Does selling on eBay give you heartburn? ;)

[auburnseeker]

Sometimes you just scratch your head and wonder what buyer's expect.  

I let customers run tabs to build piles of parts or literature to save them money on shipping.  This is often quite significant especially on large lots of literature which can be shipped Media mail or orders going over seas.  Most customers  are good and many international buyer's are the best I have had,  buying several orders.  I specify in all my listings that I will do this as a service for you,  but payment needs to be made in under 30 days.  (that's more than reasonable and very generous when compared to most sellers policies. ) 

Today I had 2 that made me want to just switch to immediate payment and be done with it. 

The first a buyer took the full 30 days and bought 52 brochures. I've never had an order that big before,  though 20-30 is not uncommon.  After much messing around,  I invoiced him but part of the order was missing from the invoice according to him.  After more research I finally figured out eBay limits invoices to 40 items.  I think it took over an hour just to pull the order.  Many of these were 2.99 sales so I'm not talking much of a sale here for the effort,  especially figuring I had to buy all of these in the first place then pay all the fees.  

I eventually got it all figured out invoiced as 2 separate orders in separate boxes because I wasn't going to tear that first package all apart to save the guy 6.00 in shipping on 52 items.  I think the total shipping on the 2 is still around 15.00.  

He was good about it though and has bought a bit from me in the past so I'll let it slide and chalk it up as a learning experience.  

The second was an international buyer that won 2 items 6 weeks ago.  After 30 days and no word,  I just relisted the better of the 2 items which only sold for 20.oo the first time anyways just so I could get the inventory moved out off my shelf.  Wouldn't you know that same bidder bid on it again and won, now he contacts me and wants a total for the 3 items.  

I told him,  my policy clearly stated in the listings is 

"***Payment is expected in a reasonable amount of time.  Any items not paid for within 30 days of the auctions end, will be relisted and you will be SOL. *****

He's mad at me for relisting the item on him. I wouldn't be surprised if he nails me with a negative,  but at this point I could care less.  

He also wants to buy the item at the lower price it sold for and was never paid for 6 weeks ago.  

I told him I would let him have it for the lesser,  though it means I actually sell it for half of what it's worth and actually at or below what I paid for it, before I figure in the fees and 15 percent eBay charge on the international shipping which will again be more than the 20.00 sale price. 

I think I've been more than fair.  What more would you expect as a buyer? 

Thankfully most customers are good, just the occasional one that get's your blood pressure up. 

The taste of the bad transactions,  though not many,  make it easier to walk away from parts lots to purchase and even easier to clean the shop out into a dumpster when the time comes.   Most of this stuff is really just junk to 99.9% of the population until it's properly marketed identified and prepared so they can buy the one or two pieces they want and not have to deal with all the crap left over. 

Edited December 27, 2017 by auburnseeker (see edit history)

[basscaster]

yes, ebay is heartburn inducing. gotta go with the flow.

[cahartley]

Not so much heartburn as seller's remorse for putting up with ebay in the first place.

When everything is said and done ebay keeps about 20% of the sale price or more if you don't offer free shipping since ebay takes a rake from shipping prices as well.

Factor in idiots, the feedback game and the FACT that sellers have no rights it's more of a PIA than anything BUT it's a world market and you get world wide exposure even if some things don't sell.

[nick8086]

Yes.. But I may have to use them to sell my car parts..

 

 

[Joe in Canada]

Like I said before I just go to Hershey in the fall and buy what I need and ##*^%# EBay.

[vermontboy]

The only real option for retail sales is shows and those are problematic here in the Northeast - rain, wind, etc can damage a lot of inventory on each outing plus a fairly short season. I've done both shows and Ebay. mostly with ephemera but with a bit of auto parts or lit thrown in as well. Shows do have the advantage of being able to package stuff for sale to other vendors. You know what is destined for the dumpster at the end of the season anyway. You made money on the stuff that already sold and it's very cleansing to get rid of the rest even if it cuts into your profits a bit. From reading your posts you know how to make piles when buying and selling so there is no learning curve - but at smaller shows the piles have to be smaller.

