Methinks I'm getting scammed

doog71

So I sell a vintage baseball unopened box to an Ebay seller.

A day after he pays, before I've sent the box, he sends me an Ebay message saying the box was beat up and could I refund him $20. I tell him I haven't sent the box yet, he says sorry, I sent message to the wrong person.

Sure enough, he gets the box and says 3-4 packs are torn, because of the gum he supposed stabbed the packs during shipment, can I send a partial refund. I ask for a picture, he says he can't get the damage to show up in the pictures, just refund what I think is fair.

I say sure, I'll refund for the packs, was it 3 or 4. He answers it's actually 5 packs. I ask if he's willing to send back the packs once I send the refund, I of course will pay shipping. He says it's not worth the time or gas money as he is not near a post office, just refund what I think is fair.

I suppose I'll send the refund as it's not worth the $20-$25 to get a negative feedback.

The joys of Ebay.

otwcards

Unless you're a Power Seller and at risk of losing the discount, why bother worrying about a negative? Have him either return the entire box and issue a full refund or he accepts it as is and you may take a negative. Forwarding the original email requesting a partial refund BEFORE receipt may carry a little weight if you get a reasonable ear at eBay...

doog71

<< <i>Unless you're a Power Seller and at risk of losing the discount, why bother worrying about a negative? Have him either return the entire box and issue a full refund or he accepts it as is and you may take a negative. Forwarding the original email requesting a partial refund BEFORE receipt may carry a little weight if you get a reasonable ear at eBay... >>



My concern if I do that is he will actually damage 5 of the packs so it looks like he was telling the truth.

Foo3112

Don't refund him anything. If he leaves a neg, just contact eBay and they can see your messages and I'm sure they will side with you and remove it.

grote15

Is this the buyer you're referring to? Looks like he does this kind of thing quite frequently. Also has almost 100 bid retractions in past 6 months. I would not agree to a partial refund either. Ridiculous.

doog71

Grote, how are you able to look at a buyer's bid retractions?

grote15

<< <i>Grote, how are you able to look at a buyer's bid retractions? >>



Doog, If you click on an auction the buyer recently won, and go to the bidding history, and click on the bidder's link, it will tell show you how many bid retractions the buyer has placed in the past 6 months:

Bid Retractions

Mapleleaf

That's a tough one. Clearly he's scamming. Was the box insured? You could tell him that since it was damaged in shipping, the best you can offer is an insurance claim. Of course, he will just have another non answer for that one. I think I would offer him $20 to go away and then block him. If you ask for the box back, he'll make sure that at least 5 packs are damaged.

I would also contact ebay and let them know that this type of scam is going on and you have proof. Hopefully they won't turn a blind eye. Sellers get beat up too much on ebay as it is.

doog71

Holy smokes that's a lot of retractions! I'm surprised Ebay doesn't suspend someone for that.

Thanks all for the advice. I'll decide tomorrow what I'm going to do.

MrKnowthanx

I wish there was a place or "policing" area of ebay where we could show this type of thing to the rest of the ebay world. Kind of like the way fighting in hockey polices itself. I think it would be great to have a link to this thread, other threads with this guy mentioned (if there are any), and screen shots of examples of his dirty work on his negs. I almost want to contact him and say "you have been outed buddy, don't plan on buying anything from people that are part of this forum and others ", or having like 10 to 15 of us contact him saying "hey I notice that your "MO" is to scam sellers by saying the box/packs are damaged and we found out by the patterns of your feedback. I plan on telling as many unopened sellers not to sell to you. Just a heads up...douche-bag ". It's not very easy to get my feathers ruffled at this point in my life, but this has for some reason, big-time!!!!!!!

Brick

As often as this happens and the fact that many who pay with PayPal have a verified address to ship to I would think someone would pay a visit to "discuss" the situation when not too many miles of travel are required.

scashaggy

Is it a 32 pack box that cost $25? Refund him $3.90.

$25 / 32 = $0.78 per pack

$0.78 x 5 = $3.90

At this point you have fulfilled your obligation for the 5 'damaged' packs. This is more of a slap in the face though but I like it.

Or tell him that he can send the 5 packs back. His excuse about not living near a PO is BS. You can print labels with Paypal and since he buys so many packs on ebay he has a steady flow of used packing materials.

dennis07

I think he is a scammer.
I can't imagine one buyer getting the amount of damaged goods as he has claimed.

scashaggy

<< <i>I think he is a scammer.
I can't imagine one buyer getting the amount of damaged goods as he has claimed. >>



Unless Ace Ventura is his mailman.

Mickey71

Tell him to send the whole box back and he pays for shipping.......DONT YOU PAY THE SHIPPING.

Big80s

I'm sorry you're dealing with this situation - but thank you for bringing it up on the board. He sounds like the newest member of my block bidder list. This also sounds a lot like a certain notorious member of the boards that was known for buying cards and contacting the seller to ask for a refund, because the card (in hand) wasn't as nice as it looked in the auction. Maybe he's ventured into the unopened market.

Mdube16

Thank you!

Your blocked bidder list has successfully been updated with the new information you submitted.
Where can we take you?

MrNearMint

Why are people so afraid of getting negatives? I'd tell him to take a flying leap. If getting a negative feedback from a potential scammer is the worst thing to happen to you, then your doing okay!

doog71

<< <i>Why are people so afraid of getting negatives? I'd tell him to take a flying leap. If getting a negative feedback from a potential scammer is the worst thing to happen to you, then your doing okay! >>



I agree it's not that big of a deal, but when you've worked really hard to have a 100% score, being scammed a few dollars doesn't look that bad. Unscrupulous Ebayers know this, so they take advantage of good sellers in this way.

When you're selling condition-sensitive items (in my case baseball cards, Star Wars vintage figures, etc.) not everyone takes the time to see WHY you have a recent negative feedback, they just assume you did something wrong, and you end up with fewer bids.

It's a screwed up system Ebay has, but sometimes you have to take your lumps. I'd rather save getting a scammy negative feedback over a large ticket item than a smaller one.

Thanks all for the advice.

jeffcbay

Added "baseballguy1313" to my blocked bidders list. Seems to have quite a history.