I am a seller of used men's clothing, with a ffedback rating of over 600. I am an eBay PowerSeller as well. This guy purchases 2 Polo suits from me, for a total of $110. I ship the suits out promptly.
A few days later, I get this VERY aggressive e-mail which states, "I received the 2 suits this morning and have determined them to be
fraudulent. This was determined by myself by previously owning Ralph Lauren suits, as well as taking them into my tailor who deals with the line of Ralph Lauren suits in his shop. These suits are not Polo by Ralph Lauren. You sewed the patch on along with a few buttons that say Polo. I am notifying you that I will being leaving multiple
negative feedback remarks (based on multiple purchases) on your Ebay account, as well as contacting EBAY directly to report your actions. I will also be discussing this matter with my attorney to see what
legal actions that I can take against you. Of all my dealings with Ebay auctions this is my first fraud situation and am deeply upset."
I e-mail him back and let him know that as far as I was concerned, the suits were authentic. Also, that I am a reputable ebay seller and that I don't practice sewing labels in suits to make a quick buck. I offered to take the suits back for a FULL REFUND if he was unhappy with them.
This morning I get this e-mail: "If this is your line of business then you would have known as soon as you saw these suits that they were not authentic, it was blatantly obvious. I will not be returning them so that you can simply resell them to someone else who maybe would not know the difference. I will continue with the actions that I presented to you in the last email. Those were not threats but a means for which I plan to seek retribution for this wrong that you have committed and hopefully open the eyes to other people and make them aware of the risk in dealing with your auctions."
So what do I do? This guy only has 8 feedbacks, he hasn't been on eBay for long. I would rather refund his money and tell him to throw the suits away, than receive a negative and a possible lawsuit. Although I don't know what he could do - I offered to take them back, what more could I have done? This guy seems like he's out to get me no matter what. eBay sellers, please give me some advice!
posted on June 15, 2001 07:45:01 AM
You should look into what he has bid on lately and maybe contact some of the other sellers and see if he is pulling off the same trick on other people.
If it is the buyer I think it is---he has recently (within a few weeks) bid and won hundreds of dollars worth of items
[ edited by Zazzie on Jun 15, 2001 07:48 AM ]
posted on June 15, 2001 07:54:04 AMI would rather refund his money and tell him to throw the suits away, than receive a negative and a possible lawsuit.
Don't refund his money unless he returns the suits. There is no way to stop him from leaving a negative regardless of what you do, and as far as a lawsuit goes, there is no way he could have any evidence to show that "You sewed the patch on along with a few buttons that say Polo". You have already offered a full refund- that seems enough to me.
posted on June 15, 2001 07:56:49 AM
mrpotatoheadd-
I totally agree with you! I think I have done everything reasonable. I was just saying that the money isn't important to me, but my business on eBay is. I just don't know what to do! I haven't responded to his last e-mail yet.
posted on June 15, 2001 07:57:01 AM
Sounds like perhaps a buyer who hopes to scare you into a refund and leave him with the suits too.
Remember, DON'T OVER REACT TO SUCH NUTS!
IF your suits are authentic, I wouldn't worry too much.
1st, to Sue, he will have to sue you in your location, and unless he is both stupid and wealthy, it costs way to much to do such.
2nd, from this sale forward I would use some type of a mark on your items so that you will KNOW that what someone complains about and what they return are the same, AND that you can prove it.
3rd. Not to worry about negatives, sooner or later almost ever seller runs into a lunatic that no one in the world could satisfy, and will get a negative. If you have 600 feedback a couple of negatives will just make him look like a maniac, not you.
4. Don't let you pride at being falsely accused get in the way - cool it, and just proceed in a business like fashion - pretend you are Sears - state your terms and leave it at that.
DO NOT give him a refund, and leave him with the suits, and basically I wouldn't argue with him, just tell him to return the suits and you will give him a refund. DO NOT refund without having the suits in your hand.
Remember most people's barks is much bigger than their bite. Some when confronted with a simple either or, don't even nip!
Don't argue with him, it is normally pointless and just escalates tension. His story about taking it to his "tailor" sounds totally fishy, particularly if the "tailor" sells the same item.
Offer the refund when the items are returned, and don't argue, or budge on it. Make it simple, direct, and don’t go on with any dialogue, these type of folks love contention, and fights. State your terms, perhaps like:
***********************
[b]Our items are authentic, and we stand behind them. If you aren’t happy, please return the suits for a full refund. We will send your refund upon receipt of the suits. Sears doesn’t refund till the product is returned and we don’t either.
If you feel the need to sue, please proceed. We have notified eBay of this situation and the threats so they will have the record should this occur to another seller.
Thanks and wishes for a lovely day.[/b]
***********
AND LEAVE IT AT THAT, regardless of what he writes in the future, just send the same note – don’t argue, and do notify the Power Sellers of this man’s threats, and refusal to return merchandise but attempt to get a refund. I have found Power Sellers to be of considerable help.
