Need help with unethical seller

[lady-jekyll]

Hello-

I need some help/advice as I am having a hard time navigating ebay's help information for actually filing a report or finding anyway to speak to a rep.

A couple of weeks ago, a seller listed a collectible item with a buy-it-now of a couple hundred dollars ( can't remember the exact amount, but it was definitely over $200 ) and a minimum bid of only .99 cents and no reserve. So I bid and 6 days later, I won it for 99 cents. Immediately following before I could pay, the seller put in a cancellation request which I originally denied. He claimed he 'lost the item' while I was sure it was simply remorse he didn't put a reserve on the item and it sold for only 99 cents. We went back and forth for days, and he never budge on his 'I lost it' story. When he sent a second request days later, I didn't know what to do but accept it because he kept repeating 'sorry, I lost it. Nothing more I can do.'

Well, to my 'non-surprise' a couple days after I accepted the cancellation the auction is relisted with a minimum bid set much much higher than the original auction I won.

I contacted the seller and it 'magically' reappeared in his home and I can bid now again if I want! Of course, this time it's much higher and there are other bidders this round.

I find this extremely unethical and I feel users like this shouldn't be permitted to use eBay if they are going to exercise such fraudulent, unethical practices in their selling techniques. Please, what I should do? This is really upsetting.

[lyndal1838]

I agree that it is annoying when this happens but there is nothing you can do....you cannot force the seller to send the item to you.

[howevalerie]

You can still leave Feedback for the Seller as the deal was Mutually Cancelled. I agree that it is a very irritating scenario but you lost any leverage when you agreed to cancel the transaction.

[nonny_muss]

This is clearly unethical and I would call eBay direct to speak with someone.  There is also a 'report item' link somewhere on the listing.  Click on it and select the option which comes up that most fits your situation.  Give as much detail as possible, but don't leave it to ebay  to follow it up just based on this, call them too.  

[2106greencat]

OP - most likely it was a new seller who did not realise the BIN would disappear as soon as the first bid was placed.

Look at it from another point of view, what if you had accidentally bid $100 for something you meant to bid $10.00 for - would you be as unforgiving and pay the seller regardless of the mistake or hope the seller would cut you a little slack? 🙂

rkwm888

Please don't advise people to break eBay rules on these boards.X-(

[foxette-in-sox]

The reason why you may be having problems re how to contact ebay is that you are in the US,the seller is in the US but you have posted on the AUSTRALIAN discussion boards.

[lady-jekyll]

It isn't a new seller and I don't see why I should cu him some slack when he obviously lied about losing the item and then realists it at a much higher minimum and then invites me to bid at this new, higher price.  If he had been up front to begin with and said 'look, I really don't want to let go of this item for only 99 cents' I honestly would have offered him a bit more.  But instead he chose to lie about losing the item and then turned around and re-listed the item for much higher.

[lady-jekyll]

I noticed the 'au' in the 

url, lol, but for some reason whenever I log in to my eBay and search for help, it automatically ttakes me to the Australia boards and help.

[belindabargainhunter]

Yes giving people a break is nice but I have had this happen so many times I am over it. Ebay rules are that If I bid and want to take back has to be in 12 hours. Maybe if the sellers keep playing these games buyers should to.

[2106greencat]

True Belinda, I always go to the dispute, unless as I said the seller/buyer is relatively new.

I think it is such a grey area at times because there are many variables that make the actual correct advice impossible and really depends on the person concerned and the events involved.