UPDATE: ebay experts, please, PLEASE help

[cinderlexa's mom]

I'm brand new to ebay. Five days ago I bought some items from a 99.5% positive feedback seller. The items had pictures, descriptions, and presale pricing right off of Pottery Barn's website. The ad listed all items as purchased from Pottery Barn's website/catalog.

Items came USPS PM today. They are similar but obviously different than what was shown in pictures. Construction, material, color and embroidary are off. All items have tags sewn in that read PotteryBarnOutlet! Ad listed NOTHING about PBOutlet! PBOutlet doesn't even have a website, only stores!

I wouldn't have bought these items, if I'd known they were different than what was in the pictures. I want a full refund.

• Should I also get a refund for shipping here and back?
• Does paypal protect me, or do I call VISA and dispute?
• If cooperative, how do I know if seller takes correct steps in getting me a refund?

TIA for any advice you can give me!

 

[Robinrs]

For the first situation: Email the seller with your concern. If you don't get satisfaction, put in a dispute with PayPal.

For the second one, report your problem to eBay. This is totally against the rules and this person knows it.

Wow, I'm so sorry you ran into TWO sorry sellers!

 

[Davidsmommy]

It simply isn't possible to bid on your own items, even if you change your name. If you want to PM me the item number (or post it here), I can try to help you figure out the bidding on the second problem. eBay can be confusing if you are new, but I can assure you, you cannot bid on your own auctions (unless the seller is using a shill account - but that is NOT what you are describing - you are saying the seller used their own name and then changed it).

 

[Belladonna]

I would email the seller first. If they say its ok for a refund, you should have no problem getting your money back. But make sure when you ship it back, you get delivery confirmation! This way, if they are difficult, you can open a claim with paypal and show them that the item has been sent back to them, and 98% of the time, they will process your refund.

 

[cinderlexa's mom]

Thanks for all the quick replies. I'm kind of thinking I shouldn't buy anything more on ebay--yikes!

If anyone has anymore ebay advice to give I'd be happy to take it!

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

My only advice is that everyone is human. Give the seller the benefit of the doubt - they could have accidentally shipped you the wrong items. Send a nice email to them letting them know that you did not receive the items that you bid on and that you wanted to know what happened. Be nice. I know the holidays around here were hectic and I could easily have made a simple goof up like that. Let us know how it turns out!

For the second one - can you PM me the item number? Like the PP said there is no way to bid on an item you are selling with your own ebay ID. If you placed a bid that was lower than a bid placed by a previous bidder then you would have automatically been outbid by the proxy bid. Are you perhaps looking at the high bidder's ID and confusing that for the seller's ID?

Ebay can be a great way to make some extra money and find some bargains but as with anything "let the buyer beware".

Good luck!

 

[MiniGirl]

You've gotten some great advice, so I don't have anything to add to that.

I just wanted to say how sorry I am this happened. I think the vast majority of people who buy and sell are honest. Unfortunately, the holidays seem to bring out many unscrupulous (forgive my spelling) people on both sides of the transaction. Good luck getting this all resolved. Let us know how it turns out.

 

[Robinrs]

I totally agree with Minigirl... I have been buying and selling on eBay for years and my experience has ben 99% good.... that's why I am so surprised at your two bad experiences!

I,too, would be interested in how this person bid on their own item.... I can't imagine how that was allowed!! Thanks in advance for providing me with that info...by PM of course.

Robinrs

 

[cinderlexa's mom]

Thanks again for all the replies.

On item #1 I've sent a message to the seller. Waiting for reply...

Item #2. It seemed to me that the seller's name was the same as the last bidder before me...but I was also up way too late last night. I'm obviously wrong about the seller bidding on their own item, as you all seem to know a lot about ebay. I'm happy to hear this and will be off to process my paypal payment.

 

[cinderlexa's mom]

Update:

I messaged the seller twice using ebay's messaging service and have not received a response. I asked the seller to contact me within 24 hours to resolve the matter peacefully and so I wouldn't be forced to dispute the matter with paypal or as a chargeback on my CC. I also emailed the seller to notify them that they had an important ebay message regarding my order.

How long should I give the seller to respond? If they don't respond, should I file a dispute with paypal or file a chargeback with my CC? I really want to be fair to this seller as they have good feedback--and I assume they had good intentions--although the seller has MANY PB items for sale and should know the difference between PB and PBOutlet items.

Please advise. I really appreciate any advice, I'm stressing over this $300 mess.