Seller backing out of sale after I won

sea0fyears

sea0fyears

I’m just here for a good time.
O.G.
Nov 12, 2006
1,607
4
#1
I won an auction for a used kate spade claire in black yesterday for a grand total of $24.50 (including the seller's $9 shipping fee) and this morning I found this in my mailbox:

"Thanks for your purchase and quick payment. However, I wanted to inform you that while further inspecting the purse, I noticed that one of the bottom corners of the purse is starting to show signs of wear and beginning to fray. The condition of the bag is not how I listed it to be, so I will refund your money via paypal for the full amount. I am sorry for the inconvenience."

I have a strong feeling that the seller was just disapointed that the winning bid was so low and wants to back out of the sale... I called her bluff and sent her this reply:

"Is the bag torn? Your description did mention that the bag was showing signs of wear... were you planning on relisting this item? I would prefer a discount for additional wear on the bag than to not complete this transaction."

Is there anything else I should say or do? I've sold some things before that I hated to part with at such a low sum, but doesn't this 'legally binding contract' thing work both ways?
 
#2
there isn't really anything you can do to make her send you the bag or give a discount, that i know of. you could neg her, but she'll probably neg you back.
 
#4
She could just be trying to be nice/honest. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Take the refund and go for another purse. For $24, it's not worth the hassle.
 
#5
Yes, the legally binding contract does work both ways.:yes:

Unfortunately, there's little you can do if the seller doesn't want to complete the sale, other than reporting them for being a 'non-selling seller' and leave neutral/negative feedback.

This happened to me recently, i won a pair of boots, they sold for £8.50 plus £4 P+P. The day the auction ended (before i paid) i got a message from the seller saying that she couldn't sell the boots to me at the price i won them, and that they were listed in error by someone who lives with her who didn't know what they were doing..:rolleyes:

So i reported her for non-selling.:yes:
 
#6
lorihmatthews said:
She could just be trying to be nice/honest. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Take the refund and go for another purse. For $24, it's not worth the hassle.
Click to expand...


That's the thing, though... if she was being nice/honest I pretty much told her I'd take it anyway. I knew it was a used bag for under $25, my expectations are not that high. Plus in sending the money back I would lose out too, since paypal always takes their cut on money you receive.
 
#7
sea0fyears said:
Plus in sending the money back I would lose out too, since paypal always takes their cut on money you receive.
Click to expand...

Actually, no. If the seller refunds you correctly paypal will not take a cut from what you've sent the seller. But she has to hit the refund button on the invoice, not send you funds separately in a new transaction.

I understand your frustration, the same thing happened to me when I was trying to buy a gorgeous Vera Wang veil for my wedding. I won it for about $125 and it was a $1K veil ... I think she decided to keep it. She told me that her dog peed on it. I offered to have it cleaned because I wanted it so badly but she didn't respond. I never knew for sure whether she was telling the truth or not. So ... that's one of the hazards of buying on eBay.
 
#8
I had a seller not send me anything at all because I won it too low. It was like around or under $20 USD. I didn't get anything back from paypal because they didn't consider it expensive enough to be dealt with.
 
#9
Ebay makes me sad. It's times like this that feel like NOTHING good can come from buying or selling on ebay.

About a month ago I sold some purses and accessories on ebay. I made sure to put a reserve on anything I was *really* attached to, but there was this Coach Hamptons scribble wristlet that was so functional that I really hated to part with it. I paid about $60 for it but never got around to using it because it had gold hardware and it just didn't ever go with any bag or outfit I had. Well, it sold for under $25 and I was heartbroken. I even shed a few tears as I was packing it up to be mailed (although I'm blaming that on my pregnancy!). This whole situation reminds me of my poor little wristlet... I wish I could have just said "Oops, I stained it.. it's not for sale anymore!"
 
#11
Maybe she is being nice. I noticed a shirt I was selling had a stain on it after the auction ended. I emailed the bidder and she still wanted it so I sent it.

Tell the seller you still want the item (at the price you won it at) and to email more photos to decide for yourself if you still want it. If you do, she should still go through with the transaction. If not, then you know shes lying. That's when I would report it.
 
#12
hmmmm...okay. These sellers aren't vey smart. If you don't want to get $24 for an item then don't start the bids at that amount or lower. eBay suggests starting a low bid- but that can limit the amount of $$$ the seller can get for their posting. Then of course there is a reserve- which limits the chance of selling because who knows if the reserve will be met. Start auctions for designer brands at the price you would be happy to get- no reserve, the rest is gravy. Buy it now sells it fast- but it'll tend to limit what you could get. Sorry- I think I am going a tad off subject here. In any case- the sellers you guys are talking about backed out because they wanted more $$$ for there listings.
 
#13
That is frustrating...
I once won an auction for a Coach wallet, I can't remember what I won it for, but it was not a lot. The seller emailed me the next day and said that it had been stolen from her office...right-o!
 
#15
I'm still waiting for a response from her, since I don't have a reply yet to the email I sent and she's yet to refund me. I guess I'll give the whole situation 3 days to resolve itself before I take any action other than emails.
 
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