 

You can also unload bulk with a few of the large brick and mortar dealers (there is one in Syracuse). They pay reasonably well on better stuff and not so well on the bulk stuff but it gets rid of all of it when it seems overwhelming..

 

It's time consuming to do a show and it's hit or miss but when you go home with an empty truck it feels so good......

 

If only I were a bit younger

 

 

Edited December 27, 2017 by vermontboy (see edit history)

[mercer09]

The reasons why many of us dont sell on ebay any longer, as you've stated......

 

There are several things YOU can do. You can block those that dont go along with your policies.

You can stop being nice and just ship away like everyone else, then perhaps you wont be so aggravated.

 

by offering options that piss you off, you are not doing yourself any service.

 

[SC38dls]

As others have said it is frustrating but where else do you get the exposure?  Want Ads in newspapers have been replaced by the internet and now everyone has a problem with the cost and hassle of it. It’s not perfect but it does work. My suggestion to make life easier on yourself is be more specific and stricter in your explanations of policy. It sounds like you are trying but the norm is against you and therefore you are being taken advantage of by a few customers. 

I always had a policy in my business the customer was right. If there was a problem solve it then figure out what went wrong and who was responsible. There was one guy that about every two months or so would say we messed up and cost him money, so he would deduct something from his bill. I finally fired him (yes it felt good) when he insisted we print invoices instead of renewals for his subscribers as he was out of renewal forms. This is illegal by postal rules. He knew  it and I had a clause in my contracts saying all mailings would abide by USPS rules.  My point is the turkey customers will screw you over if you don’t protect yourself. Provide good service, as it seems you are trying to do, but do that to both your customers and yourself. Nobody else is going to look out for you !  Have fun 

Dave S 

[auburnseeker]

Here is my customers response this morning.

I refer you to my email/message dated 9th November 2017 and your subsequent reply [same day] in which you consented to combining my items for postage purposes. Unfortunately I was not successful in winning any items after that date even though I participated in several of your sales until I [re won] the wiper tower. I did what I was granted by you to do. There was nothing in your message to make me aware of your 30 day time requirement even for combined postage.

 

I guess he never read the part clearly marked at the bottom of the auction that says

 

 

"***Payment is expected in a reasonable amount of time.  Any items not paid for within 30 days of the auctions end, will be relisted and you will be SOL. *****

I guess reading and comprehending isn't a lot of peoples strong points. 

 

Whenever I have a question about a listing I always search the text to see if it's already answered.  Nothing more annoying that having to answer questions like how big is the item when the size is clearly posted in the description. or this only fits this model then someone asks if it will fit something totally unrelated. 

[EmTee]

Well, I am not saying that I agree with your customer, however, reading his response does provide insight into his reasoning.  It looks to me as if your offer to make an exception to accommodate the combined shipping was interpreted by the customer to mean all stated terms and conditions were now null and void.  Hopefully the customer will reflect on the situation and eventually conclude that the situation was a simple misunderstanding and nothing more...

[auburnseeker]

Most bidders want there items.  I know I would.  After a few weeks any normal person would want to wrap things up.  Then again, maybe that's just me.  I paid the guy the labor on my garage weekly at my request and took 2 weeks to pay the final week because I was short,  but made it clear he would be paid up.  When someone is extending you a benefit as I was being extended a deal on my garage I made sure to get things taken care of.  

Much like in this guys case.  I will block him from future auctions, to avoid the hassle.  When the guy building my garage finished it and the roofer came in, we had trouble with my lift on the last day.  I called the guy back up and asked him if the guy that ran my lift could come up for a few minutes and take a look at it because it wasn't working right,  he sent him right up.  I when making the final payment,  made sure I added 1 hours extra labor in to cover that.  

I guess that's just the way I was brought up. 

As I posted the auction clearly states that after 30 days the items may be relisted. Ebay will only let you run a 30 day tab anyway so there is actually no way to invoice on items through eBay that are over 30 days.  

