have dents in the mesh, and one "crackles" when being used. Presumably he didn't receive the box and was so joyously happy with the quality of the package he threw down the great feedback then and there. He must have checked them, as you would for £300.

Aside form the utterly bombproof packaging which would have had to be abused badly from four different angles to damage the mesh of the speakers, the chances of three speakers being dented in the mesh (they are egg satellites) is incredibly unlikely. When I dismantled the system, my friend helped me and can attest that they were in perfect order, and this is after saying farewell to them by watcing Fellowship of the Ring the previous evening. My partners' uncle helped me package the speakers, and they were absolutely fine.

I simply do not believe he is telling the truth. I think he's had a change of mind and wants to get a few quid back feeling he has paid over the odds - he has asked me to either refund him or replace the crackling speaker (once again, the speakers are eight years old, cherished) - he knows claiming damage is covered by listing them as used, so he's going for the guaranteed money back option and claming a fault.

I am a real audiophile and they were used frequently, (up to a night before the auction) and my problem with this is, if I refuse Ebay will simply rule in his favour in all circumstances being the buyer, he will return them, they will bill me and I will end up with a system which was worth £300 a few weeks ago, and will now barely be worth half of that because they will be damaged (which he will no doubt do if I call his bluff)

To emphasize the point here, I don't believe any 'maybe they were damaged in transit' about this, the speakers and sub were sent separately and the speakers were packaged due to their shape facing different directions, bubble wrapped beyond belief, stuffed with paper and packing foam, and sealed in thick cardboard. There were no faulty speakers. The chances of three speakers being damaged are just about zero unless a magician poked it with swords like a plucky assistant in a box. I photographed them for the auction, and they are in perfect condition.

For three speakers to have been damaged like he describes, the package would have had to be delievered UTTERLY MANGLED and it's difficult to believe he would have left feedback on that basis.

I don't want to pay him a penny on principle. Given how much utter care I take of my equipment and I have a particular passion for this type of equipment this is a bit of an insult really.

Where do I stand on simply not paying the inevitable "guilty" verdict they will apply? All my years on Ebay (always with 100% feedback) I've never come across such nonsense. If I call his bluff and they aren't damaged now, or request proof, they will be, so I lose out no matter what.

Any thoughts? Clearly I am done for; the chances of Ebay finding in favour of the seller is a zillion to zilch. I photographed them, packaged them, they arrived and great feedback was left, and they have now majestically acquired the sort of damage that would have been noticeable immediately on receipt of the package. :mad:

go_cat

Have you asked for photos of the alleged damage?

Drone31

My concern is, he'll create this damage himself, and then decide to go straight for a refund as he won't want dented speakers. Is there really any point in disputing it? I would flatly refuse to pay but I'm not sure if Ebay/Paypal can simply recall the funds from me and that's £300 that would be a nasty hit to take.

I'm not even sure how an insurance claim with the delivery company would work (UPS)

Drone31

Just checked and I need to make a claim within three days of delivery, so that's out!

TKPeters

All you can do is to ask him to return them for refund.
I would not settle for any other option,

theonlywayisup

You need to instruct the buyer to return them to you for a refund.

ballisticbrian

OHHH, No ones said, you need to instruct the buyer to return them to you for a refund. :T

bxboards

Drone31 wrote: »

I'm not even sure how an insurance claim with the delivery company would work (UPS)

You have no claim with UPS, as you have said earlier the items were not damaged when sent, and you believe the buyer would deliberately damage them to provide a photo of the so-called damage.

I'm not sure why you think UPS should be responsible for this - UPS do not insure against malicious damage by a customer, so any claim you made against UPS would be as fraudulent as you believe your buyers claim to be.

Drone31

I don't want him to return them for a refund as I will be losing 150 quid!!!! My point is they will half in value if they are damaged so why the hell should I? Simple principle really, two weeks ago I owned items worth 300, I sell them in great condition, he damages them and.sends them back, I lose out.

Yes I am well aware this is not ups fault but if he is claiming they were received that way when they left here perfect, then who is accountable? His lies aren't their fault obviously, but once again, why should I lose out?

The guy makes me sick - however I switched my bank account on Friday and I'm closing my current account, goodbye ebay as far as I concerned. He will send the speakers back, they will issue him a refund but it won't be from my account. They can pursue it through small claims court.

Interestingly I have requested pictures of this so called damage and he hasn't responded. He is clearly just going to leave the case open and hope they will automatically issue him the refund if he does nothing. Maybe I should he have offered I him a quid partial refund.

theonlywayisup

Drone31 wrote: »

I don't want him to return them for a refund as I will be losing 150 quid!!!! My point is they will half in value if they are damaged so why the hell should I? Simple principle really, two weeks ago I owned items worth 300, I sell them in great condition, he damages them and.sends them back, I lose out.

Yes I am well aware this is not ups fault but if he is claiming they were received that way when they left here perfect, then who is accountable? His lies aren't their fault obviously, but once again, why should I lose out?

The guy makes me sick - however I switched my bank account on Friday and I'm closing my current account, goodbye ebay as far as I concerned. He will send the speakers back, they will issue him a refund but it won't be from my account. They can pursue it through small claims court.

Interestingly I have requested pictures of this so called damage and he hasn't responded. He is clearly just going to leave the case open and hope they will automatically issue him the refund if he does nothing. Maybe I should he have offered I him a quid partial refund.

Either you want advice or you will do what you feel is best.
I'm not entirely sure why you posted.

Pierre_De_Grenoble

^^^^^I thought the original query was:-

Drone31 wrote: »

I simply do not believe he is telling the truth. I think he's had a change of mind and wants to get a few quid back feeling he has paid over the odds - he has asked me to either refund him or replace the crackling speaker (once again, the speakers are eight years old, cherished) - he knows claiming damage is covered by listing them as used, so he's going for the guaranteed money back option and claming a fault.

Where do I stand on simply not paying the inevitable "guilty" verdict they will apply? All my years on Ebay (always with 100% feedback) I've never come across such nonsense. If I call his bluff and they aren't damaged now, or request proof, they will be, so I lose out no matter what.

Any thoughts? Clearly I am done for; the chances of Ebay finding in favour of the seller is a zillion to zilch. I photographed them, packaged them, they arrived and great feedback was left, and they have now majestically acquired the sort of damage that would have been noticeable immediately on receipt of the package. :mad: