Need Ebay buyer's advice, quick!

[yoopermom]

I washed my cellphone (oops), and DS's has been having some problems, too, so I bought an Ebay listing that included the phone I wanted plus one "free" that was older, but was listed as being in good working condition (yes, I printed it off). The one I got is great, and I've transferred my number and contacts to it, but the one for DS will not hold a charge (I even took it to the nearest Verizon store, and they confirmed this).

I contacted the seller through the "item not as described", and he wrote back that he would refund the purchase price if I returned both phones. I really DON'T want to return mine, because then I'll be phoneless while I bid on another one, and who knows if the next one will be in as good of condition.

Is there any other option that I can do? He appears to do lots of phones so maybe a different phone to replace the nonworking one? Partial refund? (I only paid about $5 more than most of the other closed listings for similar phones.) Something else?

I'm still going to have to buy DS another used phone one way or another...

Thanks!
Terri

 

[starry_solo]

You can try to negotiate it, but the problem is going to be that the listing was for both phones and what is the price for the one that is going to be returned? If you do a "not as described" chargeback with eBay or payPal, they are going to want you to return both.

You can ask if he will exchange it.

 

[oobidoo]

I agree with previous post. Unless you can talk the seller into a partial refund that you both agree on, it might be all or nothing. It wouldn't hurt to try to work with the seller, though, as he/she might be willing to work with you.

 

[robinb]

I would tell him exactly what you told us here that you would really like to keep the first phone because it works fine and you have activated it and only exchange the second non-functional one. Since the auction was only $5 more for two phones than your phone alone, I might offer to pay postage to the seller as an inducement to have him work with you.

You can also look at how much a battery is for your son's phone and send the seller that link and ask for the cost of a new battery.

 

[n2mm]

Sorry, but it appears you got what you paid for. You are happy with your purchase apparently. The other phone was FREE and you did not pay for it, but you want to return it? So you return it, pay the shipping, but get nothing back? Technically it does work, it just doesn't hold a charge....hmmm. Sounds pretty simple to me. I don't think you can do anything at this point unless you return all items that you purchased. I sell on ebay to make my Disney vacation money and one thing I always have in my return policy is that I accept returns, but only full orders. Since the seller did list the one as free, it sounded like it was a bonus. There are times when I sell something and will throw a bonus in because I can't really sell it, but thought the buyer of the main purchase might like it as an extra gift....for example, I just sold a Jafar costume and had a few beanies that no longer had tags on them. I would be lucky to get a $1 for them, so I added an Iago bean bag to the purchase as a BONUS. Can you imagine someone wanting to return the Iago bean bag to me because it didn't have a tag....they didn't buy it. If the seller has no partial returns in his description, I don't think you can really do anything about the free item you received that does not work....since you really didn't pay anything for the free item. Post back how Ebay handles this if you dispute it. Good luck.

 

[yoopermom]

I understand where you're coming from n2mm, but this second phone was listed as being in working condition, and was obviously thrown in as an inducement to bid on the first phone (since there are tons listed). Seller admitted that he powered it up just long enough to clear the contacts, so didn't know about the battery. The Verizon rep thinks there's actually something wrong with where you plug in the charger, possibly, and that's why it's not taking a full charge, so I really can't just buy a new battery for it, either.

I think I'll probably call him and offer to pay the return shipping on it if he has a different working one to send me as replacement, thanks for that idea.

Terri

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

If you washed your phone you can put it in a ziplock bag with rice for several days and this should dry it out. I have heard of several people who have tryed this and it worked.

 

[erincon23]

Honestly, I think I'd suck it up. It was only $5 -- how much do you think it's going to cost to ship back? Some things are not worth the trouble we make them into. You can get brand-new phones for almost any carrier at Wal-Mart for $1.

 

[sam_gordon]

Ask the seller if he has a replacement battery for the second phone. That's all you need. Batteries are (generally) cheap and easy to change.

 

[ellone]

Have you looked at how much a Battery would be? I've bought some OEM ones off ebay for my phone for a couple of bucks and they work great. If the phone isn't holding a charge, it's probably just the battery.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I agree - easily solved, just get a new battery. They are pretty cheap on eBay.

I am surprised Verizon didn't suggest this or try to sell you one.