So, y'all know the seller I recommended a couple of weeks ago on
ebay, svarady? I got my package from him, and it was wonderful--neatly shipped, everything as described . . .
. . . except for one thing, which he had warned me might be wrong. I bought a silver shilling from him from 1881. The shilling
as I was bidding on it had sustained
PMD that was not regular wear, which is why I was able to afford it (my max budget for a coin that isn't a Peace or Morgan is $10, and this particular shilling looks to go on the Bay for an average of $16-ish when I first checked).
The shilling I received was an 1878 in much better condition than the one I bid on--still worn, but definitely not with the
PMD in the pictures.
I contacted him to let him know that he had, in fact, switched them by mistake, offered some diagnostics to confirm it was the wrong shilling, and asked how he'd like to proceed--although I didn't say so outright, I expected to be asked if I'd be willing to switch, given that I got this thing for like five bucks (answer: yes, because that's a big price discrepancy).
The response was apologetic in the extreme--he's sending me the coin I bid on plus a
Buffalo nickel, and refunding my shipping, and asked me to hold off on giving feedback until I have these coins in hand. To me, this is
way over the top--mixups happen! It's not like I bid on an UNC
Trade dollar and got a VF Morgan--I bid on a damaged shilling and received the same coin, in
better condition. I'm not trying to complete a shilling set, either, and the condition isn't of huge concern to me--I've been in love with Victorian England since I was four and first encountered Sherlock Holmes, and I was just thrilled at the chance to own a piece of money that Arthur Conan Doyle might have used (and that my dear Holmes loves to hand out as tips).
I sent him a message as soon as I got home that sending "my" shilling is unnecessary and that if he hasn't already dropped it in the mail, I would like him to relist it so he can recoup some of what he'll have lost on the shilling he sent me (since he did not indicate at any time in any way that he wanted me to return it).
However, I don't know if I caught him in time, because of the hours I work.
If he writes back that the damaged 1881 on which I bid is already in the mail, what should I do? This man has been so sweet to me, holding off an invoice until my paycheque came in and combining shipping on several auctions so I could purchase multiple coins--I feel like I'd be stealing from my grampa by taking the second coin. Should I arrange return shipping for the 1878, or just send him a note of thanks and leave him the most amazing feedback ever? What's the protocol on this? I just started purchasing on the Bay a couple of weeks ago and I have no idea what standard procedure is.
What would you do in my shoes?
Posted 10/09/2012 06:48 am