Move on with your life, everyone gets a nut from time to time.
posted on June 15, 2001 08:03:49 AM
You're dealing with an upset, principle oriented buyer, so you should address the issue in a manner in which he understands.
I would first send him an email lettting him know that a misunderstanding currently exists with the transaction and that you will glady address the issue in a straight-forward and productive way. Reiterate that you will glady provide a full refund for his purchase. No questions asked.
As a sign of good faith on his part, ask him to have the authorized Ralph Lauren retailer write a short note on their business letterhead indicating that the suits are fraudulent and not authentic. You cannot accept his opinion on this. If he cannot provide this documentation, tell him the suits would have to be returned for the refund. If this letter is obtainable, offer the refund and tell buyer he can donate the suits to a local shelter or Salavation Army.
You've shown good faith to this buyer, so I'm not sure what else can be done. It sounds like this guy is a loose cannon of sorts and might not be able to be corrected regardless of what you do. He's been WRONGED and can't get over it. The world is against him and he is going to fight back! This usually equates to some sort of mental condition...
Whatever you do, don't give in to his idle threats. He might be looking for a few free suits if he can get away with it. Tell him in he is unable to get the letter, it's the suits or the re his choice.
If he negs you, respond by saying that a full refund was offered to customer on authentic goods and declined.
posted on June 15, 2001 08:05:24 AM
call his bluff and tell him that YOU have discussed his slander with your lawyer (the claims of intentional fraud) and that you are also prepared to take appropriate steps to protect yourself. If I were feeling chipper, I'd even THANK him for slandering you in writing, so that you have a handy piece of evidence for the lawsuit!
Unless you live in the same state, such that small claims could get you, any reputable lawyer will tell him that he might as well forget about it, suing an individual in another state for $100 is quite expensive and rather pointless.
Unless this is a rich nutcase (doubtful), who intends to get you if it takes his last million dollars.
posted on June 15, 2001 08:10:28 AM
Thanks for all the great replies! What I DON'T understand is that I offered him his money back!! He doesn't live in the same state, so why would he bother to sue me for the $100 that I already offered him??? What do you think eBay will say about this? I already contacted PowerSeller support.
posted on June 15, 2001 08:19:58 AM
Hey, Huckleberry. I think I've got that one beat. I received this email yesterday:
********************************
Subject: You are not very nice, you will go to hell some day
You know Steve,
You are a highly skilled lier, I give you that. you are a damn lier. I'm really pissed because we both know that you ripped me off. You see, fairness is very big with me and I won't let you lie too much more. I see you said someone made a threat about legal action against you; well, I don't really believe in calling lawyers unless I can't may bail without one. The bottom line is this; I promise that if you don't make this **** right I will come to CA to give you the chance to face me while you wrong me. Don't get me wrong, I mean you no harm but I won't allow you to steal from me and then call me a lier. I really hope you don't try me because I am a much better guy then I use to be. One more thing, If I was you, I'd exercise a little more care with who I steal from; I know guys who'd be at your house right now. I'm sure you don't understand. You should do better then that; think about our children and the kind of **** we don't want them to ever know. Let's work together to try and make this ***** up world just a little better. Do the right thing Steve. Oh yeah, I'm going to win another of your auctions and see how it goes. Steven, please don't mess with my money.
[edited for profanity]
*******************************
This is the second email I've received from this nutcase. He's writing from a Yahoo account and I have no record of that email address. My reply to his first email (which was slightly less angry than this one) was, "Send me the item number or your eBay ID so I can check my records." He didn't identify himself, he just became more threatening.
Note the line I italicized in his message. It refers to a comment I made at AuctionWatch so he's obviously stalking me in the AW forums. This is a good reason to maintain an anonymous ID, which I don't do.
If he had chosen to identify himself at least I could get an idea of what happened. Instead he prefers to harass me anonymously. Notice he said he's going to bid on another of my items. Oh, goody.
[ edited by twinsoft on Jun 15, 2001 12:25 PM ]
posted on June 15, 2001 08:22:33 AM
If he's a nutcase, there is no reason behind anything he does.
If he isn't, then he's a principle-driven buyer (as suggested above), and he's out to teach you, the dirty rotten fraud-meister, a lesson. "Its the principle, not the money" as the saying goes.
And theoretically "legal actions" could include trying to get you arrested, not just recover the money.
NOt that i'd lose much sleep over his legal threats, as long as you are legit the chances of anything coming from them is minute.
On the other hand, ebay's reaction is random, as we've observed over the years, so that may be more worrisome. They are more likely to do something if he files for an insurance claim, since that sort of forces their hand to respond in some fashion.
posted on June 15, 2001 08:32:12 AM
CaptK, like I said I have no idea who this person is. I mention here a guy who claimed his item never arrived and filed a fraud complaint with Paypal. If I had to guess, I'd say it could be the same person.
