My eBay Nightmare...A HAPPY Ending At LAST!!!!
jtryka
Posts: 795 ✭
About 7 weeks ago, I sold a bicentennial proof set on eBay for a total of $10.05, not a big deal. After a week or so, I sent an e-mail reminder that I had not received payment (and still have not). To illustrate that sellers aren't the only wackos on eBay, I will reproduce a portion of our e-mail exchanges, in part for me to vent, and also for your entertainment. It's pretty long, so you ADHD sufferers should avoid it at all costs! I am deleting names to protect the identities of the innocent.
7/9/02:
From Buyer: Have you been paid for this as of now . Please let me know, Thank You
My Reply: As of today, I have not received any payments by check or money order, or by any electronic payment methods. If you mailed payment, you may want to check with your bank to see if the check has been cashed. Please keep me posted. Thanks, Jeff
7/14/02:
From Buyer: Jeff I have your e-mail and I need your address please
I reply with my address
7/31/02:
I try again: It has been well over a month since the end of this auction, and I have still not received payment for this item. Please let me know if you intend to complete this purchase. If I do not hear back from you within 7 days, I will relist the set and turn the matter over to eBay. Thank you in advance for your timely response, Jeff
8/1/02:
Buyer Replies: I apologize, I thought I paid everyone but I must of missed you. Do you take Pay Pal if so I will pay you this week please let me know. Some required that the money be sent and this puts me behind. Thank You
I reply with my Paypal information. I also send a payment reminder through eBay in preparation for the non-paying bidder credit.
8/6/02:
From Buyer: Item was Paid
I reply: Was it paid by check? If so, it must be my mistake, and you have my sincerest apologies. If you can give me the details, I will clear this up and send out your coins as soon as possible. Thanks, Jeff
8/7/02:
From Buyer: Jeff it was paid by pay pal July 23. Total was 46.90 I hope this helps I think I sent you the numbers if not let me know and I will send them.
I reply: I think you must have this transaction confused with a different one, since I did not receive any Paypal payments from you (unless it was from a different name), and the total you mention does not match. This is in reference to Item #XXXXXXXXXX with a bid price of $5.95 + 3.00 shipping and $1.10 insurance for a total of $10.05 not $46.90 that you mention. Please let me know if you find anything else. Jeff
8/8/02:
From Buyer: The payment was for six proofs and I can make a copy of the pay pal payment and fax it to you if you wish Thank You
(note: to my knowledge, I only sold this person the one proof set, and all the other outstanding auctions I had were settled at this point)
I reply with my fax number and check Paypal and Billpoint, and no transactions were posted for either $46.90, nor were any transactions posted on the 23rd of July.
8/13/02: One more attempt on my part.
From Me: Did you ever fax this information? I have not received any faxes, though it could have gotten lost in the shuffle. Either way, please send it to the number I provided in my last e-mail so we can clear this up. Thanks!
Buyer Replies: Got everything I think don't worry about it thank You Much
My last attempt to communicate in a sane way: I haven't sent you anything, as I still have the proof set you won in my posession. I still have no record of your payment through Paypal or any other means. If you no longer want these coins, please let me know. Jeff
EDITED To include:
A new reply today!!!!!
8/14/02:
Buyer Repy: Sorry I had bid on five proof sets and it was not from you. I will look into what I won from you and when if it is still on my page and get back to you.
MAN!!!!! I feel like I've been trapped in a bad episode of the Twilight Zone! I try to be a good seller and treat my customers the way I want to be treated, but this one is trying my patience something fierce!!!!
