Do you sell lamps on ebay? if you do watch out for people like this nutbag.

[Dr. WHAT?!]

To my fellow gooheads,

First off if you ever sell anything on ebay and the buyer comes back to you and says its broken and doesn't work ask for PROOF! Simple pictures tell the story. If they refuse to show proof then BAM then you know they are full of sh!t. Don't be bullied by people like this. Read my interactions with this buyer and beware gooheads. Oh and I'm wohlster57 in the conversations.

Love, Dr

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Dear wohltster57,

hello received the lava lamp today .it doesnt come on and the base is loose afraid it will not hold the bottle.i would like a refund.

- hessmer_fd_26

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Dear hessmer_fd_26,

Did you try changing the bulb or see if the bulb filament is broken? The bulb worked when I shipped it and sometimes shipping can cause the filament to break but they are easily replaceable and can be bought at walmart or any hardware store. Also the base was fine and sturdy when I shipped it can you please send me photos of what your talking about? I need photos of everything please.

- wohltster57

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Dear wohltster57,

I dont want this item .just refund me and send me a prepaid return postage .ans send pic will not show the base is loose nor will it show it doesnt light.i placed a bid on a working item and received different .refund please

- hessmer_fd_26

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Dear hessmer_fd_26,

I'm sorry but I need proof that the lamp is in the condition you say it to be in. If it doesn't light up, try then another bulb, it's not hard. Also I've been shipping lava lamps for a long time now and when there has been a issue, the buyer NEVER has a problem with coming up with proof to the problem. If I see that lamp is as you say it is, then I'll refund you the cost of the lamp even though my auction DOES state that there are no refunds or exchanges. And for the shipping cost that is NON refundable. I'm sorry but you just can't walk into any store that you bought a item from without the item and proof it doesn't work and except a refund because you say it doesn't work. I'm trying to work with you here (although my auction does say no refunds) but if you think that just your word is enough to get a refund then your sorely mistaken. Your choice. I'm more then willing to work with you here but if you want eBay involved I'll be more then happy to do that as well because I know what they'll say about all this.

- wohltster57

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Dear wohltster57,

omg im not going bk n forth like this .if u would of sold me a working item I would not bother u.also im not going out and buy a bulb.i paid far a working item.also I didnt go to the extent to mention a store and they do refund!!!!.
im just going to take the next step.god bless YOU

- hessmer_fd_26

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Dear hessmer_fd_26,

Of course your not because you want a free lamp out of this and I refuse to jsut take your word for it. How hard is to snap a picture of the lamp? like really? I've been trying to work with you here but your apparently are too upset and irrational because you cant get your own way. So take the next step and I'll laugh about it when ebay comes back and says wheres your proof. And please tell me what store refunds you $ without showing them the broken item because I'm going to go there with NO proof (like you) and ask for a refund on the most expensive item they have the shelf. What country do you think this is? And god doesn't like lairs remember that. Have a good day.

- wohltster57

[Marley's Ghost]

Glad you got a good laugh this mornin, Doc, I aim to please, usually!   LOL    P. S.   "Love your girlish figure." 
 
Dr. WHAT?! said:

ahhahahhaha omg thank you for the laugh this a.m.!

Marley's Ghost said:

Welcome to the Twilight Zone, where Doc, who is now female, would have had a very "rare" $5.50 lamp appear in the "F/B Thrift shop" if the psycho owner didn't know that he/she found it, thanks to Autumn's detective skills.   I hope said psycho didn't also tell a tale about her son being killed, that would be going way beyond the pale, especially if she really does have a son.  Completely bizarre...... 

[Jonas Clark-Elliott]

Absolutely bizarre! I feel lucky that I've never had this happen; worst I've had was a seller with a many-years-long history and great feedback who, after taking my money, suddenly vanished, leaving many auctions paid for and some unfinished. She never came back.

[Marley's Ghost]

My first thought would be that she up and died, Jonas.
 
Jonas Clark-Elliott said:

Absolutely bizarre! I feel lucky that I've never had this happen; worst I've had was a seller with a many-years-long history and great feedback who, after taking my money, suddenly vanished, leaving many auctions paid for and some unfinished. She never came back.

[Tim Gill]

Ebay is so OBSESSED with negative ratings

Yea too true - its like when sellers say in the listing contact me before giving any nutrol or negative feedback - for me its just like I will give the feedback I want to I am not going to mess around.

[Erin]

Wow, what a load of shit. So sorry you had to go through this. Can you post the eBay userid? Wait, I guess I can find it. I want to block this nutbag so she doesn't bid on any of my stuff.

I had my own experience with a batshit crazy eBayer a while back and that shitstain ruined my 100% rating. 

I think eBay favors the buyer, big time. I contacted them several times about my neg feebdack she left me and I could not get it removed even though she was 100% in the wrong.

Sorry you had to go through this Shawn. It sucks, I know. 

[Erin]

Dammit, you can't see the userID of the buyer anymore. Can you post it so I can block her?

Autumn, how did you find out her information?

