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eBay, Sold an iPhone, Buyer Filed Dispute...

M

MOKHAN

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 19, 2011
341
9
Toronto, Canada
I live in Canada. I sold a 16GB AT&T Black iPhone 4 over eBay, auction style. A 6-month old USA user with 5 feedback ended up winning the auction.

I specified I would ship it "Standard Int'l Shipping [USA Small Packet Air]", it went out this Monday. Today, the buyer contacted me, furious, that he had not received the item yet. I tried explaining it would take 4-10 business days as Canada Post had estimated. He kept insisting it should arrive in 5 days.

He simply wouldn't believe me (possibly due to his lack of experience on eBay), and ended up filing an Item Not Received Dispute. Now, the problem is, the shipping method I used doesn't have an update-able tracking number (only displays when I made the shipping label). There also isn't any delivery confirmation or signature added, which seems to be the only proof PayPal will accept from my side (unless the buyer contacts them and says he received it upon delivery).

Am I screwed? Anybody have similar experiences?
 
Sounds like you could be screwed because you used a shipper that can't confirm delivery or track your shipment. Why did you send it like that?
 
ucfgrad93 said:
Sounds like you could be screwed because you used a shipper that can't confirm delivery or track your shipment. Why did you send it like that?
Click to expand...

I had shipped numerous times the same way before without a problem. I'll be more cautious in the future.

eternlgladiator said:
Talk to PayPal about the dispute. You should be able to convince them to delay the refund a little so the buyer can receive it and hopefully close the dispute.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I've called them a couple of times. They pretty much told me a tracking number or the seller verifying they received the item are the only ways I can possibly resolve the case. I'll hope on the latter.
 
MOKHAN said:
He simply wouldn't believe me (possibly due to his lack of experience on eBay), and ended up filing an Item Not Received Dispute.
Click to expand...

MOKHAN said:
I had shipped numerous times the same way before without a problem. I'll be more cautious in the future.
Click to expand...

You have shipped items numerous times without using the method that PayPal specifies you need to for protection, and call the buyer an inexperienced eBay user?:rolleyes::confused:

I hope I'm wrong and you get either paid or get your phone back, but I think that you are SOL.
 
As you are finding out, nothing beats choosing a shipping method that provides tracking information & proof of delivery. It's always up to the seller to setup the transaction so everything is documented. It's worth the extra expense, and saves you time & trouble. Dealing with a total stranger is always risky. Good luck, hope it turns out OK.
 
ucfgrad93 said:
You have shipped items numerous times without using the method that PayPal specifies you need to for protection, and call the buyer an inexperienced eBay user?:rolleyes::confused:

I hope I'm wrong and you get either paid or get your phone back, but I think that you are SOL.
Click to expand...

Well, he has 5 feedback, I have 80, it's not difficult to see who has more experience on eBay.

And yeah, I hope everything works out too! Thanks.

ixodes said:
As you are finding out, nothing beats choosing a shipping method that provides tracking information & proof of delivery. It's always up to the seller to setup the transaction so everything is documented. It's worth the extra expense, and saves you time & trouble. Dealing with a total stranger is always risky. Good luck, hope it turns out OK.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the support, I definitely won't cheap-out next time.
 
Selling on Ebay has become a gamble with electronics. Been a pretty unsettling trend over the last couple of years of people getting screwed over by buyer disputes, lots of times with the buyer saying items arrived broken, etc. Its gotten to the point where I won't even use it anymore. Either sell it local or hand it down to a family member or friend.
 
ugahairydawgs said:
Selling on Ebay has become a gamble with electronics. Been a pretty unsettling trend over the last couple of years of people getting screwed over by buyer disputes, lots of times with the buyer saying items arrived broken, etc. Its gotten to the point where I won't even use it anymore. Either sell it local or hand it down to a family member or friend.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I avoid eBay like the plague.
 
The point is, Paypal allows buyers to defraud sellers. That is why I only accept bank transfers when I sell something on eBay. Oh, your country mandates to accept Paypal? Pwned. Maybe you should file a claim against Paypal for that.
 
MOKHAN said:
Well, he has 5 feedback, I have 80, it's not difficult to see who has more experience on eBay.

And yeah, I hope everything works out too! Thanks.
Click to expand...

Because of course there's no way that the buyer isn't an experienced scammer that runs multiple burner accounts buying 4-5 small items then ripping inexperienced sellers off.

