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Post by jwm on May 6, 2005 12:46:23 GMT -5
I mentioned this on another thread, but today I'm crossing the line from irritaton to anger. I bought a GX-03 from this guy, terng3110, 'Buy it Now' for $109. on Monday. Of course, both e-bay and paypal immediately generate confirmation e-mails. As I always do when I buy something on-line I sent an e-mail to the seller asking for acknowledgement and confirmation of the order, and shipping. No reply. I have sent this guy four notes so far and received no reply. Have any of you had a similar experience? Has anyone else dealt with this guy? This kind of stuff drives me nuts. (And for me that's a short trip)
JWM
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Post by mcfitch on May 6, 2005 15:01:45 GMT -5
I've never dealt with him, but the last time I read ebay's policies (about 5 years ago) they stated you should give 3 weeks for contact. Perhaps something has happened to keep him from responding. sh*t does happen in real life, and sometimes you can't respond to an ebay autcion e-mail as quickly as you'd have liked to.
have you checked his feedback to see if he has a history of this kind of behavior?
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Post by Ben-Ohki on May 6, 2005 15:09:54 GMT -5
Not the same seller but something similar happened to me a few weeks ago. First the auction said that "international buyers" had to email them to confirm shipping. So I did. It was Tuesday. Thursday rolled around and I still didn't hear from them, so I went back to the auction to see if maybe the page updated with an invoice button. (It was). But I also noticed for the first time a tiny fine-print clause in the "Shipping Info" section that buyer had to have a minimum feedback score - else email them first. But since I'd already won, I wrote them immediately asking if it was a problem. So now I was confused - why the hell did they bother with such an important clause by hiding it in fine-print... let alone in the WRONG section of the auction listing? On Sunday morning, I gave them the benefit of doubt. I decided to click that "Pay Now!" button - seemed to me that the button used to be "Send Invoice." I wrote them again anyway explaining that I had grown tired of waiting and decided to assume that it was all good since they never replied to my question about my feedback. On the following Tuesday, I wrote them a third time (4th if you count the eBay "Send Invoice" button from 7 days prior). I quoted the days since the auction end and the days since I sent payment. I also explained again why I was initially worried thanks to all those clauses in the original listing I failed to notice when I first bid. I also asked again for them to send a shipping confirmation (if they'd already shipped, and if they hadn't, when they expected to ship). The following Sunday I was at my wits end. I avoided being rude, but my final email was indeed very dry. I counted a summary of all the times I tried to raise them on email, the number of days since the auction end, and the number of days since payment. I also told them in no uncertain terms that I was ready to take this up with Paypal and eBay to get my money back. An hour later they wrote back and promised to send out on Monday. They claimed they had been having computer difficulty for the last week or so.  The deal was a load of sh*t because I know they were on-line - they had left feedback for other users during the last 14 days.... Anyway, I eventually got my stuff... ...still I would recommend prompting them every 2 days or whatever you feel is logical... you never know, to continual flood of email will certainly get it through heads that you're unhappy. On the other hand, I'd also like to point out that there've been times where I never got any email from the seller and the item just arrived out of the blue a short while later.  |
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Post by jwm on May 6, 2005 16:38:14 GMT -5
Hey, how ya doing Mcfitch.
I know that stuff indeed happens. Perhaps I'll receive the order in a timely fashion. I've got about a week and a half to wait. I sent another e-mail to the guy today. One of the feedback notes said he responded quickly, another said he didn't respond to the e-mails. Go figure. As I see it it's a matter of both personal and professional courtesy to respond quickly to a customer's contact. Especially in the anonymous and impersonal realm of cyber business. One of the things I mentioned to him is that Japanese toy collectors (that's us, folks!)are a pretty tightly knit on-line community. If a seller is good to deal with we pass along the good word quickly. If one of us gets burned by a seller it also gets around fast. A couple of posts on Robot-Japan or Toybox DX can be quite a boost, or cost a seller thousands of potential customers. So I wait.
JWM
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Post by REX-203 on May 6, 2005 18:04:19 GMT -5
Ben's right, you should continue to email them until they reply. Although I usually prefer not to, I too have completed satisfactory transactions (as the buyer) without direct contact with the seller, but that usually only occurs if there is a small sum at stake and the seller has a good reputation. However, if I feel uneasy, or get a bad feeling about it, I'll send a message and would certainly expect the seller to respond. A concerning email should never go unreplied. As a friend, I gotta be honest with you though, I saw this auction a day or so before you posted that you bought one, and I was a little skeptical of its authenticity. $103 is unusually very low for GX-03 and for a long out of production toy, it seems unlikely that he'd have a stock full of them. Plus, iirc, he has a pretty low feedback rating. Not bad, but relatively low. Which means he has less at stake if eBay boots him from the community. As far as a timeframe goes, I wouldn't give him a minute more than what PayPal or eBay will give you to file a complaint. I had a bad deal with a member of a TF forum last year when the guy kept telling me he was going to send what I ordered from him. He had been a long standing, reputable member of the board, so I trusted him and waited...and waited. BIG MISTAKE. He ended up disappearing from the board with several people's monies, and is now totally gone...scott free. Moral of the story: cover yourself. No matter what someone tells you, or how good their reputation is, the bottom line is this is the internet, and one can very easily be made a victim of another's deceit. If you paid with PayPal DO NOT wait past 30 days to file a complaint.File your case no later than the 29th day after payment was made. If the seller refuses to accept the fact that you have to look out for yourself, then shame on him. You can bet your buck he'd do the same thing to cover his own hide. Besides, I'd rather have a negative feedback left for me than allow a no good thief to escape with my hard earned money. I'm sorry jwm, I don't mean to spook you out. I just don't want to see you get taken for a ride. It could very well be a completely legitimate deal, but we won't know for sure until you have good ol' Combattler in your hands. Good luck bro.  |
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Post by Mazinkaiser on May 6, 2005 23:41:32 GMT -5
And the thing that sucks is that the seller lives 1 t o5 miles from me!! GRRRR, he better not steal JWM's money! There is no way JWM shoudn't have received it yet. I buy some stuff from Computer Geeks in San Diego. If I order at 4:00 pm on a Wed, I get the item by 2:00 pm the next day...
