Amy+2 Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 I just purchased a set of books from ebay. They were listed as a smoke free home. (BTW, I always check for that.) Anyway, I received them today and they reek of smoke. I responded to the seller and asked why her description was smoke free when the books are obviously not smoke free! I even took them over to another homeschool mom's house to see what she thought. I handed them to my friend-not telling her of the problem- and she said "WHEW, those smell strong!". The seller has since emailed me back saying that she was angry with me for accusing her of being deceptive. :eek: Y'all, I just don't know what to do. In all my years of buying/selling on ebay I have never encountered a false description and never had to leave negative feedback. I truly cannot use these books. I guess it just makes me sad to think that people do this. I did not ask for a refund, nor do I want one. I just wanted her to be honest, instead of making me sound as if I was the one who was lying. :crying: Should I even continue to message back and forth with her? It seems pointless due to her defensive, almost mean attitude. Anyone else ever encounter this dilemma??:bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragons in the flower bed Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 Will she let you return them for a refund? If so, that's your best recourse, I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 I'd say be firm and professional about it. You should get a refund. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy+2 Posted March 31, 2009 Author Share Posted March 31, 2009 She stated in her first response back to me that she absolutely will NOT give a refund. She said that No Refunds is clearly stated in her listing. (Well, so is smoke free!) I hadn't even asked for a refund at that point. Nor have I asked for one yet,...even though my dear hubby thinks I should demand one. Does ebay help out with this kind of problem? Or are you kind of on your own? My total cost was around $44. This was one of her first "sales" on ebay. She has always previously been a buyer, according to her feedback. She also said to me in her response that because of this, she would no longer try to sell anything and that she would just stick to being a buyer. It just really stinks to get burned. Do you think I could wrap these books in coffee and seal them up tight to absorb the order?!? Anyone ever tried to do something crazy like that before?! Is there any way at all to remove odor from books?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ria Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 How did you pay? If you used Paypal, file a complaint immediately. They'll lock her account and my guess is she'll give you a refund pretty darn quick. Ria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 I don't know whether ebay will help out, but if you can't do the paypal thing you can certainly ask. If nothing works, go ahead and give her negative feedback; she doesn't sound like she ought to be selling anyway, though she's probably just feeding you a line to make you feel guilty. Has she said anything that isn't manipulative yet? Try putting used dryer sheets between the pages of the books and sealing them up for a day or so. Coffee grounds might work too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Wisc Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 How did you pay? If you used Paypal, file a complaint immediately. They'll lock her account and my guess is she'll give you a refund pretty darn quick. Ria :iagree: Don't spend a lot of time arguing with her through emails. We use Paypal for things just like this--go to them and let them take care of it. If you did not use Paypal, find out from Amazon what rights you have and use them. This is a business agreement. She did not give you what you paid for. Jean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tutor Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 (edited) No matter how you paid for the item, you can go through the Ebay Resolution Center and file a complaint under "item not as described." Ebay will act as a mediator and receive copies of all emails exchanged. If the seller does not make good the problem, Ebay will do it for them and take action against the seller. Do not leave a negative comment first. That comes later in the process. I would also file a complaint with PayPal if that is how you paid, but I think it is important to file through Ebay since the site depends so heavily on user participation and accountability. If you just let it go and don't make Ebay aware of the problem, you are condoning the presence of a bad seller and possibly setting-up a bad experience for her next buyer. BTW, her stating that no refunds is part of her policy and posted in the listing doesn't mean anything if she was negligent. It's like those signs in parking garages that say they are not responsible for damages or theft if you park there. If the garage is negligent (for example, there are no gate attendants when there are supposed to be) they have broken an agreement that you have entered into with them (they presented themselves as a garage that provided attendants, so you parked there; you may not have done so if it was a normally attendant-free lot; you utilized their services making certain assumptions based on what they presented as part of their service). The sign does not magically remove responsibility. (I know tis because our car was once stolen out of a parking garage which then claimed they had no responsibility because they had posted signs saying so; the police and insurance company thought otherwise.) Hope you have a happy resolution soon. Edited March 31, 2009 by Tutor forgot link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 It takes awhile, but you correspond with the buyer through them and sometimes that resolves things before you have to bump it up to the point that they take over in deterimining if a refund is in order. Frankly I've several bad transactions on eBay in the last few months, and probably am going to back off my buying there unless I'm buying from someone I've bought from before. It's a real pain to go through Paypal to get your money back, but I'm glad that safeguard is there. I have a claim right now for an item from a seller that "disappeared" after supposedly shipping it (no response to emails, no tracking, no item). Thankfully it was a small item, but it's been more pain than it was worth. I also had two bad transactions on Amazon Marketplace, one from a seller and one from a buyer. I'm afraid that with the economy as it is, things aren't what they once were. