ebay item "lost", opinions please...

alc

Won an item on ebay from a seller with very good feedback ratings (318, 99.7% positive) on 7th August. Item was apparently shipped 16th from UK to here (France). There is no sign of the item. Multiple emails to the seller have gained responses along the line of "can't find postage receipt but still looking", and the seller seems genuinely concerned.

This is what I find strange: yesterday I get an email offering a refund or another of the same item. This does not seem like the response of someone who posted the item and believes it "lost" somewhere, especially for a relatively high-value item (the winning bid was STG115). I know good feedback is valuable in goodwill terms alone, but I can't imagine a seller offering to go fully out of pocket to this value in the form of another item or refund.

So, I'm thinking this guy just didn't ship it (for whatever reason, maybe thought it didn't get high enough sale price or a non-ebay-buyer offered him more) and is just hoping I'll accept a refund.

Anyone have any thoughts or opinions ???

Santa Claus

Did you pay through paypal ?
If so, advise the seller that you'll be filing a claim with paypal for an item not received (can't remember how long you have to wait to file one fo these but i think it must be done within 30 days o payment) and then unless he/she can provide a receipt of postage paypal will refund you.

Nukem

Is there any chance they forgot to ship it completely?
You dont exactly lose a shipping reciept do you? Has there been any probs with any of their other similar sales?

Nukem

vibe666

unless you're really in the mood for payback, just accept the replacement on condition that he sends you a shipping reciept. if it's something you really want, you'll have to wait for another auction anyway.

quickest option is to take it on good faith that it was a genuine mistake and accept a replacement. might be different if he'd been ignoring you, but it sounds like he's making the effort.
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alc

I am going to wait for the "next" item to be shipped.

My impression is that he may indeed be a bit of a chancer in that he never shipped it. Maybe didn't have the item when I'd won it and is just getting round to sourcing it (or whatever). But that he always intended to send it. I get this impression as it seems a very strange thing to offer a replacement or refund if he had actually posted one already.

Anyway, email this morning says the "replacement" item is being posted today. Will post on the progress.

Nukem>> no his feedback seems pretty good on the shippping side of things, thats what adds to my suspicion that it was never sent, although I received a number of emails received from him asking if it had arrived yet and just adds to the strangeness.

[nicK]

same thing happened me around the u.s launch of the psp..
took the guy ages to finally send it out (source it) blaming the postal service for losing it :rolleyes: