posted on November 12, 2000 01:00:50 PM new
I have a really sicko creepy buyer right now. He is thankfully in'tl or I would be highly afraid. Instead I am merely a horrified deer in headlights.
I would love to write about it but I am always afraid a customer would read these boards and find me talking about them. Has anyone ever found themselves in that sort of mess?
posted on November 12, 2000 01:34:26 PM new
i had some one bid on 24 items .......then give me 24 negatives 30 sec after the auction closed ....beat that
posted on November 12, 2000 01:41:29 PM new
How could talking about it here make it any worse? If they are too far away to make it a real possibility they will "visit"? And if they do make it a one way....
posted on November 12, 2000 03:25:48 PM new
oh eastwest, that is tragic.
This guy is just a nutso. An especially educated version which to me makes it that much more frightening.
Anyway, I just sold him a XXXXX. I quoted him the shipping and he said he knew I was gouging him him by at least $5 (roughly 1/2 the shipping I quoted). It was actual and I responded professionally, telling him it was packed, I had a scale, and I gave him a link to the USPS website. Because I have never been accused of this before and it kind of put me off, I also offered to "forgive his bid" if the shipping was more than he expected or if he was otherwise uncomfortable with the deal. Hey. I have enough headaches, I could care less if someone wants out of a deal.
Anyway, he wrote and wrote increasingly weird stuff. The *last* post said he was just home from church (denomination specified). X number of "our" (quote is his) people are still missing from the train fire and that American skiers should expect terrorist attacks upon them. I think I am supposed to make the leap myself how "American skiers" are responsible, I don't go to his church.
All I know is that I cannot wait to get this guy's XXXXX out of my house.
posted on November 12, 2000 04:31:22 PM new
nowwhat - I never thought to look. I use auction software and any more, I never log on!
Anyway, I took a peak and it's okay. 50 + with 1 neut. 1 neg. He has had a couple of skirmishes, same trouble he has given me, and one seller reports he let him out of a deal. Thing with fb is if it reported once you gotta figure there has been that many problems X a factor of what? 2? 5? 10?
On the upside his fb left does not show 20 negs so I am relieved at that.
This guy wrote me before the auction ended. He asked if me if he won, if I would ship to XXXXXX. My auction copy states international sales are welcome. I told him if he won I would ship the item anywhere he wanted, any way he wanted. He posted back with praise for that (thought reeeeeally insulting sellers who won't ship...) He was going to be my new best friend until he won and I quoted "$12.00". Now I am a shyster, and "we'll just see" about that figure, and I better be prepared to refund him any overpayment, etc. etc, I was stupified. I have never gotten a mail from a buyer like this before.
When I wrote back to explain/reassure / justify / offer, (states right in my auction I will charge int'l buyers actual shipping) I was still in the wrong because I apparently did not know, or they no longer had the "red white and blue 2 pound rate".
I wrote back that I was aware of global priority, but the envelopes were flimsy and the BOOK was way too heavy to ship safely, also too large to fit. I made the mistake of saying I was shipping between cardboard in a padded mailer (even though I have read on these boards this is not sufficient) and that got me told that he has received a book in JUST a padded mailer and it was fine. However, he did not ask me to remove the cardboard, because I surely would have - instead he prefers to b****.
I ignored his last 3 emails. There is nothing more to say. I have offered twice to forgive his bid, will ship anyway he pleases, and I surely am not going to indulge a conversation about terrorism and American skiers. I live in ski country btw.
posted on November 12, 2000 05:39:16 PM new
I think I would pass along that threat to american skiers to the FBI. If he's a crazy, he might be serious.
posted on November 12, 2000 06:32:51 PM new
Yes, this is the accident he is referring to.
I went back to re-read the post to see if it seemed okay to post it here, or if I should look seriously at turning it in, and it seems I misread it.
What he says is that he suspects that it was a terroist act directed against Americans skiing in the area. The inference is that because of "ours" - "theirs" have been burned.
This new version is less "creepy" but the attitude is equally repulsive to me. I just want to sell my book. If I am going to discuss a tragedy, I am not going to be sitting in my home with my family safe blaming victims for the death of other victims.
All I can say is this is one of those type buyers that have you wondering why you sell on the internet in the first place. After that passes I can just be glad he doesn't live on my block.
posted on November 12, 2000 06:42:05 PM new
.. What he wrote was "I suspect terrorism directed at American skiers..." and I read "I expect terrorism directed..
posted on November 12, 2000 06:51:04 PM new
He's jumping to premature conclusions. There has been no speculation so far as to what caused the accident. Besides, more Europeans than Americans died in that fire.
posted on November 13, 2000 08:44:37 AM new
The remarks about the tragedy with the skiers is very odd. I do agree that this person may be a little strange.
However, as an American who lived in Europe for a long while, I can say that arguing the shipping costs is not unusual for Europeans. In most places in Europe, bargaining with private sellers is a way of life. The seller starts out with a too-high price and the buyer has to knock that price down. In eBay, there's no bargaining, so the buyer has to negotiate the shipping.
Bargaining usually starts with the buyer insulting the seller with a statement about trying to cheat the buyer with the price. The seller then responds with a similar insult about the buyer being the one to cheat. For Americans, it's very incomfortable.
Your buyer may just not be very savvy about dealing with Americans. He may also be surprised with how expensive UPS shipping has become since fuel prices have risen, I know I am!
posted on November 13, 2000 08:59:01 AM new
Excellent point ce950, one I never considered.
This buyer said that he had a brother in the states that would accept shipments for him in the case a US seller would not ship int'l so he appears to be pretty savvy. I think
he is a bit of an intellectual batterer by his nature, which makes me think of Paul Simon's "a mean individual". When you are perfect and smarter than all others in
the world, it can be a pretty lonely place .
Also, I am selling with an id with only 15 fb so perhaps he thought he was dealing with a newbie, and decided to try to intimidate. Again, whichever the scenario, it is repulsive (to me), and out of probably 15-1800 deals online, NO ONE has posted me to tell me I was cheating them, before, during or after a sale.
Really, I just think he is extremely highly, highly intelligent and this is part of his fun. He is not interested in mundane reality, ya know? The "what if" world is so much more interesting and infinite. If I knew this to be true, I'd be having some fun. Since I don't...
posted on November 13, 2000 09:23:06 AM new
Yup you could play some real mind games here but you should resist. If you get this cultural difference where they expect to accuse you of cheating them and have no emotional factor it is fun to come back and try to raise the price every time they try to lower it. When you don't follow the rules of the dance THEY get upset real quick.
Edited to add: When I am being shot at it is hard to remember to apologize to standers-by.
Perhaps they should not get on a train with such targets? Sounded like a mechanical failyre to me. Most terrorist acts go BOOM.
[ edited by macandjan on Nov 13, 2000 09:26 AM ]
