Ebay sellers and unexpected refunds.

[Andrew Barkley]

Hey folks, after vetting Ebay sellers here, I went about purchasing some knives and maxpedition gear. Being new to Ebay I noticed that some knives from sellers arrived quickly despite my living in South Africa and ordering from sellers in the states while others are taking very long indeed. My question is. If I send a message to a seller asking about 5 items that I have still not received and then stating that I still want the item but an explanation or education about the process would be welcome and then suddenly all 5 items are refunded! Does this mean they were never sent to begin with? Apologies if this is the incorrect platform.

 

[Lodd]

Only the seller knows for sure. It's also possible that he just didn't have or want to spend the time dealing with a customer and refunded you without reading/understanding your e-mail properly.

 

[morvlorv]

were the items or order marked as shipped? and were you issued a tracking number?
If so, does said tracking number show any movement?

If the order was not marked as shipped, and there was no tracking information issued, I would assume they did not ship.

If there was a tracking number issued, and it still does not show any movement after a day or two, I would also assume they did not ship.
If there was tracking issued and the tracking number shows movement, perhaps they are still on the way.

But yes, only the seller could know for sure what happened.

eBay holds sellers to certain standards, and eBay will settle in favor of buyers in 99% of issues.
If eBay settles in favor of a buyer for an issue, those go against the sellers rating and could affect the fees they pay eBay, so sometimes sellers will just issue refunds so that they dont get this negative ding with eBay.

 

[Andrew Barkley]

Ye, that makes sense. Having said that, there was tracking info provided and it just said "received by carrier" followed by "in transit". The weird part is that all of the items I ordered from that supplier gave that tracking result. Only the 5 higher end items and some random stuff was overdue and when I asked for feedback I was just credited. So in essence, those items are either still in transit and the seller has written them off to keep it cool online (unlikely) or something else is going on. All the other suppliers are behind schedule but every one of them offered varying plausible explanations for delays which I except as long as there is dialogue. Only the one supplier just suddenly refunded me without so much as a "hello". Super strange I thought.

 

[Danke42]

I would guess that after your questions the seller followed up with the carrier and was told the shipment was lost.

So then the seller refunded your payments. Sounds like a good seller.

They didn't have you wait 30 days to see if the stuff surfaced, they didn't send a bunch of pointless mails or drag this out further. Stuff outside peoples control like lost shipments happen all the time and treating it like this vs. what you see in some of the "bad" transactions is great.

 

[Andrew Barkley]

That's a fair point. I'm a measured individual so giving negative feedback was never on the cards unless I had gone through all the channels first and allowed the seller every opportunity to put it right. At the end of the day I was refunded and I'm happy but a message from the seller would have been a nice touch.

 

[Angusbort]

EBay is terrible in every way.
It’s becoming a breeding ground for scam artists that understand eBay does not protect their sellers and always sides with buyer to keep their money flowing.

Purchase From the great folks here On Blade forum or directly from makers.

 

[tyyreaun]

Purchase From the great folks here On Blade forum or directly from makers.

Except that, reading GB&U, the forums here aren't perfect, either

I sell used knives on Ebay regularly, as well, and I haven't been scammed yet (knock on wood). I think that cheaper production knives aren't really worth scamming, and more expensive custom knives would be harder to fence if stolen.

I'm also into photography, and when I want to get rid of a $2000+ lens, I usually use services like KEH or Amazon's trade-in program to sell my stuff. I get much less than I would with a direct sale, but it also eliminates almost all risk of scams. Given that photo equipment is (I think) much more of a scam magnet, it's worth it in my opinion.

Likewise for knives - if you're worried, use AZCK. I do for more expensive knives. You pay them 25% but they take on all the risk.

 

[Angusbort]

Except that, reading GB&U, the forums here aren't perfect, either

I sell used knives on Ebay regularly, as well, and I haven't been scammed yet (knock on wood). I think that cheaper production knives aren't really worth scamming, and more expensive custom knives would be harder to fence if stolen.

I'm also into photography, and when I want to get rid of a $2000+ lens, I usually use services like KEH or Amazon's trade-in program to sell my stuff. I get much less than I would with a direct sale, but it also eliminates almost all risk of scams. Given that photo equipment is (I think) much more of a scam magnet, it's worth it in my opinion.

Likewise for knives - if you're worried, use AZCK. I do for more expensive knives. You pay them 25% but they take on all the risk.

Being able to document and communicate with Blade Forum members about ANYTHING good or bad is why I stand with Blade Forum.

I would NOT recommend flea bay in anyway shape or form because oh geez bay does not hold negative/fraudulent activity accountable so THEY can make their money.

The great mods of BF do not tolerate And or allow any type of negative user behavior and are very quick to step in and help fellow member truthfully in anyway they can.

Blade Forum for LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Beak14]

I'm also into photography, and when I want to get rid of a $2000+ lens, I usually use services like KEH or Amazon's trade-in program to sell my stuff. I get much less than I would with a direct sale, but it also eliminates almost all risk of scams. Given that photo equipment is (I think) much more of a scam magnet, it's worth it in my opinion.

Do you happen to know where to get an honest deal on a Canon 10-22mm?

Anyway, eBay's become so buyer-centric, that I'm not too sure I want to sell on there, anymore. But, I have to admit, there are things that work well, there.

The buying of knives, switching them out with clones, or whatever you want to them, is a dastardly deed, that's for sure!

 

[tyyreaun]

Do you happen to know where to get an honest deal on a Canon 10-22mm?

Hrmm - in my opinion, based on my experience, I'd recommend dumping your Canon gear and going Nikon .

The buying of knives, switching them out with clones, or whatever you want to them, is a dastardly deed, that's for sure!

I would guess that'd be more of a problem with regular common production knives - stock PM2s or Griptilians, for example. With production knives I tend to lean towards sprint runs or the rarer/weirder stuff, so I've never had this be an issue.

 

[Beak14]

I would guess that'd be more of a problem with regular common production knives - stock PM2s or Griptilians, for example. With production knives I tend to lean towards sprint runs or the rarer/weirder stuff, so I've never had this be an issue.

Yes, that's exactly what I'm speaking about! The weirder stuff, while I suppose it could be cloned, I don't think it matches up with China's capacity to produce, and produce, for exceeding low prices/costs. And, with something that's in high demand, such as a PM2, there's a market for these cheap, counterfeit, knives.

Hrmm - in my opinion, based on my experience, I'd recommend dumping your Canon gear and going Nikon .

Yeah, well, not at this point! I'd like to have a lens I can shoot indoors with, and that lens seems to be as good as any. It's funny how fast you run out of room, when shooting bedrooms, in smaller homes. But, if I found somebody selling a Nikon, with a super wide angle lens, I would consider that, if the price was doable.

ETA: My apologies, if I got this thread off track. Now, back to eBay!