7/9/02:
From Buyer: Have you been paid for this as of now . Please let me know, Thank You
My Reply: As of today, I have not received any payments by check or money order, or by any electronic payment methods. If you mailed payment, you may want to check with your bank to see if the check has been cashed. Please keep me posted. Thanks, Jeff
7/14/02:
From Buyer: Jeff I have your e-mail and I need your address please
I reply with my address
7/31/02:
I try again: It has been well over a month since the end of this auction, and I have still not received payment for this item. Please let me know if you intend to complete this purchase. If I do not hear back from you within 7 days, I will relist the set and turn the matter over to eBay. Thank you in advance for your timely response, Jeff
8/1/02:
Buyer Replies: I apologize, I thought I paid everyone but I must of missed you. Do you take Pay Pal if so I will pay you this week please let me know. Some required that the money be sent and this puts me behind. Thank You
I reply with my Paypal information. I also send a payment reminder through eBay in preparation for the non-paying bidder credit.
8/6/02:
From Buyer: Item was Paid
I reply: Was it paid by check? If so, it must be my mistake, and you have my sincerest apologies. If you can give me the details, I will clear this up and send out your coins as soon as possible. Thanks, Jeff
8/7/02:
From Buyer: Jeff it was paid by pay pal July 23. Total was 46.90 I hope this helps I think I sent you the numbers if not let me know and I will send them.
I reply: I think you must have this transaction confused with a different one, since I did not receive any Paypal payments from you (unless it was from a different name), and the total you mention does not match. This is in reference to Item #XXXXXXXXXX with a bid price of $5.95 + 3.00 shipping and $1.10 insurance for a total of $10.05 not $46.90 that you mention. Please let me know if you find anything else. Jeff
8/8/02:
From Buyer: The payment was for six proofs and I can make a copy of the pay pal payment and fax it to you if you wish Thank You
(note: to my knowledge, I only sold this person the one proof set, and all the other outstanding auctions I had were settled at this point)
I reply with my fax number and check Paypal and Billpoint, and no transactions were posted for either $46.90, nor were any transactions posted on the 23rd of July.
8/13/02: One more attempt on my part.
From Me: Did you ever fax this information? I have not received any faxes, though it could have gotten lost in the shuffle. Either way, please send it to the number I provided in my last e-mail so we can clear this up. Thanks!
Buyer Replies: Got everything I think don't worry about it thank You Much
My last attempt to communicate in a sane way: I haven't sent you anything, as I still have the proof set you won in my posession. I still have no record of your payment through Paypal or any other means. If you no longer want these coins, please let me know. Jeff
EDITED To include:
A new reply today!!!!!
8/14/02:
Buyer Repy: Sorry I had bid on five proof sets and it was not from you. I will look into what I won from you and when if it is still on my page and get back to you.
MAN!!!!! I feel like I've been trapped in a bad episode of the Twilight Zone! I try to be a good seller and treat my customers the way I want to be treated, but this one is trying my patience something fierce!!!!
0
Comments
Thanks for a good laugh!!!
The only non-paying bidder I've ever run into bought 3 different 1971 raw proof Kennedys for about $2 each. I got pretty much the same run-around that you did. First the payment had been sent. Then, I'm sorry I missed paying you. Then I lost your address. Then, I'll paypal you, just send your paypal address. Finally no contact. It's been almost 89 days 23 hours and 59 minutes. I'll get my turn.
and it sets us apart from practitioners and consultants. Gregor
LMAO Placid!!!!
For the Morgan collectors - The Morgan and Peace encyclopedia by Van Allen and Mallis
What would your slabbed coins be worth if the grading services went out of business? What would your coins be worth if the Internet was taken offline for good?
LOL
jom
sold a very cheap golf club for like 10 bucks. back and forth emailing with buyer for several weeks. was going to send check, was going to paypal. i stopped hearing from him at some point and left negative (just out of frustration more than anything, i know how you're feeling, especially over 10 bucks). he doesn't feedback me at all. out of the blue like 7 months later the guy emails me and asks if i've still got the club. i say "um, yes." we don't even remember what the hammer price is but we agree on a number. he says he'll paypal me that night. doesn't paypal me that night buy two days later HE PAYPALS ME. i send him the club.
must have been the longest "successful" ebay transaction in history.
some people are just out there, man.
