ebay "Buyer Protection" FRAUD #2

[idealassets]

With ebay's advertised claims of "Buyer Protection" what could possibly go wrong with a $71 purchase? I bought 2 pickguards + postage costs for my Guild Starfire electric guitar. See ebay item #140516863004 & 140516863022. The seller advertised 7 day refund exchange.

1. When they arrived they would not fit, they were way off; screw holes didn't match and cut-out pattern was wrong.

2. When I emailed the seller saying I prefer a refund or exchange he never responded.

3. When I made a paypal resolution case, they said I had 10 days to return them via USPS insured for a refund, and proved them with the insured mail tracking number. At this point I thought they might actually care about me getting ripped off.

4. The post office no longer allows you to track insured items on-line any more, and paypal stated my tracking number didn't work so they were closing the case and I loose the money.

I know you can say many things about what could have happened but didn't. This is the second time ebay did not honor their advertised "45 Day Buyer Protection" as soon as a less than ethical seller puts up some resistance. I could have provided further information to ebay if they had only asked. But ebay instead reposnds with "sorry, no further communication will be required." -except for what about my payment, and the fees that ebay profits from when I got nothing?

So BE FOREWARNED. Never buy anything from ebay unless you are willing to totally loose your money, and you have many hours for all the inconvenience attempting to get anything back.

Good luck!
Craig

 

[taabru45]

Thanks Craig....that's a complete drag....you deserve to be pi**ed off....Steffan

 

[southernGuild]

Ouch. What a rip! Could have happened to any of us, Sorry it happened to you. Thanks for the warning. :wink:

 

[fronobulax]

One of the things I have learned the hard way when dealing with disputes with banks, credit card companies and health insurers is that there is a very specific appeals process and it is to their financial advantage to disallow the appeal for any reason, including a failure to follow the process to the letter. It would seem as the eBay Buyer Protection plan has joined these ranks.

Hindsight being 20/20, the solution is to understand the appeals process before you need to use it and/or work with someone who does understand it.

Sorry that you have to be the pathfinder in this area. Experience is what you get when things happen to you. Wisdom is what you get learning from the experience of other people. Thanks for helping us become wise.

 

[dreadnut]

Sounds like the same buyer I bought from...

And I found that paypal is equally useless to the seller!

 

[capnjuan]

Hi Craig: next time you buy stock, let me know so I can buy something else. A tale of woe; intended as an expression of sympathy, a comment on eBay Disputes, and not to re-direct the thread.

Once upon a time ... in early 2007, I bought a Guild Thunder 1 RVT on eBay about which the seller had said: 'may need a few tubes'. He was right.

1. It didn't have any tubes at all.
2. It was dead on arrival.
3. The broken rectifier tube's base was corroded into its socket.
4. Somebody had tried to put a couple of diodes on the tube socket to provide DC.
5. The bias circuit had been disconnected.
6. The was a 1" hole in the speaker.

So ... I filed a Dispute with eBay and so did the seller because .. he said ... I'd mistated facts in my filing ... although I hadn't. Back then, a counter-dispute trumped a dispute and until the counter-dispute was resolved, there was no consideration of my issues.

Once the seller had filed his complaint, the clock started on his ... the clock was not suspended on mine. While his complaint was pending, my complaint expired due to 'no further action'.

It's bad; you were hosed, I was hosed, but - and this won't be any comfort, it's better than it used to be :evil:

 

[RussB]

If you use priority shipping from USPS you can track the items online

 

[idealassets]

I'm warning everyone on LTG due to so many "opportunities" on ebay. The claim of "Ebay Buyer Protection" is a fraud. ebay doesn't really intend to honor their promises about the safety of your purchase.

The US Postal Services tracking was previously available as far back as I can remember. The USPS online still advertises "postal tracking", but recently, won't provide that service any more (as advertised) for insured mailing tracking numbers. (Unless it was sent priority?) as a fellow LTG'er has stated, but the USPS site does not state that, and most postal clerks have no clue if you were to ask them.

ebay states "they could not track my postal tracking number" There was no mistake in my information, and I could easily provide a digital image of the postal receipt as proof. ebay & Paypal just chooses not to care. They have taken their fee but choose not to do what they advertised they would do.

I'm just warning you.

Craig

 

[RussB]

Did you put delivery confirmation on the package? That is traceable online.


Call me the Devil's (ebay's) advocate, but I can understand that ebay needs some proof that you have indeed returned the item(s)

 

[davey]

With ebay's advertised claims of "Buyer Protection" what could possibly go wrong with a $71 purchase? I bought 2 pickguards + postage costs for my Guild Starfire electric guitar. See ebay item #140516863004 & 140516863022. The seller advertised 7 day refund exchange.

1. When they arrived they would not fit, they were way off; screw holes didn't match and cut-out pattern was wrong.

2. When I emailed the seller saying I prefer a refund or exchange he never responded.

3. When I made a paypal resolution case, they said I had 10 days to return them via USPS insured for a refund, and proved them with the insured mail tracking number. At this point I thought they might actually care about me getting ripped off.

