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View Full Version : ebay / paypal rant.. well actually, buyer rant



Todd Burch
07-22-2009, 2:55 PM
<rant>
I'm selling some items on ebay. I have a store. This lady emails me to ask about item "A" ($300) She wants it at full price, but can she pay by e-check? I have all my stuff marked for immediate payment only.

She then emails again, before I respond, telling me she wants item "A" and item "B" ($500), and she is ready to buy BOTH immediately, but wants to pay by e-check. I respond, stating I'm not familiar with e-check - how does it work? She says "really simple. I write an e-check to paypal for the items, and when I get a notice from paypal that the funds have cleared from her bank account, the hold is removed and I ship the items. Sounds easy enough.

Then she emails again, asking about item "C" ($600) and asks for $25 off of item "B". I remind her she already said she would pay my asking price for both A and B, and there would be no discount.

So, she only buys item "B". I ask what happened to buying "A"? She basically says "if you are a good seller, I have a lot to buy from you, so don't jack with me" in several more words than that. Whatever.

She pays by e-echeck. I see the paypal held funds. A couple days later, I get a notice from paypal the check cleared and I need to ship the artwork.

I log onto paypal, but still see a hold. I call paypal. They explain that this is how e-check work... ebay puts a hold on the funds, and ebay only releases the funds when one of these conditions are met:

1) If I use paypal shipping - when the buyer signs for the package, they release the funds.
2) If not #1, then when the buyer leaves positive feedback
3) if not #2, then after 21 days. Holy cow!

Well, I agreed to it, so I ship the package, insured and signature required.

So, the package was scheduled to arrive on July 2. But, it was early and a failed delivery attempt was logged on 6/30. Another failed delivery attempt on 7/1. A third failed delivery attempt on 7/2. On 7/2 the carrier snail mailed a postcard to the buyer to make arrangements for pickup.

Don't remember when, but I got a note from paypal saying the funds were released by ebay. Not sure why, 'cuz none of the above were met, but I was happy and emptied my paypal account.

Fast forward to 7/20. I get a dispute notice from paypal. The buyer claims they never received the package. This is new news to me at this point. I go to the tracking website, and sure enough - 3 delivery exceptions. I called the carrier and they state that the package better be picked up quick, or it will be sent back to me.

I respond twice to the buyer. Once from my personal email, and the second time through paypal dispute system. After 2 days, no response from buyer or acknowledgement from buyer.

At this point, methinks the buyer caught a case of remorse and decided they don't want item "B". So, now paypal has left me with a negative balance in my account for the $500 plus shipping, insurance and packing, and wants me to deposit $$ to cover it because of the buyers dispute. I called paypal to discuss.

One of 3 things will happen. Either the buyer will get off their arse and go pick up the package, or the buyer will ignore my replies and file an official claim, or the carrier will get tired of sitting on the package and send it back to me. At this point, I really don't care what happens. Paypal explained that if it does go to official dispute, he was pretty sure I would just be liable to refund the price of the item, and I would keep the shipping, insurance and packaging costs I incurred.

What a pain. I've sold lots of stuff on ebay over the last ~6 years and have never had even a hiccup.

</rant>

Eric DeSilva
07-22-2009, 5:17 PM
The complaint I've consistently heard with Paypal is that it is tilted in favor of the buyer. I'm not sure the e-check things made things worse, she could have filed a dispute saying she didn't get it at any point and they would have reached back into your account.

Louis Brandt
07-22-2009, 5:29 PM
Hello,
Not to try to steal this thread, but I have a question about Ebay and Paypal. I've bought many things through Ebay, but that was a good while ago, and I've never sold anything there. When I used to buy through them, Paypal was just getting started, and I never used it. I thought that I had read somewhere that now you MUST use Paypal to buy OR sell. Is that correct?
Louis

Phil Thien
07-22-2009, 9:30 PM
The complaint I've consistently heard with Paypal is that it is tilted in favor of the buyer. I'm not sure the e-check things made things worse, she could have filed a dispute saying she didn't get it at any point and they would have reached back into your account.

Actually, I think things are tilted towards eBay/PayPal.

Dan Friedrichs
07-22-2009, 10:03 PM
Actually, I think things are tilted towards eBay/PayPal.


+1. Seems like a few years ago there was a class action against PayPal for the way they "held" disputed funds. The class won.

David G Baker
07-22-2009, 10:36 PM
I buy from Ebay sellers on occasion but stopped my selling by 90% and now use Craigslist if I have something I want to sell. Ebay has mutated into a monster that has gotten so big that they have totally forgotten how they got to where they are today. Their sales and buys are down enough to lower the stock price and if they don't revamp their system they may go the way of GM and Chrysler but with out the help of tax dollars.

Tim Morton
07-23-2009, 5:40 AM
IMO selling on ebay has become such a HUGE risk lately that it is just not worth it. i won't do it again...:cool:

Steve Rozmiarek
07-23-2009, 9:58 AM
I buy from Ebay sellers on occasion but stopped my selling by 90% and now use Craigslist if I have something I want to sell. Ebay has mutated into a monster that has gotten so big that they have totally forgotten how they got to where they are today. Their sales and buys are down enough to lower the stock price and if they don't revamp their system they may go the way of GM and Chrysler but with out the help of tax dollars.


I agree. Seems like they want to be amazon.com in the worst way. I liked it back when it seemed like you walked into a huge estate sale everytime you opened the site. Not now.