[Soylent Green]

Wow... Sorry about Dr. WHAT?!'s situation... I buy and sell a lot on ebay. It sucks that the buyer may be lying OR perhaps the bulb filament just became dislodged during shipping and is blown and not working, I have a few of those bullet shaped lamps and the bases do loosen rather easily after changing the bulbs. They also tighten easily. Either way, if the bulb broke during shipping, the buyer should not be expected to go out and buy a new bulb at their expense.

I'm not saying the buyer is not lying or is. All I'm saying is it might have been better in the long run to take the high road,  and offer to send a new bulb or refund $1.50 for a replacement bulb and talk the buyer through the steps to tighten the base. Or if the item was insured (which ebay and PayPal encourage and USPS Priority mail offers $50 free insurance coverage now, UPS and Fed Ex $100 included) then offer to file the insurance claim. It's tempting with the high ebay fees to choose the cheapest shipping, pack well and forgo insurance. However Ebay and PayPal both state that if an item is damaged in shipping the seller is ultimately responsible and that means if the buyer says the item arrived damaged.

The fact that the buyer "won" the lamp at $5.50 is not relevant as the buyer considers they paid $5.50 with $12 shipping meaning  a $17.50 investment and expected a working lamp when they plugged it in. While I understand that it sucks the selling price was "low," if the buyer files the "Not as Described" claim they could likely win simply because ebay really does not investigate them, as they are now pushing their ebay Money Back Guarantee program.  Essentially an As-IS, No Return policy is pointless because ebay more often than not just asks the buyer to return the item at their expense and then they force the seller to refund the item price AND original shipping. While you are certainly not responsible for the cost return shipping or obligated to send a the buyer prepaid return label, you could offer the buyer return the item for a refund of the item price... and likely they would not send the item back and that could be the end of it.  At least you offered and it shows you truly tried to work with the buyer. Demanding pictures of a non working bulb probably won't cut it in a dispute resolution. But if the buyer files the Not As Described claim and is successful, you are out what you spent on shipping and you won't even get a credit for the ebay fees on the sale. It also affects your ebay seller dashboard rating.

The real question is, Is your feedback reputation worth the headache on a less than $20 transaction? Because now you have that negative feedback, and you might still end up being forced by ebay to totally refund the buyer (but a chance maybe not.) These days ebay/PayPal mostly sides with BUYERS. And if the buyer paid with a credit card thru PayPal, they can file a chargeback with their credit card company up to 90 days after payment is made even if they were to lose the ebay dispute. 

In the end, the bigger picture is that blocking the bidder won't really hurt the bidder, but that negative feedback hurts your ebay reputation with future customers and sellers, especially on big ticket items you may sell. Despite all the love and support of your fellow GooHeads here, more people than this forum see that feedback comment and make decisions as to whether or not to bid on items from you. And your feedback rating/seller dashboard affects how your items are placed and appear in the ebay searches.

My dad used to have a saying, "It's like cutting off your nose to spite your face...."

I've had difficult customers that I've had to wait to reply and calm down before responding. Then I try to be as businesslike and neutral as possible in my communication because it's easier to be misunderstood or appear flippant in email than in person. 

Right or wrong it's just the way it it. I know it's frustrating, but sometimes good customer service does more for YOU in the long run.

[Erin]

^ I'm going to have to disagree. I went through something very similar with a nasty eBay buyer and thought I have a neg on my feedback for a year, it hasn't affected my buying or selling abilities. I'm so tired of the assholes getting away with this crap, even if it's a $5 item. Clearly the buyer in Dr. What's case HAS a camera - she's just lying to get a free lamp. If she would have sent a picture of the damaged item or sent it back, fine, problem solved. But I would have taken the exact same course as Shawn - fight it. If you read his correspondence, he did try to assist, but the buyer was rude. So why should anyone bend to their shitty attitude? 

He'll likely lose (as did I), but I'm not about to cave just because someone's trying to scam me. I don't think it's in anyone's best interests to accommodate a crappy customer. I never have believed in the phrase "the customer is always right". Sometimes, they're just buttholes. 

I've been living with my ONE negative feedback (out of over 300) and I think most people who see it know that one out of over 300 means that customer was the problem, not me. 

[Dr. WHAT?!]

Well the final decision has been made by eBay, Surprisingly... they refunded the buyer as well as found me not at fault so I didn't lose my money on the deal.

eBay Customer Support comments: "eBay has decided to refund the buyer. You are not required to reimburse the buyer or eBay, and this case will not be counted in your seller performance evaluation."

Final decision: You were not found at fault.

Transaction information: Any remaining funds from this PayPal transaction are available.   So she still got a free lamp out of it. I still have negative feedback but feedback disputes usually take a little to overturn.

[Erin]

Huh. Interesting. I am patiently waiting until February of next year for my neg feedback to clear. 

[Marley's Ghost]

Glad that uproar is out of your hair now, Doc, and hope that negative feedback gets removed, you did NOT deserve that, but what can we say when a buyer who's a cretin is involved?   

Folks, step right up to that buyer's "Facebook Thrift Shop" and get your "rare" $5.50 lamp, which will now have a price increase.  All in time for Santa........... 

 

[Marley's Ghost]

That was a crock of crap for you too, Erin!   Ba Humbug!!!!   So sorry that happened......