Warning!! Don't use the $50 Coupon in an offer! And forget about getting help if you do!!

[daffyduck07]

Hi all. Just thought I would send out a note to warn everyone about a situation that happened to me today. 

I had a $50 coupon from eBay that was going to expire on 5/12 so I decided to treat myself to a purchase for something I've been looking to get for a long time. I found an item I wanted and put in an offer for it that was just a little lower then the Buy It Now price - the system allowed for me to put in the redemption code for the $50 coupon as a part of the offer, acknowledging that if the offer was accepted, I would be paying $50 less for the item. 

Lo and behold, the seller graciously accepted the offer and the FULL AMOUNT was charged  - the $50 off coupon was not applied. I contacted eBay support to request a refund of the $50 that was supposed to be applied and their solution for me was to contact the seller to ask them to cancel the order and to have them relist the item for me to purchase it via Buy It Now. They admitted that the issue was THEIR fault but that was their solution. I didn't feel that it was right to have another seller go through all of that process for this when it was admittedly eBay's fault. 

I went through another layer of management (supposedly - could have just been the guy sitting next to him) and was told that it was definitely their fault that it shouldn't have allowed me to use the coupon but that even though it was their fault, they couldn't do a refund (which I'm sure they could). Basically, their suggestion to me was to "be more careful" not to attempt to use the coupon on anything that isn't a Buy It Now. Basically anything with Auto-Pay like an auction or offer.  And of course, by the time I had complained to a point of no resolution with eBay, the item was marked as shipped so it could no longer be cancelled. Upon telling eBay that, their response was basically that if he hasn't physically shipped the item (i.e., took the box to USPS), they could still cancel it. Really?? That's your solution? To inconvenience another seller on the platform because you guys made a mistake??

So I'm just putting this out there to warn others and to publicly comment on how poor my customer service experience was with eBay. I've been on this platform for over 25 years now - I'm not a major seller or buyer but I've been loyal to eBay for that long. I'll think twice now about either buying or selling on this service from now on - even Facebook Marketplace is starting to be more appealing.  

[bonjourami]

Was the coupon for buy it now only?

[kensgiftshop]

@daffyduck07 

Didn't you post about this yesterday?

[daffyduck07]

No - it was not. It was not clearly indicated as a Buy It Now only coupon. And if it wasn't able to be used with offers, then I shouldn't have even been allowed to apply it. In the back and forth with eBay Help, they admitted that it was an issue that they could see was being allowed to happen but they were unwilling to do anything about it or to rectify the issue to my satisfaction. 

[daffyduck07]

I did but under Ask a Mentor. I honestly have never posted here before so realized today that it should be under a different heading/location. I didn't see where to delete the previous post. 

[jameshen1]

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@kensgiftshop wrote:

@daffyduck07 

Didn't you post about this yesterday?

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In the OP's defense, they did, but it was on the mentor forum and they received no replies.

[jameshen1]

Whoops.  OP and I answered at the same time

[daffyduck07]

Thanks - yeah. I noticed this morning that it was under the wrong category. Sorry - 1st time using the Community in the 25+ years I've been on eBay. 🙂

[simba6]

Those offers and coupons have conditions out the wazoo.  They can be very hard to use given all the restrictions on them.  Have to really read with great care before trying to use them.

[daffyduck07]

I did. And there was nothing about not using it in an offer scenario. They have since added the "Auto Pay" mention since the issue happened yesterday. I was told that I was not the only one who had the issue. 

My issue isn't necessarily the coupon. My issue is that eBay help acknowledged that the issue was on THEIR side and admitted that it shouldn't have allowed me to use the coupon. And then they did nothing to help me rectify the issue. I know they can issue a refund - them claiming that they can't is ludicrous. Their solution to bother the seller was completely unacceptable in my mind. And them saying "you can just use it again on something else" is also just stupid because I'd have to spend another $125 to even do that - so they make more money. 

[simba6]

I stopped trying to use them long ago. 

[pikabo-icu]

Those coupons UGH..

The fine print almost always says it isn't applicable to what I'm purchasing.

Most of them are only valid on the items listed on a specific page of coupon specials, by specific sellers.

I'm guessing that's what happened, the coupon couldn't be used on what you purchased.

I KNOW the "customer reps"  told you it was eBay's fault etc... BUT those reps will tell you anything to get you off the phone. They probably have no clue how the coupons works or on what items it can be used. 

The phone reps are notorious for giving out horrible advice to buyer & sellers with issues.

Without seeing the coupon details and know what you bought we can't see if it was included in the discount or not.

Sorry this happened to you.