Aw, my self-gift from eBay arrived, but it's broken :-(

[photon]

So I got myself one of these off eBay:



I thought it was pretty cool. Anyway, I get it only to find this!







Just contacted the seller, I guess we'll see what they say.

[Eddie Bronze]

I'll be interested how you make out with this, photon. I use ebay a fair bit myself but I've been lucky that everything went well.

If you send it back to him, do you think he'll just glue the head back on or actually send you a new one?

[photon]

They're limited so I doubt he'd have a new one to send me. The best I can hope for is either a full refund, or maybe a partial refund and I'll glue the head on myself. I got it more for the look than being a collector.

With eBay owning PayPal, is there any protection now that way? The sticker on it says "Fragile: Glass and Ceramics are not subject to coverage for damage." Weird that he'd send it that way for a ceramic piece.

There's also some paint damage to it that shouldn't be on a "mint" item:





Worst case I can just reverse the charge through my CC company, I've actually done that once before when I didn't get an item I ordered and the seller stopped communicating with me.

[Dion]

Sorry to hear that, Photon.

Hope things work out well for ya.

[Prototype]

You just wanted an excuse to take those second pictures... didn't you...

[FireFly]

I think if the product is not as advertised, you should be able to get a refund. Especially for the paint damage... not quite sure how that would happen if packed properly. Bubble wrap wouldn't do that.

[tussery]

Did you pay for insurance? If you didn't did the seller warn you of the risks of shipping a fragile item without insurance? If not you have every right to ask for a partial or complete refund.

[photon]

The seller had a "fixed" shipping price with no option for insurance. I've requested insurance a few times from such sellers and they usually say they will not offer it as it takes up too much of their time and "I've never had a problem". Because of the fixed shipping cost and "not offered" under the insurance part I didn't ask, though I should of (silly me).

Mind you the stickers on the box from Canada Post specifically say ceramics aren't covered anyway.

I got something else from a different seller after this and remembered to ask about insurance, he quoted me and I even paid for it, then he told me he doesn't offer it (same story, too busy to offer it). He said he'd refund me the insurance part, but hasn't yet and he's shipped the items, so I assume he went ahead and used the insurance. At least in that case, I have a record of communications saying he offered and accepted payment for insurance.

[photon]

Originally Posted by FireFly

I think if the product is not as advertised, you should be able to get a refund. Especially for the paint damage... not quite sure how that would happen if packed properly. Bubble wrap wouldn't do that.

Yeah, that's what I thought too. It was packed in its original packaging, a plastic bag around the statue and the entire thing in a foam mould that is VERY secure. I can't imagine how the head actually broke actually.

Considering it was a collectable and it was advertised as mint, the paint damage alone should be enough for a refund.. though honestly I'd be ok with a partial refund and I keep it and I'll glue the head back on.

I only really want it to display in my home theatre I'm building, but since it's a collectable and a broken head and paint damage reduces its value to almost nothing, I don't want to pay full price.

[ken0042]

Did you pay with Paypal? I think there's something in Paypal's terms that say the seller must ship with insurance. That's why any of my auctions have a shipping charge that already includes insurance; it isn't an option for my buyers.

[photon]

Yeah, paid with PayPal. That's interesting, I hadn't heard about insurance being required before.

[ken0042]

OK, found where it was discussed before. Post #12 of this thread: http://forum.calgarypuck.com/showthread.php?t=36581

As I guess I found out then, it technically doesn't have to be insured. But you said it was sent Canada Post? If so, they have to provide tracking, and any Canada Post shipping method with tracking has insurance.

[photon]

It may even have insurance, but like I said earlier there's Canada Post stickers all over it (one on every side lol) that say Fragile in big letters and then in smaller letters "Glass and Ceramic are not covered for damages."



You can see them there in that picture if you go to the high rez version.

[ken0042]

Yeah, I can't see the pictures- my proxy server at work is blocking them.

[photon]

Lol really?? That's bizarre.

[photon]

A final update, the seller offered a complete refund (though I had to send it back). Since I want it for its looks not for the collection value, I was able to negotiate a partial refund and I'll keep it and glue it.

So very happy, nice to see some great eBayers are out there.

[GrrlGoalie33]

Originally Posted by photon

A final update, the seller offered a complete refund (though I had to send it back). Since I want it for its looks not for the collection value, I was able to negotiate a partial refund and I'll keep it and glue it.

So very happy, nice to see some great eBayers are out there.

Some of them are great, others not so much. I once ordered an item that was $30 cdn out of the US. I asked the guy to declare it as $20 cdn so I wouldn't have to pay duties and GST. The guy had his "lawyer" send me a threatening email because it wasn't moral or legal...go figure.

It ended up costing me more in duties and GST than the entire transaction was worth because the seller declared the "actual value" of the item instead of what I paid for it. Needless to say I don't order out of the US anymore.

[BlackArcher101]

Originally Posted by Frankster

Some of them are great, others not so much. I once ordered an item that was $30 cdn out of the US. I asked the guy to declare it as $20 cdn so I wouldn't have to pay duties and GST. The guy had his "lawyer" send me a threatening email because it wasn't moral or legal...go figure.

It ended up costing me more in duties and GST than the entire transaction was worth because the seller declared the "actual value" of the item instead of what I paid for it. Needless to say I don't order out of the US anymore.

The nerve of the seller doing what he was supposed to do... how dare he!

[GrrlGoalie33]

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

The nerve of the seller doing what he was supposed to do... how dare he!

Every other US seller I had dealt with quoted what I had paid for it and not the market value of it. It wouldn't have been so bad if he hadn't immediately sent his "lawyer" after me instead of explaining to me why he wouldn't put a lower price on the declaration.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by Frankster

Every other US seller I had dealt with quoted what I had paid for it and not the market value of it.

Legally; it is supposed to be the value of the item. Of course the arguement could be made that the true value was what you paid for it. But because eBay is an auction site; it is often taken that the item was sold for lower that what its real value was.

The bottom line was you asked the seller to do something illegal; and he refused. Now some might see this illegal act as being parallel to going 10 km/h over the speed limit; but the law is the law.

What I do; is if the item is under $20 I ask the seller to please put the final auction price as the value; so that I don't get dinged with customs. If the item is ~$30- then I might say something like "If I could ask a favor, could you please be sure to not put a customs value higher than what I paid for the item? We get dinged by customs on anything over $20, and I just don't want to have to pay too much for customs."

At that point I have told him that putting a value of <$20 helps me out, but doesn't ask him to do something that may be beyond his moral compas.