posted on May 26, 2002 08:59:29 AM
I thought I'd seen everything.
Got a payment yesterday, possibly for multiple auctions, but who can tell because there was no eBay userid or auction numbers included. What *was* in the envelope was a long vicious diatribe about how I'm ripping people off and how this bidder is never going to bid on my auctions again, and the reason why people don't include auction numbers is that they don't want to help thieves like me. Also included: a money order for $24.37, which does NOT match any amount due on any of my auctions.
I go back through email received but there is no note from anyone with this real-life name.
Hmmm.
I can't ship her merchandise since I have no idea who she is or what she bid on.
I could return her payment to her, but I won't.
I can hold her payment hostage, potentially forever (do ya really think she is going to email to ask where her order is? I don't). Thus she is out the $24.37.
fluff
469 auctions currently running under 3 eBay seller ids
posted on May 26, 2002 09:16:22 AM
Oh, what a mess you have. With all of those auctions running I wouldn't do anything but keep the check until she writes back. Or if you wish to cash the check write on the back that you would please like her user name so that you can send the merchandise. If she gives you a negative, respond kindly. With the number of auctions you have that negative will be burried quickly. If you have time write her a letter explaining that it is required to either include the auction page or the auction number on her check and she won't get her merchandise or check back until she does.
I am truly amased as sellers who can handle that many auctions at one time. I have trouble with 10. Good Luck
posted on May 26, 2002 09:29:30 AM
Libra63: I can do this many auctions because I do it for a living and basically work 7 days a week. I've developed some methods that streamline the process.
Our TOS asks buyers to include the auction number with their payment. This one deliberately announced she wouldn't. I don't think I'll put myself out for her.
I swear, sometimes it's like playing chess with these people. There's no reason why a transaction can't be straightforward and simple, but stupidity mucks things up.
When are these people going to realize that an educated seller always has the upper hand? I don't *have* to ever send her merchandise, even if I ever find out which it is. I can just file for NPB/FVF, and then little Miss I'm-Not-Gonna-Tell-You-Who-I-Am gets shafted, not me.
fluff
466 auctions currently running under 3 eBay seller ids
posted on May 26, 2002 09:31:23 AM
stopwhining: If she's a deadbeat, it'll turn up when I pull the contact info (standard operating procedure before I FVF anyone).
If she's not a deadbeat, she soon will be. Heh-heh.
posted on May 26, 2002 11:44:24 AM
holdenrex- That's what I want to know too. Why would anyone send money to a person who was ripping them off?
Either we're not hearing the whole story or the bidder is some kind of serious whacko.
Assuming we're hearing the whole truth, I'd do the same as Fluffy. I do eveything I can to satisfy my customers, even refunds when I don't think they deserve it. But once a buyer get's hostile or nasty, that's the end of the transaction.
I've just never heard of "the end of the transaction" coming this soon in the process...
posted on May 26, 2002 01:18:35 PM
I never understood why a buyer bids on an auction, wins it, and then tries to dispute the S & H charge when it is clearly stated. I had to explain it to my employee once that even though Postage may cost $ 2.00, you have to take time to pack and ship.
posted on May 26, 2002 02:35:31 PM
Part of it is sheer stubbornness combined with raving immaturity. "Yeah, it says $5 s/h in the auction, but you're a thief for charging that much." It's the blame-everybody-else mentality so popular in the U.S.
The other part is, I believe, the rising prominence of books and writers who tell people that ANYTHING is negotiable. I read one of these articles in the latest Reader's Digest and was frankly aghast by the suggestions. One idea was to admire a $1000 refrigerator but state that due to your kitchen remodeling you only had $600 left, so could you have a 40% discount, please? Imagine this is your appliance store and you have to deal with beauties like this.
Another example given was a guy who went into Circuit City to buy a VCR, but was such a savvy negotiator that he walked out with the VCR, a TV and a recliner...all for the cost of the VCR. Yeah, right.
