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

[Phil B]

3 minutes ago, lego rules said:

I think you were too generous with this particular seller.  They obviously either don't care or don't feel glued Lego parts matters and doesn't need to be mentioned.

I might have been too generous, but I gave them a chance to do the right thing and be apologetic. Since they accepted the return without much hassle (they offered a $20 partial refund but the glued parts are $50 according to BL), I'm not suddenly going to change course - I'll return as per our agreement and only if he for whatever reason does not refund me in full will I escalate and go on the attack.

[KShine]

1 hour ago, Phil B said:

In the meanwhile, my "accidental" purchase of another 71006 for $75 turns out to be a way better find - looks like 90% complete, all minifigs, plus a bonus hotdog cart from the 60104 Fire Station and a Zombie spawner from Minecraft the Dungeon. Oh, and some MegaBloks.

It is always good to keep in mind that while yes, you will always get your occasional clunkers (which are easily remedied) - there will always be those purchases that pay off much more than was expected.

[Spelunkin_Paul]

Need a little guidance.  I just received a package back as "Unclaimed" with some dates written on the box when notices were left by USPS.  The tracking shows that the package was delivered 35 days ago.  Last delivery attempt was about 3 weeks ago.  Never received a message from the buyer about the package.   Any experience with this?

[Salimr]

24 minutes ago, Spelunkin_Paul said:

Need a little guidance.  I just received a package back as "Unclaimed" with some dates written on the box when notices were left by USPS.  The tracking shows that the package was delivered 35 days ago.  Last delivery attempt was about 3 weeks ago.  Never received a message from the buyer about the package.   Any experience with this?

Could have been mine  

just kidding, but I did order my kids some tae kwon do equipment and forgot my apartment number. I noticed the items were returned to sender, as the item was not expensive and I figured shipping was 1/2 the cost of the purchase I would just forget about it. I would email the seller but I forgot and it's been awhile. 

[Spelunkin_Paul]

Need a little guidance.  I just received a package back as "Unclaimed" with some dates written on the box when notices were left by USPS.  The tracking shows that the package was delivered 35 days ago.  Last delivery attempt was about 3 weeks ago.  Never received a message from the buyer about the package.   Any experience with this?

Seems to me to just wait and see if the buyer contacts me. This order was his only eBay sale under his username.

[Bold-Arrow]

U should refund minus shipping cost 

[Phil B]

Conclusion of my Simpsons House saga: Returned the set, got my money back, lost my EBay Bucks (but hey, keeping them would have been a bonus).

Seller has now relisted the set at his original asking price of $150: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lego-The-Simpsons-House-71006-For-Parts-/201803167055#viTabs_0

Check the Seller Notes:

 

Quote

 

Item specifics

Condition:	Used :
Seller Notes:	“Missing Instruction booklet #2. No original box. PLEASE VIEW LAST PICTURE-THESE PARTS IN PLASTIC BAG HAVE BEEN GLUED. Review all photos. SOLD AS IS AS PICTURED. SOLD FOR PARTS. NO RETURNS FOR ANY REASON”

Brand:

LEGO

UPC:

Does not apply

 

I wish him good luck with that .....

Does sound like he just didn't think glued parts were a big deal in LEGO (he sells all sorts of collectibles, very little LEGO) due to inexperience. And that ziploc bag with glued parts is how I sent it back to him.

[BarryZola]

So, that £200+ set I sent to the Czech Republic. Got a return request today with the the reason 'Arrived Damaged' with this note on the details. Turns out I was probably right to be concerned. There was no damage to that box apart from minor shelf wear as described and pictured in the listing. It was through Ebay GSP so shouldn't they be checking that the item is as described before packaging it in the described condition safely and sending it onwards, therefore being liable for any damage afterwards. Shouldn't Ebay be not accepting the item from me if it had additional damage from when it left me? Interested to know what others would do and if they've had the same experience? Cheers.

Hello, Sorry to bother, but it looks that the box got a crease before or during the shipment. I did not expect a perfect box according to the original description, but this crease has been unexpected. I have got the note instructing the people who packed it to be extra careful about the box, but it looks like they may have hit this corner before wrapping it. I do not think the corner could have been damaged during the actual shipment as it the box was well covered. Given the situation, my preference is to return the item. Apologizes for this complication.

