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If it's too good to be true...(UPDATE)
wybrit
Posts: 6,988 ✭✭✭
I did something I rarely do anymore - bought a piece based only on a desciption and a very poor picture on ebay. I either would get a great deal for a top grade Vicky bun head farthing or...
Well, the piece arrived today just ahead of the big snow dumper.
Red...yes. Bright...yes.
Whizzed...yes. Dang it.
As the Beatles once sang, "I should have known better..." I hope the seller will take it back.
Well, the piece arrived today just ahead of the big snow dumper.
Red...yes. Bright...yes.
Whizzed...yes. Dang it.
As the Beatles once sang, "I should have known better..." I hope the seller will take it back.
Former owner, Cambridge Gate collection.
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Well, just Love coins, period.
In my case however, I looked at the picture and thought the coin appeared to have been polished, but maybe it's just a bad scan. So I specifically inquired about the coin, specifically stated that it looked like it had been polished, and specifically asked if the coin had been cleaned or polished.
This is an exact quote of the response received from this seller, "The coin is 100 % original, it has never been polished. The scan is the best my machine can do."
So seeing that I needed an AU example of this particularly rare date for my ten centavo collection, and seeing that he offered a 7 day Money Back (bid amount only) Refund, I made an offer, and he accepted it. But he didn't bother putting it in the mail for a week! (Is that so he can claim I didn't return within 7 days?) His listing states, "Will usually ship within 2 business days of receiving cleared payment", but obviously he dropped the ball on that one.
So I get a notice yesterday to pick up the item today at the Post Office, and I do. I open the package anxiously expecting to see a very rare coin with natural surfaces that at least approaches AU, and what do I find? It was so obviously and blatantly whizzed that even a novice could see that it wasn't "100 % original"! In fact, it had been so badly whizzed that even the devices had been rounded! Details might approach EF40.
So back to the Post Office I go to send it back for my refund, and since the seller has already demonstrated he cannot be trusted, I sent it Certified, Signature Required, Return Receipt requested. Will I get a prompt refund? I have my doubts, but I strongly advise everyone to avoid buying from hauntedwesternny at all costs!
What a lowlife!
World Collection
British Collection
German States Collection
I went through that cycle as well. It's been years since I bought a raw coin on ebay - and it was whizzed too. I just never learn, I guess...
I'm not going to comment further until all avenues are exhausted. I'm just frustrated that it seems that a large majority of raw "high grade" British coins on ebay seem to have problems, at least based on my sample of items. It's no wonder that the last time I put nice raw coins up for auction that I got very poor money for them.
On a high note though, I received a new Gies piece today, one of six known and one of three in private collection.
karlgoetzmedals.com
secessionistmedals.com
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
Agreed.
The only problem is that these days the odds of success are worse than betting on a single number in roulette.
<< <i>Sometimes you have to risk it a bit.
Agreed.
The only problem is that these days the odds of success are worse than betting on a single number in roulette. >>
Then, play the corners!!!
Same reservations here too. I spotted what I thought may have been a delightful 1841 1/2 sov. about a year ago on UK eBay, but the pics were small and gold can really be brightened with PS, etc., so I passed. I think someone here mentioned they had bought it and it NGC slabbed as MS65.
Ah well, life's a lottery, esp. eBay life.
499/500 times, I do the same. I have had some good luck in the past with bad images, but mostly it is like roulette.
Still, don't see these bits too often and definately some burns to be had; ouch, I still have some not quite recovered....
Well, just Love coins, period.
Yes, he/she refunded my bid price, but of course the postage of $7 is gone forever.
It's one thing to return a coin that doesn't quite meet expectations - I should eat the postage for that. But when the seller does not include in the descrption that a coin is whizzed or cleaned, I'm going to leave a negative for wasting my time and postage.
Having looked into more of this person's listings, I see clear evidence of whizzing/harsh cleaning elsewhere (though it is not seen on the coin I had bought). None of these listings include any mention of the doctoring.
Maybe I got lucky, or maybe you were just unlucky. I dunno.
Hope you eventually find the one you're looking for.
Sorry for the scan, it's all I've got right now.
In my case, I specifically sent the seller a question asking about a particular coin as follows.
It may just be the photo, but the coin appears to be polished. I cannot detect any cartwheel luster. Do you have better photographs, which I could view in order to make a decision?
