Buyers From Hell

[Buythatcard]

I just wanted to vent about an eBay buyer who just purchased a card from me.

Buyer won a card from me on 3/7. I received his Paypal payment on 3/8. That same evening, I packaged up his card. I then dropped off his package along with many other orders during the morning of 3/10. My policy is to ship the cards within 2 business days after I receive payment. Most times, I do it within 1 day. So far, I have done everything as I promised. I also mention in each and every lsiting that it can take between 4 and 11 business days to arrive. Usually takes 2 business days.

On 3/11 (1 day after I ship), he sends an email wanting to know where his card was. I explained to him that the card was just mailed. Several more emails came from him over the next 3 days demanding to know where his card was. He kept telling me that he is going to file a complaint. He says that this is a bad business practice because I took so long to ship. I expained to him that the card was shipped less than 2 days after I received his payment. So, he comes back and says that he paid on the 7th and not the 8th. I emailed him the receipt from Paypal showing him the 8th. It just goes back and forth.

Whether he paid on the 7th or 8th, this guy has nothing better to do but harass me.

I deal with many buyers and I would say 99% make it all worth it. It's that 1% like this guy which makes selling on eBay a miserable experience.

Has anyone else experienced a "Buyer from Hell"?

[HRBAKER]

BBL him. Block Bidder List, not worth it.

[Ladder7]

Anonymity breeds contempt.

eBay protects the buyer... Sellers are scrood.

[scooter729]

And share his username so the rest of us can block him as well!

[quinnsryche]

I had the EXACT same experience. I imagine driving it directly to their house wouldn't be fast enough for these clowns! I wonder where else in their miserable little lives do they get taken care of as fast as they have come to expect?

[Republicaninmass]

I just had a seller send a "special courier" to my house with cards! I bet it was the seller but he denied it, I thought that was nice! I now have a buyer who four times in the past six months has left negatives claiming a card was damages in shipping. My Suspicions re that he just starts this on every seller to see if he can keep the card for free. also, he states the card didnt have enough protection since I didnt even put it in a top loader? It was in a card saver 2 with 2 pieces of cardboard. Now it has been 6 emails back and forth and i'd rather take a negative than give into his games, best part card was 2.64$ free shipping :)

[jb217676]

As a Canadian seller, most of my baseball card sales are made to American buyers. I let a certain American buyer know that it would take 2-3 weeks to receive his card. He emailed me 4 days after he paid for it saying he was very upset he hadn't received his card yet. I told him again that international deliveries take a little longer. He received his card in under 2 weeks (very, very fast IMO). But still slammed me. Left me positive feedback, but stated he was very upset it took so long to get delivered. What an idiot!

[Leon]

I just had a seller send a "special courier" to my house with cards! I bet it was the seller but he denied it, I thought that was nice! I now have a buyer who four times in the past six months has left negatives claiming a card was damages in shipping. My Suspicions re that he just starts this on every seller to see if he can keep the card for free. also, he states the card didnt have enough protection since I didnt even put it in a top loader? It was in a card saver 2 with 2 pieces of cardboard. Now it has been 6 emails back and forth and i'd rather take a negative than give into his games, best part card was 2.64$ free shipping :)

There is some scientific theory that explains it, I am sure, but there is a direct correlation between the amount of the sale and the amount of headache. The smaller the amount the more the headache. It's weird but true!!

[Rob D.]

I still remember with fondness a post about a year or so ago on the board from a buyer about a T card that was received from an eBay seller. During transit, the card (I think the purchase price was in the $50-$75 neighborhood) slipped out of its toploader and suffered a crease or dinged corner (something to that effect).

After being notified about what happened, the seller agreed to issue a refund. The buyer, however, didn't think that was enough and specifically was unhappy that the seller didn't seem apologetic about the substandard packaging of the card. (The seller, during the course of trading e-mails on the matter, mentioned something about this being the first time he'd ever had a problem with a shipped card.)

So the question that was posted was did the seller's perceived lack of remorse deserve the receiving of negative feedback.

[RichR]

I think eBay breeds headcases :)

[drdduet]

Just a thought here, as I have been on both sides of the coin---

Be cautious in judging others based on one side of the story. Often we are too quick to judge someone as a "scumbag" with only one side of the story just to find out the other side embelished the story to gather favor.

I think it's a shame when an individual gets accused for these acts when in fact they are innoncent.

[M's_Fan]

Please post the username, I don't want to screw around with someone like this.

[HercDriver]

I never sold much on Ebay, but I've decided to quit all together - it just doesn't seem to be worth it. I'd much rather sell or trade here, where it's much more self-policing. Not to mention the fee structure that kills the occasional small seller like me...not worth the pain. Even buying on Ebay has lost its luster - I can't remember the last card I bought there. The beater cards I collect were meant to be traded among friends...keep the thieves and morons on Ebay where they belong...