If so, I also mentioned that he interfered with my auctions. He placed a bogus bid, which I cancelled. Then he placed two more bids under different IDs, cancelled them and stated as his reason, "this seller is a fraud, etc." This was a $1000 item. As I stated elsewhere, I also discovered him shill bidding on his own auctions. eBay suspended him.
I don't know if it's the same guy, but bananas grow in bunches, ya know?
posted on June 15, 2001 08:34:29 AM
Add this guy to your blocked bidder list now! He sounds like the type that could try to sabotage your other auctions.
posted on June 15, 2001 09:21:34 AM
Man, people are whacked out...
I'd put this psycho on bid block and would move on... There's no benefit in continuing any discussion with this guy. He's bad news and his previous emails to you are quite threatening.
Did you sell him the .01 Ginsu Knifes or something?
posted on June 15, 2001 09:55:17 AM
I think computerboy gave some really sound advice, but reading a little farther - yikes! Send this whole thing to SafeHarbor (emails too of course) and let them deal with this nutcase. Meanwhile, block his bids. Yesterday!
posted on June 15, 2001 11:31:33 AM
i agree - this is most likely a principle-driven buyer who believes the suits are frauds and that you frauded him and will do the same to others. all you can do is reiterate that to your knowledge they are authentic and you sold them as authentic in good faith. you might want to remind him of your feedback, suggest he take a look at it, and say if you were a fradulent seller, wouldn't it be likely this would be reflected somewhere in your other 600 sales/feedback?
computerboy's advice is excellent.
you've already done all you can do as far as offering to make it right in his eyes. and especially given his knee-jerk reaction, i would not refund him without getting the items back.
Thanks for all the sound advice. The guy just negged me twice. Here are the comments:
Bought 2 suits at once both FAKES!!!! labels added on!!!! NOT AUTHENTIC
I received the suit and it was a fake! It
had 2 different labels stiched on
He is claiming since the suits had one Polo and one Mark Shale label, they are fake. Well, Mark Shale is a store in Chicago that puts their labels in all their suits!
Any suggestions for replies to his feedback lunacy???
posted on June 15, 2001 12:20:19 PM
I can sympathize Huckfinn....Sounds like the wacko I had that insisted that the Ashworth golf shirt I sent him was a fake because it didnt have the Ashworth man on the chest! He was convinced that I was making shirts in my basement!! He also suggested that the Bobby Jones shirts I was selling were frauds too! Said the pro shop told him they were fakes. Couldnt make him happy.
Finally just told him to send the shirt back and to stop writing me. Never got the shirts back, but received a lovely feedback from the nut! Honestly did hurt me and it got buried quickly...
So dont worry too much about it. Nothing is going to make this guy happy...
posted on June 15, 2001 12:23:11 PM
ah, geez. this guy was just out to get you no matter what. hothead. as far as replying to his feedback, what mrP said
posted on June 15, 2001 12:26:54 PM
The Mark Shale store in Illinois is about 5 minutes from my office. Sure enough, you can expect a branded Mark Shale label on every designer suit they sell. This practice is quite common, as Marshall Fields, Carson's and many other high end clothing retailers do the same thing.
Even if this numbskull would have kept the suite, I doubt he would have had the ability to put the pants on by himself.
And another thing, guys like this shouldn't be wearing Ralph Lauren suits to begin with. They do not befit the brand.
Send this guy to K-Mart for a new Hane's suit. It will fit him better...
posted on June 15, 2001 01:51:53 PMThe Mark Shale store in Illinois is about 5 minutes from my office. Sure enough, you can expect a branded Mark Shale label on every designer suit they sell. This practice is quite common, as Marshall Fields, Carson's and many other high end clothing retailers do the same thing.
ha!
this guy's going to feel like a complete idiot when he finds this out. not that he's likely to apologize, and the damage is already done. your 2 negs on his total of 8 feedback will do a lot more damage that his 2 on your 600. but if you want them removed, might try putting his name in the negs you leave, or your replies to his, and see if ebay will remove them?
posted on June 15, 2001 01:55:55 PM
ebay will only remove the negs you leave for him if you leave a name in the neg fb you give him. He def. deserves a neg.
Respond to his, however, leaving a name or something like that and they'll remove it from your fb.
posted on June 15, 2001 03:48:19 PM
HuckFinn--I think I have the bidder correct and if I do.........
I think you should look into what I mentioned before. You buyer has left similar feedbackk regarding a 'fake item' on another seller. I think you should do a bit of detective work and see if they are pulling this same stunt on others.
Much of the feedback they have right now was given the days the auction ended--so it was for payment received (lesson to learn--never leave feedback til buyer has received item).
Some of your buyer's feedback goes back to Feb of this year, but they have not left any for anybody except for negative ones.
He's got 2 pages of winning bids right now, many of it designer items.
So---go on Sherlock Finn --the game is afoot.
To check feedback left by someone on Ebay
click on the feedback number then go up to location and after the word feedback add 'left'
