Seller is Harassing me and threatening to sue me

[church.mouse]

I bought a game that has corrupted data. I get multiple error messages with every attempt to install it. Seller claims it is "new", but it will not install. It is not a compatibility issue, the disks are damaged and all of the files are corrupted. Seller posted this game was "tested" but in 1 of his emails he admitted he had not tested it (until after I requested a refund), and when he did he also got error messages, preventing HIM from installing the game. Huh! 
I filed a claim against the seller. I won the case and eBay gave me a full refund, but this seemed to make him even more angry.
The seller is constantly emailing me. So far, I have received 8 lengthy emails from this seller. He is harassing and spamming me, and he's contradicted himself more than once about this game, which is only worth $5.98! I was forced to report him to eBay's Safety and Security Department.

The really shocking part is he said he used to be in law enforcment. If this is true, then you'd think he should know better than to harass his customers. 
The seller sent me two more emails after I reported him to eBay's Safety and Security Department. He accused me of telling a "blatant lie" in my feedback, saying the comments I made were 100% untrue, and said I am taking advantage of him . He also accused me of "telling lies to the world about him". I don't know what world he is referring to, the only person I talked to was an eBay representative, and I did not lie about the seller. I simply said "Seller sold me a game with corrupted files. I asked for a refund & got it, but he is harassing & spamming me. I had to report him to eBay".
The seller claims he spoke with eBay a few days ago and that eBay agreed with him that I am scamming him. And then he said he just spent 40 minutes on the phone with eBay and they "totally agreed" with him and have already removed the feedback. Finally, he said if I buy from him again he will treat that as retalliation and harassment.

WHY in the world would I ever want to buy from someone like that again!? 

Now the seller is threatening to take me to court and file a legal case against me for libel due to negative feedback. Is there any chance he would win in small claims court? What are my options? I don't believe the seller has any grounds for a suit, and I don't think eBay policies can protect or help me. Naturally I am very concerned and I don't know what to do. This whole situation is extremely stressful to me! I am an old woman of poor health in grave condition and occasionally need to go to the ER. I am worried now, not only about being taken to court, but also about my safety as the seller knows where I live.

Any helpful suggestions or advice will be appreciated.

[myboardid]

Your seller is full of hot air and nothing else.  He has no claim, no lawsuit, no grounds at all.  Just delete his messages unread and ignore him completely.  If you must read them, laugh at them because they are just boloney. 

You can continue to report him to eBay, and eventually they might message him to stop, but they really can't do anything to stop emails.  Make it a joke, because that is what he is.  And don't reply to him because that will only make it worse. 

[church.mouse]

Thank you for your reply and note of encouragement, I appreciate it.

[mudshark61369]

@church.mouse,

As myboardid said, you have nothing to worry about.  In order to file a libel case, they would have to do that in the jurisdction where the act took place, and that would be in your area.  Since you have his messages stating he too had issues trying to load the game, it would be a costly but short trip for him.  If he is sending messages through a regular email service you can block him, so they will no longer get delivered. 

"he said he just spent 40 minutes on the phone with eBay and they "totally agreed" with him and have already removed the feedback".

Most likely the rep told him what he wanted to hear, to get him off the phone. It is something they unfortunately do when they get frustrated with members. Your feedback being removed, probably happened because the comment violated one of a very few policies. The usual reason is mentioning an ebay or PayPal dispute in any way.  Not because they agreed that you scammed him.

Add his ID to your blocked buyer list so he can't buy from you in the future if you list something again, and stop opening his messages, just delete them.

[discountme]

Congratulations, you have now experienced what dealing with a sociopath, is like. I have them in my family n dated a few. Just ignore them. They’re attention seekers and they literally make things up in their head then believe what they make up. You will never win an arguement as they are fully committed to misunderstanding you.

[ed8108]

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@discountme wrote:
Congratulations, you have now experienced what dealing with a sociopath, is like. I have them in my family n dated a few. 

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And their numbers keep increasing !

