Absolute eBay lunacy. Long time user infuriated

[xb50gs]

I recently purchased a phone/tablet from a seller. Paid $81 for it. Seller says he's in Aus and I was counting on the phone arriving really quickly. About a week passes and I question where it is and ask for tracking. Assures me it's been sent and will arrive soon. I needed it for the long weekend as I was working away and needed a larger screen for YouTube. Nothing arrives.

Gives me tracking advice which shows it as being received. Nothing here, he can't give me any more info, I assume because he is in china and his colleague, as he refers to them, is posting the item from somewhere inside Australia. Request more info, he stalls me more so I open a dispute. He immediately escalates to a claim and refuses to communicate.

Claim closes in his favor because there is tracking. No further proof is needed. I request to see a copy of my signature, which is denied. There isn't one as I haven't signed for it. Because it's not here. But there proof isn't needed.

Let me just say I'm a big volume buyer. I get in excess of 10 parcels some weeks and I don't always keep track of what comes from where, particularly when I buy multiples of the same item, like globes, or other such small things, so it's entirely possible I received an item of low value from someone and that is the tracking info provided. Who knows how many seller ID's he has, I may have bought from him and had a legitimate parcel signed for and now I'm being scammed. The day I was told the parcel was posted is different from the date shown in tracking by quite a few days and it's different from the date listed in eBay.

I contact paypal and ask for a review. It's reviewed and closed the same day. I phone again and ask for a review again, the phone agent says shipping proof was provided, case closed. I point out the discrepancies and he tells me it meets pay pals level of proof. Case closed.

Ok, wipe $81 away, leave negative feedback and move on.

Negative feedback is removed. Email eBay and ask why, get copy pasta and then I'm told it's a matter of privacy as to why it was removed, even though I wrote it. It didn't breech rules. It said 'no item received. tracking info not supplied when requested' or very similar to that.

Email back again, they tell me to follow up to the feedback the seller left. Yeah, that's smart, because everyone will see that and be warned by it. He didn't even leave me feedback.

So. I'm now trying to lodge a lost parcel thing with AP. Can't do it, as I'm the receiver. Seller won't communicate. At all.
Contact eBay and ask for advice. The genius advises me to 'contact the post office for proof of item not arrived'. Have you read anything more stupid? Proof of the item not arrived. Seriously.

Can't do a visa charge back as visa won't allow it, as paypal carry the insurance and they won't allow 2 insurances on a purchase. Can't do a thing with AP as the seller won't communicate and sure as hell won't go to the post office and do the lost parcel paperwork. Can't warn other buyers, can't do a **bleep** thing.

10+ years on here and I've seen some stupid things, but this is the stupidest.

[phorum_junkie*]

Lyndal is absolutely on the money with that response.

Long time user should know better than to expect a phone/tablet for $81.

Why? I have just received a perfectly good 7" tablet which cost me £42.50 including next day delivery so obviously it came from within the UK as I know of no service from China which would cost a couple of quid and get there next day.

Long time no see Beagles, you keeping OK?

I would certainly get back in touch with your credit card provider as long as the Paypal dispute is over and done with.

[xb50gs]

It was listed on eBay AU, seller as NSW Australia.
Aus post shows as on board for delivery/my post code suburb/then delivered.
No signatures, paypal says this is sufficient for items under (I think the rep said) $250 and I challenged him and said so I could send a parcel of something of no value, to the buyer with using regd post and if they open an item not received case, that is sufficient 'well, yeah' if they opened an item not as described, it would be reviewed etc, if you open a not received, then use that tracking, then the buyer will lose.

Obviously I opened an INR as it's not received.

Bank/visa wouldn't touch it. I assured them the paypal dispute was over and was told no, they make the decision and I authorized the payment so that's the end. Probably because there's only a few hundred dollars in my account, if it was a few hundred thousand they might be more inclined to help.

Not bothering with ombudsman, the smug a-h at paypal said, after I said I would contact ombudsman 'well I'll let our legal team know and have them on standby' they can't force them to refund and when they're in the us I'm just wasting my time.

[jensmanchester-australia]

Sounds to me like neither the seller nor Paypal have done anything wrong. It is possible the parcel has been either misdelivered (which would be the fault of AP) or stolen after delivery.

Paypal is correct when they say no signature is required for parcels posted within Australia which are valued under $250.00. As long as the seller has provided sufficient evidence to Paypal that the parcel was posted to the address on the Paypal payment they would have been covered under the Seller Protection policy.

Unless the seller had insurance on the parcel it is unlikely Australia Post would pay out any compensation if an investigation showed that the parcel had been misdelivered by AP.

Situations like this are always difficult as neither the buyer or seller are at fault but in most cases one party is left out of pocket for what is probably AP's fault.

[trusteduserid]

The seller could have claimed that the item was lost in the mail and got refunded, which he/she could have then refunded the OP.

It is the sellers fault as much as it is AP's fault. More so the seller as the item was not reported lost (probably because it wasn't sent in the first place).

More info on the ombudsman page HERE.

[cq_tech]

It makes no difference that Paypal is headquartered in the US, as they still have to abide by the local laws which regulate financial institutions so their rep was clearly trying to bluff you. You shouldn't need to go to the FOS as Visa should ultimately help you, but if they don't, then absolutely lodge an FOS complaint as Paypal have to comply with their ruling.

[chezzy]

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@2barkingbeagles wrote:

Aus post shows as on board for delivery/my post code suburb/then delivered.

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Delivered to who? Delivered where? Australia Post can and do deliver to the wrong addresses sometimes!

Not so very long ago I had a parcel delivered to our address (with two other 'correct' ones) with an entirely different

surname and a different street number (same street but a few doors up). The parcels were in a pile, and either left

at the front door or handed to someone else at the house who hadn't noticed the wrong one.

I actually wanted to 'report' the issue to Australia Post but some of the board posters here said things that made me feel I was

making a drama out of things and that I should just take the parcel to the correct address and be done with it (which I did anyway). Really I should have reported it and not even bothered sharing my experience.

Next time it happens I will be reporting it to Australia Post.

This topic has highlighted an issue that may very well be connected to Australia Post. Don't dismiss the idea!

[lis351]

Australia Post can and do deliver to the wrong addresses sometimes!

Certainly do. My friends sister had a parcel delivered to our place of work, when it arrived the shipping sticker (the AP one with the bard codes on) had the correct details on it, but was not what she ordered. Pull the shipping sticker off and underneath is another. Different name, street AND state!

[phorum_junkie*]

Bank/visa wouldn't touch it. I assured them the paypal dispute was over and was told no, they make the decision and I authorized the payment so that's the end.

Unfortunately some banks, usually the smaller ones and some credit unions, both in Australia and the UK do specify that they will not cover 3rd party payments, their attitude is that you paid Paypal to provide the service of transferring the funds and they have provided the service. This loophole which is perfectly legal has not come to light on the boards for a very long time. I always used to advise people that when using a credit card to make sure their bank did not have that exclusion.

The big banks like ANZ, Comomwealth etc are fine.

While you may have no case against Paypal as their terms do state that if the seller can prove the item has been sent to the buyer's postcode you may not be refunded I would sending a complaint to the FSO about the bank if they are claiming they cannot refund because you authorised the payment, they do not appear to bet following the correct procedure for items bought on-line.

[c_mount]

Why comment here then??

[davewil1964]

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@c_mount wrote:
Why comment here then??

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Because I can.

Just like you, except that I provide relevant information not just digs at particular members.