Am I not supposed to ask about item's authenticity anymore?

reira08

reira08

Member
Jun 11, 2008
201
2
#1
Hello lovely tPFers :smile:

I was interested in a pair of Chanel flats on Ebay, and I had the listing authenticated on the authentication thread here. I know nothing about Chanel shoes; I have never owned any or looked at any in detail. I only had feedback from one kind member who said that they appeared authentic but she could not be 100% positive because she was not an expert in shoes. So I decided to just message the seller to ask if they were guaranteed authentic as the words "authentic" and "genuine" did not appear on the listing. I asked if they were guaranteed if they were authentic and would they be returnable if they were not. And also did she have a BIN price?

And she sent me this message back,

Yes, they're authentic. You won't need to return it, as you can see everything very clearly in the photos. Unfortunately I don't accept returns to protect myself against crazy people. I hope you can understand. The fact that you're even asking if these are authentic or not is a warning sign to me. People who are familiar with Chanel shoes would be able to tell very clearly from the photos and not even have to ask that question. I don't have a buy it now price- I'll sell the shoes for the winning bid.
Thanks.

So the question is...Am I not supposed to ask about authenticity of the item? I am clearly not familiar with Chanel shoes at all, and hearing all the horror stories here on the ebay subforum I wanted to hear from the seller herself stating that they are authentic before I bid. I just hope she didn't block me because I really wanted the shoes :sweatdrop: I was just surprised that she said it was a "warning sign" that I had to ask her about authenticity... Never have I had that kind of response before....

Thanks!
 
#2
Wow...that was a snarky response. From her 'tude and the way she answered your question, you'd think you were asking her for favours.
If they're not authentic, no matter what her return policy says, you can still return them, but since nothing on her listing says they're authentic I'd be careful. Usually sellers who are trustworthy (and many who aren't) will take great pains to assure buyers that what they're selling is authentic.

IMO I'd take it as a warning sign that she's being so hostile about your very justified question.
 
#3
This kind of stuff irritates many sellers. Many people, me included, don't really have any authentication papers on our higher-end items. I buy stuff for my own consumtion not for resale. I don't keep receipts or shoeboxes / bags / ribbons / booklets. Then we get inexperienced buyers asking about authenticity, and the buyers themselves often have seen the real stuff only, like, on TV. This sometimes leads to disappointing results for both sides. The buyers are disappointed their shoes /bag /jewelry is too small / large / soft / stiff / pink / blue / etc, and the seller gets to deal with a person who is convinced they have been ripped off. Hell hath no fury like a woman who paid authentic money for fake designer goods. Very unpleasant.

p-WA
 
#4
Also wanted to add... Whenever I sell anything remotely designer, I get countless rude e-mails from random characters basically telling me that my stuff is not authentic, because their own version of the same stuff does not have a hologram sticker, or a monogram button, or suede lining, or what have you. People are often extremely rude. After fielding several questions like that, I tend to get pretty worked up. The seller might have got fed up with people asking this again and again and again.

p-WA
 
#5
Thanks cute_lil_fiend and pippaWA for your replies! :flowers:

I did not intend to irritate her, and I did not mind that she had no shoebox or dustbag because it is a great price. That was not what bothered me. Yes I am inexperienced in buying Chanel shoes on Ebay, that is why I asked her a question. I was extremely polite in my message to her, and thanked her for her time. I may be inexperienced but I do do research on the items I am interested in. I looked up the sizing/fit threads beforehand to make sure that it was the right shoe size for me, and I also looked at other photos of authentic shoes.
If my question was ignorant, then I guess Ebay is not the place for me... I miss the old days of Ebay when sellers were kind and helpful and "wanted" to sell you their items. I guess all the scammers (buyers and sellers) really affected the quality of the whole experience of Ebay. :tdown:
 
#6
I don't think your question was rude at all. When I sell, I don't add authentic to my listings either though. The way I see it, it's LV, Chanel, Whatever or it's not.
 
#7
Your question was just fine! I would have asked too, especially if it were not in the listing. So many times when seller's are caught with fakes they'll respond that they never said the item was authentic in their listing, so for me it would definitely be a red flag. Based on her response I wouldn't purchase from her and I wouldn't feel assured they were authentic either.

