Archive for October, 2010

Dear eBay Queen;

I bought a rare model display aircraft using BIN for $145, and paid immediately via PayPal.  Insurance was not offered and none should have been required, as it is a pretty sturdy model. The model arrived 10 days after my payment was received. It was wrapped loosely in 3 paper towel sheets and placed in a Priority Mail box. I guess the paper towel was supposed to be the protection for the model, but as you can imagine, it wasn’t.  My model was tossed and bounced around in that box. Because of this, the tail is broken off.

I sent the seller a message through eBay letting them know that I want to return the model because it was broken.  I let her know the way it was packed was the reason it was broken!  It took 2 weeks and 3 messages through eBay before the seller finally acknowledged my message and sent me her return address.

Should I give the seller a big fat NEGATIVE?  I have only had 1 other problem like this in 900+ transactions.  What do you think I should do?

Jason L. Atlanta, GA

Dear Jason;

It normally takes PayPal 30 days to make a decision on a claim after escalation. In situations like this, PayPal will find in your favor.  I am so sorry the seller was a poor packer, and to top it off had bad customer service.   When it comes to feedback, go with your gut.  If this seller is a new one, I would consider just leaving them a neutral and letting them know via email how to ship fragile items like your model.  If they are an experienced, seller I might leave a negative.

Dear eBay Queen;

I sold a vintage Halloween postcard to someone on eBay for $42.50.  I received the envelope from USPS today saying "Received without Content" meaning the item wasn't in the package when it arrived to them.  I have over 50 positive feedback, with no negatives.  The buyer used PayPal, and I had free shipping and insurance wasn’t offered.  The postcard was shipped via USPS Priority Mail with a Delivery Confirmation.

I still have the USPS envelope without the item. What should I do? The buyer just emailed me saying they didn't receive the item yet. Before emailing them, should I contact PayPal first? And should I contact USPS?

Heartland Posties

Dear Posties;

I’ve had this happen to me before, and it is very frustrating.  What most likely happened is your envelope was caught in one of the postal machines, and was torn open.  I’m sorry to say this, but you will be responsible for refunding the buyers money.  You can file a claim with the post office and they will search for the item.  Don’t count on it being found, but it just might.

In situations like this, I have emailed the buyer and included photos of the envelope and information, so they see that the post office is at fault for their package tearing.  I would let them know you’ll be refunding their money immediately.

I’m sorry this happened to you.  I hope the post office recovers your vintage postcard.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 250708068820  (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): You’ll never look at vintage beer cans the same way again.  Check out 1950’s Flat Top Beer Can Sliver Bar SOLD $2739.89 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150502145713  

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.

Dear eBay Queen:

I bought a little baby’s Pittsburgh Steelers football for .99 cents. The seller had listed in their ad $6.99 shipping.  When I received the box, I saw that she only paid $4.85 to ship it. I also learned the seller lives 14 miles from me and it took 12 days to be delivered. I had emailed her after 10 days of waiting.  I let her know that this football was for my grandbaby and I did not care if she wanted to just drop it off at my house or I could pick it up somewhere and she can keep the shipping charges.   She never replied back, but 2 days later the football came in the mail. I’m pretty sure she could have walked it here faster. Looking at her feedback, I see most of her buyers are stating very slow shipping. I have no idea what kind of feedback I should leave her. Could you help?

Pittsburgh Baby

Dear Pittsburgh:

Slow shipping and high shipping cost are a top complaint when it comes to buying on the internet.  Your seller had a fixed shipping price listed in the auction.  I really believe since the advertised shipping charge was listed in the ad, you agreed to that price when you bid on the item. Complaining about the shipping charges AFTER you bid when they are listed upfront seems a little unfair to the seller.  The seller is playing with fire by not choosing the “stealth” shipping option when they make the shipping labels. 

Where your seller went wrong is taking 10 days to ship your item without contacting you.  If you are happy with the item itself, I would leave the seller a positive feedback saying: “Grandbaby loved the football; I had to remind Seller to ship.”  My DSR scores would reflect the shipping time also. 

Dear eBay Queen:

On a trip to New York City, I picked up a couple of new with tags Neil Barrett suits from Nordstrom Rack.  I’m pretty sure these suits came from the Nordstrom’s main store based on the tags. I bought the suits to sell on eBay, and sold both of them the first time I listed them.  I just received a rambling, nearly incoherent (I left the spelling mistakes in, you can thank me later) message from one of the eBay buyers, claiming the suit is not authentic. Here is his message:

“I cannot belive this Neil Barrett Authentic is $490 right now at macys and you are selling me chineese fake for $530. What did you expect on those cheap made suite put 10 stickers with fake price and what would happend? I will never buy anything on ebay because of people like you. I want your address this "neal borat" suit is going back where it belongs in garbage bag you've send it. I will contact my card, paypal and ebay I wish I will also call police and see what they can do, selling fakes is illegal.”