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Post by jwm on May 7, 2005 0:49:03 GMT -5
Thanks guys.
Rex 203- that's some good advice. I haven't been burned yet, so for now I kind of have to give him the benefit of the doubt. But yeah, I'll definitely contact paypal, ebay etc. if that thing isn't here in two weeks. As I said, I already let him know how quickly his reputation as a toy dealer can go down the tubes. On the other hand, crooks don't care much for reputations. So we'll see. Thanks again.
JWM
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Post by joweone on May 7, 2005 7:57:40 GMT -5
Unleash the mazinkaiser on him!!!! ;D ;D
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Post by jwm on May 7, 2005 13:05:04 GMT -5
I did a little more research- I went through all his feedback, and transactions. Except for one squabble, all the transactions for SOC pieces were completed to the buyers' satisfaction. That is reassuring. I don't want to start accusing the guy of being a crook. So there's nothing to do now but wait. Again thanks for the input..
JWM
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Post by REX-203 on May 7, 2005 19:26:10 GMT -5
That is definitely good to hear. |
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Post by Mazinkaiser on May 7, 2005 20:14:49 GMT -5
Unleash the mazinkaiser on him!!!! ;D ;D Grrrrrr I'll get him! JWM is my SoCal buddy. I don't want him to get burned, nor anyone on this forum. |
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Post by jwm on May 8, 2005 10:16:55 GMT -5
Easy there, Mazinkaizer.  No need to go into attack mode. I got a note today from the seller. He apologized for being tardy with the response. Combattler is on the way. So all is well for now. I be happy. And considering this guy's prices, he might be a good one to watch. Thanks again guys. JWM |
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Post by JB on May 8, 2005 14:56:02 GMT -5
Yeah, funny story about ol' Mazinkaiser : I had told him about how some local ebay seller in Yorba Linda had burned me on a deal. He asked for the guy's name and address, so I gave it to him. Mazinkaiser pays the guy a visit and delivers a severe beating about the head and neck area. Well, as it turns out, when I had given him the guy's info I was a tad bit inebriated and accidentally gave him a different seller's info. He ended up thrashing an 82 year-old innocent seller within an inch of his life. My bad. The story, however, does end on a happy note as my piece arrived the next day. Good Times and Laughs on Robot-Japan. |
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Post by Mazinkaiser on May 9, 2005 20:11:19 GMT -5
I don't know if I'd beat him, but I might have to take my share in chogokin... ;D
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Post by Mazinkaiser on May 9, 2005 20:12:54 GMT -5
JWM, I am happy you are getting your GX-03.. Keep his address handy for the future....just in case. (I have family in local law enforement)
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Post by mcfitch on May 10, 2005 9:05:54 GMT -5
I don't know if I'd beat him, but I might have to take my share in chogokin... ;D What, like Robin Hood? |
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Post by Mazinkaiser on May 11, 2005 1:05:53 GMT -5
Ya, like Robin Hood ;D
Seriously though, I wouldn't do that to anyone.
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Post by roboloco on May 14, 2005 13:21:36 GMT -5
Hello! Newbie here. JWM did you get your GX-03? I've seen the same guy on Ebay selling GX-06 for $129, but shipping is $45. I live a couple a miles from this guy and had emailed him if I could pick it up, thus saving me the $45 for the shipping. I hope he considers it. He says he has "10" of them. Kinda hesitant...What do you think?
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Post by jwm on May 14, 2005 17:54:43 GMT -5
Roboloco: I bought the GX from this guy about twelve days ago but I haven't got it yet. It took him about a week to get back to me with an e-mail confirmation of the order. As I mentioned, he did apologize for being tardy with the response. Look closely at his listing. The shipping is high because the stuff is being shipped from Hong Kong. So you won't be able to pick it up. I won't start sweating again until the end of the week. Shipping from Hong Kong usually does take over two weeks, and it will be two weeks on Monday that I placed the order. His feedback is good, so I'm not too worried. Welcome to Robot Japan. How long have you been into J-toys and such? By the way- cool nic.  JWM |
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Post by roboloco on May 14, 2005 19:12:44 GMT -5
Thanks jwm! I got an email response to my question and yeah, you're right, no way I can pick it up --it's in Hong Kong. I might wait on it, depending on my finances. My wife hates it when I purchase these things. Ever since I was a kid in the Philippines in the '70's I've been into J-toys, but couldn't really afford to actually purchase one. Late 2003 when it all changed for me. I've been telling my wife how I would love to have a Godaikin Voltes V and she got me one for my birthday. Then that's when it all this "craziness" started. I then started collecting "SOC's" and the rest is history. (I think my wife regrets it now hehehe...)
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