We'll use our hands and hearts and if we must we'll use our heads.
I had a problem once with payment sent to me via Paypal, because I had more than one email with Paypal.
Don't remember exactly what happened, but I think I'd forgotten to correctly set up the email address the buyer used.
Your story is funny but it does raise a question for me. Do you give the guy negative feedback? I've had a few non-payers and since I didn't actually lose money I only gave them neutrals. They deserved the negative but I don't want to have the hassle of getting a negative back. I haven't received a negative yet and want to keep it that way.
Someone bought a $385 trade dollar from me using the "buy it now" feature. A little after the auction close he e-mailed me that the eBay system screwed up and showed that he bought it when he really only placed a minimum bid. That's highly unlikely since the BIN feature requires a few steps. I filed a non-paying-bidder notice to eBay.
About three weeks later I got an e-mail from the buyer saying that he had been in the hospital the past month and that his son had bid on a number of things without his permission. He asked me not to pursue the non-paying-bidder claim, said that he would pay the full amount and asked for shipping charges. I replied with the information again and never heard from him again. My follow-up e-mails went unanswered, but a while later he posted positive feedback.
I think the bidder just liked screwing around.
Obscurum per obscurius
Endo
Positive BST Transactions (buyers and sellers): wondercoin, blu62vette, BAJJERFAN, privatecoin, blu62vette, AlanLastufka, privatecoin
#1 1951 Bowman Los Angeles Rams Team Set
#2 1980 Topps Los Angeles Rams Team Set
#8 (and climbing) 1972 Topps Los Angeles Rams Team Set
<< <i>THEY SHOULD MAKE EBAY IDIOT PROOF. >>
Wouldn't work, they'd just invent better idiots.
Russ, NCNE
Total Copper Nutcase - African, British Ships, Channel Islands!!!
'Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup'
windwhispersintrees: I have more than one e-mail address, one at work, one for e-commerce and one personal. I don't use the work one for personal business, and of the two private ones, I use the hotmail address for all eBay/Billpoint/Paypal and the personal one I only give out to family and friends since I want at least one personal account that isn't flooded with spam for porn, mortgages and hair loss products. So I doubt he sent it to the wrong address on Paypal, especially since all our e-mail correspondence was using the e-mail address on Paypal.
TheNumish: Do I neg him? Well after all this he certainly deserves it, but then we start to get into the psychological games. He has a rating of 27, with 43 pos, no negs or neutral, I have a rating of 382 with 459 pos, no negs or neutral. Who gets hurt more if we neg each other? He would be hurt due to the low numbers, but I would be hurt more as a seller. So I will probably just get my fee credit and call it a draw. If he negs me I will retaliate, but it's just not worth it to me to potentially bring on a retaliatory neg for such as small item. It's sad, but this is the way the feedback system works on eBay. Still, you can get some insights into this guy as he has a number of positives from the end of July to early August relating to transactions from the last week of June (when mine ended), so if you dig a little into the feedback, you can find that this guy is a wacko, but for those of us that don't dig, you're out of luck.
They can't, as idiots can be such geniuses.....
8/14/02:
Buyer Reply: Sorry I had bid on five proof sets and it was not from you. I will look into what I won from you and when if it is still on my page and get back to you.
It's like doing business with a co-cker spaniel!!!! No offense to dog lovers! Can you believe I got sensored for that dog breed???
8/14/02:
Buyer: Would you please send me the item number and I will definately make things right
<< <i>BTW, I saw Billy Madison twice on TNT while you were on your adventure. That line still makes me laugh!
One of my staff members has seen it about 100+ times (not exaggerating...) When we would wait to check into hotels (kids on the bus, very impatient) he would randomly just start singing a song or having a multi-person conversation over the bus PA to entertain us... ahhh... the memories...