I responded with this message:

“I don't even know where to start. I'm sorry to hear you’re unhappy with the suit. I don't know what makes you think its fake, but it is 100% authentic and came from Nordstrom.  I would be happy to fax the receipt to you if you would like proof of where I bought it. I welcome you to call the police as I have done nothing wrong and have nothing to hide.

I’m not sure where he got the “garbage bag”, but I sent him the suit wrapped in the stores plastic garment bag.  This is the same way I've received many suits I've purchased from others on eBay. I am absolutely 100% positive that the suit is authentic. I know my hands are basically tied with PayPal, but can you help me or give me any advice? Thanks in advance and sorry for the long email. I'm annoyed, ticked off and disheartened all at the same time.

Joshua J.

Dear Joshua:

There isn’t much you can do about the negative, except respond.  If your buyer chooses to file a claim with PayPal, I would fax in the receipt from Nordstrom’s to prove it was authentic.  PayPal could have the buyer send the item back for a refund.  If this is the case, and you are sent the wrong item back, make sure you save your original photos of the item to prove what you sent and what you received.

Dear Joshua:

There isn’t much you can do about the negative, except respond.  If your buyer chooses to file a claim with PayPal, I would fax in the receipt from Nordstrom’s to prove it was authentic.  PayPal could have the buyer send the item back for a refund.  If this is the case, and you are sent the wrong item back, make sure you save your original photos of the item to prove what you sent and what you received.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 260676484140 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): How much would you pay for a carved pumpkin? Disney Snow White Carved Pumpkin SOLD $650.00 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260676484140   

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.

Dear eBay Queen:

I sell handmade jewelry and key chains. Lately I’ve noticed all kinds of problems with eBay figuring my shipping charges for buyers. Because of this, I’ve received some less than positive feedback and I’ve really taken a hit on my shipping DSR’S. I don’t pad shipping charges to make a profit. I charge actual shipping on my packages, with a $1.00 domestic and $2.00 International handling fee to cover packing materials.

On this last set of auctions I ran, eBay quoted shipping fees which were $1 to almost $5 less than the minimum fee from the post office. Not only that, but in every case my handling fees were not charged. Many of my buyers threw a fit and refuse to pay ACTUAL shipping fees so I canceled 4 sales and refunded them. Each auction I cancelled was for a $2.00- $4.00 sale so apparently these people actually expected me to pay out of my pocket to send them a free item.

I tried to contact eBay about the problem, and all I received was a strange apology and a denial of a problem with eBay shipping quotes.

I swear, eBay just isn’t for me! I can’t seem to do anything right!

Christine

Dear Christine:

Don’t give up! I think I have a solution for you. Since you sell mostly small first class items, have you considered listing your items with a flat rate shipping price? This way your handling and shipping charges are listed upfront for the buyers to see, and you are not relying on eBay to give shipping quotes to your buyer.

I have experienced these errors in shipping on eBay also, fortunately they have only happened once or twice in my 12 years on eBay.

Dear eBay Queen:

I was in the market for some Converse All Star shoes for my kids. I found a seller with TONS of new Converse and emailed them (before bidding) to see if they would combine shipping. The seller told me yes, so I happily bid on a few of their items. The auction ended, and I promptly requested an invoice.

I received my invoice and noticed they did not offer combined shipping and told me they make up the cost of the item, with their shipping. We exchanged a few message (mostly one sided) and the seller only took $1.00 off, so I ended up paying $28.00 worth of shipping. Not wanting to have a bad mark against my eBay account, I paid the seller the next day. Today, I log on and find the seller has opened a “non paying bidder case” on the 3 items I bought from him.

I don’t understand what the problem is. I have tried to contact the seller, but the only option I have seems to be pay the seller. I wanted to see if there are more options past that so I clicked the “pay now button” and got the following error:

“These items are not available for payment. They may be already paid for, over 30 days old, or just currently unavailable.”

So I couldn’t pay this seller, even if that was my only option (which I would not do AGAIN). What are my options and were do I go from here?

George K.

Dear George:

I am really sorry this seller has such poor customer service. Since you paid for the item, and PayPal shows payment was made, follow the instructions in the notification email from eBay. The notification will be responding to the non-paying bidder claim with the reference numbers from PayPal that show your payment to the seller. Your case will close very quickly and in your favor. eBay will instruct him to ship NOW.

The reason your only option right now is to contact seller or pay the seller, and the system won’t even let you pay seller, is that you already did. It won’t let you pay twice, not easily anyway. I would suggest that you email a copy of your response to the seller. The seller most likely has just made a mistake and has lost track of your payment.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 150502145713 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): Do you call it Soda or Pop? Check out this Antique Folwers Cherry Smash Soda Fountain Dispenser. SOLD $2025.00  CHECK IT OUT HERE

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com.