Take Care,
Geno

[jlynch1960]

I recently tried my first sale on ebay - a car cover I'd used for a couple of years and then stuck in a closet. I described it as having been well used for several years and in need of a washing, but in good condition otherwise. I included a couple of pics. The guy who buys it utterly flamed me - threatening to get me "kicked off of ebay," using obscenities, etc. I calmly replied that I stood by my description but was happy to refund his money and postage both ways. He replied saying he couldn't return it because he's already given it to his neighbor (within a day of receipt and to a neighbor who also happens to have a Porsche of the same model/vintage?). He proceeds to give me all sorts of advice about what I need to do to be a good ebayer. I again offered to refund his money but never heard back from him. It seems pretty apparent that he was actually happy with his end of the bargain but just wanted to lash out at me for no good reason.

Some people are just plain hostile. It really turned me off on selling things on ebay, although I have since sold a couple of other items without incident.

[teetwoohsix]

I've never sold on ebay,only bought.I do think it was wrong for ebay to take away the sellers option to leave negative feedback for the buyer-it should go both ways,right?

People want to see who they're dealing with in general,buyer or seller (feedback),I tend to think.If the seller COULD leave negative feedback for a crappy buyer,these type of buyers may think twice about playing their games.

[GrayGhost]

I've never sold on ebay,only bought.I do think it was wrong for ebay to take away the sellers option to leave negative feedback for the buyer-it should go both ways,right?

People want to see who they're dealing with in general,buyer or seller (feedback),I tend to think.If the seller COULD leave negative feedback for a crappy buyer,these type of buyers may think twice about playing their games.


I used to sell five/six cheap items a week, and now I don't sell much there. This quote hits it on head. The Buyer gets treated like he is a King or something, so if he's a jerk or crook, you can't leave negative feedback. Its ridiculous and I think in the end, w ebays big fee rise that my friend told me about, ebay will start losing business, more than it probably already has.

[ErikV]

Howard,

I feel for you! I sold some cards on this B/S/T board
about a year-and-a-half ago and your story reminded
me of my experience. I sold some cards to this fellow
- included a USPS tracking number - and caught all hell
because the cards weren't there fast enough to his
satisfaction. I called the USPS, kept this buyer updated
every step of the way and when the cards did arrive he
never thanked me or told me he received them. (I pulled
up tracking number and saw he signed for it.) Hope I never
gotta deal with that guy again!! People like this take the
pleasure out of interacting with others. Best of luck to you.

ErikV

[FUBAR]

I got burned by a guy named Ben Herrera from NJ on ebay, all should avoid him. He did the ole Paypal scam on me. Took his money back the moment i confirmed i shipped his card. $171 and the card.

Paypal was ridiculous in their decision. He paid on a Saturday, i shipped it that Saturday, he took his money back on Monday saying he never received his card. lets see, not even one "mailing" day and he expects it to go from Western Canada to NJ. I couldnt have booked a flight and flown it there in that time!

Last item i ever sold on ebay.

[collectbaseball]

Last Christmas, I sold a video game system on eBay to some guy in Texas. I shipped it UPS the day after receiving payment, and two days later he sent me an email saying something to the effect of, "oh, by the way I moved and here's my new address, I hope you shipped it there" -- of course, he hadn't thought to update it in ebay or paypal and I was magically supposed to know this. I went back to the UPS store and they tried to redirect the package but it being the ridiculously busy season and four days or so after it was shipped we couldn't and it got delivered to the guy's old address. He sent many an angry email and opened up a dispute but luckily the tracking number showed it delivered to his confirmed paypal address, so I didn't lose the $$.

[frankb22]

I don't sell much but still managed to get two different guys who
bought raw t206 cards and upon receiving them contacted me trying
to say they were not pleased with the cards. They stated how unhappy
they were and that they wanted to send the cards back OR - they'd
consider keeping them if I'd refund a percentage of the purchase price.
They were obviously taking a shot that I'd send them some money
as the cards were described and scanned accurately.
Told them I would actually be pleased to take them back and
give a full refund because I really find it hard to part with any of my
cards. Encouraged them to send the cards back with no hard feelings.

Never heard from them again. I blocked both from future auctions.

[joeadcock]

Can somebody tell me how you block someone on ebay from buying?

Thanks in advance

F.L.

[barrysloate]

Go to the Site Map at the bottom of your ebay home page and click it- you will be given a host of options which include blocking bidders. Then follow the instructions.

[t213]

Many of these obnoxious buyers would never complain or type harsh messages if they had to say it to your face.

Andy

[FUBAR]

not many say alot to me face to face.... apparently i am intimidating....( im about 6-1 and 285 lbs)

only ones that ever do suffer from littlemanitis....

[joeadcock]

Thanks Barry

F.L.

[scgaynor]

Quinnsryche.....love your avatar.

Operation Mindcrime, one of the best concept albums ever.

Just wanted to chime in.

Scott

[Jantz]

Howard - Sorry to hear about this and yes, I have had a "Buyer from Hell".