[MoHu]

2 hours ago, BarryZola said:

So, that £200+ set I sent to the Czech Republic. Got a return request today with the the reason 'Arrived Damaged' with this note on the details. Turns out I was probably right to be concerned. There was no damage to that box apart from minor shelf wear as described and pictured in the listing. It was through Ebay GSP so shouldn't they be checking that the item is as described before packaging it in the described condition safely and sending it onwards, therefore being liable for any damage afterwards. Shouldn't Ebay be not accepting the item from me if it had additional damage from when it left me? Interested to know what others would do and if they've had the same experience? Cheers.

Hello, Sorry to bother, but it looks that the box got a crease before or during the shipment. I did not expect a perfect box according to the original description, but this crease has been unexpected. I have got the note instructing the people who packed it to be extra careful about the box, but it looks like they may have hit this corner before wrapping it. I do not think the corner could have been damaged during the actual shipment as it the box was well covered. Given the situation, my preference is to return the item. Apologizes for this complication.

Only issue i had is parcel delivered to a different continent to the real addressee. eBay refunded & i kept the money. They recommend buyer open a case to issue the refund. 

But i think (my opinion only) you might be covered as its "damaged in transit"  and not "Not as described".  Either way the buyer will need to open a case to get the refund and you to get fees returned.

Remember the people packing the item are probably paid minimum wage and might have to package a certain number of items per hour.  They are unlikely to package the item with the care you would.

[BarryZola]

Update. It seems that if I select to issue a refund straight away then I will agree to pay the return postage. Upon noting this, I have contacted Ebay who will be emailing me back about the situation as soon as possible, my position being that if the damage occurred within the GSP centre or on their leg of the delivery process, that Ebay should be willing to pay for return postage etc. I surely can't be liable to costs incurred because of an error on Ebay's part? He showed me a photo of the crease/dent and it is a large one that should have been picked up by someone at GSP if it was 'inspected' there before re-packaging and posted out. I take everything with a pinch of salt on Ebay but the buyer just seems to have wanted a near perfect box at the moment, which he didn't receive, so I sympathize with him there. I have no problem with getting a return (as long as there is no further damage and the box remains unopened, and will accept now having a damaged box instead of a pretty minty one. I just don't think I should be liable for any extra shipping to get the thing back to me, plus I had to pay in the first place to ship it out, which is now wasted, which I may mention too. I have sent the buyer a message letting him know that I am awaiting further contact from Ebay regarding these costs and he appears to be very understanding about my situation. We'll see what happens here, but if Ebay cannot guarantee safe delivery from their depot, then will not offer suitable compo with regards to return shipping etc, then I won't be using GSP ever again as it simply does not cover you suitably.

[Guest TabbyBoy]

1 hour ago, BarryZola said:

Update. It seems that if I select to issue a refund straight away then I will agree to pay the return postage. Upon noting this, I have contacted Ebay who will be emailing me back about the situation as soon as possible, my position being that if the damage occurred within the GSP centre or on their leg of the delivery process, that Ebay should be willing to pay for return postage etc. I surely can't be liable to costs incurred because of an error on Ebay's part? He showed me a photo of the crease/dent and it is a large one that should have been picked up by someone at GSP if it was 'inspected' there before re-packaging and posted out. I take everything with a pinch of salt on Ebay but the buyer just seems to have wanted a near perfect box at the moment, which he didn't receive, so I sympathize with him there. I have no problem with getting a return (as long as there is no further damage and the box remains unopened, and will accept now having a damaged box instead of a pretty minty one. I just don't think I should be liable for any extra shipping to get the thing back to me, plus I had to pay in the first place to ship it out, which is now wasted, which I may mention too. I have sent the buyer a message letting him know that I am awaiting further contact from Ebay regarding these costs and he appears to be very understanding about my situation. We'll see what happens here, but if Ebay cannot guarantee safe delivery from their depot, then will not offer suitable compo with regards to return shipping etc, then I won't be using GSP ever again as it simply does not cover you suitably.

