Another bad eBay experience
[WARNING: Extended post. But worth it, I'm sure!]
Wow. I can’t believe some people!
If you didn’t already know, we sell cell phones and service where I work. (BTW, if you didn’t know that, you probably don’t know me. Then why on earth are you wasting your time reading MY blog when there is so many other INTERESTING things to look at on the net?)
Anyway, we have “dummy” display phones that we use to demonstrate what the phone looks and feels like without risking a real live phone. When that model has been discontinued or we quit offering it for whatever reason, we sell the display phones at a significant loss. Believe it or not, these pretty plastic paper weights can cost upwards of $40 for some models!
I recently put several older models on eBay to see what would sell. Most of them went for less than a dollar, plus shipping of course. We’re not getting rich on these things – I charge $3.99 for shipping and handling. We have to pay for the padded envelope and about $2 in domestic postage typically. We only ship within the United States.
A couple of days into the latest batch of auctions, I received an email asking if I would consider shipping the item to Germany. I replied that it is against our policy but I would check the rates and requirements and let him know. After doing so, I quoted $12.99 in shipping and handling fees, and figured that would be the last I would hear of it.
He responded that he tried to bid but couldn’t due to my geographic restrictions. I edited the Buyer Requirements Exemption List to expressly allow him to bid. That individual ended up being the winner bidder on two of the display phone auctions.
I sent an invoice for the winning bid – a whopping $0.49 EACH – and shipping – $12.99 x 2. I received a response complaining about the shipping price, the very same price I had already quoted. Now, the auction was over, and the winner bidder was complaining about the price.
I very politely reminded the winner that all of my auctions tell potential bidders to ask all questions BEFORE bidding. BUT, because I’m a heck of a guy, I would actually lower the price by nearly 25%! Yes, that’s a 25% drop in the price that he CONTRACTED to pay! He thanked me and sent the payment via PayPal. Jaime took the package to the post office for me, paid the $6.50 postage, and off it went to lands unknown.
A week or so went by, then I received an email. ”I was a little surprised when I looked at the envelope… It’s OK to charge a certain amount for the handling, but don’t you think $13,20 … is a bit over the top ??? It’s not my fault that the auctions ended with a low price…”
I was shocked. This bidder knew up front that the shipping charge was $12.99 for each item. I LOWERED the price by 25%, he thanked me, and then complained that I overcharged him – by charging LESS THAN THE CONTRACT CALLED FOR!!!
I sent another polite email thanking him for the purchase of both items and explaining my position: Shipping to Germany required a trip across town, standing in line at the post office, and additional postage costs. I again reminded him of the phrase on both auction pages asking that questions be presented before bidding. The email ended with an apology, a confirmation that I would not be issuing additional refunds, and a wish for him to have a great day.
Here’s the ABSOLUTELY LUDICROUS response: ”So you are saying, the next time I want to buy something from an American, I’ll ask, ‘Before I buy from you, please Mr. American, will you treat me fairly or will you rip me off, as it seems fair practice on your side of the Atlantic…’ And you people really wonder, why your nation has such a bad reputation in the world ???”
WHAT?!? I was COMPLETELY RESPECTFUL in all of my communication. I bent over backwards to accommodate him by editing the auction, doing extra research in how to ship internationally, traveling across town and taking extra time to ship the item. I was very clear as to the costs of these favors and then lowered the price after he agreed via contract.
NOW, this scum was tarnishing by good eBay name with TWO NEGATIVE FEEDBACKS as well! ”WARNING !!! Arrogant beyond comparison – disgrace to to eBay !” read one. The other: ”WARNING !!! RIP-OFF !!! Earned $13,20 on the shipping alone !”
So, that’s why I decided to blog about this. I needed a forum, greater than 80 characters, to tell my side of this story. I was polite, accommodating and honest and all it got me was TWO STRIKES on my eBay record. What a load of crap!
Got to go now. I have some feedback to leave for my new “friend”. That’s a tip, by the way: don’t EVER be the first one to leave feedback when things go bad….
PS: I did get the last laugh. This is what I wrote back: ”I’m sorry – I thought I was selling a display phone, not representing all of the United States! BTW, we beat you in World War II. =) ”
It's-a me, Mario! Okay, it's really Kevin, and this is my personal site. I own 
Chris Moran
25 Apr, 2008
Nice writing style. Looking forward to reading more from you.
Chris Moran
BigDaddyK
26 Apr, 2008
My wife thinks that I started all of this with my comment about World War II. I personally don’t believe that – used a smiley to indicate it was to be taken light-heartedly – but I thought it would only be fair to put her opinion here as well.
And let’s keep in mind that my comment was presented only AFTER I received the email telling me that the rest of the world hates Americans and that the bidder apparently has to ask Americans not to rip him off.
He’s the one that started the international incident… Did too!
Steve
27 Apr, 2008
Read through the whole story today. Let me try if I understood it correctly:
Guy from abroad asks you if you will ship to his country. Instead of adding your normal handling charge of about $2.00, you add $6.69 to the postage, your privilege as the seller, covering the trip trough town, filling out customs forms, etc.
Foreign guy probably thinks $12.99 seems OK, to save on the postage let’s buy two small lighweight objects from one seller. It will probably raise the postage a little, but still be cheaper than buying two objects from two individual sellers.
you go: 2 items = double postage
buyer: Woah ! Double postage ? Is it THAT expensive from the US ? OK, I bought those items, I can’t step back now…
you feel generous and go down 25%, still earning $13.20 (if that number is correct) minus gas for your car, envelope etc. ?
buyer gets his $0.98 items and finds out that you charged him an extra $6.51 for dropping a second item into the same envelope that you had to take to the post office anyway ?
To add insult to injury you go braggin about wars won against his grandfather…
Seriously, I wouldn’t be a happy foreigner either !
BigDaddyK
2 May, 2008
Here’s the deal, though: I DIDN’T “charge him an extra $6.51″. I stated before he purchased the items the exact amount he was going to be charged for shipping. He didn’t inquire about combined shipping, but I normally discount when asked. That’s why I LOWERED the shipping price.
It’s common practice on eBay to charge more than the actual shipping cost to cover shipping and handling. People try to abuse it by coming up with outrageous shipping fees on a relatively cheap item all the time. I did NOT do this, however. I charged a flat fee domestically and, when asked about international shipping, quoted an exact price of what I felt that service was worth. If he thought it was too high, he could have told me that BEFORE bidding or not bid at all. Instead, he agreed it was fair – UNTIL he bought more than one item.
As for the comment about World War II, I have already admitted that wasn’t the nicest thing to say even though I was obviously joking (using the internet’s widely accepted smiley emoticon to indicate such). But let me remind you that that particular comment was made only AFTER I was attacked for being a “greedy American looking to rip everyone off” and my country was put down by this individual.
He doesn’t have to be a “happy foreigner” – that’s his prerogative. However, calling my people “rapist baby-killers” is absolutely uncalled for. Period.