Chinese seller fraud

[mrmc246]

I am very disappointed in ebay.  They have no phone number customer service due to the virus. I have been having problems with Chinese sellers abusing ebay and ebay does nothing.  The latest one was for hair bands.  They advertised as an American seller with the product location in Kentucky.  I got a tracking number and USPS shows nothing.  This has been almost 3 weeks.  The seller changed the listing to China.  I have not received my item.  Ebay is giving them much more than 3 business days.   I have emailed them and asked them why when the seller has been clearly fraudulent.  Ebay should do something quickly and shut down such sellers.  I am  now going to buy much less on ebay as I am not sure I trust the platform anymore.

[hurryagain]

@mrmc246 

What are the estimated delivery dates on your purchase history page say?  If those dates have already passed, open in item not received case against this seller.  The seller will then have 4 days to respond to the case. If the seller does not respond or does not give you a satisfactory response, you can then on the 5th day, escalate the claim and eBay will make a final decision (most likely in your favor). DO NOT LET THE CASE EXPIRE.

You are covered under eBay's money back guarantee.

I am sorry for the frustration and yes, eBay really should do something about overseas sellers who seem to be attempting to drop ship from their own country instead of the warehouse(s) that they are SUPPOSED to have in the USA.

[mudshark61369]

@mrmc246,

eBay's customer service phone center shut down is not their fault, and they are doing the best they can with a quickly created online system.  Ever since eBay opened the floodgates to chinese sellers, item location misrepresentation has been an issue, and it has grown exponentially because of the virus.

The best way to ferret out chinese sellers is to check thier feedback profile page. Look for a seller's country of registry, and if they have non-positive feedback click on those numbers to read only those comments. Those will usually tell the story.  Below is a list of things to check before buying.

Indications on listing pages;

1. Item location not giving a city and/or state Ex. Ca. /USA, Many places USA, USA/USA.
2. Extended delivery or handling time frames. Especially, from supposed U.S. based sellers.
3. Very low prices w/ Free shipping
4. American flag symbols and many statements of being a U.S. Seller
5. The same photos and listing templates used by many other sellers
6. Wording in descriptions or terms of sale  that indicate English is not the persons first language
7. Use of Asian models in photos
8.  Measurements that are both metric and inches.

On feedback profile pages;

1. Country of registration ... sometimes.
2. Very high volume seller registered between 2010 and now.
3. Feedback percentages below 98.9%
4. Neutral and negative feedback sometimes in the hundreds  (you can click on those numbers to read only those comments)  look for slow shipping, non delivery,  partial orders received, and items shipped from China comments, as well as poor quality ones.
5. Replies to non positive feedback that indicate English is not the persons first language
   
6. Repetitive replies to non-positive feedback

[themadamerican]

I had a similar situation with cycling masks and filters. Unfortunately, Ebay wants to keep making that money while not having the support staff necessary to resolve these problems. I tried using the avenues of relief mentioned above with no success. Ebay washes their hands of a dispute if you call your credit card company to dispute a charge Ebay doesn't take effective action on. In my case I was made to wait 5 days beyond the guaranteed delivery date before I could ask Ebay "To Step In" and help. Since the seller was through Paypal, they would not force the seller to cancel the order, which would have sped up the resolution process between Paypal and my credit card company. Supposedly, there was an appeal option, however the system told me that was not possible, and the decision was already made. So now there is no appeal process either...a scammers paradise.

[myangelandmyprincess]

a"s(situation with cycling masks and filters. Unfortunately, Ebay wants to keep making that money while not having the support staff necessary to resolve these problems. I tried using the avenues of relief mentioned above with no success. Ebay washes their hands of a dispute if you call your credit card company to dispute a charge Ebay doesn't take effective action on. In my case I was made to wait 5 days beyond the guaranteed delivery date before I could ask Ebay "To Step In" and help. Since the seller was through Paypal, they would not force the seller to cancel the order, which would have sped up the resolution process between Paypal and my credit card company. Supposedly, there was an appeal option, however the system told me that was not possible, and the decision was already made. So now there is no appeal process either...a scammers paradise."

