posted on July 28, 2001 11:52:48 AM new
Here's the story:
I won an auction on 7th July, received email from seller on the 8th, and promptly issued a PayPal payment.
The payment sits unclaimed, although this is a verified user.
The auction was won dirt cheap, considering the value of the item. The seller has over 1500 positive feedback, with a couple of neutrals and negatives. One of the negatives is for the same situation I'm in.
The seller is very active with lots of auction running and getting positive feedback posted regularly.
I have written to the seller twice, but have received no communication in return.
There are lots of options for a seller faced with an unresponsive buyer, but what alternatives are open when the situation is reversed?
It's too early to cut my losses and do the negative feedback thing.
posted on July 28, 2001 12:02:00 PM new
The Pay Pal payment would only go "unclaimed" if you either sent it to an unregistered Pay Pal email address or you, yourself, do not have your address listed as "confirmed". In the latter case, if the seller has his preferences set to not automatically accept payments from buyers without a confirmed mailing address, it will sit there unclaimed until he either accepts it or it is returned to you in 30 days.
If you do, in fact, have a confirmed address in Pay Pal, then I would double/triple check the email address you are using for the seller. Given his record it doesn't make sense that he ignores both your payment and your emails.
Gerald
"Oh but it's so hard to live by the rules/I never could and still never do."
posted on July 28, 2001 12:08:39 PM new
I am a confirmed international PayPal user, and when paying for the auction I used a link directly from the eBay page.
The sellers info automatically appeared, so I have the correct address and we are both verified users.
He's also accepts bids from out of the country, so I'm at a loss about what's going on here.
posted on July 28, 2001 12:54:13 PM new
So, if I understand this right, the auction ended 3 weeks ago, you paid right away, yet you have yet to hear from the seller at all?
No, I don't think it's too early to do the negative feedback thing. Especially if you're talking about a low-ticket item. If it's something more expensive and/or rare and you can't get a similar item from another seller, then you might want to pull the contact info. and see what you can work out, just in case it's an email problem.
posted on July 28, 2001 01:11:42 PM new
While I would never question your assertion that you absolutely positively paid the correct email account, the fact that the payment is unclaimed AND you have had no repsonse to emails leads me to think that the email address is faulty or no longer in use.
It could also be that something has happened to the seller like a car crash etc. How is their feedback to date, and are they still actively running auctions? Perhaps you should try email the seller function one more time before leaving a neg.
Then again, you could well be absolutely right. But mysteries take many clues to solve and I just am feeling a lot like a cross between Angela Lansbury, Inspector Morse, Columbo, and Miss Marple today.
posted on July 28, 2001 03:32:41 PM new
I received the "end of auction" email from the seller, including the amount for delivery. Nothing since.
I paid using a link directly from the auction. The auction info and sellers email was there. If it isn't correct, it's what they supplied. It is the same email I used to contact them.
It is a small item (can be shipped in an envelope), with a catalogue value of $75. I won the auction for $4.00.
I want the item, but not enough to sweat bullets over it.
The newest auctions listed for the seller were posted on 24 July.
posted on July 28, 2001 04:19:19 PM new
"It could also be that something has happened to the seller like a car crash etc. How is their feedback to date, and are they still actively running auctions? Perhaps you should try email the seller function one more time before leaving a neg."
In the initial post from the author:
"The seller is very active with lots of auction running and getting positive feedback posted regularly."
posted on July 28, 2001 04:21:37 PM new
At least try emailing him from a different email address first, in case his mail server doesn't accept mail from your server or something. Then pull his contact info, that will get his attention.
Maybe he got that nasty Sir-cam virus. Seems like a lot of people did.
posted on July 28, 2001 05:55:40 PM new
I don't know why the seller wouldn't respond to your emails, but I may have some insight into why your payment remains unclaimed.
When I first registered for PayPal I had my settings set to not accept international payments. I will on occasion run a sale open to international buyers and will often agree to accept bids from an international bidder if they ask me ahead of time. I assumed it would be easy to switch the option on and off. NOT. When I go into my preferences and change the settings, my account will show that I do accept international, but my bidder's payment will not be accepted.
I have communicated in the past with Damon about this, and he said it might've been a temporary glitch. It's been going on for months, though, and even though I periodically try to change the settings, the same thing happens. Last week I had to route two international bidders through Billpoint because PayPal wouldn't let their payments come through to me.
I realize your payment is showing "unclaimed" and is not outright rejected, but perhaps that seller is having a similar sort of glitch with his account.
posted on July 30, 2001 12:18:01 AM new
I get buyers sending me paypal using the wrong .com on my email(should be .net). It was really confusing at first because I'd get an email from paypal telling me to sign up in order to claim the money, but I was already a member.
