Online transaction gone bad, suggestions?

[gerbilthemistake]

OK, I won a Nikon FM off a big auction site 😉 and the item description was basically a cut and paste off some information site. No problems with the camera itself was described in it or presented in the image. I received the camera and found that the rewind knob was crooked, the aperture readout in the viewfinder does not work, and the film counter is stuck behind 'S". I contacted the seller and he advised me that he would be willing to refund me in the amount of 35.30 which is less than the price i paid ($41) because that is after his shipping cost.

Now luckily i've never had to deal with a situation like this online so i am not sure what the policy is. I feel he should be responsible for the initial shipping cost so $41 as well as the shipping cost for me to ship it back, the former request should at least be fulfilled. If you have encountered similar situations and feel I am out of line please tell me and i'll accept his offer, otherwise I will look to other possible options.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...spagename=ADME:X:RTQ:US:1123&salenotsupported

Thanks

 

[fixbones]

I personally think he should refund you the whole $41 plus the cost of shipping back to him....

 

[gerbilthemistake]

that's what i figured, but having no experience with problems like this I don't want to go and argue with the seller, if I am not correct. Plus he has it in his auction that he does not accept returns, I guess that doesn't matter since he's offering partial refund.

If he was to only offer me $35.30 I would be out $10 at least, it seems like if that is the case i mine as well keep the $40 dollar camera. Problem is this camera isnt for me but for my girlfriend and having a screwed up frame counter and no aperture readout is a bigger issue for her.

 

[ruby.monkey]

How did you pay?

 

[gerbilthemistake]

I paid with paypal

 

[historicist]

If you paid by Paypal you can probably get it all back, it doesn't matter what the guy thinks:

"If you see the PayPal Buyer Protection message "Pay with PayPal and full purchase price is covered", and if PayPal finds in your favor on your Claim, PayPal will reimburse you for the full purchase price of the item and original shipping costs – with no cap on coverage."

You have to send the camera back by some sort of proven delivery post so he can't (honestly or otherwise) claim that it never got back to him, and file a dispute with Paypal.

 

[Al Kaplan]

For forty bucks it probably isn't worth the hassle and frustrations beyond notifying paypal. If you can't get your money back then forget it.

 

[colyn]

I paid with paypal

You can file a paypal complaint and get it all back.The only problem is paypal will require you to return ship at your expense with tracking provided to them before refunding you..

 

[35mmdelux]

For forty bucks it probably isn't worth the hassle and frustrations beyond notifying paypal. If you can't get your money back then forget it.

What Al said.

 

[gerbilthemistake]

thanks everybody i will go ahead and notify paypal to see what they are willing to do, I will let the seller know my course of action and hand him his first negative review.

 

[Oscar Levant]

You are being given wrong information by people who don't know what they are talking about. If you file a PayPal complaint, you will still have to pay return shipping.

There is a NEW eBay complaint procedure. You file an eBay complaint, then they give you an 800 number to call and they refund everything on the spot, and eBay handles the PayPal transaction.

http://feedback.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?InrCreateDispute&DisputeReason=3

Fill out the complaint form AND call. Be factual, don't tell them a long story. You will not reach a genius at eBay.

Say: "The seller described the camera as working perfectly, when I received the camera it was badly damaged and not functional."

That's it. eBay set this new thing up as an extended test to better handle customer complaints because their stock price is in the toilet.

 

[Krosya]

thanks everybody i will go ahead and notify paypal to see what they are willing to do, I will let the seller know my course of action and hand him his first negative review.

Isnt it lovely how a buyer can intimidate/blackmail seller with negative feedback on ebay now that no negative feedback can be left for a buyer? 🙄

 

[35mmdelux]

DO Not file negative review until this is settled. Work with the guy!

EDIT: who cares about return shipping. $10-15 (US) prioirty mail with the green signature card. Lets not make a mountain out of a mole hill.

 

[gerbilthemistake]

I definately see what you are saying, I am not intending on doing either, the seller is not willing to even refund me the full auction price, so at this point I dont see why he would receive positive feedback. I do agree however that it is pretty unfair in certain situations.

Isnt it lovely how a buyer can intimidate/blackmail seller with negative feedback on ebay now that no negative feedback can be left for a buyer? 🙄

 

[Oscar Levant]

I agree, it's disgusting what is going on at eBay now. The ignorant buyers run rampant, allowed to neg at will.

On the other hand, the seller of this auction is obviously a bottom-feeder. He buys only the cheapest junk for a couple of dollars:

http://feedback.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewFeedback2&userid=phofabphotography&ftab=AllFeedback

If the OP understood eBay, he would have checked this guy's feedback and realized that he only buys penny-ante garbage. He obviously bought the FM, found out it was not working, and then resold it, using a bunch of cut and pasted gibberish for a description. The buyer is at fault here for not doing his homework.

Luckily for him, eBay now protects the hapless and clueless.

 

[gerbilthemistake]

I understand, I am going to talk to the guy about it after i file the claim with paypal and go from there. I will not make any brash decisions.

DO Not file negative review until this is settled. Work with the guy!

EDIT: who cares about return shipping. $10-15 (US) prioirty mail with the green signature card. Lets not make a mountain out of a mole hill.

 

[Oscar Levant]

NO, this is wrong. eBay will directly give him back all his money and he may not even have to return the camera. They are on a "please the buyer at any price" campaign.

You see here a war between the bottom-feeders, I'm telling him how to keep his extra 10 bucks so he can sleep at night.

DO Not file negative review until this is settled. Work with the guy!

EDIT: who cares about return shipping. $10-15 (US) prioirty mail with the green signature card. Lets not make a mountain out of a mole hill.

 

[gerbilthemistake]

OK I am fine with losing $10 thats not the big issue, I am more concerned about the seller's practice and denying the problems i've informed him about. I dont believe he should be able to get away with that, I understand I probably shouldnt of entered an auction where the seller only has had 10 or so transactions. Money is not the main concern, it is more about the sellers attitude and moral about the whole situation.

 

[gerbilthemistake]

Did you refer to me as a bottom-feeder? I never said i intended on keeping the camera and being refunded. I bought an item that was not as described and just wanted to be refunded, what the seller offered me wasnt even a full refund on the price of the item itself (excluding shipping) which is why i decided to ask the initial question on this forum. Oh well 😉

NO, this is wrong. eBay will directly give him back all his money and he may not even have to return the camera. They are on a "please the buyer at any price" campaign.

You see here a war between the bottom-feeders, I'm telling him how to keep his extra 10 bucks so he can sleep at night.

 

[Oscar Levant]

You're not teaching a morality class to the masses. You will not change the world, or this guy either.

Just get your money back, and don't worry about teaching him a lesson.

The next time YOU will make some minor mistake and someone will decide to ruin YOUR feedback or "teach you a lesson".

PS: I told you EXACTLY what to do and what to click and say to get your money back. If you don't want to listen, good luck. There are plenty of "eBay experts" on this forum who will give you lots of fantastic advice.

OK I am fine with losing $10 thats not the big issue, I am more concerned about the seller's practice and denying the problems i've informed him about. I dont believe he should be able to get away with that, I understand I probably shouldnt of entered an auction where the seller only has had 10 or so transactions. Money is not the main concern, it is more about the sellers attitude and moral about the whole situation.