Linda
 
#8
LindaP said:
Your question was just fine! I would have asked too, especially if it were not in the listing. So many times when seller's are caught with fakes they'll respond that they never said the item was authentic in their listing, so for me it would definitely be a red flag. Based on her response I wouldn't purchase from her and I wouldn't feel assured they were authentic either.

Linda
Click to expand...

i TOTALLY agree!
Just wondering, is the price "too good to be true"?
That would be a red flag to me, anyway.....
If that's the case, then I think the seller is getting all puffed up for a reason, KWIM?
 
#9
OP when you got your opinion, it was from one of the regular authenticators on the Authenticate This Chanel Thread. When she said this "Both appear authentic. See what the other regular authenticators have to say. I usually only authentic bags and wallets and some shoes. These appear authentic, but a second opinion doesn't hurt. In the future please post 1 auction per post. Thanks" She was letting you know that it looked ok, but she wanted you to repost and separate your questions into two requests. They do this so that it makes it easier for the 5 authenticators to check things quickly and the instructions are on page 1 of the threads.

Both those items have a couple of days to run, so why don't you repost now? - you can add a comment that they were looked at by PP in post number, x but she suggested a second opinion. That way you can be sure, which is good if you like the shoes.

I think the seller was being a bit terse with you, but she is only listing one item and presumably wants to sell it and get her money as soon as she can. Sellers pay money to eBay to list items and again when the item sells. Sellers can be nervous about selling to people who may not have a track record of buying a brand before. It can add days and weeks of waiting if a sale falls through.

Maybe the seller does assume that by stating the brand, they do not need to say Authentic. Personally, I do say authentic when I sell items. But as mentioned above, it's either CHANEL or it's not.

When I am buying and a seller hasn't disclosed what I want to know, I do ask questions. But probably, I would not ask for a buy it now if the auction is already running and there is no buy it now visible. It means that the seller has not chosen to set up a buy it now price. eBay do not like sellers to end items early unless they are selling to the highest bidder.

Hope this is useful to you.
 
#10
I buy and sell on eBay and that is NOT a rude question. If sellers want to sell they need to get over it. Buyers have the right to ask and as long as you're not being rude then they should answer. She could've easily just said "yep! Totally real!" and moved on.
 
#11
shinymagpie said:
Personally, I do say authentic when I sell items. But as mentioned above, it's either CHANEL or it's not.
Click to expand...

This is true. The word "authentic" should be redundant. But, for practical purposes, most sellers do use than word in their auctions. I have even seen 1000% authentic (which I guess means even more authentic than 100% authentic :P).

For the same reason you shouldn't have to ask. But many buyers do. I am leery about dealing with sellers who give testy responses to questions. It doesn't bode well for how the transaction might unfold.
 
#12
The more questsions that you the buyer need to ask to satisfy you enough to

complete the transaction you are about to make, the seller should be willing

to provide. If the seller is not liking the question, authenticity, measurements,

condition, etc I personally would pass on the transaction. And your question was

not rude. It was the right question for you to ask, that is what's important.
 
#13
I'm a seller and I NEVER think authenticity questions are stupid or rude.

I think sellers that respond so harshly to authenticity questions are just scared of the BS that we see here in this forum "HELP! buyer claims it's fake and I know it's not" kind of stuff.

I can't disagree with this seller for worrying BUT I totally disagree with the way she answered your question.

And if a seller is like this, I'd stay away. Because as a seller, I encourage people to ask me questions before they bid as opposed to ask after.
 
#14
nancyxwu said:
I'm a seller and I NEVER think authenticity questions are stupid or rude.

I think sellers that respond so harshly to authenticity questions are just scared of the BS that we see here in this forum "HELP! buyer claims it's fake and I know it's not" kind of stuff.

I can't disagree with this seller for worrying BUT I totally disagree with the way she answered your question.

And if a seller is like this, I'd stay away. Because as a seller, I encourage people to ask me questions before they bid as opposed to ask after.
Click to expand...


Agree with you totally on this.. and you are the type of seller

that would make me happy to do business with.. when you are spending

your own $$. my feeling is ask all the questions you need to...
 
#15
I think the seller sounds like a rude sow. IMHO it doesn't matter how much you like and/or want the shoes, I'd pass them up. If this is how she answers a pleasant, reasonable question, can you imagine if you asked something AFTER the sale, such as, "when did you mail them?"
 
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