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Bizarre Seller Behavior
I purchased two items and was planning to buy more from a seller. While browsing, we were chatting. I commented that I really liked a handmade product. It turned out the seller had created it but wasn’t actually happy with it, and the seller offered it to me for free. I insisted that’s not necessary, but seller insisted I should have it. I accepted, not to be rude, and because I planned to spend more money.
I said I was tired and might need until the next day to finish my order to combine shipping. Seller said that was fine. Then seller began saying, “Don’t let me keep you up. I’m a night owl,†in a way that felt “off†to me, but we’re all “weird†to other people who don’t know our idiosyncrasies. I don’t know this person and I try not to judge.
Then, while I was browsing, I suddenly received notifications that my two orders had been canceled and refunded. No explanation. I checked Messages. Nothing. Contacted the seller, who, remember, had been very chatty. Distractingly chatty, actually, while I was trying to shop. No reply.
I was very confused. I wrote again. No reply. I thought maybe seller went to sleep; it sounded late wherever they were. The next day, I contacted again. No reply. I began to feel like a crazy person. And like this seller maybe was fantasizing that I was overly interested in them because I had been friendly in our communication. But I thought it surely wasn’t personal, that’s too crazy.
So I tried buying the other things I’d wanted from the shop. That’s when I discovered that I have been blocked from buying or bidding from them.
I don’t want to give them money. But it seems very wrong to me that this person can just cancel my items (both of which are unique to their shop, so I cannot replace them), make me feel insane for 24 hours with zero communication, and I neither receive my items nor even get to leave feedback. Nothing? I just have to take it?
That seems wrong to me. But trying to navigate eBay Help — which I have never had to do before in like 25 years! — is a nightmare. I can’t find any option to communicate with a human, get a case number, have a real person look at our messages and timeline, force the seller to ship my items possibly, face some kind of sanction for this behavior, or at very least allow me to leave feedback.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
ididitididit
OP11 months agoI forgot to mention that at first I’d assumed the seller had canceled them as a “service†to me, to give me time to continue shipping and combine shipping.
I was annoyed, though, especially since they’d been writing so much, that there was no communication about this before the seller unilaterally decided to cancel them with no explanation.
Now I’m furious that this person has also made me wonder “what I did wrong†or if I was even just “worried over nothing†for 24 hours, only to discover that they have also blocked me. No replies. No explanation whatsoever.
Yes, they refunded my money, but what about my time, anxiety, and the fact that I don’t get my items even though I paid immediately, just because this person…
I can’t even tell you why! I don’t know!
Am I being a “bad customer†by being upset about this? I am so confused.
In 25+ years, nothing like this has ever, ever happened.
gosimus
Mentor11 months ago@ididitididit
< Yes, they refunded my money . . . I can’t even tell you why! >
I'll just take a wild guess. All the while you and the seller were getting along swimmingly, chatting and whatnot, he hadn't yet realized that he would have to ship the items to Japan. When he did realize this, he balked.
ididitididit
OP11 months agoNope. The items are shipping to my friend in the US, which was the shipping address (which is also a saved option on my account) which I’d set as Primary and used to pay instantly via Buy It Now and PayPal, which had already been confirmed as PAID.
So that’s not it.
gosimus
Mentor11 months ago@ididitididit
< Nope. The items are shipping to my friend in the US, which was the shipping address >
I'm not a seller, and I might be wrong, but I think the shipping address doesn't become available to the seller until the buyer checks out. If I'm right, then, before that, the seller has only the registered location to rely on, i.e., the location shown on the buyer's feedback profile.
jacbarcollectibles
Mentor11 months agoYou are correct @gosimus sellers do not see the delivery address until the buyer pays. Up until that time the only information available to them is the buyers registered location.
ididitididit
OP11 months agoI don’t recall now, but I believe as we were chatting, I also verbalized to the seller that I’d be shipping to US. Plus, and I can’t stress this enough, I had already paid for the orders which the seller canceled, including shipping. This was absolutely not the issue.
Even if it was, the seller should have communicated with me, not just canceled an order that was paid for and fully completed on my end, and blocked me from their shop with zero explanation.
There was no haggling, no complaining, no conflict of ANY kind. The seller in Messages was being very friendly and sending me photos of their original creation and insisting they send it to me for free just because I said I liked it. And then saying, “I’m a night owl. Don’t let me keep you up. You can order the rest tomorrow. Get some rest.†That’s literally the last I heard from them. While separate from that, I got notification from eBay that my items were canceled and refunded.
Please, someone acknowledge this is extremely strange behavior.
I feel like I’m losing my mind.
gosimus
Mentor11 months agoIf the seller would explain her/his reason for his actions, it might not seem so peculiar. Until then, yes, it is strange behavior. This will probably go down in the Mysteries We Never Learn the Answer To book.
ididitididit
OP11 months agoI forgot to say, THANK YOU for replying, though. I just spoke with someone in customer service about it. Hopefully something will come of it. I want the opportunity to leave an honest review.
And ideally I want the seller to be required to ship the items. Obviously they are not “out of stockâ€. The fact that this person blocked me from their shop (which I didn’t even know is possible) makes it clear that, somehow, this is personal for them.
A seller should not be allowed to make a buyer feel like this, especially when they were paid instantly, AND the buyer loses the unique vintage item forever, AND the seller just gets away with it.
Even if the seller didn’t like something about me, they should have to COMMUNICATE that, and they should have to ship the items I’d already bought and paid for.
This is just insane.
ididitididit
OP11 months agoMaybe I needed to write @gosimus
This is my first time using eBay Community. I don’t know how it works.
Just wanted to be sure you saw my replies and know that I appreciate you taking the time to reply to my question.
Thank you.
gosimus
Mentor11 months ago@ididitididit
< I don’t know how it works >
You're doing fine. Writing in active voice, intelligible whole sentences, is a big plus.
The @username is called tagging a member, and the member receives a notification.