80 feedback is nothing, you need to protect yourself in future.
 
Hope it all goes ok in the end, but I wouldn't hold my breath. eBay always sides with the buyer, sellers have literally no protection.

ugahairydawgs said:
Selling on Ebay has become a gamble with electronics. Been a pretty unsettling trend over the last couple of years of people getting screwed over by buyer disputes, lots of times with the buyer saying items arrived broken, etc. Its gotten to the point where I won't even use it anymore. Either sell it local or hand it down to a family member or friend.
Click to expand...

I completely avoid eBay now too. Sold a MacBook a few years ago and buyer said it was dented on the base and wouldn't turn on. I knew I was screwed either way, but funny how the buyer seemed quite happy for me to lower the price by $100 for a laptop that was supposedly dented and broken. Only way to really get to the bottom of any disputes is in court.

I only sell locally and use Gumtree/Craigslist, cash in hand in a coffee shop. Takes longer to find a buyer, but avoids a rather stressful experience of being screwed over by someone for a lot of money.
 
I used to sell on eBay all the time without issue. I had a 100% positive feedback score of over 250 transactions. Then I sold one of my wife's purses. The buyer decided they didn't like it. My auction stated no returns, so I told them it would not be returnable. They buyer then slashed the purse with a utility knife and filed a claim. PayPal refunded their money and I received back a bag that had intentionally been destroyed.

So bottom line, even if your buyer does receive the phone, he can screw you over. You have to take the gamble that he will be honest and close the case.

eBay used to be great. I won't touch it now.
 
MOKHAN said:
I live in Canada. I sold a 16GB AT&T Black iPhone 4 over eBay, auction style. A 6-month old USA user with 5 feedback ended up winning the auction.

I specified I would ship it "Standard Int'l Shipping [USA Small Packet Air]", it went out this Monday. Today, the buyer contacted me, furious, that he had not received the item yet. I tried explaining it would take 4-10 business days as Canada Post had estimated. He kept insisting it should arrive in 5 days.

He simply wouldn't believe me (possibly due to his lack of experience on eBay), and ended up filing an Item Not Received Dispute. Now, the problem is, the shipping method I used doesn't have an update-able tracking number (only displays when I made the shipping label). There also isn't any delivery confirmation or signature added, which seems to be the only proof PayPal will accept from my side (unless the buyer contacts them and says he received it upon delivery).

Am I screwed? Anybody have similar experiences?
Click to expand...

My understanding is that in the auction, you stated how the item would be shipped. The buyer can file an "item not received" dispute, but nothing is going to happen because they have to wait a period of time anyway before they are able to file it. And when your auction is reviewed, if the issue is that if the item did not arrive in 5 days, I don't see this as a controversy.

However I must stress that you should always back yourself up with a method of shipping that includes tracking so that you are not faced with someone saying they never received an item and you have no way of proving otherwise. In that case, I think you'd lose.

Now where I would have an issue is if this person is allowed to give you, the seller a negative rating based on this experience, an item recieved in 8-10 days vs 5 days if shipping was accurately stated in the auction. For a while I've had serious issues with ebay's policy that the buyer is the only one allowed to critique a transaction. There are just as many dishonest buyers as sellers out there...
 
Last edited:
Huntn said:
My understanding is that in the auction, you stated how the item would be shipped. The buyer can file an "item not received" dispute, but nothing is going to happen because they have to wait a period of time anyway before they are able to file it. And when your auction is reviewed, if the issue is that if the item did not arrive in 5 days, I don't see this as a controversy.

However I must stress that you should always back yourself up with a method of shipping that includes tracking so that you are not faced with someone saying they never received an item and you have no way of proving otherwise. In that case, I think you'd lose.

Now where I would have an issue is if this person is allowed to give you, the seller a negative rating based on this experience, an item recieved in 8-10 days vs 5 days if shipping was accurately stated in the auction. For a while I've had serious issues with ebay's policy that the buyer is the only one allowed to critique a transaction. There are just as many dishonest buyers as sellers out there...
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'll definitely use tracking next time. Yeah, some buyers have impossible expectations. Canada to US in 7 days, not using express, is extremely ambitious.
 
Old Muley said:
I think this is the source of your problem. Infants can be so tempermental!
Click to expand...

Haha, very true. I think I got through to him though. I linked him to the delivery times at the Canada Post website, he said he'll wait. Now, it's up to him whether or not to be honest about actually receiving the item.
 
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