Good Luck
Endo
For the Morgan collectors - The Morgan and Peace encyclopedia by Van Allen and Mallis
What would your slabbed coins be worth if the grading services went out of business? What would your coins be worth if the Internet was taken offline for good?
I tend to agree with you, I don't think this person is malicious at all, or trying to evade payment, I think they are just totally confused.
For the Morgan collectors - The Morgan and Peace encyclopedia by Van Allen and Mallis
What would your slabbed coins be worth if the grading services went out of business? What would your coins be worth if the Internet was taken offline for good?
8/15/02:
Buyer Replied: Sorry for the mix up but I paid you if you still want it
My Reply: I am a little confused by your last message. Are you saying that you did pay me? I have no record of receiving any payment from you so if you paid, please send me the relevant information. If you have not paid, the coins are still available and you are welcome to them upon payment. Let me know, Jeff
currently putting together a collection of world and US silver dollars of the 1800's
My World dollar collectionJust updated 3--03
One way to find out...After he pays you, send him another Payment Reminder, and see if you can get him to pay you again!
-Dan <---j/k of course
As a seller I always get your coins out on time, usually the next day after I get payment.
This person you describe tops all I ever heard and you have bent over backward for him. Any idiot knows how to check ebay to see what they have won and how to check their records to see if they have paid for it. All it took was a polite reminder and an eBay reminder from the sellers I forgot, I doubled checked my records and paid with a great quickness.
Please neg this guy to warn other seller about him. That's what feedback is for. But if you don't want to chance a neg for $10 item that's ok, let the seller he jacks around over several hundred dollars handle it.
8 weeks, 6 emails, no payment on $10 item, DEADBEAT BIDDER.
What is the "usual manner a buyer is paid" for his auctions?..... paypal, money order, check?
Am I totally "off my head" thinking that the seller should be.....
Paid first...... ALWAYS!!.......then....
Seller Accepts the payment as good and recieved
Seller then ships the coin in the agreed and "paid for" manner ..........airmail....slow post.... whatever
Then when the buyer gets the coin both parties leave feed back.
This most likely seems to be an amature reply...and I am an amture buyer. But hells'bells...in my thinking you pay for what you get...... darned if I ever went in a store, got some goods, and said "I will pay you later".
Have I got a strange approach here?
1-Dammit Boy Oct 14,2003
International Coins
"A work in progress"
Wayne
eBay registered name:
Hard_ Search (buyer/bidder, a small time seller)
e-mail: wayne.whatley@gmail.com
I make sure on all emails sent to buyer/seller, I put the item# in the subject line.
For that buyer, they do seem confusing. As for waiting so long, with so much patience, that is incredible.
If they don't pay or have contact within 7 days, after day 7, I relist, and consider posting negative feedback, only after a while. You all have more patience than I do.
As for them making some sort of effort, I have no problem waiting a while for payment. It's really an expection than a rule. Theirs so many variables that have to come together before extreme action(neg. feedback) is submitted, and only with goof reason and explaination.
Ebay should have a better course on how to use their services and alternative ones(paypal, etc).
As a buyer:
What I do, after the auction, is contact the seller, and tell him what I will use to pay them. Then I wait on their response before sending payment(to see if their awake). Once they respond, with the info I need, I send them their money(I use paypal for expediting), and it is done.
As a seller:
What I do, after the auction, is contact the seller, and tell them I need their info, and again, to see if their awake. Once they respond with info, I wait for payment, then I ship, not before. It is too easy for people to receive payment, then take off with the dough. Ebay is setup in the sellers favor. Unfortunetly, theirs shady sellers, so theirs a downside. This is why I check feedback, and examine their auctions for sufficant info on what I am buying.
Robert
For the Morgan collectors - The Morgan and Peace encyclopedia by Van Allen and Mallis
What would your slabbed coins be worth if the grading services went out of business? What would your coins be worth if the Internet was taken offline for good?