Anyone ever been ripped off on ebay?

I purchased something on ebay and it's been a month and I still don't have it. Granted it is a custom piece of clothing, but I have contacted the seller SEVERAL times (I have copies of everything I emailed to her) and she has only responded to me the two times that I threatened to report her to ebay and then she gave me a line of bull about my emails getting lost or something. I didn't expect to get this overnight, but a month is plenty of time and if she needed longer and had told me it would be no big deal! I was already worried about this seller after she didn't get back to me, but then today I saw that she has not sent an item to another buyer! There had been no other negative feedback when I bought the item which is why I had gone with her, but now she is pulling this with other people I am so ticked. I contacted the other person who didn't get her item and she said that she had actually ordered two. One she got the money back for after she filed a claim with ebay and the other she has not gotten or gotten the money back for. I filed a claim with ebay regarding not getting the item, but have no idea whether I'll end up with my item or a refund. I mean if this lady just drops off the planet what can ebay really do? It says they can contact the authorities, but I guess this is the gamble you take buying from someone online. Ugh. :banghead:

 

Haven't had bad luck with ebay but currently really ticked off at a seller on Amazon. I ordered a book Feb 18th for school for which the class started 6 days ago. I still don't have the book even though they said they sent it 2 days after I placed the order. So I have had to order another book (rush delivery) while I wait for the seller on Amazon to send me a form to fill out to get a refund. Nothing like being behind on classwork!

 

Did you pay through Paypal? You can get your money refunded if you file a claim through them for the item that was not received. If you used a credit card, you can also get your money refunded by filing a claim with them, if you did use Paypal and they are unable to recoup your money. You can also request a phone number of the seller through Ebay, to contact the seller, as Ebay usually encourages buyers and sellers to attempt resolving before calling in mediation.

Good luck, and let's hope it is just a delay on their part, or that you can get your money refunded. Sometimes it seems like hit or miss on Ebay - I am both a seller and buyer - but often some bargains are too good to pass up, and I usually take the chance!

 

Always use PayPal...

:iagree:

Could not agree more. I've bought and sold on EBay, mostly bought, with over 100 purchases. Only time I have ever felt ripped off is when I bought a very old, rare comic that was missing the back cover when I received it. The seller didn't bother to mention that in his listing. Always pay with PayPal so you can get your money back if you don't receive your item. Also, always read the sellers feedback before bidding. Also, check their number of "buyer" positive fedback compared to "seller" positive feedbacks. A couple of hundred purchases compared to only a few sales may also be a red flag. All considered, I love EBay. Just always be vigilent and careful.

 

Always pay through Paypal with a credit card, if possible. If by some chance Paypal does not make the refund you can dispute the charges with the credit card company and they will charge back Paypal. Some things you just cannot pay through Paypal, but I doubt if many here will run into that situation very often.

 

ebay now requires paperless transactions only. you can't pay by money order any more. or at least you're not supposed to, and if they catch you offering it as an option, they'll cancel your auction. just don't let it get past the time you have to file a paypal complaint, which i think is 45 days. you can file the complaint just to get it started, and if the seller comes through with the item or a refund, you can close the dispute with neither party being the worse for wear...

edit: i notice you say you filed a dispute with ebay. that won't get you your money back i don't think. have you filed a dispute with paypal?

 

They only time I've had a real issue was with a buyer. I sold them a nice Columbia coat, they swore up and down they never got it. Turns out it was lost in the mail, they eventually did get it AFTER I refunded their money, I refunded too quick. They never paid for it even though they did get the coat. :evil:

I have gotten a few items that were not quite what they were advertised, but that's a chance you take, unfortunately. I don't mess with ebay much anymore.