Back in 2006, I had a buyer, on three different occasions buy a card from me, then refuse to pay. What he would do is put in a bid of like $200, even though he was only willing to pay $50 for the card. He would always bid when there was maybe 15 seconds remaining in the auction. Then if his bid won, but was over his $50 personal limit, he would refuse to pay. Actually he wouldn't even respond to any emails and just forget about it. He was kicked off Ebay each time and within a week, he would open a new account and do it to me again and to other sellers. It was hard to block him because he kept changing accounts. After talking to Ebay on the phone, they finally got the problem to stop. Another strange thing about this buyer was each time he opened a new account, his mailing address was in a different state. An Ebay representative inform me of this.

I had other problems with buyers not long after that. I sold only modern cards then and it wasn't long after that I quit selling on Ebay all together. I actually looked at my feedback while typing this post. I haven't sold a card on Ebay since October 2006.

Another thing I found interesting while looking at my Ebay feedback was the number of sellers that I've bought from in the past few years who are now "no longer registered users" on Ebay. I guess Ebay has no one to blame but themselves for that.

Jantz

[prewarsports]

I just sold a movie poster on ebay and mailed it the day after the guy paid. It took forever and the guy started getting mad but I scanned my receipt and Delivery Confirmation for him. It finally came 3 weeks later, damaged by the Post Office. He then proceeded to leave ME a negative feedback because the post office ran over the package with their truck.

Not trying to offend anyone on here because there are always good people everywhere, but of ALL the bad ebay transactions I have had, almost all are from New Jersey buyers. I am not sure if there is something in the water up there, but I am not kidding when I say 9/10 problems I have on average involve a New Jersey buyer.

Rhys

[mybuddyinc]

The only buyers from hell for me are always the ones who buy very, very low cost items. I sold 3 low grade T220s for something around $10 (including shipping). Images showed creases, and I mentioned they were lower grade. Anyway I get an email from the buyer that he is disappointed in cards. He claiamed the ebay watermark in the scan (very lower right corner) hid a crease in one of the cards !!!!!! I thought it was so petty and ramdom, I just laughed, sent him his $10 bucks back, told him to keep cards, and have a good day :)

[oriolesbb6]

That's funny that alot of probs. are NJ related, however the highest concentration of Ebay users in the US are in NJ as well as having the highest percentage in one city(Nearly 92% of all residents of this South Jersey town are ebayers). I think there feedback system was the beginning of the end-no recourse whatsoever for a seller....

[pokerrvp]

I just had a seller send a "special courier" to my house with cards! I bet it was the seller but he denied it, I thought that was nice! I now have a buyer who four times in the past six months has left negatives claiming a card was damages in shipping. My Suspicions re that he just starts this on every seller to see if he can keep the card for free. also, he states the card didnt have enough protection since I didnt even put it in a top loader? It was in a card saver 2 with 2 pieces of cardboard. Now it has been 6 emails back and forth and i'd rather take a negative than give into his games, best part card was 2.64$ free shipping :)


Was his name James Boland?

[mets41]

My experience with the "buyer from hell (MA)" was last spring. I had listed a 1958 Topps Drysdale card (vg/ex I think). The winning bid was $18 + shipping. The buyer paid with paypal and I shipped the card within 2 days. Starting about 5 days after I shipped, we started in with emails where he claimed the card never made it to him. He even went so far as to claim I made a fake listing on ebay and never had the card to sell and ship. At that time I didn't know about delivery confirmation and to use it on uninsured items so I told him I'd call the post office the next day and let him know. The next day I had an email waiting for me from paypal that he had opened a complaint against me. Paypal said they were freezing the money in my account until they did an investigation. Two days later paypal said I could keep the money--the card finally "arrived at his home". I smelled a scam and immediately put this clown on my "can not bid list".

[WarHoundR69]

PITA Buyers plus Ebay's non stop fee increases made me stop selling there.

[theuclakid]

would the net 54 site be a good place to list the ebay scammers (including their ebay id) so the sellers (and buyers) that wish to, can block them...I know I would like to...thanks

[Leon]

would the net 54 site be a good place to list the ebay scammers (including their ebay id) so the sellers (and buyers) that wish to, can block them...I know I would like to...thanks

This is a tricky subject. As much as I like to out scammers and fraudsters we have to be careful. There are 2 sides to every story. I don't think there will be a place on the board (specifically) to do that, as it would be board sponsored and quite honestly, I don't want that liability. I don't mind folks saying what they want to, and I think it's actually great to out the scoundrels, I just don't want to be responsible vis a vis the board. When I have all of the facts I will even out scammers.....but we do have to remember we are legally liable for what we say and do on the board. I hope this makes sense....We live in a very litigious society.

[barrysloate]

A lot of posters come on the board and are too quick to cry fraud, when the matter at hand may eventually get resolved. I have some mixed feelings about these threads. It's great to protect buyers from potential trouble, but it's equally bad to call somebody a crook before all the facts are out.