Get contact details of seller for warranty claim

[phigru_7879]

I've bought a small electronic item on ebay from an Australian seller around 10 months ago.

Now the item stopped working recently and it's clearly an issue that would fall under warranty. I sent the seller 2 messages on ebay, but they won't reply at all. Given that it's more than 180 days, it's too late to open a case on ebay or Paypal.

Since I have no contact details of the seller other than an ebay username, I'm not sure what to do here.

Sending a letter, filing a complaint or applying to small claims court would be the logical next steps, but for all of this I need any sort of contact details.

Is there a way to get these from ebay? I couldn't find anything on the site.

[jellybirddesigns]

Nobody here can help you because we understand that you're pretty much not going to get anywhere. 

Whilst you might feel that the seller has to offer a warranty, Ebay is NOT going to give you sellers information and the seller is under no obligation to respond.

I'm a registered seller on Amazon and I'm there on the boards too. Amazon will not assist you once the product testing window has closed after receipt UNLESS your item is fulfilled by Amazon themselves and even then, there are limited warranties, depending on the product (the Amazon brand gets better Amazon warranty and support). Amazon will direct you back to the manufacturer in the event of a claim.

I think that your only recourse here is to contact the manufacturer or a domestic authorised seller of the product with a copy of your invoice. If you ever get the sellers details, then perhaps you can take them to some tribunal, but it will be a long and expensive road ahead.

How much was the item worth and do you still have the paperwork/box that come with the product?

[phigru_7879]

Well, I contacted ebay about this and they explained that this isn't acceptable behaviour from the seller and they'll look into this. Will see what that'll lead to.

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the seller is under no obligation to respond

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They absolutely have to respond and handle my issue. You can't run a business and then refuse to talk to paying customers.

[jellybirddesigns]

What, exactly do you think they're going to get the seller to do? They can't force the seller to communicate with you.

Customer Service will tell you ANYTHING to get you off the line/chat. They are barely equipped to deal with regular issues, let alone this kind of stuff.

All this energy invested in an Ebay issue which will most likely have no effective outcome, compared to just contacting the manufacturer right now and seeing if they can assist you.

I don't get it.

There are dozens of threads about warranty on this forum - just type "warranty" into the search box, have a read through and let us know if you find anyone who has had joy

[sugar249]

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@phigru_7879 wrote:

Thanks everyone, but that isn't exactly helpful.

I was merely asking about how I can get a sellers contact details to file a complaint or take them to small claims court.

Of course a commercial seller needs to provide warranties as specified by law. If anyone is actually interested, you can find all details about this here:

https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/consumer-rights-guarantees/consumer-guarantees

But to answer some of your questions:

Are you sure about this fact, or are you just trying to satisfy yourself

Yes, I am sure, see my link above.

.

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I am aware of the link you have provided,  I have read it and used it to convince sellers of the errors of their way.

But could you kindly point out where it specifies 12 months, I must have missed that bit.

[sugar249]

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@phigru_7879 wrote:

Well, I contacted ebay about this and they explained that this isn't acceptable behaviour from the seller and they'll look into this. Will see what that'll lead to.

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the seller is under no obligation to respond

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They absolutely have to respond and handle my issue. You can't run a business and then refuse to talk to paying customers.

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Again I'm not sure where it is specified that if you run a business, that you cant refuse to talk to a customer,  I often do it in my other business, when they become unreasonable,  sorry but I don't believe in the old adage that the customer is always right.  They are sometimes, and I have a right to decide when they aren't.

[e_purchasing]

What a load of rubbish, there is no law that requires " they are required to give 12 month warranty by law, regardless of whether they are authorized distributors or not."

https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/consumer-rights-guarantees/warranties

Understand the law before stating it as fact

Furthermore , spare parts usually have a limited warranty expressed by a supplier, usually 30-90 days but bottom line is any warranty has to be expressed.

In the case of eBay, if there is no warranty expressed , then your warranty is the return period extended by the seller with the exception of large ticket items, which fall under the reasonable expectation provision covered under Aus Consumer law. ie you can reasonably expect a brand new TV to operate without fault for 2 years even if 1 year warranty was extended.

[*sons_and_daughters*]

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@phigru_7879 wrote:

Well, I contacted ebay about this and they explained that this isn't acceptable behaviour from the seller and they'll look into this. Will see what that'll lead to.

