HELP..DS just ordered something on Ebay!!

[Brier Rose]

Dear Mr. X:
I am sorry that you feel you are unable to honor your obligation. You have asked that I relist the item for sale. As you may be aware, I have already paid eBay the listing fee, gallery fee, and commission on sale. As the sale has been made, to list this again I would have to pay another listing fee, another gallery fee, and IF it sells, another commission. This is a Christmas-type item, and we basically have passed this year's Christmas season.

I offered to pay his listing fee, gallery fee, and commission fees.

 

[C.Ann]

I am always logged into eBay, (I click the keep me logged in) and even if I just placed a bid, it still asks for my password for each and every bid. It really isn't that easy to make a mistake and bid, so I can understand the seller's frustration..

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Yup.. This is the part I don't understand.. I've been purchasing items this morning on ebay and EVERY time I buy something - even with the BIN - I have to type things in..

That's really odd.. Could it be some sort of "scam"?

 

[Brier Rose]

I don't think you made it up that your son somehow placed a bid. I do wonder if perhaps he reads more than you think though, and saw you put in your password.

That would be impossible, as I never entered my password other than when I made it up that morning to register. As I said I clicked on the link in my email to finish my registration that afternoon, and that to me back to ebay, and apparantly logged me in. My DS was no where around at this time anyway.

I understand you feel bitter

I do, but only because there are apparantly so many people in the world ready to pull one over on somebody, that nobody believes anybody anymore.

My DH tells me all the time that I live in my own little world where everybody is sweet and nice, honest and trustworthy.
I don't know why I set myself up like that. I always get proved wrong in the end, and it always feels like such a slap in the face.

 

[robinb]

The guy lost his time - that's it. He can get his fees back by filing a non-paying bidder or cancelling the transaction. If he leaves you negative feedback, then start over with a new ID. Mistakes happen and this guy is trying to guilt trip you into spending $ at his "store."
{snip}
Anyway - my point is - don't let this guy guilt trip into spending $35 plus his shp/hldg fees when it was a mistake in the first place.

I have to agree with this. You made a mistake by leaving yourself logged in. Your DS made a mistake by clicking on a Buy-It-Now. The seller's original response seemed very fair: file a Non Paying Bidder against you to get his fees back. Then, it seems that he turned greedy.

I know you feel bad, but you contacted him to let him know about the problem right away. $15 is way too much for his fees. At most they are $3 and he would get half of that back if he files a NPB. I would send him $3 cash in the mail and be done with it. If he leaves you a negative, ditch that eBay ID and open up another one. I wouldn't let him hold your feedback hostage. It really isn't worth it since you can start over easily.

 

[Brier Rose]

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Yup.. This is the part I don't understand.. I've been purchasing items this morning on ebay and EVERY time I buy something - even with the BIN - I have to type things in..

That's really odd.. Could it be some sort of "scam"?

Does it make a difference if it was a buy it now item. This was in an Ebay store and was not an auction item, if that makes a difference.

Like I said, I have never purchased anything on ebay, so I don't know what all he would have to have done. I'm not about to go click on a buy it now button to find out what the next step would have to be!

 

[robinb]

Yup.. This is the part I don't understand.. I've been purchasing items this morning on ebay and EVERY time I buy something - even with the BIN - I have to type things in..

That's really odd.. Could it be some sort of "scam"?

I think it depends on the browser you use and how it is set up. I use Firefox and I don't remember having to type in my password with I click on a BIN. Firefox remembers my passwords for me.

 

[JERSEYGIRLINSI]

Hi, I'm a ebay seller myself...so I can speak on this side of the experience. When you list an item on ebay you pay a fee according to the detail amount, length of the auction, and a fraction of the actual amount the item ends up selling for. But not only that, if something is purchased as a BUY IT NOW, that removes the item from the auction totally, thus removing it from being seen by other potential buyers. So to just pay the fees for the original listing, and the new listing will never make the person whole. I personally find that people do "use" their children as the reason for mistaken bids. Once you are more familiar with how much you have to do to confirm and place a bid, you'll see why sellers take the "YEAH RIGHT" attitude towards the situation. If your young child did all of that, you have a smart one on your hands! Good luck with the situation, Just my two cents.

