micknnicki,
Oh dear.
Unfortunately, when you purchase items from sellers in Hong Kong (as your seller is), you have no enforceable warranty. Chinese sellers on eBay know this, and are fully aware that by stating on their listings that they offer a warranty, they are promising something they will never honour.
You buy quite a bit from Chinese sellers. The cheaper prices are the trade-off for getting something that doesn't have real warranty and may not be genuine.The item you purchased (Digital DVR Game Hunting Camera Motion Detection LED 12 MP Night Vision) is listed as "unbranded", so you would already have had an inkling that there wasn't a manufacturer's warranty. I can't see any mention of a warranty in the listing for that item.
I should also mention that 98.5% feedback score isn't good for a high-volume seller. I wouldn't be buying from such a seller, particularly any sort of electrical item. I use 99.5% as the cut-off point.
I'll copy here what I replied to another buyer who was in a similar situation to you.
It's never pleasant to end up with a product whose warranty isn't worth a goat's hiccup. Just be aware that when you purchase from an overseeas seller, anything stated by an overseas seller on a listing on eBay is simply not enforceable.
Asian sellers (esp. Chinese sellers) on eBay are particularly prone to stating "1 year warranty", "2 year warranty", "5 year warranty", etc., but to all intents and purposes, it's sheer flimflam. If you're buying something where a warranty is necessary or a good idea, the only way to be certain that you're covered by that warranty is if you are buying a genuine product from an authorised Australian seller for that item. It's enforceable under Australian consumer law, and you can have peace of mind that if something goes wrong while it's still under the warranty period, your item will be repaired or replaced as per the terms of the warranty.
You might want to read eBay's Warranties policy. This isn't a policy providing warranties, for buyers to rely upon; rather, it's a policy about what a seller's obligations are re offering warranties - "under Australian consumer law". That clearly indicates that warranties for an Australian buyer only have validity if they're offered by a seller who has responsibilities to buyers under Australian consumer law (and that automatically excludes all overseas sellers). However, even that is not enough to protect you if you've bought from an Australian seller who is NOT an authorised seller of a genuine item, or if you've bought an item from someone who isn't a business, doesn't have an ABN, etc. eBay does not itself pursue sellers to force them to honour a warranty in an eBay listing. Your only hope of enforcing a warranty from an eBay seller is if the seller is a registered Australian business and you pursue them as you would any other Australian business, through your state's consumer law.
Also note: eBay's Money Back Guarantee specifically spells out that "The eBay Money Back Guarantee is not a product warranty, and does not replace your Australian Consumer Law rights." Don't rely on the MBG for this purpose; it isn't intended as that and won't cover instances where you are trying to rely on the promised warranty of a listing.
You are well and truly out of time to lodge an eBay dispute or even a PayPal dispute, and as you've been using this camera for at least 6 months, you are very unlikely to be able to initiate a chargeback since chargebacks are also not a substitute for product warranty.
Unfortunately you have validated this unbranded camera which fails 6 months after purchase, by posting a glowing review:
‘Excellent’ trail cam !!
A reallly good trail at a ‘Great’ price !! Very clear photos and video and easy to set up, recommended to all !!
You've also given the seller equally glowing feedback:
The ‘best’ international seller that I’ve ever dealt with, highly recommended !!
All of this should help to illustrate the problem when looking at positive feedback for a Chinese eBay seller (or indeed, for any eBay seller). By the time an item fails (many times it may indeed be about 6 months post purchase), it's too late for the buyer to change feedback, the item is given false praise (thus deluding other bargain-hunters into thinking it's a great purchase, and what is all the nonsense about not trusting items from Chinese sellers on eBay?), and the seller has added positive feedback which time shows is based upon an incorrect assessment of the item when it first arrived.
I can't reiterate this enough. There are some items you shouldn't buy from Chinese eBay sellers - and electrical / electronic items are well and truly included in that. (Also anything that is "designer" or "big brand".)
Better luck with your future purchases.