Another reason your paypal may be unclaimed is if the seller's cc limit has been reached and you had sent via credit card, the money will sit there unclaimed. I used to contact the buyers notifying them of this situation but I got tired of being called a liar and thief, so now I let the transaction expire, then issue a resubmit link from the paypal site. Hopefully people will learn to read when seller says no credit cards.
I'm guessing your seller, doing a large volume, hasn't taken the time to figure what's up with your order. Blame it on the "where's my item?" buyers who eat up a lot of sellers' time.
posted on July 30, 2001 08:59:24 AM new
I'd cancel the payment and resend it with an email to that effect; if it lies unclaimed for ten days; cancel it and file a neg.
posted on July 30, 2001 04:02:13 PM new
Perhaps you could click the "Ask seller a question" link in your auction win and ask the seller if they intend to complete the sale.
dendude
posted on July 30, 2001 04:29:46 PM new
Hello
There is lots of weird stuff on the Internet right now. I get slammed with a virus near daily lately. My server (MSN) improved it’s service and it took near a week for me to get it working right again. If he takes your money and runs neg him but as long as it sits, try to figure out what is wrong. Perhaps a 1 minute phone call? This system is far from perfect so cut him some slack unless you loose money. Regards dacreson
posted on July 30, 2001 07:18:30 PM new
Today, I finally received email from the seller.
They have received my payment and the item will be shipped tomorrow. Do I want to join their mailing list? Be sure to visit their website, etc, etc, etc.
Who knows what was going on in their heads? Next...feedback. Neg or neutral? It hasn't been a positive experience, and they gave no comment about the delay.
posted on July 30, 2001 07:27:54 PM new
You're buying a material item for goodness sake, not hiring a doctor for heart surgery. I can't believe people get stressed over not receiving their material items quickly enough. Shows where your priorities are at. Why not run around the lake and burn off some of that tension instead of burdening it on the world? No personal attack here, just a wake up call.
posted on July 30, 2001 07:47:26 PM new
Well, silly ME! All this time I thought I was giving good customer service by getting my shipments out in a timely fashion..but all I had to do was tell my customer's to take a hike instead.
posted on July 31, 2001 07:38:44 PM new
"I thought I was giving good customer service by getting my shipments out in a timely fashion..but all I had to do was tell my customer's to take a hike instead."
uhhh, da! The buyer has not transferred funds into this sellers account. I'm sure the seller does not care if this "dirt cheap" buyer ever buys from him again. Smart business sense. My opinion, catering to "dirt cheap" buyers is not.
posted on July 31, 2001 07:42:30 PM newOn items that sell for "dirt cheap," I'd be looking for just one slip up by the buyer so I could void the sale and file for a FVF refund
That's one way to do it.
When I have an item go dirt cheap, I go out of my way to treat the buyer right. I have a feeling sometimes they expect me to try to wiggle out of the sale, and when I do just the reverse, they are pleasantly surprised, and very often become repeat buyers.
We don't show our intigrity by doing what's easy, we show it by doing what's hard.
posted on August 4, 2001 12:04:58 PM new
May I suggest that at this point you do nothing more until your package has arrived. If you post FB now and the item never arrives or is not as advertised you probably will not have much chance to get your money back.
Once the package arrives and you are satisfied with it, check your PP account to see if the transaction is still pending or unclaimed. Then notify the seller and let them know that you were not overly impressed with the transaction and why. Be non-emotional. Ask them for an explaination as to why it took so long to send the item since your payment was iniated promptly after the close of the auction.
If the item is not satisfactory and they will not make it good and if the transaction is still showing as unclaimed---well, I'd just cancel it. It's possible it's just a glitch in PP. Then again, maybe this seller isn't very organized and really isn't aware they have not received your money into their account. If that's the case you have the opportunity to give yourself the refund if all else fails!
Once the item arrives and you are satisfied and if the seller still has not claimed it, let them know it's there and if it is not claimed by a certain date it will be cancelled. Then, it's up to them.
Once it's a done deal, if the seller does not offer you a satisfactory reason for the delay, then perhaps a neutral would be in order.
I would only neg in the event the item is not received or a refund not given if one is in order.
In either case I would leave FB comments stating only the auction close date, payment date, and date item received...I think that would say it all.
posted on August 4, 2001 05:35:24 PM new
Why do Buyers Pay using these Services? Either the Service or the Sellers have YOUR Money, what is the Incentive to ship in a Timely Manner? If you had not sent a Payment in that Length of Time, eBay and the Seller would be all over you with E-Mails! -PJ38-
posted on August 4, 2001 06:17:12 PM new
The option to pay using an electronic service is the fastest method of payment.
As a seller, I don't take cheques, and as a buyer, I'm not going to send one.
Neither am I prepared to take the time and expense to get a money order. If I want an item, and the seller doesn't take electronic payments, I won't bid.