Or you can point out a flaw on the desired object and demand a reduced price. In the antiques biz this is known as "knocking the merchandise" and believe me, they saw you coming a mile off.
I guess this stuff sells books but it sure doesn't have much of a relationship to reality.
posted on May 26, 2002 05:16:50 PM
Isn't there a postmark on the envelope that corresponds with the town/state that one of your winners gave you when they replied to your EOA message?
posted on May 26, 2002 05:35:09 PM
fluffythewondercat, that article you read in Readers Digest is right on. my son never buys anything without negotiating and never pays the full amount for any electronic appliance.
I was given a discount of $200.00 on my computer system at HH Gregg, just because I asked.
They can't eat you, they can only say no.
As far as you s/h, how much do you charge for handling? At over 400 sales per week, you are making an income on that alone if it is $1.00 or more.
I cannot imagine doing that many sales per week, you go girl!
Unfortunately, it's not giving me money. I can't cash the money order if I can't ship. I'll just sit on it until she squeaks, I guess.
kasue: Of the few bidders who respond to our EOAs, even fewer actually send an address. It's usually not a problem.
I just practiced some "tough love" on a bidder who has won 24 of our auctions and not responded to any of the EOAs. She's blocked now and I sent her a note explaining why.
posted on May 27, 2002 10:58:17 PM
No! If she cashes it and then doesn't ship anything, she has given this buyer all the evidence she needs to prove her "fraud" complaint. Sounds like a deliberate setup to me. Fluffy is doing the right thing by just sitting on it.
posted on May 28, 2002 10:01:23 AM
"She's already paid real cash for the Money Order. That's moneys GONE as far as she's concerned.
I'd cash it without a second thought. Why not? Not cashing it won't help anything for either of you."
Hmm...I dont consider a money order as "gone" just because I've converted from cash to a piece of paper. If it doesn't get cashed, I can get a refund. If it does get cashed, I expect to get merchandise. I second mypostingid's observation, cashing a payment with no intent/ability to send merchandise could be a big problem, legally, or at the very least, cause the buyer to continue to harrass you (hardly worth $25).
In any case, cashing the check (with intent to just keep the money) would be the immature way to respond to this situation. As always, aspire to the "higher road", ignore the diatribe, and see what happens next. Its not as much fun, but being professional is definitely the way to go here.
posted on May 29, 2002 08:58:41 AM
A couple of questions; 1) Was the MO made out to you? 2) Do you have the buyers name & address? Normally this is on the MO. If you do have the address, then I would send the MO back & forget the buyer. Put a block on future auctions & you won't have to worry about them anymore. I had a case where I was sent a MO for an amount much larger than the actual selling price. The buyer had bought 2 MO's & sent me the wrong one (also the other buyer as well) I emailed him & we got it straightened out at once.
posted on May 29, 2002 01:46:51 PM
What a corker! It seems so bizarre, but I know it can get this weird and weirder.
The funny thing is that she's accusing you of all these bad things...and on the other hand simply assuming you'll invest the considerable time and effort to go through all your outstanding auctions and somehow deduce which one is hers EVEN THOUGH you've already warned her in your terms that you can't do that.
Did she say why she wasn't including the auction number? Is she somehow thinking she's making you "earn" the s/h fee?
In terms of negotiating things.....Yes, some things are] negotiable. When I go to wholesale shows, I dicker with the dealers and often get a break. (That's why many items at a wholesale show aren't marked. A little eavesdropping shows that prices vary wildly.)
The problem with all of these articles talking about bargaining is that they make little effort to establish when it's OK to bargain and when you're just embarassing yourself.
[ edited by msincognito on May 29, 2002 02:03 PM ]
posted on May 29, 2002 09:28:32 PM
msincognito: You've hit it on the head. I would expect to dicker over the price of an automobile, a major appliance, a home stereo system or car stereo, or a big-screen TV. These are all businesses in which the salespeople work on commission and they have some latitude on price.
It takes some b@lls, though, to expect to negotiate an auction price downward after the fact.
