So I got scammed on a digital camera I bought on ebay. The seller sent a manual that is in Spanish only, and the picture quality is NOT what I would expect from a “mint condition!” camera. I had a camera exactly like this before, and it took great pictures…these pictures look like they come from a $30 camera.
I requested a refund and am going back and forth with this guy through ebay’s Square Trade. A mediator should be assigned within a day or so.
What I want: I sent him $95. I want to either: a. keep the camera and receive a partial refund (because it has SOME worth, just not what I paid), or b. have him paypal me a refund and send him the camera back.
What I’d SETTLE for: $75 in my paypal account, and I’ll send the camera to him.
What HE wants: a. Get the camera back, and send me $50. (I’d be out some $55+ with this option, and he’d make $50 for nothing, plus whatever else he makes in reselling it), or b. I send him the camera, he resells it and sends me “whatever it sells for” AFTER the auction closes.
I say no way am I sending this thing anywhere until I have $$ in my account. He says…well, you get the drift.
So, aside from Square Trade, do I have any other options? I paid via paypal, and am looking into that, but if anyone has any helpful info I’d sure appreciate it.
I used the money in my paypal account, which is supported by my debit card. . . unfortunately, I don’t think my debit card is protected the way a regular CC is. I’ll check it out, though. Thanks!
Did the seller have any terms about refunds in the auction listing? Most sellers will not refund anything until they get the merchandise back - same as any store. If you want your money back, you’re probably better off returning the camera.
Paypal has a way of charging back but you have to act fast - I think you only have 30 days - you may be able to charge back the whole thing and/or freeze his account - which would put you in the driver’s seat.
Boscibo, I just don’t trust him to return my $. I have every expectation that if I send the camera back, he’ll just resell it and I’ll never see any of my $$.
I’ll try emailing support at paypal; can’t seem to find the info I need on site.
I had a seller who did not send the item that I bought. I gave him a step by step description of the action that I would take if he did not comply with our contract. That included notifying the police department of his fraud in the community where he lived and notifying the post office of postal fraud. I got as far as notifying his hometown police chief and the eBay seller sent me my book and a total refund of my money!
Your situation is a little different. Do you have a copy of the description? Was he in anyway misleading?
If it were me and I had a lousy camera, I would send it back by registered mail, signature required. I would follow it with a notice that if he did not refund a specified amount of the money, I would notify postal authorities about what he shipped using U.S. mail. Send that letter to him registered, signature required also.
Maybe if you are officious enough, he will not want to deal with the problems you could cause.
Or you could just wait until the mediator makes a decision and hope that he gets banned.
Thanks, Zoe. His description fails to mention that the manual included in the auction is in Spanish only, and he describes the camera as being in “mint condition”.
I’m considering taking the camera to a camera shop here and having them look it over and tell me what’s wrong with it and what it would cost to fix it. It does NOT take pictures that are comparable to those taken by other examples of the very same camera (same model, etc).
He was being very rude and persistent until I mentioned that since I had the exact same camera, I KNOW how the pics should turn out, and this one obviously is broken or has been tampered with. That’s when he offered to resell it and send me the proceeds.
I think I’ll see what the mediator says first; then, if he continues to refuse to work with me, I’ll start talking about mail fraud.
I learned to not use the money in my paypal acct…too
anyway, you’re supposed to return the item & then you get a refund. Isn’t that how it works when you visit a store? When I want to return something to a store, they insist I give them the item first.
If it were a store, yes, I would. BUT. I have a nasty gut feeling about this guy. I believe that he has no intention of returning my money, and if I send him the camera, he will have the camera, my money, AND whatever money he sells it for next time.