I find myself in a bit of a quandary

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Posted By: warshawlaw 

I am hesitant to pay for an item on ebay because I have a seller who has taken 112 (no kidding) negatives in the last month for non-shipment of items. This Powerseller still has a 98.4% feedback becaue he has over 12000 feedbacks, but a lot of the positives say negative things about their deals, obviously from people who are afraid of bad feedback. I am afraid I'd be throwing my $$ in the toilet by paying him (check or MO only, of course; no paypal). I really don't want the negative hit, but I don't want to get gypped either. What would you do?

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Posted By: Anonymous

trust your gut... i wouldnt touch that deal with a 10 foot pole. the warning signs are definitely there

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Posted By: leon

As futile as it might be you might see what ebay has to say about this joker. Other than that I would trust your gut too...can you post a link to this guys ebay stuff/handle?......later

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Posted By: Joe P.

*

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Posted By: Jay Miller

Get his contact information
Call him on the phone
Confirm that he will ship the item
Only send payment to a home address
See if you know anyone close to him who could drop off payment in person

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Posted By: Joe P.

But if it doesn't work.
The question will be:
What is worse, the possible loss of money, or a negative?
It is quite evident that the seller is not on the Honor Role at Holy Cross.

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Posted By: andy becker

why did you bid? did all this bad stuff happen after your bid was placed?
anyway, i think contacting the seller is the way to go. does ebay still provide $200 free insurance through lloyd's of london? they did at one point with a $25 deductable. so, if the item is $300...you are one the hook for $125 (anything over $200 plus the deductable). i have used this a few years ago with a stiff seller. i got $90 out of $115 back...but i did take about 3 months (maybe more).
good luck!

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Posted By: Gilbert Maines

We all have enough problems. However, negative feedback that you reneged because of a status which you should have known about prior to bidding, may be a problem equal to the potential chasing a seller for shipment. The magnitude of the problems depend on how much money is involved, and the level of effort which you are willing to expend for the item.

Certainly the above is a bit of Monday morning quarterbacking. I am in a similar situation with very low money involved, and I am not paying. It will be my only (first) negative. But I am not willing to expend any additional effort on this purchase.

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Posted By: petecld

>>The question will be: What is worse, the possible loss of money, or a negative?

Uh, no brainer. I'd keep the cash. Is getting a negative that horrible? Especially now since you can repsond to feedback, who cares if a scammer retaliates?

But, I would never have bid in an auction on a seller with 112 negatives in one month in the first place.

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Posted By: J Levine

I bet I was one of the negatives as I think I know which seller it is...I have bought from him once before and waited awhile before item was shipped (after two e-mails). Next time, I waited, called, e-mailed, etc. and nothing. I got my money back through paypal (first time i ever had to do this)...i would just skip it if you feel uncomfortable or use a payment service that offers refunds for non-delivery.

-joshua

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Posted By: AdamBaxter

Adam,
This seller is a bidder's nightmare. I think you should take the feedback hit and walk away from this one. Later on when you look back at this situation, you'll be glad you did.

Best,
Adam

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Posted By: AdamBaxter

In addition to the seller's mounting negs this past month, you should keep in mind that if you send your money and then the seller gets suspended you'll probably never see your item or your money again.

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Posted By: Chris

I would suggest calling him or at least emailing him and telling him you are concerned about his recent feedback and then ask him to do a mutual filing with Ebay to not complete the transaction. The seller gets his Final Value Fee refunded and the buyer does not get an unpaid item strike. Of course he could still give you a negative but mostly likely would not if he was not out any $ from Final Value fees. Most people don't realize this can be done but it can. I had the same thing happen with me and the seller did this for me. I think that is your best bet.

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Posted By: warshawlaw

The auction closed about a month ago and I never heard from the seller. He then sent some bizarre email about how paypal was snafuing my payment and click here to go to paypal, etc. Since this sounded like a phishing email, I got curious and took a look at my paypal account (which had nothing of the sort) and then at my won items.

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Posted By: Warshawlaw

and there are just as many neutrals, plus a lot of "greens" with cautionary labels in them. Most say that they do not ship for months, if at all, do not answer phones, and use an autoresponder for emails. Sounds like Paypal I'll take the hit; not worth the aggravation.

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Posted By: Pcelli60

112 in the last month! How does eBay allow such a thing! Forget this " Power Seller " and move on...

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Posted By: Gilbert Maines

Seems unanimous, the best path out of your quandry is to hastily head for the nearest exit sign. This quandry we all need to avoid. A negative is hardly a flesh wound compared to what could get any of us. What is this seller's name?

Gil

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Posted By: Joe P.

The Blatant Questions!

1. 112 Negatives?

2. Equal amount of "N's"?

3. Green's with warnings of impending problems?

4. Who is this Power Seller, and why is he/she still there?

5. Why is eBay indifferent to a practice that would be detrimental to any ongoing business?

Those are just a few blatantlike things that pop into my mind.

Any thoughts?