Yes... Another Ebay Problem

[Homer Simpson]

Ok... here's my eBay tale of woe. Any insight would be appreciated.

My wife wanted to see the Goo Goo Dolls in concert and I found a seller on eBay selling a pair of 5th row tickets for $349 with an option for a "best offer". So I took a shot in the dark and made an offer of $200 and much to my surprise it was accepted by the seller. I immediately made payment thru PAYPAL on Sunday.

Well... of course it was too good to be true and today (monday) I get this message from the seller:

<<I was on vacation this weekend and my assistant ccepted you offer even though I dont have these tickets anymore. She was supposed to take this auction down on Saturday. I have a pair in 104 row J I can offer you for $200 or I can refund you your money. I am sorry for the inconvience.

Thanks
Roy>>

I'm a little annoyed to say the least and was wondering if anyone had any advice about how to resolve this other than showering him with negative feedback.

I just sent him a message thru ebay stating that I expect him to follow through on the deal and offer me seats in an equivelent location. I also told him that offering me tickets in substantantially worse section for the SAME amount of money would not cut it.

He replied back to me and basically said that mistakes happen and he was standing by his original offer to refund the money or sell me worse seats for the same money.

His feedback is pretty good so I don't think he is trying to scam me out of my money, but I do think one of two things happened:

1. He really was on vacation and hit the roof when he came back and found that his assistant accepted such a low offer and he is now backing out of the deal by claiming he doesn't have the tickets anymore

OR

2. He got a better offer or was able to sell the tickets for a higher amount in the two days since the auction closed. I'm just not buying that he just doesn't have the tickets anymore.

Not really worth getting too upset over, but I would appreciate input from some of the wise minds here.

Thanks.

 

[msmayor]

I'd request the full refund without hesitation. I'd ask that it be returned immediately, and assuming he complies then just let it end right there. No feedback necessary at all (its not required to leave it).

He did have/isn't willing to obtain what he originally offered so you are under no obligation at all to take the alternate deal.

 

[AnninIowa]

Since his feedback is good, it sounds like it really was an honest mistake. If he was a scammer, there would be no offer of a refund. Take the refund and move on; I wouldn't neg him for it, but you could leave a neutral.

 

[Homer Simpson]

I'd request the full refund without hesitation. I'd ask that it be returned immediately, and assuming he complies then just let it end right there. No feedback necessary at all (its not required to leave it).

He did have/isn't willing to obtain what he originally offered so you are under no obligation at all to take the alternate deal.

Yeah... I know what you mean and I'm inclined to agree with you

But I'm still pretty sure I'm gonna zonk him with a negative feedback... I know he will do it back to me with some bogus nonsense but I could care less.

Thanks for the input

 

[abbybeth]

I would absolutely go ahead and ask for the refund.

Another feedback path you may want to take is utilizing a neutral since the situation will come to an amicable end, even though it's not the one it should have (provided the refund comes through in a timely fashion)

I'm always hesitant to leave negatives of course because of retaliation feedback, but also because I know it causes damage to a seller's numbers so I don't do it lightly. See how quickly the refund is issued - if it's fast go with the neutral and leave a good description in the feedback (something like seller no longer had advertised seats, refund was issued, not the best transaction) However, if he drags his feet on actually giving you the refund, drop the negative and then file a dispute with PayPal.

 

[poohbearwithme]

My two cents: I would neg feedback him. The offer was accepted and should be honored. He hired his assistant and his assistant was given to right to speak on his behalf while he was on vacation. If not, he should have waited until he came back from vacation to post the tickets. I would also contact paypal about this.