[John348]

I sell and buy on ebay rather often, What I do with a "dead beat" buyer I block them from bidding on any of my items in the future. I would suggest that be a feature you use. Ebay changed the hobby, (sort of killed swap meets) and I feel for the better. I found parts that I was searching for for years, and I sold stuff that I thought I would never get rid of for a decent price. Yes Ebay get's their cut, but so does every auction house  

[Matt Harwood]

I just bought a '41 Buick fog light switch from you, Randy, and it was totally and completely professional and painless on my end (I'll leave positive feedback). You do it right, but a lot of people are just plain kooks. Either they're looking for an angle, or they want something for nothing, or they're just flat-out retarded/crazy/stupid. I feel your pain and it's probably a real hassle on a pile of little stuff where it's hard to make it worth your time and effort. I can only imagine the frustration.

 

Don't take it personally--it's the people on the other end. I've given up trying to understand the mentality beyond the fact that our society has trained consumers to think they always get what they want and they're always protected. Don't like it? Return it. Don't want it? Don't pay for it. Isn't quite right? Someone else's problem. I can understand big stores selling new goods to be able to do that, but they expect it from everyone else.

 

Heck, I just had a guy tell me he wouldn't buy an old car unless I signed a document saying that if it ever broke (yes, open-ended), I would give him his money back and reimburse all his expenses. Um, what?

 

Don't let the kooks get you down. They're just kooks.

[39BuickEight]

13 hours ago, auburnseeker said:

Sometimes you just scratch your head and wonder what buyer's expect.  

 

Your sheer volume and doing so much  of the legwork yourself certainly lends to having to deal with more crazy buyers than most.  It's hard to find another person with such a perspective since most of us aren't the volume seller you are.

 

Clearly you know what you are doing and do it right, but even then you just cant avoid the nonsense sometimes. 

[Joe in Canada]

1 hour ago, John348 said:

Ebay changed the hobby, (sort of killed swap meets) and I feel for the better.

Sorry but I very strongly disagree with that statement. Maybe you do find parts on EBay but swap meets are the grass roots of the hobby. Many cars were restored  before eBay and there are still a lot of members in the hobby that do not have a computer. They rely on the good old fashion way of walking the fields like myself.  Most good swap meets are organised by car clubs or club regions. Like the Council of Cars in New Mexico ( been a few times ) Hornets Nest  or the grand daddy Hershey of AACA regions. These swap meets are an active part of the clubs to raise revenue for events from touring events to an AGM or a library, club house for meetings to buying pens and paper. Or even fund a forum where folks like myself and you can discus the hobby.  I am helping to host a National  Vintage Tour in 2019 here in Canada and a large deposit has already been payed by National for the banquet dinner. If clubs and region's did not have fund raisers, donations or swap meets what would your dues be to pay these expenses? 

EBay is a very large corporation world wide with their fingers in many pieces of pie. I have been to many events large and small with different clubs in Canada and the US and have never seen EBay put funds in an event I have been to. On that note should hit them up for a sponsorship for the next Vintage tour in 2019. Seeing they also own KIJIJI here in Canada that is the competitor to Craigslist. But we know what the answer would be to that!!!

Edited December 27, 2017 by Joe in Canada (see edit history)

[auburnseeker]

Ebay did kill the small swap meets.  Used to be every car show had a few parts vendors and many had 50 - 100.  Most of those shows, still put on today,  have one guy selling die cast and another selling t Shirts, maybe another with something for the ladies and that's pretty much it.  

On the other hand,  it has probably also increased sales for many at the larger meets. I go to Hershey every year to buy for my business and hopefully find a trinket for my own cars.  I must say.  2 years at Hershey and not a single part that was worth buying for my 47 Hudson Pickup.  

I usually dump 2 - 3,000 on random parts and literature to resell.   In many cases,  probably stuff the vendor would have carried home.  

 

Matt;

  I did notice your purchase,  but having my laptop hard drive go out,  I was running on limp mode with my wife's and unable to send my customary email that I received your payment and your item was shipping out that day.  I couldn't even reply to emails, which was pretty painful. 

Fortunately I got my new machine,  so I'm back up and running at full capacity.   

Thanks for the purchase by the way. 

