Does Ebay have a limit on claims of "Not As Described"?

[*bmw_rider*]

I'm worried I may be upsetting Ebay with my claoms of Not As Described purchases.  I set out to buy a number of digital cameras to give as gifts for Christmas. I purchased 17 in total and of those 17 there were 4 faulty cameras. I've already claimed and been reimbursed for 2 of them and the other 2 are waiting in the wings.

I litarally hate having to ask Ebay to help with problems which originated with the sellers and then handed to myself. OK the first 3 aren't that expensive, but this last one was over $100 and I'm thinking there must be a limit Ebay has for such things. I feel kije a little boy who goes crying to Mummy whenever there's a problem. I know if Ebay was my Mother, my Father would have stepped in and told me to stand on my own two feet by now.

I also get the feeling that Ebay is being used by some sellers to dispose of their faulty items. It's broken but I can get something for it. This last one I sent an email to yesterday and explained the flash wasn't working in a digital camera I purchased from him. He's denied it was faulty and blamed me for dropping it or pouring water on it. I've had cameras for the past 56 years and never dropped one. In fact as soon as it arrived I checked it and then placed it in a nicely padded camera bag. The one thing I didn't check was the flash, but even if I had I'd still be in the same boat.

What's worrying me is I've also purchased another 4 cameras for family and friends who know what I paid for the others. I think I cleaned Ebay out of High Megapixel / low cost cameras. Now I'm worried one or more of those may be NAD.

So am I likelu to overstep the mark and make too many claims? Or am I simply learning not to buy from Ebay?

[digital*ghost]

I think being selective and / or inquisitive is key, where appropriate - i.e. when buying secondhand items in particular, buy from sellers who make an effort to show everything, warts and all. That can be difficult for sellers to do sometimes, with items that may genuinely be in as new condition, because there's not a lot more to say, but I'd actually be more inclined to buy from someone who had photos from every angle, who show and describe both cosmetic and/or usage flaws, and made an effort with the description, above and beyond a stock photo and features of the camera pulled from the manufacturer's website, or a description consisting of two word phrases like "used once, looks good, works great", or similar. 

These items are likely to be listed by casual sellers, sure, so feedback history is probably not going to help with anything, but if they are taking a casual approach to their selling, then that isn't the most confidence-building (and I'm not suggesting bare-bones listings are indicative of a problematic item or seller, I'm saying if you are looking for clear indications the description is failthful to the item, and nothing else like selling history can help establish how forthcoming the seller is with flaws, then actually seeing someone who is forthcoming with said flaws is something that would make me favour that seller over another with the same item and just says "it's perfect"). 

Responses to inquiries are also a good indicator - I get a little (inwardly) annoyed sometimes, as I get buyers every so often who ask questions with really obvious answers, or treat me like a free, personal tutor, but I answer every question, and with honesty, i.e. tell them all of the pros and cons, then just whinge a little about it elsewhere (like now  ) -any seller who knows that a disappointed buyer is bad for all involved parties, will respond similarly. If they are evasive, or non-committal in their replies, or do nothing but outline pros, weigh that up against someone who has noted some cons. 

[enigmabear]

A step in the 'right direction' would be not to buy from overseas sellers with awful,awful feedback

You would be very very lucky not to have issues (or may have a run of luck and an even bigger run of dodgey items) 

Just my opinion as it would certainly reduce the number of problem items 

[collect247]

I can't believe you're whinging about a limit on claims for INAD as a buyer lol because as a seller receiving to many INAD will get them in the bad basket with ebay and restrict them and raise their fees (suspended in the past)

How can you be so lucky as to buy things that aren't as described?

I've never received an item that wasn't as described in the past 20 years,but I've been scammed by buyers that have claimed not as described.

[*bmw_rider*]

Again I don't wish to be rude, but how on Earth can anyone be more vigilant when buying items listed as "fully working"? I failed ESP at school and my crystal ball is being repaired.  The is no way I could be any more vigilant, without cross examining the seller. I'm not sure if Ebay places the same comment on every listing when buyers ask sellers for the condition of the item, the standard answer is "Used" Most sellers elaborate and say it's "Like New" or "Everything works well" etc.  How do I then ask the seller what condition the article's in? 

It shouldn't be the job of the buyer to ask sellers if they're honest. If they say it's immaculate and like new I should be able to believe them. But then some sellers never fail to amaze me, I just had a camera arrive packed in a jiffy bag. If anything had been shipped on top of it, I'm sure it would have had the lens or the LCD broken. It also looks as if the battery is a dud, it's been on charge for 3 hours and hasn't budged. But that's something I can take care of as I have a few spares.

Anyway, your's is the most logical and friendly reply to date and I thank you for that. Some people tend to come on a little too strong for my taste. I thought it was a simple question, but there's even someone on another thread who seems to take offence to my buying 17 Cameras.

Things have changed a lot since we had the Chin Wag forum. This forum appears to have a complete 180. Everything here seems to be so clinical and devoid of emotion. 

[imastawka]

Ah, a Chinnie....that explains a lot.

These are the buying/sellng boards.

They are supposed to be clinical and give advice on problems.

They are not supposed to be for social chit chat.

As for the other thread, you'd be wise not to snipe at the long time board members.

You'll see yourself without help at all.

Just sayin'

[enigmabear]

There is really no need to ask a seller if they are honest with they have hundreds and hundreds of negs from buyers saying they were scammed/sent dodgey items or sent nothing at all

Sorry that suggestion was rude and unhelpful

I will know better in future 

[imastawka]

No you won't    >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[kopenhagen5]

I guess in my wisdom I have learnt to read between the lines, not something I can teach on these boards.

Still, I'm sure with your recent experiences you will probably take a second look at listings and feedback now. 

[digital*ghost]

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@*bmw_rider* wrote:

Everything here seems to be so clinical and devoid of emotion. 

---

Or, maybe just practical? 

I was just trying to offer tips to assess listings in a passive way - messaging sellers was just a suggestion if you want further indication of how accurate their descriptions are. It's not hard to look at the amount of effort a seller puts into their listings, and how thorough they are with their descriptions, then use that to make a judgement call on how much faith you can put into what they've said. 

Plus, if I had no empathy for you whatsoever, I wouldn't have even answered or tried to help at all. Sorry the delivery or advice is not to your taste, I'm happy to withhold any and all responses to future threads. 

[springyzone]

It sounds as if ebay does have some triggers which will generate a message to a buyer. Whether that is based on total value of claims or total number of claims in a certain period, I have no idea.

But till you reach it, make any claims you need to, but where you can, get all the evidence you can to back up each claim-that might be a photo, video, whatever. A series of photos if need be.

If you do hit trouble ahead, it may help if you are able to back up your claims as much as possible.

Now as to gumtree. And perhaps facebook marketplace or local buy swap sell sites. They are only really reliable if you are going to inspect the items in person before you buy. I've never had a touble with gumtree (except as a seller, being given the run around and stupid offers).

Sellers there will tend to raise their prices a bit in anticipation of not being offered the full amount but if I were you, I would look for local items, make a reasonable offer, then go and examine the items. Or buy via ebay, local items that offer pick up. That way you'll have a better idea if the items are as described.