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 Replies: 10 / Views: 2,200 |
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Valued Member
United States
114 Posts |
I don't know if this is technically a "crime", but I feel a bit violated. I have bought a lot of Canadian proof coins and sets on ebay with absolutely no problems. I just received a set that stunned me when I saw it. It is a 2003 double dollar proof set that came without box or presentation case. The ad didn't say a word either way, but I've never received one without a case that didn't say so. That isn't my biggest problem by far: The plastic case was loose and badly scratched. All the coins had obviously been removed an re-inserted. The obverses and reverses were mixed with half showing on each side. The two dollar coin, 12 sided, was jammed into its space about halfway out of position regarding the shape. It is severely jammed and a good deal of the coin is floating above the holder. All the silver coins show fingerprints, a strange cloudiness, and the Loonie has some kind of foreign substance on the surface, about 2-3 mm in diameter. This is from a fairly major ebay seller, so it surprised me. I paid a fair price for a "good" set. The seller says these flaws are common on Canadian proofs, but I have never seen anything like what I have described before. Also, the coins are not the best proof examples I've ever seen. This is clearly the dregs from cherry picking sets and reassembling a set from the leftovers. I'm pretty upset. The seller has offered a refund if I pay to return it. Shipping to Canada isn't cheap from the U.S. and I don't feel I should have to pay to return something that is clearly not representative of what I would expect from a "proof" set. I kind of feel like I "should" make an issue of it with ebay, just to put the dealer on notice that this is at best, an unacceptable practice. Any opinions on this? |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4337 Posts |
My opinion is to ask the moderators to move this to a more appropriate forum and away from a section that lists crimes of people being sometimes robbed and even murdered versus a bad online buying experience.
Other than that, welcome to the CCF
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Moderator
 United States
189969 Posts |
Quote:
My opinion is to ask the moderators to move this to a more appropriate forum... Done. JSabatke, hopefully you will find more opinions flowing now.   to the Community! |
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Valued Member
 United States
114 Posts |
Thank you for moving it to a more appropriate area. I am new here and was a bit confused as to where it should go, though I did think that this could possibly be mail fraud, hence thinking "crime".
I hope to learn to use this forum properly in the future!
Jim
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Moderator
United States
189969 Posts |
You are very welcome. Do not sweat it. We were all new once.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
589 Posts |
Quote:
I don't feel I should have to pay to return something that is clearly not representative of what I would expect from a "proof" set. Unfortunately, that's how ebay works. Buyer pays return shipping. You can always file a SNAD (Significantly Not As Described) claim, and you probably should. First, you should contact the seller directly about it (shows ebay you attempted to solve the problem first), and progress from there. **Just make sure you re-read the item description and re-examine the picture of the item. If the picture is what you received (even if the picture is zoomed out and makes it hard to identify such faults) or if the description lists it as not being "new" or otherwise indicates that the condition of the proof set could be what you received, then really the only choice you have is the pay return shipping and refund (which ebay probably will make you do anyway if you file a claim). |
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Valued Member
United States
114 Posts |
I did do all of that mentioned, I should have said that. The description was only a line that said "Proof Set", and the picture was very small and fuzzy, but it did show the coins rotated and some obverses flipped. It didn't show the fingerprints or the Loonie jammed in at an oblique angle, mashing the plastic holder, I'm sure to the point that the holder can't be used without taking some kind of tool and cutting down the mashed plastic. It also didn't show some pretty severe crud on the Twonie, or the severely scratched lenses on the case.
It's always my habit to contact sellers if there are any problems, and in over 400 purchases, I've only been obviously ripped off once before. I haven't opened a formal complaint yet. The seller has offered to refund if I return it, but I'm pretty angry about getting the set, especially for $50 USD + shipping, which would be a fair price for a proof set in good condition. I just check the feedback for bullion.exchanges (seller) and they sell thousands of items a year with only 22 bad feedbacks and 33 neutrals, and almost all of the "bad" feedbacks, and a fair number of the "neutrals" were almost exactly like my situation, though none listed quite the number of faults.
I might be risking the dealer saying "forget you" if I lodge a complaint (I learned the hard way to choose "other" when first contacting seller so it doesn't trigger a formal complaint and locking the money) which I did in this case. But, I am really upset at having to pay return postage. I'm thinking out loud with this writing and I guess I'm leaning toward returning it and paying the postage, then leaving "bad" feedback. I am always thinking "can I help other people avoid this problem with this seller, and will my complaining make a difference?"
I do have one question though. Is it true what the seller told me, that Canadian proofs often have a milky film on the surface? Again, I've never seen it before, and I do open my proof sets from time to time to admire the quality of the coins.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7375 Posts |
I'd definitely attempt to get the seller to pay for return shipping. If I was sent something I don't feel that I bought I'd ask them to pay for return shipping. Just send them a copy of your post. That says it all. What do you have to lose?
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Valued Member
United States
114 Posts |
Well, the bullion.exchange seller offered to refund my money, but insisted that "milky" spots are common on Canadian proofs. I responded and noted the RCM and online documentation show that it's a result of cleaning planchets on "bullion" coins, not proofs, and that the problem has only been reported extensively on a few releases, notably the national parks series, and then noted the host of other severe problems that were not described or shown in the photos, they agreed to give a full refund and pay my return shipping. I know they have a fair number of negative and neutral feedbacks on ebay for the same practices, but talking nicely and straightforward with people usually gives better results than either screaming or just "taking it" and giving bad feedback. I still am shaking my head about the twonie mashed into the holder at an oblique angle and the loonie having a large spot on the loon's tail that looks like a pretty good sized spot of blood (could well be something else), but at least they are making it right. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2077 Posts |
In my opinion, anything that is not typical should be clearly stated in the listing. The issue about the proofs usually being milky is just BS. Good to see you got it resolved.
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Valued Member
United States
114 Posts |
I am also looking at options for microscopes mentioned. One thing that I hadn't thought of that just occurred to me goes back to my high school days 40+ years ago, using extension rings on my DSLR for really close macro photography.
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Replies: 10 / Views: 2,200 |
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Posted 05/19/2014 12:37 pm