4. The post office no longer allows you to track insured items on-line any more, and paypal stated my tracking number didn't work so they were closing the case and I loose the money.

I know you can say many things about what could have happened but didn't. This is the second time ebay did not honor their advertised "45 Day Buyer Protection" as soon as a less than ethical seller puts up some resistance. I could have provided further information to ebay if they had only asked. But ebay instead reposnds with "sorry, no further communication will be required." -except for what about my payment, and the fees that ebay profits from when I got nothing?

So BE FOREWARNED. Never buy anything from ebay unless you are willing to totally loose your money, and you have many hours for all the inconvenience attempting to get anything back.

Good luck!
Craig

I agrre with you on this just a joke the whole ebay system

 

[fronobulax]

Call me the Devil's (ebay's) advocate, but I can understand that ebay needs some proof that you have indeed returned the item(s)

Nice to see someone else sharing that role. Thanks.

That said, eBay seems to displaying the rigidity associated with "do it exactly our way or your appeal will be denied".

 

[geoguy]

Looks like that seller's feedback has recently gone dramatically downhill. Perhaps that happened after you made your purchase (that happened to me once, though my money was refunded).

I think this has been mentioned previously by others, but it can pay to utilize a credit card instead of just linking Paypal to your checking account. In my experience, credit card companies are pretty agressive about refunding purchases-gone-bad, as long as the seller is some distance from your locale.

Sorry for your troubles.

 

[capnjuan]

This was in my eBay Messages box dated April 8, 2011. Since I wasn't communicating with a Seller at the time, I ignored it. Might/might not have any bearing on this thread.

_______________________________

Updates to the eBay Buyer Protection and Privacy Policies

Dear capnjuan,

We are making updates to the eBay Buyer Protection Policy, as well as the eBay Privacy Policy, and would like to make sure you are aware of the changes. These updates go into effect for existing customers on June 20.

eBay Buyer Protection
In the event you need help with a purchase on eBay, we've got you covered. eBay Buyer Protection is fast, easy, and free, and covers the purchase price of an item plus original shipping when buyers and sellers need eBay to step in to help resolve a problem with an item not received or not as described in the listing.

Here are a few important updates to the eBay Buyer Protection Policy:

* To make sure returned items are delivered correctly, sellers are required to maintain a valid and current return address on file. You can update your return address online via My eBay by selecting Account > Addresses, then clicking Change next to the Primary return address field.

* For items that are event tickets listed under the Tickets category, a case may be opened until 7 days after the event date, even if that's more than 45 days from purchase date.

* If an item is re-shipped after being received at the address in the Order details page or PayPal Transaction Details page, it won't be eligible for eBay Buyer Protection Policy coverage.

* We reserve the right to suspend a buyer's coverage under the eBay Buyer Protection Policy if we suspect that buyer is colluding with a seller to misdeclare the value or type of an item for evading customs fees.

* In order to be protected from a case when a buyer reports an item was not received, sellers must provide valid delivery confirmation before the case is escalated to eBay for a final decision.

* If the buyer successfully appeals a case and receives a refund from eBay, and the seller's refund failed, was canceled, or did not complete after the case was closed, the seller will be required to reimburse eBay.

* To help buyers and sellers resolve a case, eBay may provide or give them access to each other's name, user ID, email address, other contact information, and other information relating to the case, including any relevant documentation obtained from a third party.

* When deciding a case, eBay may review item details, messages between the buyer and seller in eBay Messages, seller responses to questions, and other sources of information related to the case.

[The BS about eBay Privacy Policy that appears here edited out.]

 

[idealassets]

I provided ebay/ paypal exactly what they asked for: "the insured postal tracking number". Evidently they change the rules to best suit themselves, especailly when a less than honest seller doesn't feel they should cooperate and give my payment back.

I have so far had 28 resolution claims after 12 years on ebay. That is after approximately 20 ebay purchases a month for collectibles, CD's, and music realted items.

Every previous buyer protection claim I made resulted in a refund, except the last 2, both this year. For the last 2 claims it didn't go so well. So for 11 years I felt 100% "protected" and for the past year 100%- sorry you loose your money.

I believe I had enough experience with how to handle a bogus ebay sale after 26 prior claims in 12 years. Now it has all changed. For the prior 24 claims the sellers cooperated in refunding my payment back to ebay. Previously I regarded the inconveniences worth the cost, when getting something not available anywhere else.

For all you devil's advocates out there, fortunately it isn't you that got totally burned. The fallout of bad uncooperative sellers that are harbored on ebay seems to be on the increase.

Craig

 

[idealassets]

Although this post is 2 weeks old, LTG'ers are continuing to read it. I hope it reaches new readers every day, since as of today I am still swindled out of my payment made through ebay.

This seller is still not banned by ebay, although his ratings went down AFTER he received my payment for the pick guards.

regards,
Craig