All EBAY/PayPal related posts here please

[Rossco]

You can add a BIN to a running auction I believe, you just can't make any changes within 24 hours of it ending. Of course he might be trying to get a good deal from you... so what's the item and how much does he want the BIN to be?

Well I put some stuff on here and no-one wanted half of it so stuck the rest on eBay. The item in question is Fallout 3 Collectors Lunchbox. He offered ?30. Think that's a decent deal to be honest so might just go for it?

Didn't realise you could add BIN after, quite good.

[EvilBoris]

Just remember you pay a greater fee if it finishes on BIN

[Sketcz]

Just remember you pay a greater fee if it finishes on BIN

Auction fees for games is 8.75% isn't it, whereas BiN end fee is 9%, right? I could be wrong!

[Rossco]

Bloody hell, eBay took £3.50 off me for my sale of Halo 3! Scumbags!!!

[kernow]

See what my mate just sold this for:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160488075546&ssPageName=STRK%3AMESOX%3AIT#ht_1142wt_1136

O_o

[fallenangle]

What is it with some sellers that they don't know how to deal with legitimate complaints without going off on one like some dodgy market trader?

I bought an original Xbox. Arrived quickly but on examination I found it missing the power lead (not an essential item apparently) and had two clear faults. A non-working controller button and a clear case of the (Samsung) DVD tray sticking closed problem. There was also a Linux Installer game save file on the HDD suggesting that might mean the machine had previously been softmodded.

I repaired both faults pretty easily but as I wasn't exactly happy about having to do this I contact the seller really just to see what he'd say for himself. I asked about the softmodding matter for my information, not as an accusation. That was as about as provocative as it got.

I made it quite clear right from the start I wasn't looking for a refund and didn't intend to leave any negative feedback.

But bang, he came right back and said there was nothing wrong with the items, he tested them and they worked fine. He took offence at me asking about the possibility of it having been previously softmodded. Even when I calmly pointed out that neither fault could have just suddenly occurred and explained the repair processes I'd had to use he would accept nothing.

At one point he even said in effect that the console was old and what did I expect for the amount I paid? WTF!

This was getting me nowhere so after a few more messages the correspondence ended.

If they guy had simply shown some understanding and apologised for the inconvenience I'd been caused that would have been it. I would have thought: OK guy but didn't check the items thoroughly enough beforehand, no real harm done.

But he didn't, he took an aggressively defensive position, acted like he was the victim and stubbornly refused to believe anything I said.

This was an ill-considered, in fact stupid, way to treat a customer with a legitmate complaint particularly one who was not looking for anything other than an explanation and some information.

[Sketcz]

eBay is like a mirror for all the worst in humanity.

[Skull Commander]

Not everyone on ebay is scumbags. I know it feels like that sometimes, but every now and then someone restores your faith in it.

[noobish hat]

I assume you left him negative feedback in the end?

[fallenangle]

I was tempted to leave some pithy comment about how my complaints were received but no, I kept to my word. Doing nothing, letting the time limit expire on the transaction seems the more mature and sensible solution.

I reckon he was just a bit of a plonker who'd taken the stuff out of his loft, put it on eBay and hadn't checked it out as thoroughly as he could have done.

[randombs]

Or he did check the drive but something happened between him and you?

My Xbox had the Samsung drive and it would do that quite frequently after the first few years. Luckily I managed to sort it out myself before I sold it on but even then I still mentioned in the listing that it may stick, just to cover my back.

Don't get me wrong, I think he's a grade-A twat.

[Welrain]

Only recently started using ebay again after being ripped of from a few buyers. I've had a string of mine own ebay purchases that have gone perfectly in the last week so I've listed something to see how it goes.

[fallenangle]

^^ I don't think in-transit damage was a likely explanation, certainly not for the controller button issue. Everything was commendably well packaged.

The DVD tray drawer problem is very well known as is the solution. After I fitted a new drive band the Xbox has worked 100% ever since. The old one, even after it has relaxed, is clearly out of shape, stretched and actually feels stiffer as old rubber type materials tend to when aged. It was obviously the cause of the problem.

I can understand how he could have missed it because, you're right, sometimes this problem occurs intermitently and once a disc is in the drive everything can appear to work OK.

I even freely offered that up as an explanation. However, rather than take the out I'd given him and agree it was a possibility he stubbornly refused to accept there had been anything wrong. That annoyed me particularly as I'd explained I'd spent 30 mins fixing it and the controller.

Anybody else would have returned the item as faulty and demanded their money back. With the cost of the return postage making that an almost prohibitive solution I don't think they would have been at all impressed about the seller's performance or response.

My whole point about all this is that the seller made a hash of dealing with me. A few calming words, a bit of apparent understanding and he could have diffused the situation immediately.

Sorry to ramble on but although I've not had that much trouble on eBay this type of seller presses my buttons. I often read a seller's negative feedback (if any) and what I look for most is any comments added to them by the seller when the buyer has clearly been trouble.

Even if it is only one or two examples and the guy has 99% + feedback it tells you so much. I simply won't bid on items from sellers whose response is ill-tempered and unprofessional even in the face of total buyer idiocy.

[randombs]

Totally agree. Sorry, I meant to say something along the lines of maybe he would claim something like that as a reason for the sticky drive.

To be honest, the internet has shown me one thing: There are a truckload of people who just don't seem to understand the need to read things properly. I wouldn't be surprised if he just completely missed the point of your message, probably because he skimmed through it, and somehow interpreted it as being confrontational. Or he is just the confrontational type.

It's similar to how things like sarcasm are difficult to portray in words and often get misinterpreted. Even without reading your actual message to him, I can imagine the way you would've written it in order to stress that you're not demanding a refund or anything, simply advising him that he should check things over and that he should count himself lucky you're just sending him a message and not demanding a refund.

[fallenangle]

That is it exactly.

One problem is that using the eBay Reply system limits the length of the message so whatever you're saying has to be brief. That initial brevity where you're stating your case, wanting to establish the facts, can be misinterpretted. Once you're off on the wrong foot it's difficult to calm things down again no matter what you say later.