Ebay Stress Update Added

[joolz1910]

I recently sold my laptop to raise funds for WDW and I have unfortunately sold to someone who is trying to 'con' me.

I stated a fault in the listing and also featured a photo of it. He has since discovered that it is (according to him) costly to repair and he has said that unless we come to some 'agreement' he will file a claim against me.

He also claims that the cd/dvd writer 'isn't always working' - whatever that means. I know it is working, but I can't prove that.

He is also trying to install an operating system when there is already a new operating system installed.

I am finding this really stressful. If I offer him a refund, I am sure that I will still have to pay ebay, listing and paypal fees totalling £53! Plus he will probably expect me to pay postage costs £21. I think he is likely to leave me negative feedback anyway.

I don't know what to do. Will paypal force me to reimburse him anyway? Has anyone got any experience with this sort of thing?

 

[gemmybear83]

I am sorry I dont have any advice - I am still an ebay novice but just wanted to give you a big hope it gets sort out soon

 

[joolz1910]

Thank you. I need a . It annoys me because I could see it coming. He wanted it asap, so I paid extra to send it special delivery and I sensed then that something wasn't quite right. He also thought paypal didn't work on Sundays. I wonder if I've been targeted because I have 100% feedback and most people would offer a discount to avoid negative feedback. I would do this if I thought I'd overlooked something but I know he's trying it on. Grrrrrr.

 

[wickesy]

I can't offer any advice only support:

As far as the fault goes - you were honest about it in the listing, it's not your problem if it's going to be expensive to repair.

Installing an operating system - if that is what he has chosen to do and can't do it then it's not your problem.

CD/DVD drive not working - tricky one because neither of you can prove it so I don't know which way E-bay would fall.

Personally I don't worry about one negative feedback on a seller's score. A friend of mine recently got a negative feedback which was later removed and she is now back to 100% so all is not lost.

Hope you can get it sorted.

 

[Cyrano]

Personally I don't worry about one negative feedback on a seller's score.

I agree

 

[tennisfan]

Unfortunately if he can prove that it is faulty etc, Paypal will refund but only upon return of the item.

Post the question on thr Ebay forums there are plenty of knowledable people on there who can advise but don't say the buyer is trying to con you as that will get peoples back up straight away.

 

[Lizzybear]

Unfortunately if he files a claim it is more than likely that Paypal will side with him no matter what. The bf almost had this happen with a guitar amp he sold (the guy basically admitted he used it without a speaker cab which will fry an amp, but wanted the bf to refund him when there was no problems with it on our end and it was pretty clear the guy had damaged it himself and was trying to pull a fast one by threatening a Paypal claim!) The bf ended up closing his Paypal account just in case and we assume the guy either didn't do a claim or it didn't work. I know it's drastic and not really going by 'the rules' but it was either that or be out hundreds of pounds and with an amp that would cost a bomb to repair It's certainly put us off selling high value items on eBay now, I think I would do cash/cheque/postal order only from now on (I do use Paypal for buying and selling but most of what I sell is fairly low value so if I am ever coerced into refunding someone it isn't too big a deal) Good luck and I know how stressful it can be to go through something like this.

 

[joolz1910]

Thanks everyone. I'm so annoyed that I have been completely honest and that I stand to lose a lot of money. There doesn't seem to be a lot of protection for sellers through paypal - I wanted him to use paypal because I thought it was the best option for both of us. I am tempted to close my paypal account but I'm not sure about transferring my money (£500) into my bank account instead.

I can understand that paypal needs to protect buyers from being defrauded but where is the protection for sellers? What happens if I have to refund him and he sends the laptop back and he has damaged it?

 

[Booknut]

Firstly I would transfer the money into your bank account from Paypal.

If he files a claim with Paypal he has to prove that the drive isn't working. The fact that he says 'it isn't always working' means it has worked so he could have done something to it to make it 'not work'.

