Apologies for long thread, but would really appreciate your thoughts;
The company supplied a Breville toaster by mistake, I ordered and paid for a Breville blender. The 'contact information' on eBay suggests it is out of date because they do not answer the phone number given, nor reply to the email address either. I am in Perth, and they seem to be in Victoria, so I understand that there is at least a week for delivery and did not have a problem with that.
But because they shipped the wrong item, I am still waiting. I paid on the 28th September and it is now the 16th October. Now normally, I would still expect it to arrive, but the manner of their communication with me is ringing alarm bells.
1. I opened a PayPal dispute as the item received "was significantly different to advertised". I also believed my gut which told me something wasn't right about the phone ringing out. and the email 'bouncing' back.
2. I eventually got an email back the next day, with an apology and the offer of a $15 credit - so far so good. But they did ask that I close the PayPal dispute case - which I did not do - still had a nagging feeling something wasn't right.
3. I got a 'reply paid' postal number and sent back the toaster parcel the day it arrived - on the 8th October. I then emailed them to notify that I had done so. I also received a Tracking Number. When I checked this it showed the parcel leaving on the 11th October - now they had told me it was being shipped the same day, which would have been the 8th. So that wasn't good.
4. A few days later I again emailed to check that the toaster had arrived back, and asking if the $15 credit would be sent to my PayPal account (I didn't know how that was going to happen). I guess at this stage, if in fact they had been genuine about the credit being for the now, considerable inconvenience of re-packing up the incorrect item and having to wait an extra 2 weeks or so for my blender, I would think that the small amount of $15 would have been credited in good faith. But no . . . and this is where it gets bad . .
5. Yesterday, the 15th October, I went back to the dispute case in PayPal and "requested a refund" for two reasons; I had not had email questions answered, and I had not received the blender nor the $15 credit!
6. Ok, so this probably didn't sit well at their end - but they only needed to let me know. I emailed them my mobile phone number on day one, repeatedly asked them to let me know about the receipt of the parcel I returned and the credit promised - with no response. But what have they now done?
7. They have sent a reasonably rude, bold caps message - and with no sign of good faith, have said that the fault is with me, that I have not sent back the incorrect item!
Despite my messages back to this company that I didn't order nor want a toaster, and urging them to operate in the customer interest as repeat business is important, the accusation is out there. This was their mistake from the get-go. I am now out of options, and realise it is always possible that the package I returned could be lost, or that they don't actually have to acknowledge they have received it, even if they have, and I have no way to prove otherwise!
8. I am still hoping my parcel will arrive, but have a bad feeling also. What's to say the 'Tracking number' they've sent is even for my blender?
Further googling shows up some previous problems with <removed> from some years ago, this is also concerning. What suggestions, if any, do you in the eBay community have?