 

[robinb]

But not only that, if something is purchased as a BUY IT NOW, that removes the item from the auction totally, thus removing it from being seen by other potential buyers. So to just pay the fees for the original listing, and the new listing will never make the person whole.

The seller has lost, at most, one day. He knows that he's not going to sell the sleeping bag to the OP and should have already re-listed it.

 

[Brier Rose]

Hi, I'm a ebay seller myself...so I can speak on this side of the experience. When you list an item on ebay you pay a fee according to the detail amount, length of the auction, and a fraction of the actual amount the item ends up selling for. But not only that, if something is purchased as a BUY IT NOW, that removes the item from the auction totally, thus removing it from being seen by other potential buyers. So to just pay the fees for the original listing, and the new listing will never make the person whole. I personally find that people do "use" their children as the reason for mistaken bids. Once you are more familiar with how much you have to do to confirm and place a bid, you'll see why sellers take the "YEAH RIGHT" attitude towards the situation. If your young child did all of that, you have a smart one on your hands! Good luck with the situation, Just my two cents.

There wasn't an auction at all. It was just a buy it now item, so I'm assuming there would be no length of auction fees, and I did not "take" the item from a potential bidder.

I contacted the seller as soon as I found out what happened...within a matter of hours.

 

[mum4jenn]

I imagine there are different ways the browsers let people handle Ebay. I have purchased on Ebay through bidding and Buy it Now and have used 2 or 3 different browsers through the years and if I remember correctly even the BIN there is a confirmation button you have to click after you choose the BIN feature.

With sending him the $15 that should make him more than happy.

I am sorry if my doubting that a 7 year old could read offended you. I guess it is possible for a 7 year old not be able to read but we just don't see it in our school system. I was basing my opinion on my own experience(my dd read simple books in PreK and was reading very well in Kindergarten.) Our system scores well above the state average so I guess I did not take homeschooling and lower performing schools into consideration.


I do hope you give Ebay another chance(with tighter security). It is a great way to get some great merchandise at great prices(or even hard to find items). I was able to find many Harry Potter items for my dd on Ebay that I have not been able to find anywhere else this late in the game!!

 

[Brier Rose]

I am sorry if my doubting that a 7 year old could read offended you. I guess it is possible for a 7 year old not be able to read but we just don't see it in our school system. I was basing my opinion on my own experience(my dd read simple books in PreK and was reading very well in Kindergarten.) Our system scores well above the state average so I guess I did not take homeschooling and lower performing schools into consideration.

I did not get offended. I just wanted to make it clear that he does not. Not yet anyway. We're working on it, and it's going well. We're taking it at a very slow pace, moving forward when he seems ready. I've never really been into the whole numbers thing...must do X by age Y. He's much more in to math and science than reading right now.

I also homeschool my DD who did know how to read VERY well at that age, so I can see how it might be hard to believe. Sometimes I just have to step back, and remember that just because I know I'm telling the truth doesn't mean someone else does.

 

[cruisnfamily]

Just wanted to say that I do NOT need to type in my password every time I place a bid. That would be annoying! I don't know if it's my browser(mozilla) or what but once I'm logged in, I'm logged in and don't need to do it again.

 

[robinb]

I did not get offended. I just wanted to make it clear that he does not. Not yet anyway. We're working on it, and it's going well. We're taking it at a very slow pace, moving forward when he seems ready. I've never really been into the whole numbers thing...must do X by age Y. He's much more in to math and science than reading right now.

I'm not a big fan of Homeschooling, but I have to say that you cannot compare the reading skills of children under the age of 7-8. Reading "clicks" with kids when it "clicks". There is no hurrying it. Some kids (like me) read before Kindergarten. Some kids (like the OP and my own DD) do not read until 1st grade. My 6 year old DD is just starting to read while other children in her class read chapter books. I can totally understand that a barely 7 year old would not be able to read and comprehend the instructions for an eBay Buy It Now. It is also no reflection on her DS (or the OP as an educator) that he does not yet read *or* someone else's child because they already read at 5. It all evens out once it "clicks".

