Breaking rules I set for myself
Posted: Tue Nov 05, 2013 7:52 am
Every time I break one of my own rules, I get a sober reminder why I made the rule in the first place. I recently broke a buying rule for ebay items. My rule was not to buy models from junk & crap sellers. You know the ones, those guys/gals who troll yard sales, estate sales, etc. and vomit everything they buy onto ebay.
Well one of these junk & crap sellers had a couple of vintage Matchbox beaters I wanted for restoration. They were priced right and his shipping was very reasonable. So, I pulled the trigger and bought them. They were packed well and shipped fast. Only problem is that I received some China made modern race car and some 1:48 scale farm trailer (also of modern manufacture). So that transaction is a complete bust and I'm out of pocket to return the incorrect items.
Now we go to my only other ebay purchase this week. The seller claim he's selling item from his own Matchbox collection and that they are not an expert, just a collector. Another bust! I buy a Cat dozer that's advertised as a "B" but what arrives is a "C" variation. I go a couple rounds with the seller who tells me it's an "honest mistake" on their part (and it probably was if they are a real novice collector). I let the seller know that I will keep the "C" model (even though what I wanted was the "B" model) if he will refund me the five dollars I paid for the shipping. The later "C" dozer is worth less than the older "B" dozer and my bids reflected the fact that I thought I was buying a "B" model.
The seller decides to let ebay make the decision. Well, ebay decides in my favor and refunds my entire purchase price (a courtesy refund is what they called it). . Now I have the guys model for free. From their email, I got the distinct impression the seller turned it over to ebay because they thought the ruling would be in their favor.
Despite the seller refusing my proposal of the $5.00 shipping refund (which is the amount they would be out of pocket if I returned the item for a refund), I sent all of the refunded money back to the seller less the $5.00. It didn't seem fair to punish the person for the entire amount and have them lose the model as well ... so I set things right on my own.
I hadn't checked out this seller's other items because they said in the listing description that they were a "collector." When things went south, I looked at his feedback and he turns out to be a coin and stamp collector and not really a MB collector. That put's me breaking my own rule again. So I break the rule twice in one week and get punished in each case.
On the selling side of the coin. I recently had a buyer ask to return one of my restored items. I gladly accepted the item back and refunded his purchase price and the postage. The buyer's issue was with some repairs I had made on the restored model and they noted I had not disclosed specific issues about the repair. That was true, and it was my fault, my oversight.
When I re-listed the model, I disclosed every possible thing I could think of and even shared some photos of the restoration in progress. The universe rewarded me with a significantly higher hammer price on the returned and re-listed model. I guess some of these aggravations all even out in the end.
Well one of these junk & crap sellers had a couple of vintage Matchbox beaters I wanted for restoration. They were priced right and his shipping was very reasonable. So, I pulled the trigger and bought them. They were packed well and shipped fast. Only problem is that I received some China made modern race car and some 1:48 scale farm trailer (also of modern manufacture). So that transaction is a complete bust and I'm out of pocket to return the incorrect items.
Now we go to my only other ebay purchase this week. The seller claim he's selling item from his own Matchbox collection and that they are not an expert, just a collector. Another bust! I buy a Cat dozer that's advertised as a "B" but what arrives is a "C" variation. I go a couple rounds with the seller who tells me it's an "honest mistake" on their part (and it probably was if they are a real novice collector). I let the seller know that I will keep the "C" model (even though what I wanted was the "B" model) if he will refund me the five dollars I paid for the shipping. The later "C" dozer is worth less than the older "B" dozer and my bids reflected the fact that I thought I was buying a "B" model.
The seller decides to let ebay make the decision. Well, ebay decides in my favor and refunds my entire purchase price (a courtesy refund is what they called it). . Now I have the guys model for free. From their email, I got the distinct impression the seller turned it over to ebay because they thought the ruling would be in their favor.
Despite the seller refusing my proposal of the $5.00 shipping refund (which is the amount they would be out of pocket if I returned the item for a refund), I sent all of the refunded money back to the seller less the $5.00. It didn't seem fair to punish the person for the entire amount and have them lose the model as well ... so I set things right on my own.
I hadn't checked out this seller's other items because they said in the listing description that they were a "collector." When things went south, I looked at his feedback and he turns out to be a coin and stamp collector and not really a MB collector. That put's me breaking my own rule again. So I break the rule twice in one week and get punished in each case.
On the selling side of the coin. I recently had a buyer ask to return one of my restored items. I gladly accepted the item back and refunded his purchase price and the postage. The buyer's issue was with some repairs I had made on the restored model and they noted I had not disclosed specific issues about the repair. That was true, and it was my fault, my oversight.
When I re-listed the model, I disclosed every possible thing I could think of and even shared some photos of the restoration in progress. The universe rewarded me with a significantly higher hammer price on the returned and re-listed model. I guess some of these aggravations all even out in the end.