[missjen831]

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@mudshark61369 wrote:

@church.mouse,

As myboardid said, you have nothing to worry about.  In order to file a libel case, they would have to do that in the jurisdction where the act took place, and that would be in your area.  Since you have his messages stating he too had issues trying to load the game, it would be a costly but short trip for him.  If he is sending messages through a regular email service you can block him, so they will no longer get delivered. 

"he said he just spent 40 minutes on the phone with eBay and they "totally agreed" with him and have already removed the feedback".

Most likely the rep told him what he wanted to hear, to get him off the phone. It is something they unfortunately do when they get frustrated with members. Your feedback being removed, probably happened because the comment violated one of a very few policies. The usual reason is mentioning an ebay or PayPal dispute in any way.  Not because they agreed that you scammed him.

Add his ID to your blocked buyer list so he can't buy from you in the future if you list something again, and stop opening his messages, just delete them.

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The seller can file in his own jurisdiction. He doesn’t have to travel to the OPs location. There’s always judge Judy too 😉

[ed8108]

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@missjen831 wrote: There’s always judge Judy too 😉

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Which is arbitration & not a judicial proceeding.

Alternative dispute resolution

[smabrouk]

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@mudshark61369 wrote:

@church.mouse,

As myboardid said, you have nothing to worry about.  In order to file a libel case, they would have to do that in the jurisdction where the act took place, and that would be in your area.  Since you have his messages stating he too had issues trying to load the game, it would be a costly but short trip for him.  If he is sending messages through a regular email service you can block him, so they will no longer get delivered. 

"he said he just spent 40 minutes on the phone with eBay and they "totally agreed" with him and have already removed the feedback".

Most likely the rep told him what he wanted to hear, to get him off the phone. It is something they unfortunately do when they get frustrated with members. Your feedback being removed, probably happened because the comment violated one of a very few policies. The usual reason is mentioning an ebay or PayPal dispute in any way.  Not because they agreed that you scammed him.

Add his ID to your blocked buyer list so he can't buy from you in the future if you list something again, and stop opening his messages, just delete them.

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While I agree with @mudshark61369 that you should not communicate with this seller, I disagree regarding deleting the seller’s messages.  

@church.mouse

Since this seller  is agressive and unstable, you should keep all her/his messages in case you need them as evidence of the seller’s harrassment and the seller’s dishonesty/deception in regard to the workings of the game and admissions in regard to the errors she/he experienced installing the game herself/himself.  It is better to be safe and have the necessary evidence than to be sorry (without the supporting evidence) later.  In addition to these messages, you should save the item listing and the information that you have regarding the outcome (in your favor) of the dispute.

Add the seller to your blocked buyer list (to prevent this seller from buying any items that you list on eBay) and add the seller to your saved sellers list with a note (as a reminder) not to purchase from this seller in the future; these lists will be updated with the seller’s new eBay ID if she/he changes her/his member name.

I wish you all the best and I hope that this seller will stop harrassing you.

[castlemagicmemories]

Your feedback was removed because you mentioned a case and reporting to Ebay.  

Feedback is simply a review of the seller's performance.  

Sorry this happened to you; I agree~do not delete those messages.  Keep them as proof.  Just don't let them upset you or dwell on them.

[castlemagicmemories]

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@discountme wrote:
Congratulations, you have now experienced what dealing with a sociopath, is like. I have them in my family n dated a few. Just ignore them. They’re attention seekers and they literally make things up in their head then believe what they make up. You will never win an arguement as they are fully committed to misunderstanding you.

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Thank you~your post gave clarity and your remarks are true to my observations.

[necessaryindulgencejewelry]

"For venue purposes, the correct judicial district can normally be the district in which:

the defendant resides or does business...." ~ nolo.com

A defendant can challenge the venue on the grounds that it's too far away. It's standard procedure in a lawsuit to file in the defendant's county, so if the seller filed in his own, the defendant would probably be successful in having the venue changed.