He responded as follows.The coin is 100 % original, it has never been polished. The scan is the best my machine can do.
So I made an offer, and he accepted it on April 7th. The next communication I received from him was a full week later on April 14th when he told me it had been shipped that day, which is pretty slow shipping, but okay fine. I received the coin on April 17th, and when I opened it I saw that it had been very harshly whizzed, so I sent him communication I was returning the coin that same day as follows.I am extremely disappointed, because I didn't simply "take a chance" based upon your refund policy, but made the extra effort of specifically asking whether the coin had been polished or cleaned, and you responded with assurance it was natural. Having received the coin, it is blatantly obvious the coin has been "whizzed", a polishing technique to make a coin appear to "shine", but without any cartwheel effect. There is absolutely no original surface left on this coin, and if you did not have the expertise to discern the coin had altered surfaces, then you should not have offered any assurance whatsoever, then neither of us would have wasted our time, and I would not have wasted shipping and insurance fees to get the item returned for a refund. I will post this item directly from the counter of the Port Hueneme, CA Post Office immediately after sending this notification. Please do not add to my disappointment by making the refund process take any longer than is absolutely necessary.
Now I admit my communication was harsh, but I also believe it was justified. He did not respond, so on April 19th I sent another email as follows.You have not acknowledged that I will receive an immediate refund upon receipt of the returned item. I will eventually get notification that you have it, and if there still has been no communication, I will immediately start the dispute process, as that will be indicative that you purposely intend to ignore the matter. This message and all future communications will be solely through eBay’s venue, so that I may document your totally unsatisfactory product and service.
The returned item was delivered at 8:10 AM on April 20, 2009 (USPS Tracking Number 7008 1300 0000 8415 7220), and I still had not received a response, so I sent another email as follows.The returned coin arrived at 8:10 AM (local time) on April 20th, 2009 in NIAGRA FALLS, NY 14302.
I still did not receive a response, so on April 21st (evening) I sent another email as follows.Pick up the package and issue my refund. Without communication from you by tomorrow, I will be initiating a dispute. The item has been waiting for you at your Post Office for your signature for TWO DAYS NOW. Once again, this communication attempt is being documented by sending it through eBay’s venue.
On April 22nd (evening) after still not receiving any response, I filed a PayPal dispute and escalated it immediately to a claim, and then I left negative feedback. PayPal sent him communication and he finally responded as follows.Your refund has been processed. I appreciate how fast you posted the negtive, especially since i got your package yesterday. Thanks for the negative, thats what I get for dealing with people in a fair and honest manor.
Sheeesh! Poor guy. So I started to cancel my claim (bear in mind that if I did, then I could not reopen the claim), but fortunately I decided to check to see if the refund was actually issued. It was not. So I called PayPal to ask them if there was a possibility a refund had been made, but maybe it just hadn't showed up yet. They said no, so I told them about his email and explained that I almost canceled the claim based upon his email. The next day on April 23rd I received an email from ebay with the subject line "Get help fast with your dispute. Call eBay, and they gave me a number to call. I called and basically told the woman what I have related here, and she asked permission to view my PayPal account. I said of course she may and I also told her that she may freely access my emails sent and received from this seller. After viewing the PayPal claim and reading the emails, she said that ebay was immediately going to refund my money and to not communicate with this seller again, and especially not to close the PayPal claim. So my refund was made by ebay, not this seller. Since I believe this person would wait a while then post a reply to feedback received, I set a bookmark on his feedback and check regularly. He did not let me down, as on April 29th he posted follow-up as follows.Refund was made the day after coin was returned. What more could I do
To which I responded with the following as follow-up.Tell the truth BEFORE purchase when SPECIFICALLY asked if the coin was polished!
There is a limit to how much I can type, so I will continue to monitor his feedback, should he try once again to post something giving the impression to other potential buyer that he was somehow a 'victim'.So now, you tell me. Do you think he's a victim or a predator?
As for me, I believe he has clearly and unquestionably earned the negative I gave him, and I also believe he earned wybrit's negative, especially since wybrit is much more diplomatic than me.
Stub
* The seller took a week to get around to sending me the coin.
* Whizzed coin not as described, out of pocket for postage both ways.
* I sent three emails/communications about this to the seller and received not a single reply. Black hole. Zip. Zero. Nada.
* I had to file a dispute on PayPal.
There are no mitigating circumstances here IMO.