[John348]

Well I just had my heartburn this morning. I sold a NOS Delco switch in the unopened pull string can. I get a message last night from what ended up being the winning bidder questioning the cost of the shipping. I charge a flat rate of $7.95 which pretty much covers everything. This morning I get his payment with a rude note "That's going to be priority right?" I told him last night that it will be priority. and reminded him that I had already told him. My feedback number is 924 with 100% positive transactions. His reply was "it is ebay I can't assume anything" I thought about it and felt no matter what he was not going to be happy so I cancelled the sale... I just could not find the switch oh well..... then blocked him from bidding on anything I offer for auction or sale again. 

 

So as I am typing this he sends me a message threatening me that he will leave bad feedback . 

[capngrog]

John,

 

I think that you were right in that the buyer was not going to be happy, no matter how much you tried to accommodate him.  Cancelling the sale was probably the best thing to do.  Once a sale has been cancelled, can the bidder/buyer leave feedback?

 

Cheers,

Grog

[auburnseeker]

You are right he probably won't be happy.  You will get a negative and it will go away in 365 days.  You will probably have a 99.9 percent rating then.  It hurts the first time,  but after that it gets a little easier as you realize some people will never be happy and you have no repercussion as a seller except to say with a smile thank you ,  may I have another.  

I have a guy that's 12 .00 purchase was just returned.  When I wrote him and told him,  he said oh,  that was my old address,  please ship it to this address.  Umm there is a matter of 4.50 in postage I will have to eat for a 12.00 purchase?  They come in 3's right?  this would be 3.  

All well I was just getting ready to drop the 2 negative feedback I got last year and return my rating to 100 percent.  

They were in relation to feedback for an item the person never bought from me and when I questioned,  they said,  there was no problem with their purchase.  They were happy with it.  

[keiser31]

Just THINKING about using Ebay gives me heartburn with all of the nickel and diming they do to you these days.

[1912Staver]

I like swap meets and attend as many as I can each year. I also buy things on Ebay. A few of my projects are quite rare machines and if I depended on swap meets alone I would most likely never live long enough to complete any of the rare ones. Actually even with Ebay progress is glacial many years, the rare stuff I need rarely shows up anywhere I search. I don't buy nearly as many "ordinary" parts on Ebay anymore, the shipping has gotten to the point that Ebay is no longer competitive. 

Greg

[chistech]

I’ve sold a gamut of different items on eBay from cars and 5th wheel campers to model planes and trains. Thankfully, all the major auto and camper sales have gone extremely well except for one on a 27’ Chevy capital sedan. That buyer was one of those mentioned here already that I had to report to eBay as a scammer trying to not fully pay for the sale. When that buyer threatened me that he was going to report me, I told him I had already made eBay aware of the sale and had forwarded all my emails and his replies to me and that they were monitoring the correspondence. Never heard another word from him and he paid the sale. Had a model train guy tell me his $18 dollar item hadn’t arrived. I checked with the PO and tracking showed it was still in transit though it was taking much longer than usual for a MA to FL package. I asked the buyer to wait and forwarded him the message from the PO. So, instead, he opened a case with eBay and this is where eBay pi$$ed me off as they told me to refund his money. Sure enough, I refunded his money and next day PO shows delivery. Sent an email to the buyer questioning if he got the package. Never heard from him again. Makes me wonder if he has a friend at the local PO who was holding that package. Unethical yes, but not impossible these days.

     The main thing that really PO’s me it eBay charging percentage commission on shipping charges. You use their shipping calculator and put those values down and they still charge you. That’s BS and they are double dipping on the sale. I no longer put a real shipping cost on the item and tell the buyer to contact me as I will calculate the true shipping to their door. I also put that if they do not contact me and just pay for the item with the $1 shipping charge that’s listed, I will cancel the sale. ( i learned the hard way on that one!)

[Matt Harwood]

I've been on both sides. I've been the buyer that didn't adhere to the seller's exact instructions and he canceled the sale. I seem to recall it was something weird like "Payment must be received within 1.682631 hours" or something crazy like that. I was a few hours late and he cancelled the sale and reported me to eBay and left negative feedback. I mean, I try to pay quickly, but if the auction ends when I'm away from my computer or in the middle of the night or something, I'll get to it as soon as I'm able. It's not like I'll leave someone hanging for a month. Sheesh.