Personally I think he's trying it on. And I wouldn't worry about the negative feedback. Most people aren't fussed with 1 or 2 overall and after 1 year it will fall off your record anyway as they only use a year's worth of reviews for ratings now.

If it isn't too inconvenient and you're worried about losing the money then I would definitely close down the Paypal account, you could always open another one in your husband's/relatives name and use that for smaller items you sell/buy. Or just accept cheques and postal orders.

It's a shame what's happened to Ebay, I used to sell and buy so much on there but its been so stressful lately i've stopped the last few months.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do

 

[oceanscape]

Personally, I would say that it was working fine when I sent it, so if it isn't fine now and it's nothing to do with you, it must have got damaged during transit. Then give him the tracking information and, assuming you sent it Special Delivery, let him file a claim with the Royal Mail.

PayPal will most likely side with him, and AFAIK there are Ts&Cs in the PayPal member agreement which mean they can still access your account to reclaim the money even if you close your PayPal account down.

 

[joolz1910]

Personally, I would say that it was working fine when I sent it, so if it isn't fine now and it's nothing to do with you, it must have got damaged during transit. Then give him the tracking information and, assuming you sent it Special Delivery, let him file a claim with the Royal Mail.

PayPal will most likely side with him, and AFAIK there are Ts&Cs in the PayPal member agreement which mean they can still access your account to reclaim the money even if you close your PayPal account down.

I sent it Special Delivery. I wonder whether the claim for damage in transit would be straightforward or not? I genuinely believe he is trying it on. I'm tempted to offer a refund just to put an end to it. Would I get my eBay final value fees back though? Plus it would cost me £21 postage.

From his email, it seems that he was hoping for a partial discount as he never mentioned returning it.

 

[oceanscape]

I sent it Special Delivery. I wonder whether the claim for damage in transit would be straightforward or not? I genuinely believe he is trying it on. I'm tempted to offer a refund just to put an end to it. Would I get my eBay final value fees back though? Plus it would cost me £21 postage.

From his email, it seems that he was hoping for a partial discount as he never mentioned returning it.

Yeah, he's probably just trying to get a bit knocked off the price to be honest. It's a frequent problem

Royal Mail are usually very good with Special Delivery claims, but they take a while.

I believe you would get your FVF back if you choose "buyer and seller mutually agreed not to complete the transaction". You wouldn't be able to receive a listing-fee refund, although you could offer a "second chance offer" to the next highest bidder in the original auction.

Best of luck.

 

[Boss Hogg]

The buyer would have to raise a dispute in both ebay and paypal and they would need to show that there was a material difference in the item - clearly with the damage you're clear the cr/dvd would be trickier as people have said.

When you get to fees, you can apply for a Final Value Fee credit (in ebay) if you refund the amount and have the item returned - this is dealt with in the resolution centre and you dealt with it there - FVF credit.

The same applies to paypal if you enter it as a "refund" against the original payment made (in your account activity screen) - think you only have 60 days to do this so watch your timings (not sure whether this applies to the ebay refund though) - paypal refunds

Naturally this does not take count of postage, and a 50/50 share would be the most equitable approach (assuming you agree to take it back) I guess.

Last thing I would say is that I am sure you can get negative feedback removed in certain circumstances, which may apply - feedback removal

 

[joolz1910]

The buyer would have to raise a dispute in both ebay and paypal and they would need to show that there was a material difference in the item - clearly with the damage you're clear the cr/dvd would be trickier as people have said.

When you get to fees, you can apply for a Final Value Fee credit (in ebay) if you refund the amount and have the item returned - this is dealt with in the resolution centre and you dealt with it there - FVF credit.

The same applies to paypal if you enter it as a "refund" against the original payment made (in your account activity screen) - think you only have 60 days to do this so watch your timings (not sure whether this applies to the ebay refund though) - paypal refunds

Naturally this does not take count of postage, and a 50/50 share would be the most equitable approach (assuming you agree to take it back) I guess.

