Another ebay questions - if you can stand it!

[The Disney Bunch]

My mom just started selling some things on ebay as she cleans out her house, preparing to move. She had a coin that she put up advertised as a WWII Commemorative coin. She describes it in detail but does not exactly say what denomination it is. It sold for $18 - the guy gets the coin and emails her and says it is a 1/2 dollar & he thought it was the dollar based on her heading (which did not say dollar or half dollar just coin) so he would like my mother to refund some of the cost since the half dollar is going for about $16 based on one of his coin books and the dollar is going for $30 & he thought he was getting the dollar and he already has the half dollar. My mom is afraid of him giving her negative feedback so she isn't sure what to do. She had to spend extra money to ship the item since she didn't accurately weigh the coin so she is already 'losing' some money. What do you think? How should she reply to him?

 

[DianeV]

If in fact it never said anywhere that it is a dollar coin then it was the buyers responsibility to clarify before bidding. Sounds like he thought he was getting a "great deal" and is upset that he was wrong evidently because he didnt doublecheck

If she gets a negative out of it she can simply reply with the facts

 

[disneysnowflake]

The buyer should have been aware of what he was buying before he bid.

To tell you the truth I've heard of this "partial refund" thing more and more. I've actually experienced a buyer who wanted a partial refund. My buyer had over 1000 feedback. I later found out she bought a similar item and asked that buyer (a fellow collector) for a partial refund also. I list things for my sister who has no computer. She sold a set of doll furniture. Her buyer said she thought a particular piece was missing and demanded a refund equal to 1/2 of the set of 30 pcs of doll furniture. On a collector board I belong to I'd say about 1/2 of the members had had a buyer want a partial refund within a last few months. Most of the bidders who are requesting partial refunds are experienced buyers, at least from what I've discussed with others.

If I were you mother I'd tell the buyer to go take a hike. If she gets a negative then just respond underneath his comment what happened.

That's just what I'd do anyway.

 

[C.Ann]

Did she include a photo? And did she actually post anywhere that it was a "dollar" coin? If she included the photo - and/or did not state it was a dollar coin, then it was really the buyers responsibility to check the auction carefully and ask questions if he wasn't sure of what he was buying..

I personally would not refund the difference as your Mom had no way of knowing that he wanted a "dollar" coin..

 

[Tinkerjane]

It was the buyers responsiblility to ask questions first. I alway put in my description in red lettering - Please be sure to ask questions you may have prior to placing a bid! Your Mom may want to do something along those lines or state that she is not an expert so be sure to ask questions that may be important to the bidder prior to placing a bid. Most collectors will ask and in your Mom's case, it sounds like something that would have been important to a coin collector and he failed to ask.
Hope things work out for her. I would risk the negative in that case.

 

[disneychrista]

She can do one of two things. Tell the buyer sorry he didn't realize what he was bidding on wasn't what he wanted but she did not state it was a dollar coin and she will not be refunding anything.

or two tell him to send the coin back (at his own expense) and once recieved in the original condition she will gladly refund his bid price.

 

[~Kathie]

"Partial Refunds" seem to be the latest trend with some people. One gal wanted a partial refund because I refunded her Paypal payment when she didn't include shipping. She said it was for her inconviemence of having to pay me twice.

I agree with what was posted here. It's up the the bidder to ask questions before bidding. Hope it all works out.

 

[remyandhollandsmommy]

She can do one of two things. Tell the buyer sorry he didn't realize what he was bidding on wasn't what he wanted but she did not state it was a dollar coin and she will not be refunding anything.

or two tell him to send the coin back (at his own expense) and once recieved in the original condition she will gladly refund his bid price.

This is what I would do! There is a growing trend with buyers asking about a "partial refund". While there may be a few legit buyers, most are doing it as a scam. If she gets a negative out of it, consider it a "red badge of courage" and reply with the facts.

 

[tinkerbellmagic]

I was waiting for the op to say whether or not a photo was included in the auction before I replied, but here goes... If there was a photo of the coin in the auction, then the buyer was uninformed and should do more research before he bids. If a photo was not included, I cannot side with either party.

I know a lot of you think the buyer should have asked what denomination the coin was before he bid, and an educated buyer would have asked. However, it is also the seller's responsibility to include an accurate description of the item with as much detail as possible. The denomination is a pretty basic detail that should have been included, but I understand your mom is new at this and practice makes perfect.

I have been selling on eBay for six years. It's easy to say the buyer should have asked, but there are many sellers that purposely give vague one or two line descriptions and then add, "Please email with questions." Then when a misunderstanding occurs, the seller says, "You should have asked." And oh, how I wish all bidders would, but sellers need to provide a detailed and accurate description too. I'm not saying your mom gave a vague description, I just see a lot of this on eBay.

I once heard that the perfect way to describe an item is to imagine there is no photo in the ad. You should be able to describe the item in such a way that the buyer (if they bother to read the auction ) can visualize the item as best as possible without seeing it.

A detailed, accurate description, with the line, "Please email with questions before you bid," is good for sellers and buyers.

Tink

 

[The Disney Bunch]

Hi - I just am getting back on- my mom did include a picture with the ad - and it is a pretty good picture. I don't think she shoul refund anything because the guy is a coin collector/dealer and I think he should have asked questions before he bought it, especially if he already had a similiar one. He is quoting all sorts of coin books, which my mom has no clue about. She is just afraid he will get mad at her & get her kicked off ebay. I think I am going to tell her that if he wants a refund, to mail the coin back. Thanks for everyone's input!

 

[C.Ann]

Hi - I just am getting back on- my mom did include a picture with the ad - and it is a pretty good picture. I don't think she shoul refund anything because the guy is a coin collector/dealer and I think he should have asked questions before he bought it, especially if he already had a similiar one. He is quoting all sorts of coin books, which my mom has no clue about. She is just afraid he will get mad at her & get her kicked off ebay. I think I am going to tell her that if he wants a refund, to mail the coin back. Thanks for everyone's input!

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If there was a photo included, then that seals it.. Your Mom is in NO way responsible and he can quote books till the cows come home but it does NOT change the fact that he is obviously unaware of what he purchased - or even "wanted" to purchase.. Were he a true coin collector and not a wannabe, he wouldn't be in the position he's currently in..

There is NO WAY he can have her "kicked off of eBay", so please tell her not to worry about that.. Sure - he can post a neg, but she can respond to it in her own defense..

Either he ships the coin back - at HIS expense - or he deals with the consequences of being totally uninformed about what it was that he wanted..