can a sleer do this?

[pamelas-arts-and-crafts]

hello, I am really new to ebay but would like to know what you think?

A seller i have just brought off (2 days ago) reslisted some items i wanted as a gift. She had them before but i missed out and she told me 'when her supplyer had them in stock again she would list them" so she did just that and i went ahead and brough one because i really wanted it. 

My first mistake was not to check feedback most of it was about slow postage etc. 

So i contacted her and asked her would she know when it would be sent? told her as this was part of a gift i would need to know if it would arive in time. Then bam she now tells me after she had listed 10 of these for sale that her supplyer don't know where they have gone. So of course i am angry because she told me to just sit and wait and when and if her supplyer dose have them she will post them out or she will offer me a refund. 

Why would anyone post items that they don't have on hand? Could someone please tell me? because here i thought that anything i buy off ebay the seller would have in stock? i could understand if maby they over sold or something. but the moment this seller listed 10 of them for sale i got one. 

[twyngwyn]

is she in China?

[pamelas-arts-and-crafts]

No she is in the USA 

[digital*ghost]

A seller can list items they do not have on hand if they are either dropshipping or selling pre-orders.

When dropshipping, the seller buys from their supplier when an order comes through and the supplier posts to the buyer directly. Pre-order sales can be taken as long as the seller can guarantee postage within 30 days of the purchase.

That being said, from what the seller has said I'm not sure either of those scenarios apply. They could have been waiting for their supplier to restock but then the supplier couldn't locate the items, or maybe they could have just relisted prematurely or in error.

Is the listing still active? That would tend to help indicate if it was unforseen circumstances or intentional.