Last thing I would say is that I am sure you can get negative feedback removed in certain circumstances, which may apply - feedback removal

Thanks. I have read that he will have to get an independent/third party to prove that the laptop is faulty. I don't think he knows what he is doing as he was trying to install an operating system when the latest one had been freshly installed for him. The cd/dvd was definitely working, so goodness knows what he has tried to do. He is new to eBay and doesn't seem to understand how eBay/paypal works. Perhaps if I offer him a refund, he will back down because I think he actually wants to keep the laptop.

 

[Boss Hogg]

Thanks. I have read that he will have to get an independent/third party to prove that the laptop is faulty. I don't think he knows what he is doing as he was trying to install an operating system when the latest one had been freshly installed for him. The cd/dvd was definitely working, so goodness knows what he has tried to do. He is new to eBay and doesn't seem to understand how eBay/paypal works. Perhaps if I offer him a refund, he will back down because I think he actually wants to keep the laptop.

Agree with you on that, if you simply say that you'll refund him, but that no-one should be out of pocket therefore split the postage costs you'll soon find out if he is trying to be cute and get some money off. If he makes a counter offer of less "due to damage" then I guess the thing to do is see how it compares to your next bidder should you do a "second chance offer" - if you do decide to refund a portion, again, make sure you do it against the original payment and you'll get some of your paypal fees back.

 

[joolz1910]

Agree with you on that, if you simply say that you'll refund him, but that no-one should be out of pocket therefore split the postage costs you'll soon find out if he is trying to be cute and get some money off. If he makes a counter offer of less "due to damage" then I guess the thing to do is see how it compares to your next bidder should you do a "second chance offer" - if you do decide to refund a portion, again, make sure you do it against the original payment and you'll get some of your paypal fees back.

He hasn't got back to me so perhaps he has consulted a friend who knows how to use a computer.
I'll wait for his next move and offer him a refund - that should make him reveal his true intentions. The next highest bidder was £10 lower...

 

[Boss Hogg]

He hasn't got back to me so perhaps he has consulted a friend who knows how to use a computer.
I'll wait for his next move and offer him a refund - that should make him reveal his true intentions. The next highest bidder was £10 lower...

Oh well, I suppose a bit of lost postage and a tenner's not too much to lose - a little galling though!

 

[aaronandterri]

to win a papal claim he has to prove its not as describbed, this can be tricky for him to prove, even when i was in the right once about something i bought i let it drop *** of the hassle of proving this, you have to take it to someone to get a written statement about it etc etc, it can be hard and *** you listed it s faulty i think this would be hard to prove.

royail mail claims are usualy pretty straightforward although can take a while to be sorted if you go that route.

i personally wouldnt refund him at all if he leaaves negative that a shame but dont wory to much it wil dissapear iin 12 months and youll be back to 100%

the other option try to drag him out past 45 days, then hes outside the timescale to claim, bit naughty but could work, tell him youre waiting on the royail mail claim and will sort out once its all through until the time is up.

 

[joolz1910]

An update:
I think I've been the victim of a professional scam. He has opened a paypal dispute and has asked for a £100 discount. He paid £335.

The faults he is now listing are different to his original 'complaint'.

I seem to have these options:
I refute his claim which means he has to prove the faults with an independent third party document within 10 days.
I offer him a 'goodwill' (that galls) discount of £50 or a full refund.

My main concern is that he will return the laptop damaged and I will lose the money and the potential to sell it on.

My other concern is that he will issue a chargeback and I will have the problems that come with that.

Any advice?

 

[Booknut]

Do you know if you will get any fees refunded if you take the laptop back?

If it is a scam he will already have an 'independent' person who will write up a nice fault report for him.

Personally, i'm quite risk averse (or chicken little depending on who you talk to!) I would offer him the £50 discount and just try to forget the whole thing. It's a terrible thing to go through, good luck with whatever you do.