I've stopped using GSP as it's:

1. VERY expensive for the buyer and they have to wait nearly a week longer for the item.
2. The GSP seems to hang on to the item for too long before shipping out rather then sending it the same day.
3. GSP have removed items in the past from my strong double-walled boxes and put them in crappy ones to save eBay shipping costs - bloody cheek!

I only ever ship small items (under 1KG) overseas using Royal Mail International Tracked for £18.50, anything larger is strictly to UK buyers only with no exception. If the item is not tracked, eBay will always side with the buyer.

I also block "dodgy" countries. (not mentioned as to not cause offence).

[Guest TabbyBoy]

eBay's GSP use Pitney Bowes which appear to be even worse than UPS, read the horrendous reviews below:

https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.pitneybowes.co.uk

 

[BarryZola]

To be honest, last month was the first time I've decided to list a few large expensive sets on Ebay and on the very first one sold I've run into this hassle. I personally can't be doing with all of this running around every few times I sell such a thing and having the stress of wondering how much money I'm possibly going to lose out on each time. Like yourself, any large expensive items will be getting sold in person in future. It's simply not worth the hassle of dealing with people who are potential scammers and selling/payment companies who are currently geared to protect the buyer in most cases, where possible. I will also review my GSP options on small-medium sets based on how this potential 'case' turns out (I've done a bit of looking around and it seems the way to be may be to inform the buyer to open a 'Not As Described - Damaged in Transit' case and then make sure I don't get a strike against myself by myself dealing with Ebay personally to straighten that out. The item was fully insured within this country and accepted by the GSP, then posted out, so they obviously didn't see a problem with the item received from me. It's not so much buyer beware with Lego, but seller beware

It will be a good case study for me of GSP if nothing else. Done loads in the past with less expensive items with no problems, let's see how they fairly deal with buyer and seller here

[Phil B]

Just watch out with toying with GSP options in EBay - my GSP settings currently don't work and all my listings show without GSP to buyers even though the GSP flag is checked. EBay Tech Support is looking into it (This is in the US). It might have something to do with the fact that about a month ago I tried out my own international shipping but switched back to GSP shortly afterwards (this was on one listing only). Now GSP is foobar for all my listings, even though I shipped many items via GSP in the past so it used to work.

[Voltron]

@BarryZola did you include pictures of all 6 sides of box in your auction? 

[BarryZola]

Just now, Mhd747 said:

@BarryZola did you include pictures of all 6 sides of box in your auction? 

Indeed I did. I used all 12 pics so also had closeups of seals etc.

[Voltron]

2 minutes ago, BarryZola said:

Indeed I did. I used all 12 pics so also had closeups of seals etc.

Not more you could have done I think if you took pictures of all sides of box and sent securely. I always tell everyone to use pictures of actual item of all sides and not stock images. 

I've found that the "least" risky way to send via GSP is to bubble wrap large items then place in box securely. Ebay always open up the package and use the smallest box possible to save on volume / size. If you bubble wrap the set they usually leave that on, however if you include wrapping paper / air pockets those will get thrown out when item gets placed in new smaller box. 

Unfortunately in your position your just going to have to accept the return. Hopefully it will work out for you as buyer doesn't sound like a scammer just pickie with box condition.

[emazers]

I been doing Ebay for 18 years, never signed up for the Ebay Shipping Program, I ship Worldwide except to Russia anything over $100 it has to be mailed Express Mail only, no Exceptions. I always get repeat buyers from alot of countries, as they no it will get there faster, in a well packed box, and get there for sure, When you use Global Shipping, Ebay will open your box and put $500 worth of lego in a smaller not packed box, sure its easier to do Global Shipping, but I want my stuff to get to somebody in Japan, etc in Mint Condition. Plus sometimes the box does not get there on the Guaranteed Date, and you file a claim and you get the shipping money back.    Ed

[BarryZola]

Small update. Ebay got back to me about 15 min's ago. Apparently it is 'unlikely' that anything should go against me in this situation as I had fulfilled all of my responsibilities once it had reached the GSP centre safely. Asked me to request more photo's of the item in general and damage from buyer through Ebay messages (as we're already communicating in there) which will help them when dealing with the next stage of the request/case, to save time. I've passed this info and message on to the buyer so at least he is in the loop continually. Asked them exactly which next step the buyer or myself need to take after this. Hopefully this situation will help others in future to decide whether to use GSP or not in any transactions. Will keep you guys updated.