 

On the seller side, it is apparently a very common negotiating tactic to hit Buy It Now on a car and pay the $500 through PayPal that's a part of the deal. The auction stops dead and I am immediately notified that someone has hit Buy It Now. However, this is always a ploy for someone to open negotiations while tying up the car so nobody else buys it or the auction doesn't go beyond their means and I know that moments later, they will have filed to have their deposit returned--often before I've even talked to them. It's infuriating because not only have I lost the money I spent on the auction (eBay will refund listing fees, which, on a car, are only a fraction of the total cost of an auction), plus PayPal fees on that $500, but the car is now dead in the water. The other bidders are no longer interested and everyone saw someone buy it and then back out, so they assume the car was a turd, not the buyer. This has happened often enough that it must be common advice out there somewhere: Hit Buy It Now, end the auction, force the seller to deal with you, and offer him a deadbeat price because he knows the car is now dead on the market.

 

If I ever meet a guy in person who has done that, there will be blood...

[mercer09]

and so Matt- why continue to offer a buy it now?

 

Just give your number in the ad and tell them to call you for a buy it now price. When the money is deposited into your acct. you close the sale.

 

end of story!

[39BuickEight]

eBay won’t let you do that.  If you could then everybody would do that to avoid actually selling the car thru them and paying their fees.  They don’t want to be a free advertising platform.

[Buffalowed Bill]

Neither swap meets or Ebay are what they used to be. I seldom find anything that I need at a swap meet, so unless I just want to socialize I just don't go. Both the average seller and buyer has gotten older, and with our ageing much of our vitality has gone missing. Ebay continues to bridge the gap left, by not being able to find what you need, and the vitality necessary to find it. It still remains an invaluable tool.

[60FlatTop]

44 minutes ago, 39BuickEight said:

If you could then everybody would do that to avoid actually selling the car thru them and paying their fees.

 

Everybody minus one. I understand the advertising has value and know the fees involved when I use that venue to sell a car. I have no problem paying the fees. I even add 20% or more to the price of the item so the buyer and I can both pay. A hundred bucks or so to internationally promote a car for sale is a pretty good deal.

 

Some of Ebay's tactics may not be to my liking, but I am not going the lie or cheat to get around the rules. If that hints to me making a moral judgement about others or have little esteem for those cheating connivers who do..... that's probably an astute observation.

 

It sure makes me feel good when I watch the news and know I'm not a subscriber to what "everybody" would do.

 

One thing about Ebay did give me a pretty good laugh. After Ebay claiming that buyers were THEIR customers all these years and treating sellers like flotsam. Now that the issue of internet sales tax is at a tipping point they sent ME a message to help them because proposed laws make them responsible for collection and payment. How can all those senators be wrong, sounds like what Ebay told me all along. Atta boy Ebay! I ain't helping you wipe that one off your shoe.

Bernie

Edited December 28, 2017 by 60FlatTop (see edit history)

[1912Staver]

I have only bought one car on Ebay and I was very happy with the purchase. It was local to me and I had a good look at it before bidding closed. I probably paid a bit more than it was worth as it sat but a pretty rare car . Still cheaper than having to travel or ship . I have not seen another one for sale locally in the 5 years since I bought that one. Paid for it almost instantly and no regrets. 1974 TVR 2500 M.  I see quite a few cars I might be interested in but they are nearly always too far away.

 

Greg, 2 hours North of Seattle WA.

[Harold]

I picked up a Honda radio at a yard sale last year and listed it on eBay, explaining completely that according to the prior owner the radio was working and that I had an unlock code but could not verify it was correct.  I listed it 'as-is, no refund' at about 1/3 the price of similar radios, figuring to get lunch money if somebody bought it.  A guy wrote to me saying  if I could guarantee that the unlock code was correct  and the  radio worked, he'd buy it, but only with a promise of a full refund if it didn't.   My response to him was essentially 'go jump in a lake'.  PS:  The radio sold a few days later and the person who bought it told me the code worked and the radio was fine.

