Are fruitcakes running rampant on eBay lately? Selling, buying, listing, feedback, etc...

[dmc]

6 minutes ago, Darth_Raichu said:

Call eBay and report the user 

 

 

9 minutes ago, fuzzy_bricks said:

You should probably report that first guy.

If someone lowballs me then I'll respond with a "Thanks, but this is the best I can do" and offer the list price of the item.  I've never had anyone keep after it where I felt like I needed to block them though.  If they're somewhat serious I'll figure out where they're at and what shipping would be and come down a few bucks if I can.

Thanks a lot, guys. I did call and report him. And sounds like a good way to respond. Much appreciated.

[stephen_rockefeller]

If someone sends you a low offer simply ignore it or politely respond......no need to block with no response. That is just asking for stupid things to happen. I know you wouldn't think this from reading posts here but it doesn't hurt to be a polite seller on ebay.

[Grynn]

7 minutes ago, stephen_rockefeller said:

If someone sends you a low offer simply ignore it or politely respond......no need to block with no response. That is just asking for stupid things to happen. I know you wouldn't think this from reading posts here but it doesn't hurt to be a polite seller on ebay.

No kidding. I read all this auto-block nonsense and just shake my head. A lowball offer has turned into a great sale more than once for me because I responded kindly and educated a clueless buyer a bit, then came down maybe 10% because they responded in kind. 

What happened to common decency?

Blocking works just as well AFTER someone acts up like the recently mentioned pest, which is extremely rare.

[dmc]

6 minutes ago, Grynn said:

No kidding. I read all this auto-block nonsense and just shake my head. A lowball offer has turned into a great sale more than once for me because I responded kindly and educated a clueless buyer a bit, then came down maybe 10% because they responded in kind. 

What happened to common decency?

Blocking works just as well AFTER someone acts up like the recently mentioned pest, which is extremely rare.

Well, thanks, you two for modeling polite responses for me. Jesus Christ. I am a polite seller. But, this is a hobby for me. I don't owe someone who makes a lowball offer anything and remember that I didn't even have "make an offer" in the listing. Someone makes you an offer when the listing makes it clear you're not entertaining offers, you don't owe them a response. You can respond. But deciding you don't want to deal with those people isn't rude. 

[sflv]

Just yesterday on eBay I had a user offer almost half of what I was asking on a Buy It Now listing with no best offer. I politely declined immediately so they could look elsewhere if needed and explained that I was firm on my price. 10 minutes later the person buys it full price. Would have lost me a sale if I blocked this person.

[dmc]

18 minutes ago, sflv said:

Just yesterday on eBay I had a user offer almost half of what I was asking on a Buy It Now listing with no best offer. I politely declined immediately so they could look elsewhere if needed and explained that I was firm on my price. 10 minutes later the person buys it full price. Would have lost me a sale if I blocked this person.

Nice. And thanks for a polite response that doesn't imply I lack common decency or call my actions "nonsense."

[stephen_rockefeller]

Sometimes people need to be told there are being ridiculous.........its called constructive criticism.

[Migration]

23 minutes ago, dmc said:

Nice. And thanks for a polite response that doesn't imply I lack common decency or call my actions "nonsense."

I block users all the time, usually when they repeatedly ask about box condition after I explain none of my sets are mint. I did have a buyer make multiple lowball offers each time I relished a set, I finally gave my minimum and he responded that he had plenty of patience and his offer of 60% of my asking price stood. My item sold full price two days later.

7 minutes ago, stephen_rockefeller said:

Sometimes people need to be told there are being ridiculous.........its called constructive criticism.

You're being rediculous.

[zak001]

I get multiple, "Will you take a tiny fraction of what is already the best price on ebay for your item?" messages a week. How do you guys deal with these? Thanks for any suggestions.

I have a stock cut-and-paste answer that thanks them for their interest, politely informs them that we do not consider offers on items for which we haven't selected the "Best Offer" feature (which is, uh, all of them), and wishes them luck obtaining the item at their desired price. It's very polite, quick and painless, and reinforces an image of professionalism.

