How can I report a seller who didn't honor my winning bid by canceling the action minutes after it v

Question

I bid and won a gold rope. I guess they didn't like the winning bid.

woodland_gnome · Answer

Did you pay? Were you refunded? (If not both then what is the chronology of what has happened with dates so we can advise you what you need to do?) If so the seller already got a "defect" when s/he cancelled the transaction (unless s/he lied to eBay to blame you, in which case we'd need details especially what eBay said the reason was in the cancellation notice). That is the primary tool eBay uses to weed out bad sellers, downgrading the selling status of those who get too many relative to their sales volume (as opposed to having to pay employees to actually investigate to see how likely it was that the seller had a legitimate reason to cancel vs. deliberate policy violations).

You may leave appropriate (calm, factual--if the seller said that x was the reason say "seller said x. . ." so people don't think you are just jumping to conclusions) feedback to warn future buyers/bidders. If the usual links have vanished, go to anyone's Feedback Profile (doesn't matter who, click on the feedback score in parentheses behind the username) then scroll down to below the last comment on that page to find a "Leave feedback" link that doesn't vanish (it brings you to a list of items you can leave feedback for).

Theoretically you could sue the seller for breach of the contract of sale (for the difference between the auction price and what you ended up having to pay for a replacement), but that is almost never practical.

disneyshopper · Answer

https://www.ebay.com/help/action?topicid=4022

1. Select The seller has violated one of eBayâ€™s policies and click Continue.
2. On the next page, enter the seller's ID and select Other.
3. In the comment section, write "Seller cancelled order stating ..... to avoid a defect "

Too many defects, and sellers can be restricted or suspended.

Sellers who cancel transactions for Out of stock receive a defect. Too many defects and sellers can be restricted or suspended.