HELP - Dodgy Buyer!

foreversomeday

Hello.

I've been on ebay a while and recently decided to start selling to clear out some of my old junk. First few sales went well, but then I decided to sell a higher value electrical item. The winning bidder had a feedback score of 0 and had only joined 2 days before. OK, I thought, this is either geninely a new ebayer who has joined for my item (Yipee!) or a scammer who's just made a new account to hide their identity.

Two days after the listing has finished they still have not paid or replied to my (friendly) message of congratulations, please let me know if you are picking up etc... and their feedback score has gone down to -1. The comment says the member was a seller who did not deliver the item and asked for more money.

What can I do? I don't want to sell to this person because I'm worried he or she will rip me off, but I don't want to just refuse to send the item in case I get negative feedback. Do I have any kind of protection from ebay in this situation?

freddysmith

You could pull their contact details and phone them, if the contact info is incorrect then let Ebay know. This should cause them to become unregistered then you will get your listing fee back if you go through the dispute control. Then relist the item. Ebay may already be onto them but a helping hand may get rid of them quicker.

littlejaffa

Did you put anywhere on your item that the buyer had to contact you/pay within xxx days? If you did and they haven't i'd relist and be dammed.

Did you put anywhere on your item that people with less than xxx feedback had to contact you before bidding etc? If you did and they don't I'd relist and be dammed.

If you didn't, I agree it looks very suspect, but 2days isn't really that long. I'd give it at least 4 before calling in the big guns, but i do think your probably right about them, just like to give people the benifit of the doubt, unless your desperate for the money sooner.

Time2Go_25

They are not doing a very good job of scamming you or ripping you off if they've made no contact.

People seem to sometimes forget that everyone starts off with a 0 feedback and have to buy/sell there first item. Made he/she is unsure what to do, maybe there house is flooded and the fact they've won something is not high on there list of priorities. Maybe they'd forgotten they'd won something and gone on holiday.

EBAY themselves suggest waiting 7 days, so there's probably no harm in just sitting back for a while to see what happens.

SarahNeedle1872

pdel61 wrote: »

EBAY themselves suggest waiting 7 days, so there's probably no harm in just sitting back for a while to see what happens.

Thanks, I was just about to ask a similar question.... no need now

Cheers

Sarah x

foreversomeday

Hey a quick update, I have waited 7 days and emailed the buyer with no response. They now have a -2 feedback score, but have left retaliatory feedback on their buyer's page. I have reported as an unpaid item and am hoping to sell the item with a second chance offer, but I'm worried about him leaving me negative feedback as I already have one negative feedback score (Tried to resolve this as well but the buyer didn't want to know - put it down to experience.) and am I right in thinking 3 strikes and ebay kicks you out??

Is there any way I can report the buyer to ebay, get negatve feedback taken off if he leaves me any?

Worried .... foreversomeday

melancholly

there are plenty of people on ebay with more than 3 negative feedback scores! it may put some buyers off using you (so i'd put a comment by the feedback saying that they didn't pay and then anyone who reads it won't be too worried), but you won't get kicked off for getting a few bad feedbacks!

charlottevwa

can i ask you what the name of the ebayer is?? as i recently purchased something off an ebayer with 0 feedback, never recieved the item etc, and i left her a neg, and her feedback is also -1.. but the feedback i left her sounds similar to what you said! could be coincidence! ?

foreversomeday

It was catlover something, won't write the whole name out here as I don't want to get told off or anything :P

How strange if it is the same buyer! Someone has left feedback for him/her today, so it could be.

digerati

foreversomeday wrote: »

... I have waited 7 days and emailed the buyer with no response. They now have a -2 feedback score, but have left retaliatory feedback on their buyer's page. I have reported as an unpaid item and am hoping to sell the item with a second chance offer, but I'm worried about him leaving me negative feedback... and am I right in thinking 3 strikes and ebay kicks you out??

It's a common misconception that negative feedbacks get someone kicked off eBay. They don't!

Three reports of non-payment from different sellers within a short time frame will get a person suspended (or NaRU'd if they have a history of 'problems').

Also if the buyer doesn't respond to the unpaid item dispute (UID) then they cannot leave feedback but you still can for them (with impunity).