Mentally I'm casting them in a brick-built, life-size Cask of Amontillado MOC, but that's just a stress-reliever.

[thoroakenfelder]

Not Ebay, but I had a similar  experience on Offerup. I posted a bunch of sets totalling above $500. Someone sent a message, "I'll take them all for $200." My wife saw it and responded no thank you, they sent back a message saying "It's a fair offer unless you want them to sit on your shelf for several years." Why do people assume that if you are selling something that you need it gone immediately and are willing to take whatever bad offer comes along? also, since when is less than 40% of the asking price a fair offer?

[msdontplay01]

On 12/27/2015 at 5:16 PM, msdontplay01 said:

Fellow Brickpickers, check out this crazy transaction with an eBay buyer.  

A customer bought a case of action figures (brand new sealed case, each character individually wrapped) for $155, free shipping. The package was delivered to the customer in Hawaii on Sat Dec 18.  I get a return request stating "Aloha, I just received my item yesterday and we found rat feces all over the inside of the box. It looks like a rat had eaten through the cardboard box and gotten inside there was a hole on the outside it smelled of feces and urine my kids were taken to the hospital and the item was removed from our home. If I could please get an immediate refund so that I may purchase my children a present seeing as this one present that they wanted was taken from our home by the animal control here and the local police. Please respond as soon as possible".

I authorized the return and let them know I was willing to offer a refund once the item was returned. If they were unable to return as already mentioned I needed some documentation from Animal Control, the Police report, or some pics in order to make a case in filing a claim/investigation with the Post Office.

The customer replied back stating "I won't release my daughters medical record. If you call the the Molokai police department they will tell you that they do not release police reports here on island it needs to be done on Maui which is another island. I do not have any pictures as this happened all too fast and my daughters health and safety were more important". 

I never asked this customer for medical records. Since they say the package was disposed of and have nothing to return, I simply want to see some evidence they received a rat-infested package. Their story is hard to believe and since they claim they cannot return the package and will not provide any documentation, I told them they will have to wait and see how this case plays out with eBay.  I already called eBay and they stated "No return, no refund".  I'm not sure if this buyer looked at my feedback or history with eBay but I am a top rated seller, have excellent feedback, and know hot to sell online.  Due to my 10 years of selling experience on eBay, I do not give in to scammers.

Update to this crazy story.  Of course the buyer never returned the item and never sent any documentation verifying they received their package with rat feces inside.  I called eBay customer support last night, had them review the case & messages back and forth with the buyer.  eBay closed the case in my favor.  They also did NOT refund the buyer since they did not return the package.  Some of these buyers and the stories they come up with are ridiculous!

[trstnkn]

Two topics...

Unsolicited offers --- Ive been getting a lot of the unsolicited offers lately, especially on my train engines.  When I get a low offer, I provide a canned response indicating that I will gladly take that offer once I remove all of the power functions and motor.  Well, only took the second person to take the deal, so sometimes it can result in a very fair sale.

Missing item + shipped in original Lego box --- I bought a used, retired train set for my son.  It came with a lot of additional track, so it was an easy purchase to make.  Track sales alone will cover the cost of the train.  Well, the seller shorted me the curved track.  Sent them message.  They accidentally replied to me (instead of their daughter) saying "some gal says we shorted her on the track".  I kindly replied saying that she sent the note to the wrong person.  24 hours+ have passed with no "I'll look into it", "sorry"...nothing.

And then on top of this.  She simply wrapped the original Lego box in kraft paper to ship it?!?!?!  I have not addressed this yet with her as I wanted to resolve the track first. Don't really care about the train box too much as I believe we will not keep every train car.  I've noticed sellers mentioning that they might ship this way in listings, but shouldn't a seller know not to do this.  She has some other higher end Technic sets up - can't imagine the buyer receiving them shipped in original Lego box.

At what timeline do you escalate the issue?  Any other tips?  I guess this is why I am a seller, not a buyer on eBay...

[chezman]

Brickpicker Fruitcake?