Ah ok now it becomes clear why you lost and why you can't appeal.  Yes if you file with PayPal or your cc company the eBay case will close in the sellers favor and any feedback you left will he removed.  You can only file with one at a time.  And in a certain order eBay PayPal then cc.  However with eBay you wouldn't have had to go any further in this situation.  Once you file a case yes a seller gets time to respond but you can then escalate to eBay to get a refund if you still don't have your item.  You just needed to wait until then.   

[msha3839]

"...eBay's customer service phone center shut down is not their fault.."..only ebay's customer service has no phone support...Amazon does...

[themadamerican]

I believe you are correct. lesson learned.

[ralphie1954]

I've had it with these Chinese seller masquerading as US sellers.  I used to love buying on Ebay but now I have signed up with Amazon Prime and will be doing my purchases there instead.  Between the delivery scams and these Chinese sellers you really don't have any idea if you will ever see the product.  I have gotten refunded on the delivery scams but the lost time it caused makes buying on Ebay worthless.  I don't buy a product just for the sake of buying it, but because I really need the item in a timely manner.  I don't mind waiting 2 months on an item if I don't need it right away and I can save a few bucks but that is rare.  I have finally given up hope that Ebay will address this issue.

[jawal-835]

I too encountered SCAMMING Chinese sellers ,

•stating selling from UK but IN H.K.

•items not as described or pictured 

•Sizes not as stated

ALSO MANY OF THESE SELLLERS USE A FEEDBACK SCAM ie leave me positive feedback for your refund . Additionally TO UP THEIR POSITIVE FEEDBACK they use a sell feedback system.( people buy cheapest items multiple times and leave best feedback in return for free item and refund.)

I tried to inform Ebay multiple times but they are not interested.

I've not used Ebay for long but quickly realized F.B. is not always honest or reliable.

I use AMAZON where possible because they provide a better sales service.

[mudshark61369]

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@msha3839 wrote:

"...eBay's customer service phone center shut down is not their fault.."..only ebay's customer service has no phone support...Amazon does...

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@msha3839,

Maybe they found a way to continue using their U.S. Based call center using social distancing.  eBay's CS center is based in the Philippines, and that government may not have given some businesses permission to continue operations during the pandemic crisis.  In Europe eBay uses mostly an online CS system in most of the countries it serves. 

[mudshark61369]

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@ralphie1954 wrote:

I've had it with these Chinese seller masquerading as US sellers.  I used to love buying on Ebay but now I have signed up with Amazon Prime and will be doing my purchases there instead.  Between the delivery scams and these Chinese sellers you really don't have any idea if you will ever see the product.  I have gotten refunded on the delivery scams but the lost time it caused makes buying on Ebay worthless.  I don't buy a product just for the sake of buying it, but because I really need the item in a timely manner.  I don't mind waiting 2 months on an item if I don't need it right away and I can save a few bucks but that is rare.  I have finally given up hope that Ebay will address this issue.

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@ralphie1954,

You may still run into problems with chinese sellers on Amazon.  They've been having their difficulties with them since they opened up a fulfillment center there.  You also cannot compare the two companies buyer protections.  They operate in completely different ways so their buyer protections work differently.

[proxy4148]

I also care about this issue

[msha3839]

"..eBay's CS center is based in the Philippines.."...not entirely..on rare occasion  when I need to contact ebay via phone , always requesting to be transferred to CS in US..   

[myangelandmyprincess]

But the amount in the us us wouldn't be anywhere near enough to cover eBay's call load.  I prefer the online communication it seems actually more efficient

[msha3839]

"...But the amount in the us us wouldn't be anywhere near enough to cover eBay's call load.."...better than nothing...most of the companies have limited customer support  via the phone, but they do have it..