Fake Air pods
Has anyone gotten eBay to investigate the Chinese seller known as coffee. They sent me fake Air Pods and are not responding to multiple messages and neither is eBay
15 comments
Has anyone gotten eBay to investigate the Chinese seller known as coffee. They sent me fake Air Pods and are not responding to multiple messages and neither is eBay
mudshark61369
·2 years ago@jrcurtisjr,
If the airpods you bought were the ones listed as Apple Air Pods Pro 2nd generation... Reporting the seller or listing now after it ended back in December because they are no longer available would be an exercise in futility.
"When the Apple tech put the serial number into their system they found dozens of folks who have come to Apple stores for help with the same issue and ALL the devices have the same bogus serial number. eBay could intervene and protect its consumers".
eBay cannot possibly vet each one of the millions of new listings posted daily on the site. They do have the Money Back Guarantee (MBG) and if buyers follow its terms and time frames, does protect them from being scammed.
However, Apple bears some of the burden here as well. They could join ebay's Verified Rights Owner (VeRO) program, which would allow them to report and have ebay pull the listings that are sold by Chinese sellers, and other sellers who are not supposed to be selling any Apple products online. Though they would have to task a team of people to check ebay and other sites for those listings.
Though if the listing you bought from is the one that recently ended, they did list them as "Open Box" which might have gotten them around being reportable, though having sold over 200 of them that way, should be a warning to buyers, and possibly been able to be reported, by Apple. After all where does a seller get over 200 "Open Box" items from?
I guess the only thing you and others who read this topic, can take away from it would be to take any Apple product bought online to an Apple store soon after receiving it, for verification of its authenticity.
mudshark61369
·2 years ago@jrcurtisjr,
In one of your replies you wrote:
"they worked fine for months paired to an iPhone 12 only found out they would not pair with the new iPhone 15 I just got".
You may need to update your airpods OS so that it matches the New iPhone's OS. The following info is from Apple:
According to your profile the seller you mentioned sold you the AirPods over a year ago according to your feedback profile. If that is the case you have no recourse whatsoever for getting a refund, from ebay, PayPal or your card provider. PP & Card providers time frame are up to 6 months (180 days) from the date of purchase.
Unfortunately, the Apple items and other American branded products, especially electronic devices sold by chinese sellers are usually counterfeited items. They may be made in China, but cannot be sold by chinese sellers. If you take a chance on buying an American branded product from a chinese seller, the first thing you should do is take to it to an authorized dealer, or try to register the warranty with the Mfr. to find out if they are counterfeit or not. Don't mention buying them on ebay since many dealers will automatically tell you they're fake. Just say you received them as a gift.
jrcurtisjr
OP2 years agoThanks for the advice... not even a tech at the Apple store could get them to work. I realize that it has been OVER a year... the larger issue is that eBay shows the seller as TOP rated... yet they are selling counterfeit items and misleading the buyers. When the Apple tech put the serial number into their system they found dozens of folks who have come to Apple stores for help with the same issue and ALL the devices have the same bogus serial number. eBay could intervene and protect its consumers.
gone.c-33
·2 years ago“eBay could intervene and protect its consumers.â€
Consumers can easily protect themselves by checking the authenticity of often counterfeited products upon delivery.
If I ever were to purchase an Apple product on eBay, you best believe I would be checking that serial number ASAP.
soh.maryl
·2 years agoWhen you receive any item that is not as described, as in "fake", there is no need to contact anyone, seller, eBay or anyone else, no need for multiple messages.
All you need to do is open an item not as described case within 30 days of the receipt of the item.
Please read eBay's Money Back Guarantee for buyers.
jrcurtisjr
OP2 years agoItem bought months ago for a seller with a HIGHLY POSITIVE 99% satisfaction rating on eBay. Did not know they were fake until they no longer paired with a new iPhone and Apple Store confirmed the serial number was bogus and had actually been used on dozens of Air Pods. Seller does not respond and eBay is supposedly investigating.
tobaccocardyahoo
·2 years ago99% positive on Ebay does not mean this seller does not sell counterfeits.
Never had a bad transaction with a seller who did not have 100% positive FB. And I've been on Ebay from close to the beginning.
They still had 100% after I got my money back.
Airpods online is a risky transaction. IMO nothing will come of your situation because it took you months to discover there was a problem.
Counterfeit Airpods are common. You should not buy Airpods unless you know the source, their reliability, and can recognize fakes when you open the package.
If they were real, that would be a shock, your current situation is not a shock.
FB is useless, Ebay and most of the other marketplaces do not use it to evaluate seller performance because is subjective.
ittybitnot
·2 years agoItem bought months ago ........
@jrcurtisjr
You waited too long for any assistance from eBay. If you paid with a credit card, call and see if their time has expired as well.
jrcurtisjr
OP2 years agoThanks... they worked fine for months paired to an iPhone 12 only found out they would not pair with the new iPhone 15 I just got.
kitschy*loot
·2 years agoYour only options are contacting PayPal or doing a chargeback with your bank, if you used one of those options. The time for eBay to step in has passed.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoSorry, but once the MBG has expired, Ebay won't investigate anything.
If you paid through Pay Pal, open a case with them or contact your credit card.
tobaccocardyahoo
·2 years agoAirpods are an item I would not buy online unless I knew the seller and their reputation.
File the MBG claim following the appropriate rules.
tinsoldierunderground
·2 years agoIn addition to the excellent advice given here..... STOP buying from China!
ittybitnot
·2 years ago@jrcurtisjr
You don't need to wait for a seller to respond. You don't need to contact eBay. It is an automated process that does not require that you do either. You have 30 days after delivery to file for a return.
Go to My eBay>Purchases and find your item. I posted screen shots for someone else that shows what to do in post #11 here: https://community.ebay.com/t5/Buying/Seller-knowingly-listed-dead-hard-drive-as-quot-brand-new-quot/td-p/34281625/page/2
and start the return (claim). Choose a 'not as described' reason as appropriate. The seller has three days to either send you a return label (or money to fund the cost of the return) or give you a refund. If they don't, return to your case and escalate i.e. Ask eBay to step in.
If your seller cannot provide a label, they have to send you money BEFORE you ship it back. This is usually done through PayPal. You need to look up on USPS to see how much it will cost to return the product with the appropriate delivery confirmation based on the package weight and size.
DO NOT CLOSE case until you have your money back. The seller may say they need you to do it so they can refund but that is a lie. Do no accept a replacement.
gone.c-33
·2 years agoStop sending messages and file a proper Significantly not as described dispute and get your money back.