  While looking through Brick Classifieds, I came across this this: https://www.brickclassifieds.com/products/rare-set-804-extra-bricks-block

Are they really asking for that much money!? The price guide says the NIB price is more around $349 for it currently, plus this person has zero reviews and only has this one item for sale.

Is it just me who who this is way too much?

[Val-E]

14 minutes ago, chezman said:

Brickpicker Fruitcake?

  While looking through Brick Classifieds, I came across this this: https://www.brickclassifieds.com/products/rare-set-804-extra-bricks-block

Are they really asking for that much money!? The price guide says the NIB price is more around $349 for it currently, plus this person has zero reviews and only has this one item for sale.

Is it just me who who this is way too much?

Same PPC count as Seattle Space Needle at RRP.....

[dmc]

On 1/7/2016 at 2:46 PM, stephen_rockefeller said:

Sometimes people need to be told there are being ridiculous.........its called constructive criticism.

Is this a joke? That's what you think constructive criticism is? Telling someone they're being ridiculous? Well, then, sir, you are being ridiculous.

"Constructive criticism is the process of offering valid and well-reasoned opinions about the work of others, usually involving both positive and negative comments, in a friendly manner rather than an oppositional one."

[randrace]

23 hours ago, trstnkn said:

-- I bought a used, retired train set for my son.  It came with a lot of additional track, so it was an easy purchase to make.  Track sales alone will cover the cost of the train.  Well, the seller shorted me the curved track.  Sent them message.  They accidentally replied to me (instead of their daughter) saying "some gal says we shorted her on the track".  I kindly replied saying that she sent the note to the wrong person.  24 hours+ have passed with no "I'll look into it", "sorry"...nothing.

And then on top of this.  She simply wrapped the original Lego box in kraft paper to ship it?!?!?!  I have not addressed this yet with her as I wanted to resolve the track first. Don't really care about the train box too much as I believe we will not keep every train car.  I've noticed sellers mentioning that they might ship this way in listings, but shouldn't a seller know not to do this.  She has some other higher end Technic sets up - can't imagine the buyer receiving them shipped in original Lego box.

At what timeline do you escalate the issue?  Any other tips?  I guess this is why I am a seller, not a buyer on eBay...

Take pictures of everything. Take a photo of the shipping label and make a note of the box weight. Send one, " hey, just checking in" message a day to seller until you get a reply.

Have a clear idea of what a would be a good solution, and present it to the seller. Do you just want the track? Track and partial refund for damaged box? I would lay it all out in one message.

 

Worse comes to worse, you can send it back on their dime as "item not as described." Open up a case if negotiations break down. I wouldn't wait more than a week before opening a case.

[stephen_rockefeller]

2 hours ago, dmc said:

OolIs this a joke? That's what you think constructive criticism is? Telling someone they're being ridiculous? Well, then, sir, you are being ridiculous.

"Constructive criticism is the process of offering valid and well-reasoned opinions about the work of others, usually involving both positive and negative comments, in a friendly manner rather than an oppositional one."

Cool story......time to change out those batteries in your sarcasm detector.

[dinner41]

Can someone maybe shed some light on strange sells on eBay? What about, for instance, this:

  http://www.ebay.com/itm/10228-HAUNTED-HOUSE-Monster-Fighters-legos-SEALED-sold-out-IN-HAND-exclusive-/251306103105?hash=item3a8302d141%3Am%3AmMOBTpB3br_pcx0cqSlbukg&nma=true&si=KOY0%252BD2Eq%252B1yxNrgs52ZH9MYFRs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

A 10228 Haunted House, *sold* for $1800? Who on Earth would do that? Assuming nobody is really _that_ dumb, what is going on there? It's not the first time I see listings for *sold* items that end at prices that are way more than what should be expected. The only thing I could imagine is someone trying to screw statistics (BP anyone) - but I couldn't imagine this would be worth the eBay fees for that sell - which by coincidence (?) would be around MRRP.e son

Maybe someone trying to get a 'quick' buyer that thought the price would actually be $179.99?