---

the seller is under no obligation to respond

---

They absolutely have to respond and handle my issue. You can't run a business and then refuse to talk to paying customers.

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Ummm, no they don't. I rarely respond to demands if a buyer is being a complete tosser and spouting "rules and regulations" at me. That is the quickest way to get you blocked. I have never lost a dispute where the buyer was banging on about laws and consumer law, and warranties blah blah blah. I never offer a warranty, and consumer law doesn't apply to me. Want to take me to court? Knock yourself out. It's you that is going to be massively out of pocket, not me.

Face it, you aren't going to get a warranty on ebay. Period. No amount of ranting and raving will make it happen. It's not going to happen and never will. Ebay don't care about your issues, regardless of what they tell you. You may be important to you, but to ebay, you are less than garbage. You are nothing. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

[springyzone]

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@phigru_7879 wrote:

Well, I contacted ebay about this and they explained that this isn't acceptable behaviour from the seller and they'll look into this. Will see what that'll lead to.

---

the seller is under no obligation to respond

---

They absolutely have to respond and handle my issue. You can't run a business and then refuse to talk to paying customers.

---

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We've seen a lot of people come on these boards in the past with a common complaint and that is, that the seller doesn't honour the warranty. And that's for items where the ad specified a warranty.

Often they bought from overseas but even when they bought from an Australian based seller, I don't think I have ever read of anyone having a successful outcome with ebay intervention many months after a purchase. At that point it definitely is a warranty issue and not a 'not what i ordered or faulty on arrival' issue.

The problem is that ebay is not the seller. They don't have to honour a warranty. You say they have to respond and handle your issue. I suspect they may just tell you there is nothing they can do.

But let's play hypothetics. One possible thing they could do is ban the seller from selling on their platform.

How would that help you, though?

You said right at the start that this was a small electronic item. Do you mean not overly expensive?

You say you know how to pursue legal avenues if you have the seller's name and address. It doesn't sound as if ebay is about to disclose those details.

I'd be interested in knowing how you get on because I'm not sure legal avenues are going to be worthwhile for you, not unless we're talking an expensive item.

[digital*ghost]

You're confusing warranties with consumer guarantees - warranties are voluntary, consumer guarantees are not.

Consumer guarantees do not have fixed timelines, they are dependent on the item, the item's cost, and how it was advertised, which all factor in to determine what is a reasonable expectation for a given product (I always use headphones as an example, so to to put that in context, a $5 pair of headphones can not be expected to last as long as a $200 pair of headphones, so consumer guarantees will be applicable to the $200 pair for much longer, with or without a warranty. If a business decides to advertise the $5 pair with a slogan like "better quality than [$200 headphones]" then that changes things because they create an expectation of longer lasting quality). 

[gutterpunkz05]

Wrong,  No Express Warranty  -  No 12 months  etc

Gaurantees

Consumer guarantees
Consumer guarantees applying to goods
Summary
There are nine guarantees that apply to goods.
The guarantees apply to suppliers and, in certain

circumstances, manufacturers.
1. Suppliers and manufacturers guarantee that
goods are of acceptable quality when sold to

a consumer—see page 12.
2. Suppliers and manufacturers guarantee

that their description of goods (for example,

in a catalogue or television commercial) is

accurate—see page 14.
3. Suppliers and manufacturers guarantee that

the goods will satisfy any extra promises

made about them (express warranties)—

see page 14.
4. A supplier guarantees that goods will be

reasonably fit for any purpose the consumer

or supplier specified—see page 15.
5. A supplier guarantees that goods will match

any sample or demonstration model and any

description provided—see page 16.
6. A supplier guarantees they have the right to

sell the goods (clear title), unless they alerted

the consumer before the sale that they had

‘limited title’—see page 16.
7. A supplier guarantees that no one will try to

repossess or take back goods, or prevent the
consumer using the goods, except in certain
circumstances—see undisturbed possession

page 17.
8. A supplier guarantees that goods are free

of any hidden securities or charges and will

remain so, except in certain circumstances—

see page 17.
9. Manufacturers or importers guarantee they

will take reasonable steps to provide spare

parts and repair facilities for a reasonable

time after purchase—see page 17.
ACL reference: sections 51—5