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindyinTexas Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 (edited) They have a new customer help center just call 1-866-643-3720. The lady I spoke with was great and said they want everyone to use is because it is easier/faster to resolve problems than the e-mail system. I just contacted them this morning when I noticed the order I had been waiting for over a month had not arrived. I kept checking this persons feedback, and left 5+ nice e-mails for her to contact me. This morning she has 6 negative feed backs. I called e-bay and it was so easy and they were very helpful. You will need the order number and the paypal transaction special number. It takes less time and it is an automatic 1-5 days refund. Then the paypal people work with the seller to get back their money. I have had to file 4 claims since the 1st of the year. I guess people are desperate for money and will do anything to get it. I have been a member for years and have never filed a claim up until this point. Don't be afraid to push (nicely) the person to offer a refund and ask her to pay the freight back. I had purchased some material that smelled of smoke and was listed new. After leaving as nice as I could negative feedback the seller had a change of heart and did a complete refund and paid the freight back. I had to nicely prove my point of what new means. I did have to revise the feed back but it was worth the effort. I am so sorry you are going though this and wish you luck. CindyinTexas Edited March 31, 2009 by cindyinTexas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 Stop exchanging emails with her and go to the resolution center. I bought a pattern online from someone, it had a big hole in it, and when I complained (nicely) she wrote me a nasty email accusing me of being the sort of person who ruins ebay because I never want to pay (!? I have 100% positive reputation, most of it as a buyer) and flat-out refusing to do anything. I never heard anything from ebay about it. I left her negative feedback and she wrote me an even nastier threatening email. Ebay never had anything to say. I hope they help you, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 OTOH if you really want to keep the books.....my FIL smokes heavily and has given us baseball cards, etc in the past. I go buy really strong incense (nag champa works really well) and put the cards in a plastic bag with several sticks and tie it up tight. After about a week, the smell is gone and replaced with a rather nice one. Just offering an alternative..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gillian on Orcas Island Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 If all you don't want to send the books back and get a refund, then I think that negative feedback is in order. Sellers can no longer leave negative feedback, so you don't have to worry that she will retaliate (which is exactly why eBay changed the rules, so buyers could comment freely without fear of retaliation). But do you really want to be stuck with smelly books? Is this an item that you could find again on eBay without much trouble? If so, I would really consider sending them back and getting a refund, which Paypal can help you with. I don't have experience with getting eBay involved in disputes, but in my experience, Paypal is VERY proactive with buyer complaints. They will freeze the seller's account immediately; then they require that you and the seller try to communicate to get a resolution within a period 20 days (I think). Assuming you state that the books were "not as described/smelled strongly of smoke," and that you want to send them back (which you have every right to do regardless of her policy statement - Paypal is certain to back you up on this), she may cooperate and refund your money quickly, seeing that you mean business, or, if she disappears and fails to contact you, Paypal will rule in your favor and refund you, once the communication period is up. I would go to Paypal's Resolution Center and open a dispute right away. I wouldn't let the seller get away with this, nor would I bother trying to resolve things with her directly, as she's already shown that she's unwilling to be reasonable. Really, you are doing the eBay community a favor if you pursue the issue through the appropriate channels, instead of just letting it slide, and letting her go on to similar misdeeds! If you used a credit card to make your Paypal payment, notify your credit card company as well. And if you send the items back, be sure to add delivery confirmation to show that the seller had to accept the package. I'm sorry that this happened to you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen sn Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 I just purchased a set of books from ebay. They were listed as a smoke free home. (BTW, I always check for that.) Anyway, I received them today and they reek of smoke. I responded to the seller and asked why her description was smoke free when the books are obviously not smoke free! I even took them over to another homeschool mom's house to see what she thought. I handed them to my friend-not telling her of the problem- and she said "WHEW, those smell strong!". The seller has since emailed me back saying that she was angry with me for accusing her of being deceptive. :eek: Y'all, I just don't know what to do. In all my years of buying/selling on ebay I have never encountered a false description and never had to leave negative feedback. I truly cannot use these books. I guess it just makes me sad to think that people do this. I did not ask for a refund, nor do I want one. I just wanted her to be honest, instead of making me sound as if I was the one who was lying. :crying: Should I even continue to message back and forth with her? It seems pointless due to her defensive, almost mean attitude. Anyone else ever encounter this dilemma??:bigear: I would tell her that you want a refund. SHE LIED! Or maybe HER house is smoke free and she got the books 3 weeks ago from a yard sale that was not smoke free......Deception either way. Ebay has a standard - if something is NOT as it was described - they will take care of it. Email them. I had a problem once - item not sent, seller not responding AT ALL. I was refunded my money. I always use paypal. The fact that she was rude would PISS ME OFF! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy+2 Posted April 1, 2009 Author Share Posted April 1, 2009 Thanks ladies for all of your help! You know, I can easily find these again elsewhere. I just hate that she has deceived my trust in buying from ebay. I have bought and sold on there for years. Thanks for the all of the suggestions on how to rid the books of smell. I may try some of these methods before I 'chuck' them to the trash.;) I'll be sure to post if I am successful with the 'deodorizing' of the books!!:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted April 1, 2009 Share Posted April 1, 2009 You got some great answers here. I would go through e-bay first...calling the 1-800 # that a PP gave you. I ordered off e-bay and got the entire Harry Potter set and it reeked (it was my fault though...the listing did not say "non-smoking.") I tried dryer sheets and putting them in baggies for MONTHS. Nothing worked. They still stink. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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