How to get free stuff via eBay.

[allfixelectrical]

Do you want free stuff from eBay?

All you need to do is purchase something from a seller and then claim in an affidavit that you received an empty box.

Ebay will gladly refund you in full with no obligation to return the item that you received so long as you don't admit to them that you ever actually received it. No photo of the "empty box" you supposedly received will be required to back up your claim.

Even if the seller appeals the case ebay is unlikely to change their mind.

In fact even if you have any remorse whatsoever at all and decide to send the item back to the seller which then gives the seller the ability to prove that your original affidavit was false, that still won't change ebay's mind no matter how much evidence the seller is able to provide to ebay.

As far as ebay is concerned if you claim in a legal document that you received an empty box then that is the gospel they will believe above all else.

How do I know this to be true?

It happened to us despite having an anchor store on ebay and selling on ebay for over 14 years with 99.6% positive feedback.

If you really want to rub salt in your sellers wounds that you receive the free stuff from then you can also defame them in feedback stating that they didn't send you the item and nothing will be done to remove it, further backing up your claim.

[*tippy*toes*]

Geez, Allfix, don't give them any ideas! We have enough trouble with the legitimate eBay shoplifters, without giving anyone else the idea.

If eBay is so hell bent on believing a fake legal document, maybe you should submit one too. I'd make mention that you are happy to stand up in court to say your stat dec is true. Shame the buyer can't say the same thing without getting into some kind of trouble.

[chameleon54]

Its incredibly frustrating isnt it. I have just recieved my first neutral feedback in around 3000 transactions. The buyer opened a dispute. but then closed it when challenged with photographic evidence that showed he was lying. He then blatently lies in his feedback left for me, claiming I left abusive messages for him.   ( OK I admit it was tempting, but I held my tongue LOL ) .  It turns out the guy is a serial pest who regularly has " problems " with sellers.

 I contact ebay customer support and ask them to view the messages which shows he lied. They have a look, agree the buyer is not telling the truth, BUT THEN LEAVE THE FEEDBACK because that is the buyers experience. Where is the support and safety for sellers ????

I suppose I should be grateful the buyer did not leave one of his regular red dots....... Perhaps I,m not such a bad seller after all.....

[phorum_junkie*]

It is the buyer who has committed fraud and it is the buyer you should go after. Tell them in no uncertain terms, if the item was returned to you so you have proof it was received, that you will be reporting them to the police for trying to obtain goods by deception and making an untrue declaration. #Also tell them that as their behaviour has had a negative effect on your ebay business and wasted a lot of your time you will be going after them for compensation through the small claims court procedure.

I know you probably won't want to wast your time doing any of that but it may give the non buyer pause for thought.

[allfixelectrical]

Spent 2 hours with Albury police today presenting them with all of the evidence and why they agreed that we had a good case it would depend on a few things that could not be guaranteed as far as succeeding was concerned.

One of those was the ability for the police to obtain a copy of the affidavit presented to ebay by the buyer which was not automatically a given that it would be freely available to them and the other thing is that they suggested that it may mean several trips for myself and my staff member to travel to Sydney for court appearances for which at the end of it all was not likely to mean that the buyer would receive any more than a warning or possible a couple of hundred dollar fine and all we could expect was the 50 odd dollars that we are out of pocket for.

In other words, the law is an ass and unless an item is worth a truck load of money, such cases are not worth pursuing.

What galls me more than anything is the offending buyer is an IT project manager working for the Westpac bank so really should be made an example of.

[queenslander]

Report him to his Employer (Westpac) they may be interested in his activities.

[*tippy*toes*]

You wouldn't need to travel to Sydney for court cases. If the transaction originated in Albury, they would have to travel to you. They would have to cough up the expense of driving there and any accommodation they may incur. If they want it moved to Sydney, then they have to pay your expenses for you to travel up there.

[imastawka]

Tippy,  I think because the transaction was on ebay and their HQ is in Sydney,

that's where the case would be heard.

[lyndal1838]

Stawks, there was a court case some time ago.....buyer in Queensland, seller in Victoria.  The buyer had to travel to Victoria.

[springyzone]

The law and justice are two different things from what i have found.

You might have right on your side but pursuing it legally can still leave you out of pocket even if you win.