Hello all,
One of the ladies over at the Louis Vuitton subforum recommended that I come and ask for advice here.
I posted a reveal/advice-seeking thread here on Sunday, regarding a pre-owned LV Musette that I purchased from an eBay seller. I have already posted some (rather long) detailed messages about it in the existing thread (along with lots of close-up pictures) but basically, this seller has 100% positive feedback in the 200s (only slightly less than what I have - and mine is also 100% positive) and so I didn't expect any hassle with the transaction.
The listing described a bag that was in used, but good condition. The seller mentioned that the only wear was to the interior of the bag and showed pictures of the lining which had a large ink stain on it. I was fine with this, and obviously I knew about it before I placed my bid. However, the listing did not mention any wear to the exterior (other than the darkening of the leather straps, which again, I have no issues with) - and neither did the pictures show any problems with the outside of the bag.
When I received the bag, the condition was not at all what I expected. The canvas is cracked at both sides at the top of the bag, which was not illustrated or mentioned whatsoever. Where the straps connect to the hardware of the bag, the leather is not in great condition. And the bag has been stitched (very poorly and clearly not professionally, certainly not by LV themselves), likely in an attempt to improve the condition of the cracks. None of this was mentioned. The inside of the bag also stank of smoke, which I have not raised with the seller, as it's the least of the problems, but really it would have been nice not to have that conveniently forgotten about in the description either.
It had been my intention to have the lining of the bag replaced by LV, but I cannot do that because the canvas is cracked and it has been repaired (or attempted to be repaired) by a party outwith LV. After some advice from the folks over at the LV forum, I emailed the seller and told her I was not happy and that the condition of the bag was not as described. I also opened a PayPal dispute. The seller replied to my email, with no apology or comments about her false description but simply a message that said, 'no problem, return the bag and I'll refund you'.
Since Sunday evening I have asked the seller THREE times for her address to return the item. She has yet to send me the information that I need to return the bag. Although she HAS offered me a refund, the last piece of correspondence I received from her was this:
"Good evening, you have in your possession an original Louis Vuitton bag, which i listed as used, however in good condition, which the bag is, hence the price you paid £155, other louis vuitton bags are being sold as used for £ 300, a new one would cost in the region of £500, which was the price i paid, therefore you have a bargain, the strap to my knowledge has not been restitched as you previously stated, and the canvas is hardwearing, with no cracks as you have stated.
However as a sign of good will i will accept a refund, but i am not prepared to incur all postage charges, as my description was accurate (check my feedback)for all items sold
You bought a used bag, but appear to want a brand new one at a fraction of the price!
If you wish still to return, i will still accept, but as already stated not to incur over £10 worth of postal charges as well
Kind regards"
I received this last night at around 9pm. I immediately replied and told her that the condition of the item is absolutely as I describe it. I also separately emailed her photographs that I had taken of the item's condition (the same ones I posted here at tPF in the LV forum) and again, I asked her for her address to return the item.
As of 9pm this evening, I have had no further reply from the seller so I have escalated the PayPal dispute to a claim. Since I opened the dispute, the seller has not made any response to it - she has only ever contacted me through email and eBay messaging.
I have told PayPal in my message when I escalated to a claim that I will cooperate by sending them all correspondence from the seller plus the photographs of the item, but I'm now worried that the seller will somehow allege that I have caused the damage. She has outright denied that any of these faults with the bag even exist, which has stunned me.
Sorry about the horrendous length of this post. I'm just very disappointed and stressed out about my first real negative eBay experience - and over a bag I was very excited about buying!
Thank you so much in advance for any advice or assistance.
One of the ladies over at the Louis Vuitton subforum recommended that I come and ask for advice here.
I posted a reveal/advice-seeking thread here on Sunday, regarding a pre-owned LV Musette that I purchased from an eBay seller. I have already posted some (rather long) detailed messages about it in the existing thread (along with lots of close-up pictures) but basically, this seller has 100% positive feedback in the 200s (only slightly less than what I have - and mine is also 100% positive) and so I didn't expect any hassle with the transaction.
The listing described a bag that was in used, but good condition. The seller mentioned that the only wear was to the interior of the bag and showed pictures of the lining which had a large ink stain on it. I was fine with this, and obviously I knew about it before I placed my bid. However, the listing did not mention any wear to the exterior (other than the darkening of the leather straps, which again, I have no issues with) - and neither did the pictures show any problems with the outside of the bag.
When I received the bag, the condition was not at all what I expected. The canvas is cracked at both sides at the top of the bag, which was not illustrated or mentioned whatsoever. Where the straps connect to the hardware of the bag, the leather is not in great condition. And the bag has been stitched (very poorly and clearly not professionally, certainly not by LV themselves), likely in an attempt to improve the condition of the cracks. None of this was mentioned. The inside of the bag also stank of smoke, which I have not raised with the seller, as it's the least of the problems, but really it would have been nice not to have that conveniently forgotten about in the description either.
It had been my intention to have the lining of the bag replaced by LV, but I cannot do that because the canvas is cracked and it has been repaired (or attempted to be repaired) by a party outwith LV. After some advice from the folks over at the LV forum, I emailed the seller and told her I was not happy and that the condition of the bag was not as described. I also opened a PayPal dispute. The seller replied to my email, with no apology or comments about her false description but simply a message that said, 'no problem, return the bag and I'll refund you'.
Since Sunday evening I have asked the seller THREE times for her address to return the item. She has yet to send me the information that I need to return the bag. Although she HAS offered me a refund, the last piece of correspondence I received from her was this:
"Good evening, you have in your possession an original Louis Vuitton bag, which i listed as used, however in good condition, which the bag is, hence the price you paid £155, other louis vuitton bags are being sold as used for £ 300, a new one would cost in the region of £500, which was the price i paid, therefore you have a bargain, the strap to my knowledge has not been restitched as you previously stated, and the canvas is hardwearing, with no cracks as you have stated.
However as a sign of good will i will accept a refund, but i am not prepared to incur all postage charges, as my description was accurate (check my feedback)for all items sold
You bought a used bag, but appear to want a brand new one at a fraction of the price!
If you wish still to return, i will still accept, but as already stated not to incur over £10 worth of postal charges as well
Kind regards"
I received this last night at around 9pm. I immediately replied and told her that the condition of the item is absolutely as I describe it. I also separately emailed her photographs that I had taken of the item's condition (the same ones I posted here at tPF in the LV forum) and again, I asked her for her address to return the item.
As of 9pm this evening, I have had no further reply from the seller so I have escalated the PayPal dispute to a claim. Since I opened the dispute, the seller has not made any response to it - she has only ever contacted me through email and eBay messaging.
I have told PayPal in my message when I escalated to a claim that I will cooperate by sending them all correspondence from the seller plus the photographs of the item, but I'm now worried that the seller will somehow allege that I have caused the damage. She has outright denied that any of these faults with the bag even exist, which has stunned me.
Sorry about the horrendous length of this post. I'm just very disappointed and stressed out about my first real negative eBay experience - and over a bag I was very excited about buying!
Thank you so much in advance for any advice or assistance.
