Re: Dealing problem ... Message #11 Posted by Vassilis Prevelakis on 25 June 2003, 9:09 a.m., in response to message #1 by Matthias Wehrli
Whenever you are dealing with people you do not know, there is always the possibility of misunderstandings.
I'll give you three examples:
a) I ordered a serial card for the HP-85. The eBay auction showed the card with its box which looked in a very good condition. Well the seller shipped the card in that box (without additional packaging). The card arrived intact, but the box was a mess. Since I wanted the card, I didn't mind, but if I wanted the box, I'd have been furious.
b) I ordered an HP 41 card reader. It never arrived. I contacted the seller and he said that he had sent it, but could not provide any proof. In the end I gave him a negative rating. Some time later I checked and found that he had added a comment after the negative rating to the effect that the problem was resolved (!!!). Needless to say I never bought anything from that loser, but I did note that others did buy stuff from him and gave him +ve feedback.
c) I purchased an HP 9915B computer and the seller gave me the impression that he did not actually want to sell me that machine (he sent it to the wrong address - he refused to email me the UPS tracking number - he was slow in responding to my email, to allow UPS time to give up and return it to the shipper - when the item was returned to him, he claimed it was my fault and wanted additional money to send it again, etc.). I persisted and in the end I did get the 9915B, although it arrived dead (PSU prob).
The big problem is that these items are rare, so these transactions are not typical. Getting a refund when a rare manual is lost in the post is little consolation. E.g. the 9915B closing price was $10; for this price I was prepared to spend a lot of time to make sure I got the item.
So, to avoid disappointments, its better to deal with people you know and trust. It is often also cheaper, as you can bypass eBay altogether.
It is also important to prepare 1-2 paragraphs with
instructions regarding the shipment (your address, packaging instructions, mandatory insurance, tracking numbers, etc.). You have these instructions in a file so you don't have to think about it, you just attach it at the end of your email.
E.g.
Quote: NOTE: Packages MUST be sent to me with some kind of tracking number
(e.g. delivery confirmation for USPS Priority Mail, with some other
shipping methods, such as UPS ground, it is included in the price).
Please include this in the shipping cost. The tracking number MUST be
emailed to me after the package is dispatched. If a package is sent
without a tracking number, and is "lost in the post", then I will post
negative feedback and demand full refund.
Make sure that the seller understands that these instructions are part of the deal, so that if there is a problem later, you can go back and point to your original email.
**vp
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