Back in time adventure

[wastingtime101]

I opened a new seller account a few weeks ago to spin off a category from my main store. I'm starting slowly with the 50 free listings and lower value items ($25-30), and I currently have a low feedback count.

A buyer scammer attempted to make an offer on an item I listed. Their offer was above ask and included their phone number. It couldn't be a more blatant scam attempt if it was wearing a flashing neon sign. I immediately added them to the BBL then called eBay to report the ID.

Side note: Why can there not be an easier way to report the buyer scammer directly through the website? (Rhetorical.)

A couple of hours later a new buyer scammer ID popped up and committed to purchase 3 items, probably the same buyer using a new ID to circumvent the block. They sent such a friendly eBay message, too! Of course they mentioned God and sending a gift to a church friend to gain my trust. (Insert laughter.)

Again I added to my BBL and called CS to report them and confirm it was OK to cancel using problem with address (for circumventing my BBL with a new ID and/or their fraudulent activity) rather than wait out the week with an unpaid item case. CS gave the go ahead to cancel and select problem with address.

CS also conveyed a shocked reaction when they looked at all of the buyer's scammer's messages to me and other sellers. CS very carefully chose the words "suspicious buyer" and said that they would report the buyer scammer and gave indication their account would be suspended post haste. (Insert the lack of shock on my end at the implication of the volume this buyer scammer hit in just a couple of hours.)

Then I was transported back in time to an eBay of old. First was the cancel screen, previously thought to be deceased.

After submitting the request I was informed the cancellation request was a formal case, that it would remain open for up to 7 days, and that the buyer scammer can decline the cancellation and I would lose my final value fees. (Insert sigh.)

At this point Huey Lewis & The News were running on repeat in my head.

Then I went to Seller Hub to view the transactions on my orders page. To my surprise, it showed an Unpaid Item case for all 3 orders. Huh? Who opened an unpaid item case? (Spoiler: nobody.)

So I went to the resolution center where it showed me a cancel request was open, still awaiting the buyer's scammer's action.

When I clicked on see details it showed me the open case. Note the tip at the top of the page: they gave me the very helpful reminder to "Avoid threads and insults, as they almost always backfire."

Reluctantly, I called CS again to ask about the ancient cancel screens, the supposed unpaid item case, and the 7 day waiting period. CS was confused because their back end system also showed an Unpaid Item case just as I saw in Seller Hub, but when they went to my user account they could see in the resolution center that they were cancel requests cases with old screens. CS opened a ticket with engineering to look into this issue.

Fast forward because this is getting long. I handled all the details of this situation so everything is taken care of.

This is the tale of my time-wasting adventure of the day and some weird system bug that arose with the old cancel process. Please excuse me now while I gas-up the DeLorean.

[fern*wood]

Calling the phone reps reminds me of another movie clip involving a box of chocolates.

[moo*cow*corner]

@wastingtime101 

What a PITA! Sorry you had to go through all of this! So, you just have to wait for everything to time out then?

Make one wonder what IT voodoo it took to create the trip in the ebay WABAC machine? That's downright weird and somewhat scary!

I'm calling these pages "coelacanth" pages. Long thought to be extinct, but somehow happily swimming around in the unfathomable depths of ebay's servers somewhere. You've made a rare catch indeed!

You can be A Yankee Seller in Queen Margaret's (Meg's) Court!

[mr_lincoln]

@wastingtime101   I think it was late last year I had an experience where a new page format popped up (at least it was new to me) ... so I took a screen shot and posted here about it only to learn from long time members it was like a 2008 page format ... it stayed for a few days then went away.

I have also had a number of Sold or Deleted items get Relisted AND in a number of cases they Sold again ... how is this type of thing even possible???

[moo*cow*corner]

@mr_lincoln 

I'm jealous. You kids always get all the fun stuff. All I have ever gotten is old looking error pages in foreign languages like German or Italian.

[wastingtime101]

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@fern*wood wrote:

Calling the phone reps reminds me of another movie clip involving a box of chocolates.

