Thought I'd chime in with my 2c worth. Seems Ebay fraudsters really go wild over the xmas period. I bought a whole heap of electronics components and general stuff I probably didn't need over the holidays while I was off. I reckon 50% of what was order either a) never arrived after 2 months, b) was missing items c) sent the wrong item d) sent faulty items. So I spent a couple of days sorting it out with refunds from ebay. I wasn't really out of pocket, except for the time spent sorting out and getting refunds. I had a whiteboard full of sellers I was owed money from, items being resent, dates contacted etc.
My 10 Commandments for Ebay are:
1) Obviously check the sellers feedback and don't get sucked in by their "Oh we're sorry for the inconvenience bullshit" - give 'em negative feedback if they're dodgey. It helps others when purchasing to avoid them like the plague.
2) Keep a list of sellers who actually send stuff and use them again! At least you know you'll get it. I also keep sellers that send good from overseas quickly (I've received stuff in 2 weeks)
3) Keep a list of dodgey sellers and report bad sellers. I don't mean the "It didn't arrive in 2 days, so I'll report them" or "I paid $1 and the quality was shit"
. Overseas takes between 2-4 weeks normally and sometimes 5-6 weeks. Some sellers will give a delivery date at around 2months - watch these and definitely file a complaint before the 2 months & NEGATIVE FEEDBACK.
4) MAKE SURE YOU LODGE A RETURN BEFORE 60 DAYS are up, and give negative feedback if you have issues as you only have 60 days for feedback before you can't. But you can do returns I think up to 3 months?? I generally give the seller the benefit of the doubt and give them a chance first by messaging them with the issue.. If after 48 hours I don't get a reply or they're just stuffing around, open a return request. That'll get em off their arse generally. Most sellers will want to make it right because they don't want negative feedback.
5) Chinese Ebay sellers will invariably try the we'll give 1/2 back - stuff 'em - ask for a full refund if it doesn't arrive, is faulty or isn't what you ordered. Ebay will generally back you up
with a refund.
6) Mistakes happen and sometimes you'll receive stuff that you didn't order, but could be handy on other projects. Ask for a full refund or you''ll send it back. It costs more for them, but you can end up with cheaper goods (you may not need it now but may come in handy), even if you pay half. Keep a mental note if you've used the seller before and you keep getting the wrong goods.
7) Don't necessarily buy from the cheapest! I'd pay a little more if it's a buyer I've bought from before. You sometimes get discounts if you buy quantities of items.
Sometimes you get faulty gear. Assess it, if it can be fixed - they don't need to know that. Still ask for a full refund! Serves them right for sending faulty stuff.
9) You may notice that several Ebay account names go to the same email on Paypal. Keep a note of these, because sometimes you'll notice a pattern with goods not being received, takes way too long, or are always faulty from one email account.
10) MAKE SURE YOU READ THE LISTING CAREFULLY. It wouldn't be the first time I missed something that it didn't have screws, had wrong code to description, was a components kit not a module etc.
I'll give you a heads up too from one of the Paypal accounts I've personally had issues with - It comes up with HONG KONG YEE CHEN, there's several ebay user accounts that are linked to it (I've bought from 5 of them). Generally, they don't sent items. If they do, they're either really crappy and don't work or it's the wrong item. I think when they don't turn up, they're probably out of stock - but they don't tell you this. Just the general reply of "Sorry, it might be in post. We do better next time. Don't leave negative feedback
" spiel. Some items did turn up - after 4 months
Ebay had already refunded the money and rightly so.
Hope this helps
Pete