 

[DianeV]

I see there is a difference in the responses between ebay sellers and those who dont sell. Having someone end an auction with a buy it now is not such an easy thing to have to deal with. It does take away other people the chance to see it and buy it and at this time of year when Christmas is approaching even one day can make the difference in if you sell your item or not. Maybe someone was watching this item and planned on maybe bidding on it the next day or whatever. Now the item is totally gone from the system and the fees are lost along with the amount of exposure the item will get. Sleeping bags especially are big holiday gift sellers and I can totally understand the seller being upset about losing that time. And yes most sellers have heard that same "excuse" before and it makes it that much harder to believe.

I have even had adults say they didnt mean to buy it now, that they were just looking,..there are at least 2 steps to go through before the auction ends with a buy it now so either your son knows more about reading then you think or I dont know what to think.

I certainly wouldnt hold any of this against the seller when the seller didnt do one thing wrong. I understand your frustration but hopefully the $15 you offered will help.

 

[Brier Rose]

I'm not a big fan of Homeschooling, but I have to say that you cannot compare the reading skills of children under the age of 7-8. Reading "clicks" with kids when it "clicks". There is no hurrying it. Some kids (like me) read before Kindergarten. Some kids (like the OP and my own DD) do not read until 1st grade. My 6 year old DD is just starting to read while other children in her class read chapter books. I can totally understand that a barely 7 year old would not be able to read and comprehend the instructions for an eBay Buy It Now. It is also no reflection on her DS (or the OP as an educator) that he does not yet read *or* someone else's child because they already read at 5. It all evens out once it "clicks".

Thank you for that, I needed it.

 

[summerrluvv]

I see there is a difference in the responses between ebay sellers and those who dont sell. Having someone end an auction with a buy it now is not such an easy thing to have to deal with. It does take away other people the chance to see it and buy it and at this time of year when Christmas is approaching even one day can make the difference in if you sell your item or not. Maybe someone was watching this item and planned on maybe bidding on it the next day or whatever. Now the item is totally gone from the system and the fees are lost along with the amount of exposure the item will get. Sleeping bags especially are big holiday gift sellers and I can totally understand the seller being upset about losing that time. And yes most sellers have heard that same "excuse" before and it makes it that much harder to believe.

I have even had adults say they didnt mean to buy it now, that they were just looking,..there are at least 2 steps to go through before the auction ends with a buy it now so either your son knows more about reading then you think or I dont know what to think.

I certainly wouldnt hold any of this against the seller when the seller didnt do one thing wrong. I understand your frustration but hopefully the $15 you offered will help.

I mostly sell on ebay and have a difference of opinion than you I suppose. The seller knows the person doesn't want the sleeping bag so he can relist it immediately. Not much he's losing out on, especially when she offered to cover his fees.

 

[Brier Rose]

I see there is a difference in the responses between ebay sellers and those who dont sell. Having someone end an auction with a buy it now is not such an easy thing to have to deal with. It does take away other people the chance to see it and buy it and at this time of year when Christmas is approaching even one day can make the difference in if you sell your item or not. Maybe someone was watching this item and planned on maybe bidding on it the next day or whatever. Now the item is totally gone from the system and the fees are lost along with the amount of exposure the item will get. Sleeping bags especially are big holiday gift sellers and I can totally understand the seller being upset about losing that time. And yes most sellers have heard that same "excuse" before and it makes it that much harder to believe.

I have even had adults say they didnt mean to buy it now, that they were just looking,..there are at least 2 steps to go through before the auction ends with a buy it now so either your son knows more about reading then you think or I dont know what to think.

I certainly wouldnt hold any of this against the seller when the seller didnt do one thing wrong. I understand your frustration but hopefully the $15 you offered will help.