 

Never been ripped off. we've purchased 2 vans on ebay, a refridgerator and a few other little things. Always used paypal and sellers have been awesome w/ contact. Especially, the bigger purchases. --always called us at home. Paypal is the way to go though. so sorry to hear this is happening to you. Hope it is resolved soon.

stephanie--mom to 7

 

yep. Bought a watch, Received it broken, sent it back for an exchange (certified mail), still to this day, have not received the watch.......been 2 years now. Filed a claim with ebay and still NOTHING.............guess I just got screwed out of $30.00

 

Sorry when I said ebay I meant that I went through ebay and it directed me to file the claim with paypal, which is what I did so now everything will be tracked through them. Of course I haven't heard anything from her. It's just so frustrating. :evil::banghead:

 

don't worry. paypal is pro-buyer when it comes to claims. i lost an "item not as described" claim not too long ago, even though the claim was due to damage during shipment. i had proof the buyer refused insurance, and proof that i offered it, but they sided with her. now i just roll shipping and insurance cost into the starting bid of the item and mark it "free shipping"

 

Yeah I'm not too worried about either getting the product or a refund. It's just that there are those few crappy sellers on ebay and it's such a hassle to have to go through all of this when all of my other experiences have been great. I hope this woman is not allowed to do business anymore. Any ideas how many claims can be lodged against a seller before they are not allowed to sell anymore?

 

I have purchased a lot of Items on E Bay. Sometimes they are as advertised other times they look very nice in the pictures, but when you get the merchandise, it is old and beat up. But I have learned that that is it can go either way. I do check the sellers feedback and that helps in determining if I will deal with the seller or not.

 

Woo Hoo the 2nd book that I HAD to order arrived today and I just ordered it on Friday. Still waiting on the form to get refunded for the 1st book that hasn't shown up.

 

Have done a bit of ebay - about 125 transactions - and never a problem. I only use Paypal - and I only buy from 'power sellers' with at least 99% positive feedback.

 

the only problem with restricting yourself to power sellers is that to achieve that, you have to sell at least 1000 bucks per month for 3 rolling months, and a minimum of something like 6 items per month. you find somebody who has maybe low feedback even though it's 100%, or has always mostly been a buyer who wants to sell a legit item for probably a good deal, you'll miss it. or me, for example. i've been on the bay for 10 years, have engaged in 3000 transactions as a buyer and a seller, have a nearly 2000 feedback rating, but very rarely do i qualify as a power seller. i sell alot of stuff, though, and it's all legit, good merch. i encourage people to check my feedback for other people's unsolicited comments about the accuracy of my descriptions and the quality of my packaging....

also, you have almost no other choice than paypal now to pay anyway. your only other options are online payment services that are equally secure. trouble with that is that nobody really accepts anything else, so it's mostly paypal or nothing

 

Update: Got an email from the seller today (told you she only gets back to me when threatened) and she had lots of excuses and said basically that I would get it when she finished it (??). But she then said she was looking to mail it out on Saturday so we'll see what happens. I told her thanks for getting back to me and I will gladly drop the claim once I receive my product. Keeping my fingers crossed still, but at least I heard from her.

 

maybe it's the local post office....

I had, notice I said had, a small business on eBay but the post office lost about 20 of my last 25 shipments. I had to refund the money to the buyers which meant I paid for the merchandise, all eBay fees, all PayPal fees, all shipping fees and refunded the price on top of that. It didn't matter if the packages went out from my mailbox, from the post office in Clayton or from the sub-station at 40/42. When I asked the post office what could be done, they said nothing. Too bad, we won't look for anything. So sorry if you did have the same thing happen out of the same post office locations. So someone between our local post office and wherever else in the US is having a great time looking for eBay packages and "losing" them.

 

i've never had that issue, and i've been sending things from the clayton post office for 10 years. insurance and delivery confirmation are your friends. insurance is to protect the seller, not the buyer...

 

Delivery confirmation only works when the item actually gets scanned and entered into the system at the post office. If you put something in your mailbox for pick up or in a mailbox somewhere, there is no proof that you ever really mailed it unless it gets scanned in. So, even if you buy your postage on Click and Ship or however on the Internet, it will only show that you bought the postage at xyz time and date. It does nothing for you as far as tracking the item since it can't be tracked unless it is scanned in...and insurance is useless if the buyer won't pay for it, especially on inexpensive items.