[Highlander]

I have sold two items GSP

A Robie house that endended up in Australia & a Technic 41999 that ended up in Italy, both went smooth with a lot of communication between the buyers.

I would recommend GSP

[Voltron]

Unfortunately if you live in UK and use ebay to sell lego, the only way to sell Exclusives / big sets (over 2kg) is via GSP. Once you go over the 2kg (and size limit) postage outside of UK is insane. Parcelforce charge approx £60 to post a 3kg set insured to £200. You can save 15% by signing up to their loyalty card, but it's still £51 to ship a set to EU. You can try other courier serbuces but price is going to be similar. Very few buyers are willing to pay that amount, and it does not make sense to offer free shipping outside of UK as you would lose alot of money. 

UK sellers needs to evaluate if the option of selling to UK (less buyers but you post everything) is worth losing sales not offering GSP. For me, the increase in sales is definitely worth signing up to GSP. If you live in USA like emazers said it probably makes sense not signing up to GSP as you can post big sets (for not an obscene amount) via USPS. For UK people if you want to sell abroad via GSP IS only option.

To minimise returns for unopened big sets make sure you detail fully any defect in auction description and take pictures of all 6 sides. Send set bubble wrapped with kraft paper / air pockets cushioning the box, send via parcelforce 48 or another tracked / insured service. Apart from that all you can do is pray.

[jonnyhanukkah]

I don't know if this is just me being more annoyed than I should be, but I bought a set described as "Used, 100% complete, in great condition."

Upon building it this morning, 1 angular brick was cracked and broken (which happens, I get it).  But worse than that, about 10% of the pieces have divots or big scratches.  It appears to be from when the seller was taking the set apart to bag it up.  Even the brick separator looks like it is all chewed up.  Not exactly the condition I was expecting and I plan on re-selling this again some day.  

I might just ask for a return on this and start over or wait to buy this new elsewhere...

[Guest TabbyBoy]

eBay is the fruitcake as I've opted out of GSP, there's no international shipping option and I clearly stated UK shipping only in the listing. However, a US buyer has just bought one of my items, how is this possible?

I checked my preferences and the listing which still show that GSP is disabled and no international shipping option is stated. I've contacted the buyer to cancel the sale to see what they come back with. If they still insist on having the item, it's £120 to ship it from UK to US as I need tracking, signature and £500 insurance!

There's NO WAY IN HELL that Shitney Bowes are getting their grubby hands on MY package if I have to use GSP!

I just hope that the buyer doesn't pay.

Has this happened to anybody else?

[Guest TabbyBoy]

5 hours ago, jonnyhanukkah said:

I don't know if this is just me being more annoyed than I should be, but I bought a set described as "Used, 100% complete, in great condition."

Upon building it this morning, 1 angular brick was cracked and broken (which happens, I get it).  But worse than that, about 10% of the pieces have divots or big scratches.  It appears to be from when the seller was taking the set apart to bag it up.  Even the brick separator looks like it is all chewed up.  Not exactly the condition I was expecting and I plan on re-selling this again some day.  

I might just ask for a return on this and start over or wait to buy this new elsewhere...

Simple, just return it as it's clearly NOT in great condition?

[Voltron]

4 minutes ago, TabbyBoy said:

eBay is the fruitcake as I've opted out of GSP, there's no international shipping option and I clearly stated UK shipping only in the listing. However, a US buyer has just bought one of my items, how is this possible?

I checked my preferences and the listing which still show that GSP is disabled and no international shipping option is stated. I've contacted the buyer to cancel the sale to see what they come back with. If they still insist on having the item, it's £120 to ship it from UK to US as I need tracking, signature and £500 insurance!

There's NO WAY IN HELL that Shitney Bowes are getting their grubby hands on MY package if I have to use GSP!

I just hope that the buyer doesn't pay.

Has this happened to anybody else?

Have you ever used the ebay "Buyer Requirement Exemption List"? Maybe you added the buyer to the list and foget about it?

You can manually add ebay buyers to the list and they can buy an item of you irregardless of any location restriction / payment option etc set by seller.

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/services/buyandsell/biddermanagement.html