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No kidding. I left out recapping the calls with CS where the reps had no clue what they were talking about and tried to tell me that I'm the one who opened unpaid cases. And the reps who said the cancel screen with 11 options was the regular screen. And the reps who said that when I described 11 cancel options I was mistaken because there are only 3 (ie: you're an idiot who can't read the options on the screen). And the reps who said, "we'll add extra listings to your 50 free but you won't see it until next month." I know they don't have that ability. And the reps who said, "CS does not have the ability to cancel a transaction or open an unpaid item case." Again, I know better than that. It was a mess and I was transferred a lot. I finally hung up and called back several hours later when I wasn't so annoyed. The last call resulted in a competent rep who understood and verified what I explained, filed the technical ticket and sorted the rest.

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@moo*cow*corner wrote:

What a PITA! Sorry you had to go through all of this! So, you just have to wait for everything to time out then?

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Pretty much. In the end I made sure I got seller protection against defects, negative feedback, etc even if the buyer declines the cancellation. They also told me to relist right away since eBay will not honor the sale for the buyer scammer even if they decide to pay, which they won't. And I'm not sure they can even technically pay at this point, but either way I'm covered. The rep also told me if I go over my 50 free they will credit insertion fees for the number of listings affected by the fraudulent "buyer". It would require another call so it's probably not worth the time over a couple bucks in fees, but it's an option should I choose to use it.

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@mr_lincoln wrote:

I think it was late last year I had an experience where a new page format popped up (at least it was new to me) ... so I took a screen shot and posted here about it only to learn from long time members it was like a 2008 page format ... it stayed for a few days then went away.

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Was it the cancellation process? In my case it was more than just an old page format, but an entirely old process. It's pretty odd and a bit concerning. I suggested to the last CS rep that maybe the buyer was on an international eBay site that still used the old process, therefore I was forced into the old process as a result. The rep said that wasn't possible. I don't know how or why I got the old process, but lucky me, I did! (Sarcasm.)

[southern*sweet*tea · Accepted solution]

Can you say charlie foxtrot?

Good thing you took screenshots!

[wastingtime101]

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@southern*sweet*tea wrote:

Can you say charlie foxtrot?

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Ha ha! You win.

[wastingtime101]

This is funny. I just got an e-mail to take a survey and evaluate my CS rep. Well, eBay, how about giving me the rep's name before I jump in? I would hate to give a bad review to the rep who finally sorted it out, just as I would hate to give a positive review to one of the other reps whose understanding of basic eBay process was severely lacking.

[mr_lincoln]

@wastingtime101   Come to think of it, I think it was an earlier version of the Classic My eBay Selling pages (more then one page).

[mr_lincoln]

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@moo*cow*corner wrote:

@mr_lincoln 

I'm jealous. You kids always get all the fun stuff. All I have ever gotten is old looking error pages in foreign languages like German or Italian.

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LOL!  Ha ha ha!  That "moo-cow", he funny man!!!!!!!!  "HOW" young do you think I am anyway???  No wait, don't answer that question ...

[gwgw-73]

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@wastingtime101 wrote:

I was transported back in time to an eBay of old. First was the cancel screen, previously thought to be deceased.

This is the tale of my time-wasting adventure of the day and some weird system bug that arose with the old cancel process. Please excuse me now while I gas-up the DeLorean.

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Um, that old Cancel Transaction flow @wastingtime101 happens when your buyer is not from around here.

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brian@ebay wrote:

I'm happy to clarify! If the buyer is registered on a site that does not yet have the new cancel transaction flow then it will default to the classic flow. In these situations sellers will need to work within the classic flow's options to complete the cancellation. A refund would need to be issued through the transaction in PayPal.

[wastingtime101]

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@gwgw-73 wrote:

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Um, that old Cancel Transaction flow @wastingtime101 happens when your buyer is not from around here.

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brian@ebay wrote:

I'm happy to clarify! If the buyer is registered on a site that does not yet have the new cancel transaction flow then it will default to the classic flow. In these situations sellers will need to work within the classic flow's options to complete the cancellation. A refund would need to be issued through the transaction in PayPal.

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That makes the theory I presented to CS correct. From my post #6 above:

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@wastingtime101 wrote:

I suggested to the last CS rep that maybe the buyer was on an international eBay site that still used the old process, therefore I was forced into the old process as a result. The rep said that wasn't possible.

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