eBay let buyer return an item and it was sent to a wrong address and it was lost!

[roy8765]

Around a month ago, I sold a used laptop on eBay, clearly mentioning in the item description that the battery was not good and it could hold only about half an hour of charge (to the best of my knowlege) and that returns were not accepted.  The buyer claimed that the battery was bad and requested a return which I declined.  However, eBay let the buyer return it and they even provided a return address to him which was 11 years old without asking me first and the laptop was sent to a wrong address.  I never received the laptop and for all practical purposes, the ~$250 laptop is lost!  I appealed eBay's decision multiple times and they always rejected my appeal and forced me to fully refund the buyer plus shipping.  Eventually I asked for their legal department and I'm considering suing eBay in a small claims court.  What are my options and chances of success here?  Any advice from the community and the sellers who have been in this situation?

This is a pretty clear mess up on eBay's part....  They turned a long time customer into an active enemy!  Any lawyers who would like to take this case on my behalf?

[redroofsurplus]

SAY IS WITH ME NOW.... RULE 1 = EBAY SUCKS!

BASED ON WHAT YOU SAY IN YOUR AD, I HAVENT READ IT THEY SHOULD NOT HAVE ALLOWED IT TO BE RETURNED, BUT HEY REFER TO RULE 1 -

HOWEVER IF IT WERE MINE I WOULD HAVE SOLD IT UNDER PARTS OR REPAIR AND FOUGHT LIKE HELL IF THEY FORCED A RETURN ON ME!!

[lewisburggold]

The first question a lawer is going to ask is if you have filed a report at the police station.  Best regards

[1966co_1]

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@readabouthorses wrote:

If you are gonna show the condition then show it all.

For parts or not working: An item that does not function as intended and is not fully operational. This includes items that are defective in ways that render them difficult to use, items that require service or repair, or items missing essential components. See the seller's listing for full details.

Every condition is gonna refer you to see the listing which legally might make the listing a part of the condition section.

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as per eBay policy you cannot list the item with conflicting terms. Therefore if you say it is used and fully functional you can't turn around in your description and say the battery only last 30 minutes.

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/listing-policies/item-description-policy?id=4372

Your item description is one of the most important parts of a listing – it helps buyers decide whether to buy an item and what to expect if they do.

Our full policy below gives more detail on what information should be included in your item description, but generally, you should add details on the item's condition as well as your terms of sale. Make sure that the information you provide in the item description is consistent with all the details elsewhere in the listing.

[1966co_1]

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@lewisburggold wrote:

The first question a lawer is going to ask is if you have filed a report at the police station.  Best regards

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first question lawyer is going to ask is if they have read the money back guarantee and the eBay terms of service and actually understand them.

[kensgiftshop]

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@roy8765 wrote:
Well, that shows that I never needed to receive a return, until this case happened. Now I know very well that selling on eBay is extremely dangerous and I'll actively caution as many people as I can to refrain from doing business on eBay. At least I am sure I can convince my friends to only sell locally for cash just like old good days! After all, who likes to pay 10-15% fees for such poor service to eBay?!!

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I would rather pay the fee's, then having to wait for someone to show up (if they show up) and hoping they'll buy the item.

[duggmills]

Not having read all, but after 160 messages back and forth I was wondering;

Did you get your laptop back?

Have you initiated a small claims action against eBay?

Have any lawyers stepped forward to help you? 

[missjen831]

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@lewisburggold wrote:

No returns these days means yes i accept returns and most that have the no returns policy are losing the item and the money.  Best regards

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@lewisburggold A no return policy has NEVER meant the seller is losing the item and the money. No regards.

[missjen831]

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@lewisburggold wrote:

The first question a lawer is going to ask is if you have filed a report at the police station.  Best regards

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No they aren’t. Come on now. 

[nowthatsjustducky]

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@lewisburggold wrote:

No returns these days means yes i accept returns and most that have the no returns policy are losing the item and the money.  Best regards

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[citation needed]

[roy8765]

Just for the record, eBay's position is that all Used laptops need to have a perfect, at 100% capacity batteries otherwise you cannot list them as Used even if you clearly mention it in item description.  This has HUGE implications on how people should do business on eBay.  All sellers must beware!

[lightlily_arts]

I didn't see an answer to this.  Ebay provided a shipping label to your buyer with an old address from 11 years ago.  Have you updated your address with eBay during that time?    I'm just wondering why they had an old address on file instead of your current one?  Is there any way for you to contact the carrier and get your laptop back as there had to be a tracking number.  Also, was the package insured?  If the package went to an old address and was undeliverable it will go back to the sender.   Perhaps you could try and take the buyer to small claims if they get it back and don't send it on to to your current address.  eBay is really terrible at updating records.  I have had my current home phone number for three years.  However, every time I call eBay my phone number in their system is associated with someone else's user ID so they only way I could get around that mess was to use my cell phone number which I've had for 15 years.

[lovtaco0]

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@lightlily_arts wrote:

I'm just wondering why they had an old address on file instead of your current one?  ... eBay is really terrible at updating records...

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It's a user's responsibility to update their contact info, not eBay's. OP never updated their address on file. Every year eBay sends e-mail reminders and has splash pages when you log in prompting you to update contact info when it's unchanged in last year and OP ignored those prompts for 11 years.

They never bothered to read about the money back guarantee or seller policies. OP shows no signs of wanting to learn from their mistakes since they keep blaming eBay. OP went on to name-call posters trying to help and accuse them of working for eBay - a telltale sign of somebody who doesn't want to accept responsibility for their own actions.

[roy8765]

I'm not saying eBay should have updated my return address! I'm saying eBay should confirm it with sellers first (just like it confirms the shipping address with buyers) or at least send an email before authorizing the return to give sellers the opportunity to see what they have on file...

Again, I have repeated this many times here. The vehement defense of eBay by sellers here is very questionable. After all, I am protecting the interests of the sellers against eBay and their defense definitely raises serious questions of bias and partiality....

[mycarolinavintage]

Fortunately it has not affected me but going by the many posts on that very topic, apparently 

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@readabouthorses wrote:

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@jason_incognito wrote:

the listing description is in many ways the equivilant of fine print. 

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Which is why, on every Item Condition section eBay tells you to read the listing description.

Personally I think both buyer and seller are at fault here. There were too many mistakes made by both of them.

Has the Money Back Guarantee made buyers so lazy that they feel they don't even need to read the listing descriptions anymore?

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Going by the many posts here on that very topic, apparently the best of the best listing description is not going to matter when a buyer whines about something. It seems the seller has no out. I can not imagine why ebay would allow it. I just don't get it. 

............................................................

energy flows where attention goes

[lewisburggold]

You must not read hear very much.