Again, this was not an ebay auction with a buy it now option. It was simply a buy it now item listed in an ebay store. There were no other people watching or bidding and waiting to see what would happen with this item. I suppose someone else could have looked at it, and wanted to come back and buy it later.

At most the seller lost a few hours. I immediatly alerted him to the problem as soon as I found out.

I would be VERY happy to know that my DS could read better than I think he can, but that is just not the case here. As for the amount of steps that need to be taken to complete a purchase...don't have a clue. I've never bought anything on ebay in my life.

My DS does not have to "go behind my back", to deviously purchase something on ebay. He KNOWS all he has to do is ask, and I'll most likely get it for him!

 

[dismom24]

I am also a seller and can not tell you how many times I have received the "my child bought this" excuse. I am not saying that you are not telling the truth, just that as a seller we get this excuse a lot. It can be very frustating when you depend on ebay for an income, but we are all human and people do make mistakes. You have provided good communication and tried to work out a comprise which seems fair.

The one thing that bothers me the most is that a 7 year old was allowed unsupervised on the computer. If he could click onto a buy it now item, he could just as easily access an inappropriate site. Parental guardian software is great, but none of them are 100%. I am not trying to judge or flame, just reminding that our children need parental monitoring on the internet..

 

[Brier Rose]

I am also a seller and can not tell you how many times I have received the "my child bought this" excuse. I am not saying that you are not telling the truth, just that as a seller we get this excuse a lot. It can be very frustating when you depend on ebay for an income, but we are all human and people do make mistakes. You have provided good communication and tried to work out a comprise which seems fair.

The one thing that bothers me the most is that a 7 year old was allowed unsupervised on the computer. If he could click onto a buy it now item, he could just as easily access an inappropriate site. Parental guardian software is great, but none of them are 100%. I am not trying to judge or flame, just reminding that our children need parental monitoring on the internet..

I understand what your saying, and I even agree with you. My DS usually never messes with the computer at all. He was only alone with the computer in this instance for about 5 minutes.

I had it on ebay, I was looking at the ebay store, He clicked on one of the pictures. To me that's a long way off from being able to accidentally navigate to an inappropriate site. It's not like he was surfing the internet or anything.

 

[shades]

I disagree with this. First of all, he lost his listing fees. Secondly, at this time of year, you can get a higher price for your merchandise, so if he can't relist the item in a timely manner before the holidays, he may lose money in product value. JMO.

He can file a nonpaying bidder complaint and get his fees back - which, is what I stated in the response your are quoting. I assumed (yep, I know what assuming means that the buyer contacted the seller immediately - like, as soon as her son purchased the sleeping bag. It would only take the seller a matter of minutes to relist and it also sounds like (based on OP's statement) that he responded fairly quickly to her response.

Anyway - I still think the guy is only out his time...IMO. He may have lost a couple of hours as far as his sleeping bag being available for purchase.

I personally have about 600 feedback comments on my Ebay account. I'm a fairly experienced ebayer - been shopping there since 1998 - back when a majority of the people were fun to deal with. Sadly, I've experienced more bad than good over the past couple of years.

When I shop on Ebay - I'm typically on a shopping binge. I buy 3 or 4 things withing a matter of minutes. If I plan on trying the last second sniping game -I log on Ebay and from that moment on, I do not have to enter my password again because I've clicked the "remember my password" box.

I do believe this incident was a mistake. Heck, I've watched adults click through stuff on accident. Some people are just fast computer clickers. They see the buttons and click away. It would be extremely easy for OP's son to click his way through a purchase purely accidental.

I also really feel bad for the Ebay sellers that have to deal with all of the excuses they more than likely get - but, geez - OP was looking for advice - not flames and accusations

OP: You need to do what you feel is right for you. The seller will get his final "win" fees returned & he can relist. Even if he paid additional money for services that he will not get reimbursed - well, he would be out that money if the sleeping bag doesn't sell anyway. He knows this when he listed the item for sale. I do feel $15 is too much since this item was only $35. If you truly believe you owe this guy anything - I'd go with $5-6 as another poster recommended.