Edited January 11, 2016 by dinner41

[Lordoflego]

15 minutes ago, dinner41 said:

Can someone maybe shed some light on strange sells on eBay? What about, for instance, this:

  http://www.ebay.com/itm/10228-HAUNTED-HOUSE-Monster-Fighters-legos-SEALED-sold-out-IN-HAND-exclusive-/251306103105?hash=item3a8302d141%3Am%3AmMOBTpB3br_pcx0cqSlbukg&nma=true&si=KOY0%252BD2Eq%252B1yxNrgs52ZH9MYFRs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

A 10228 Haunted House, *sold* for $1800? Who on Earth would do that? Assuming nobody is really _that_ dumb, what is going on there? It's not the first time I see listings for *sold* items that end at prices that are way more than what should be expected. The only thing I could imagine is someone trying to screw statistics (BP anyone) - but I couldn't imagine this would be worth the eBay fees for that sell - which by coincidence (?) would be around MRRP.e son

Maybe someone trying to get a 'quick' buyer that thought the price would actually be $179.99?

All I can tell you is that the first one sold for $299

[Val-E]

Seems to be a 2 item listing ended by the seller so no actual sale at that price, just the 299 one mentioned above.

[gregpj]

 

Can someone maybe shed some light on strange sells on eBay? What about, for instance, this:

  http://www.ebay.com/itm/10228-HAUNTED-HOUSE-Monster-Fighters-legos-SEALED-sold-out-IN-HAND-exclusive-/251306103105?hash=item3a8302d141%3Am%3AmMOBTpB3br_pcx0cqSlbukg&nma=true&si=KOY0%252BD2Eq%252B1yxNrgs52ZH9MYFRs%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

A 10228 Haunted House, *sold* for $1800? Who on Earth would do that? Assuming nobody is really _that_ dumb, what is going on there? It's not the first time I see listings for *sold* items that end at prices that are way more than what should be expected. The only thing I could imagine is someone trying to screw statistics (BP anyone) - but I couldn't imagine this would be worth the eBay fees for that sell - which by coincidence (?) would be around MRRP.e son

Maybe someone trying to get a 'quick' buyer that thought the price would actually be $179.99?

There are tons of reasons why items get listed with high prices... greedy sellers, money laundering, typos, placeholder listings, etc... whatever you can imagine could be a reason. Messing with the sold statistics for BP shouldn't be on anyone's radar as a reason for these high listings... as you said, it's not worth the effort and cost in fees.

But as said before, if you click the 1 sold link in that listing, you'll see the one sold was $299.99.

Also, that seller has 100% positive feedback and a store full of legit listings... I don't think they'd try to "fool" someone into buying at an inflated price either. As usual, look at all the variables... then decide, it's not worth the effort to figure it out.

[Val-E]

Another possible explanation is that a deal was being done outwith Ebay so the seller raised the price to dissuade buyers until the sale was completed. If it fell through, that way they could lower the price again and not need to readvertise.

[Seeyounexttuesday]

13 hours ago, dmc said:

Is this a joke? That's what you think constructive criticism is? Telling someone they're being ridiculous? Well, then, sir, you are being ridiculous.

"Constructive criticism is the process of offering valid and well-reasoned opinions about the work of others, usually involving both positive and negative comments, in a friendly manner rather than an oppositional one."

Yes it's a joke or even more accurately,  it's a tongue in cheek statement.

Edited January 11, 2016 by Pjking

[trstnkn]

So I contact a seller with a large train pieces lot on auction because the shipping calculation seems way off.  I'm in New England so only 3 very small states away from seller and shipping charge was $30 for what looks like way less than 10 lbs of pieces.  His response...

"Even though you were relatively close the distance these days isn't a factor unless your located in a remote location in the usa or hawaii it typically goes by weight. I hope that answers you inquiry."

So you east coasters, next time you have that free ship purchase to California...remember USPS only goes by weight not distance.

And because I could not resist, I told him he must go to a different post office than I do.

 

 

 

 

[kunfuzd]

Note from buyer today regarding a large order:

Note to seller 
please pack carefully , i don't wanna receive crap.

I was tempted to include a picture of this...