Fraudulent Claims Of Defective Product - Ebay

hello

sorry for your ebay difficulties, I know what you mean. I have been a member of ebay for many years and I have noticed a complete shift towards favoring the buyer. This includes paypal, which has been bought out by ebay for years now.

the end result is that, as a seller, you are completely screwed and have practically no rights or recourse. I learned that the hard way when I sold 3 vintage UNOPENED cartons of cigarettes. I said over AND over in my ad that these were UNOPENED cartons, and THAT I COULD NOT GUARANTEE THE CONDITION OF THE INDIVIDUAL PACKS INSIDE! AND, THAT IF THEY HAD ANY DOUBTS... DO NOT BID OR BUY ON MY AUCTION!

well, guess what. the buyer got the cartons, discovered that several packs were water-stained (they had been on the insided of an old fortune teller machine for decades), and filed a complaint.

I lost. it did not matter what I had put on my listing as far as buyer beware, I cannot guarantee the shape of the individual packages inside, that there was no returns, etc., because these were unopened cartons. I had to refund the buyer his money and got back now-OPENED cartons.

you cannot even leave negative feedback against a buyer, while they can fat-mouth you, untruthfully, to the nines on feedback. ebay has become the buyer's , because ebay and paypal get much more from buyers that they do from sellers. this is why ebay sellers nowadays practically BEG you to contact them before leaving negative feedback or less than 5 stars.

sorry, but that is the way it is. as a result, selling coins, I attempt to stay out of ebay. I am pulling my listing for several gold coins from ebay this week and am listing them with great collections... less fees, better customers ( ebay buyers are looking for great bargains, great collection buyers are looking for great coins).

just so you know you are not alone... mike

Update: When I asked ebay if I had any financial recourse if buyer ended up using the software code after I started the refund, they pretty much said they'd wait for it to happen and then deal with it. Obviously there's no system in place to protect the seller because their response started with something like "That's a good question."

No help from PayPal either, as their seller protection only protects the seller when the buyer opens a case using PayPal to file a claim against a seller. And even if buyer in this case did open a claim on PayPal, it would likely not be covered because the only thing seller is protected for is when the item is not returned in the same condition as it was received. In this case, PayPal would assume that the item was reported defective when buyer received it, so I should expect to receive a non-functional or defective product. They said if I received the item in a condition different from the condition that it was reported received, then I [i]might[/] qualify for PayPal protection. I suppose I'm to hope the buyer returns a pile of ashes and melted CD plastic.

scsaxe, can the code use be monitored by manufacturer or distributer of software?

What it comes down to is, do I want to burn the license key and product code, or do I roll the dice that buyer isn't a scammer. Despite a 100% feedback score, he did receive negative feedback in the past as a seller. (I suppose I should have dug through his entire selling history before approving my sale to him?) He apparently sold a diamond cross that wasn't shipped until the buyer complained, then he shipped something that was sterling silver without diamonds.

btw, having 100% feedback does not mean what it used to mean. it is a totally worthless figure now, BECAUSE THE SELLER CANNOT LEAVE NEGATIVE OR NUETRAL FEEDBACK AGAINST THE BUYER.

Therefore, the "buyer" will ALWAYS have a fluffy 100% feedback. as referenced above, go to the buyer's "seller" feedback, if any, to see what your buyer is really like.

Update: VICTORY! Sort of. ebay is still refunding the buyer, but out of their pockets and not mine. This still provides an incentive for buyers to fraudulently file claims to force a return since they still get the product without paying a cent. Obviously, this is of limited application because the cases where someone can return the physical product but maintain full usage are limited. However, this could be the case in situations where the item is worth too little to be worth sending back, i.e. you sell a coin for a small amount that is less than the cost of shipping back and forth.

At the end of the day, there is $6.65 less in my pocket than there should have been because I had to send buyer a return postage label, but that's better than being out $120+ in item value plus return shipping and eBay/PayPal fees.

How to do it: Absolutely BURY him with kindness. Buyer filed a claim April 5th. Between that date and April 10th (when I accepted the return), I send him four to five messages with helpful tips about troubleshooting. Contacted software manufacturer on his behalf, provided screenshots of that. Called software manufacturer, provided buyer with several help line numbers. Saccharine. Be nothing short of helpful, go above and beyond. Get ebay on your side.

When I spoke with a customer representative last Monday when I was finally approving the return, I was told that I would not be able to appeal the decision until I had received the item. ebay said they would then contact buyer for his side of the story. As I suspected, I received the item and buyer had used the license key and product code. I called ebay this morning and told them what happened, making sure they had my communications with buyer on screen as we spoke. I was put on hold for a few minutes, and they came back saying they would close the case in my favor. They didn't even reach out to buyer. I asked if I should upload manufacturer's information that the software was registered on April 9 when it was still in buyer's hands. No need, as the case was already closed in my favor so I couldn't upload pictures.

On an unrelated note, how stupid is buyer to use the code before I accepted the return? I knew it wasn't used when I first checked, and I knew it was used by the time I called today. I assumed buyer used after I accepted the return because it took them two or three days to get it to USPS. Honestly, I should have burned the code myself and complained anyway. I would get the money owed to me, and buyer would have gotten his money back without the ill gotten gains of my software.

Now to block buyer. And to start a ccf buyer blacklist.

Hey Druu, I just found this topic. I'm glad to hear ebay stepped up to an extent and you lost very little for the whole ordeal (not counting time and headache of course).

I think you did everything humanly possible in the correct way to document the case and it worked out. I really had a feeling your suspicion of him registering the software before returning it was spot-on. Oh well, maybe he needs the software to keep track of his scam operation.

Their message does say that "any feedback left for this transaction will be removed."

I'd just be happy with the outcome, block the buyer and move on.