eBay

annawebz · ‎03-31-2015

i won an item that i had been watching for 7 days and low and behold the seller somehow could not find the item and decided to refund my money.... How do we control sellers who feel the item is worth more and decide to lose it when it is time to ship the item. This could be done by any seller who feels they could have done better. This is a waste of time for the buyers who are bidding on items for days only to find out they will not receive it. I find this to be a terrible practice on their part and can be done anytime they feel an item should be worth more...

is the company i am talking about. To me this is a scam.....

mater721 · ‎03-31-2015

Has happened to me before.

Hard to prove if their inventory management is lacking, or if they deliberately held it back. Check sellers listings over a few weeks to see if it is listed again.

Also, don't forget to leave feedback. I typically leave Neutral feedback and include a note about trying to sell out of stock items.

femmefan1946 · ‎03-31-2015

Feedback is your tool here.

The most effective feedback is calm and factual. "Claimed item was lost. Fast refund"

At the same time you will be asked to leave Detailed Seller Ratings.

The normal transaction should get 5 stars, since any lower mark has a severe effect on the seller's ability to list and sell on eBay. If her DSRs drop below 4.3 penalties could include: higher listing and selling fees, restrictions on the number and value of listings, lower placement in Search, or even ending her right to sell or her entire membership.

The lowest Rating in ONE star. No stars is a free pass.

BTW, this excuse is often used by newbies who stupidly follow eBay's advice and start auctions at $1.00. If you are bidding on these auctions, hoping to scoop up a bargain, be aware that the chances of the new seller actually completing the sale are much lower than if she started it at a reasonable price.

I may be young, but I'm not stupid. -- Megan Trainor 'Lips Are Moving'

faircrochet · ‎03-31-2015

However, mistakes like that do happen. I had to refund once because as soon as I picked up the item to box it for shipping (a christmas tree ornament) it broke in half. And once I accidentally relisted an item that had already been sold. So it's not always something dishonest, however annoying it might be.

femmefan1946 · ‎03-31-2015

Oh yes!

I have learned to watch my listings carefully, since eBay has a tendency to relist items that have sold. Since most of my items are on Good Til Cancelled, this requires attention.

On the other hand, eBay also seems to randomly drop listings without notice. So I suppose it all comes out even *runs screaming into the night, tearing hair and sobbing...*

mater721 · ‎04-01-2015

"And once I accidentally relisted an item that had already been sold. So it's not always something dishonest, however annoying it might be."

It happens, and that's why feedback is very important.

If a seller has this happen rarely, it likely is not intentional.

However, if feedback shows this numerous times, the seller is possibly crooked. Or poor at inventory management. In both cases, a seller to avoid IMO.

drygallen · ‎04-02-2015

I also have had Ebay relist sold items without my knowledge or consent. As I typically run around 900 listings, this can be very hard to keep track of. A few of these items were sold a second time. I consequently received a black mark for cancellation and negative feedback. Happened enough times to knock my off top rated states. The current rating status is unfair. I was a top rated seller for 5-6 years until their new "improved" rating system came into effect. Any time any type of complaint, return request, item not received etc. is filed, you receive a strike whether or not there is a successful resolution. Totally unfair. Anyone else experience this?