Do companies have to honour an ebay sale ?

[brianhabby]

Clearly a few people disagree with my suggestion to report the matter to eBay if you can't get a satisfactory response from the seller, however, I maintain that it is still in everyones best interest to do so.

Alan,

Has the seller given you an explanation yet?

regards

Brian

I dont disgree with you Brian. I don't think it will do any good, but they cant act if it is not reported. Like reporting it to the police when somebody breaks your wing mirror- if it isn't reported they cant establish whether there is a pattern etc and act.

That's my point exactly, thanks.

regards

Brian

 

[studders]

Clearly a few people disagree with my suggestion to report the matter to eBay ....

regards

Brian

Nope.
I just pointed out that the OP shouldn't be surprised if ebay fail to respond or respond with a meaningless, stock email.

 

[Mike.C]

I am forever hearing, even on the tv, that if you win a item on ebay then you have to go through with the sale as it is a binding contract. This being the case then surely the seller is in the same position and has to honour the sale?

The only thing I can see going against you is the fact that the company has refuned your money, where other people have to fight for theirs.

I suggest that you wait and see what thr seller has to say. After all it could be the last item he has in stock and it could be damaged.

What ever the case maybe I would not give up until you receive a good answer.

Cheers

Mike

 

[marcros]

Mike,

As I understand it, it is a binding contract. But to enforce it, firstly it would cost you to do so, and secondly, you would have to prove that you had suffered damages. From the sellers perspective (of a non paying bidder), this is difficult to do- they are offered a free relisting as so have no real damages. From the buyers perspective (of a seller refusing to sell), they probably cant prove any financial damages. That is aside from the number of excuses that they could give for why the money has been refunded etc- such as last one in stock and was damaged etc. In 99.9% of cases, it wouldnt be worth the money it would cost to enforce the contract, and for the remaining 0.01%, they probably wouldnt get anywhere if they did.

I am not saying that the seller in this case is anything but genuine- who knows...? I would rather be refunded than receive a broken item, and it may just be that an email has gone astray, or not been sent explaining the situation.

 

[brianhabby]

It would be interesting to know if the seller has given Alan an explanation yet, certainly had enough time by now.

Any news Alan?

regards

Brian

 

[Tinbasher]

It is always a good idea to complain to eBay but I would also set up a saved search for the item to check if it mysteriously appears for sale again.

 

[Benchwayze]

Don't take any notice of people who say eBay don't care - they do, it's just that we are never party to what happens to other members' accounts and so it often looks like eBay are not doing anything.


regards

Brian

I reported a trader who was adding VAT to the final bid price, which is against Ebay rules. After three tries I gave up and they are still stating VAT will be added to the final price.

This isn't the only time Ebay have either ignored messages or replied with a meaningless, stock email.

Doesn't surprise me.
I wouldn't bid if I saw that statement on a sale.

I also disregard any item where the seller says that if goods go missing in transit, it's up to the buyer to chase it.
No it isn't. It's up to the person who mailed, despatched, or posted, because they have the proof of posting. They are not supposed to send that document to anyone else.

To me, they are just bone idle 'sellers' trying to make a fast buck. The kind of people who inconvenience everyone in a small post office, by mailing two dozen parcels, and then blame the pensioners for the delay!

:twisted:

 

[RogerP]

I also disregard any item where the seller says that if goods go missing in transit, it's up to the buyer to chase it.
No it isn't. It's up to the person who mailed, despatched, or posted, because they have the proof of posting. They are not supposed to send that document to anyone else.

It is the seller's entire responsibility to get the goods to the buyer. If they get lost the the seller must refund the buyer and then claim against the carrier. A buyer's claim for non-delivery made to PayPal will succeed unless the seller can produce proof of delivery - proof of postage will not do. PayPal will refund the buyer and debit the seller. Unscrupulous buyers are known to take advantage of this and make fraudulent claim for non-delivery when the goods haven't been sent by a traceable service.

 

[Benchwayze]

I also disregard any item where the seller says that if goods go missing in transit, it's up to the buyer to chase it.
No it isn't. It's up to the person who mailed, despatched, or posted, because they have the proof of posting. They are not supposed to send that document to anyone else.

It is the seller's entire responsibility to get the goods to the buyer. If they get lost the the seller must refund the buyer and then claim against the carrier. A buyer's claim for non-delivery made to PayPal will succeed unless the seller can produce proof of delivery - post of postage will not do. PayPal will refund the buyer and debit the seller. Unscrupulous buyers are known to take advantage of this and make fraudulent claim for non-delivery when the goods haven't been sent by a traceable service.

Agreed..

Most of these lackadaisical sellers tell you they will send proof of posting. But as you say, whether it's proof enough or not, it's their job to chase up missing parcels, not the buyer's. Another reason I've given up on eBay. :?

 

[Mike.C]

Mike,

As I understand it, it is a binding contract. But to enforce it, firstly it would cost you to do so, and secondly, you would have to prove that you had suffered damages. From the sellers perspective (of a non paying bidder), this is difficult to do- they are offered a free relisting as so have no real damages. From the buyers perspective (of a seller refusing to sell), they probably cant prove any financial damages. That is aside from the number of excuses that they could give for why the money has been refunded etc- such as last one in stock and was damaged etc. In 99.9% of cases, it wouldnt be worth the money it would cost to enforce the contract, and for the remaining 0.01%, they probably wouldnt get anywhere if they did.

I am not saying that the seller in this case is anything but genuine- who knows...? I would rather be refunded than receive a broken item, and it may just be that an email has gone astray, or not been sent explaining the situation.

Yes I am sure that you are right, after all there are not many times that this sort of thing finds for the customer.

Cheers

Mike

 

[PMK54]

Any seller can legally refuse to ship an item as long as he/she refunds costs in full; this applies on ebay or in a shop. When you hand over money you are effectively only offering to pay for an item, but the seller is not obliged to accept your offer of payment. All this occasionally comes to light when an on-line seller such as Amazon misplaces the decimal point and lists an item for sale (say) for £1-00 instead of £100-00. If the seller has deliberately sought to mislead then he/she can be prosecuted, but in practice a pattern of deception has to be proved. It's massively frustrating but if you see a valuable item listed at a ridiculously low price it's probable that it's a mistake and the seller will (surprise-surprise) "find just prior to shipment that it was damaged" or "I mistakenly listed an item that had just been sold in my shop by my cousin/mother/father/dog/cat" or "we shipped it but it was lost in the post, here is a full refund with our apologies" - and an identical item will be listed at a higher price a few days later. Ebay is powerless unless there is some kind of illegality or your money has not been refunded.

 

[brianhabby]

All valid points but the seller should still give an explanation, it's simple courtesy.

regards

Brian

 

[PMK54]

I totally agree, an honest explanation is the least that you should expect, but sadly common courtesy can be in short supply sometimes. I wonder if you would actually choose to deal with somebody who has treated you as this guy has though?