[John348]

There are pros and cons to everything. Just as I mentioned the episode I had yesterday on ebay they are few and far compared to selling at a swap meet. I only sell at Hershey but I have to deal with 4 days of insulting low ball offers, people touching and breaking things I brought to sell that they had no intention of ever buying, every year there is something missing that nobody recalls getting paid for. True Ebay gets their 20% but before I even load my truck I am about $1500=$2000 in the red with a goal of doubling my cost so it costs me 50% to sell at Hershey, this year was slow, a lot of people but nobody seemed to be buying anything, nobody was carrying anything around either. I lost money but I hung out with close friends and family.  

[1937hd45]

I couldn't afford to let eBay buyers take 30 days to pay me, you are just being too nice. Thing that bugs me is the once in a while misplaced item, book or sales literature. I'll send out a note after 7 days to let them know I'll looking, and the Full Refund option is always there. Nine times out of ten it is within arms reach of this keyboard, that really bothers me when I find it. Happy New Year! 

 

Bob 

[auburnseeker]

9 hours ago, 1937hd45 said:

I couldn't afford to let eBay buyers take 30 days to pay me, you are just being too nice. Thing that bugs me is the once in a while misplaced item, book or sales literature. I'll send out a note after 7 days to let them know I'll looking, and the Full Refund option is always there. Nine times out of ten it is within arms reach of this keyboard, that really bothers me when I find it. Happy New Year! 

 

Bob 

It is starting to get to be a bit trying as I'm listing 30 items a night to generate funds to pay money off and buy supplies for my shop,  expecting them to sell in 7 days, then a couple days to ship, but some of the bulk buyers,  snag those and they sit on the shelf for up to 30 days,  so that's 37 days before they may get paid for.   Hopefully the robbing Peter to pay Paul at the end of my project doesn't come back to bite me too hard. 

To add insult to injury,  my computer died right at the end of the job and the batteries went with the bitter cold in my diesel.  So an extra $1500 I wasn't planning in my budget which was already over.

When it rains it pours,  right? 

[EmTee]

I hate to say this -- but my experience has been that these things tend to happen 'in threes'... 

[Vila]

I have never had a problem buying or selling on ebay.

 

When I buy I alway pay within several hours and when I sell I have always been payed within a day.

 

My only issue is with the sellers that group numerous item together to unload a bunch of stuff with one sale.  Lazy, lazy, lazy.  To get what you want you need to buy a bunch of crap you don't want, so I avoid those sales.  Who needs 3 or 4 of the same item grouped together when they only need one, but that is a seller issue not ebay.  

 

On the other hand I would never buy from Craig's List.

 

[John348]

On 12/28/2017 at 11:25 AM, capngrog said:

John,

 

I think that you were right in that the buyer was not going to be happy, no matter how much you tried to accommodate him.  Cancelling the sale was probably the best thing to do.  Once a sale has been cancelled, can the bidder/buyer leave feedback?

 

Cheers,

Grog

Hey Grog,

Well I just found out the answer to your question, apparently you can leave negative feedback even if the sale is cancelled, here is what he left

 

"Paid for item,he got upset & canceled the trans,straight out lied to me & ebay"

 

You can read the feedback that was left for me over the years. Randy you are right it did hurt, but I knew it was coming sooner or later

My Feedback

 

Now how do I respond??? 

 

Edited December 30, 2017 by John348 (see edit history)

[Matt Harwood]

On 12/28/2017 at 2:28 PM, mercer09 said:

and so Matt- why continue to offer a buy it now?

 

Just give your number in the ad and tell them to call you for a buy it now price. When the money is deposited into your acct. you close the sale.

 

end of story!

 

I tried that and found that my E-mail IN box was almost instantly flooded with tire-kickers:

 

"What's the reserve?"
"What's your reserve?"
"What will buy the car?"
"How much is the car really?"

"What's the reserve?"

"I have cash and a microwave oven, can we make a trade?"

"What's the reserve?"
"Do you really want to sell? Call me."

"What's the reserve?"

"What's the reserve?"

"I have $3500 CASH!!!! LET'S TALK!"

"What's the reserve?"

"How much is the reserve?"

"What's the reserve?"

 

A Buy It Now at least advertises the price neighborhood in which the car lives and greatly cuts down on the tire-kickers thinking that they're going to get a $50,000 car for $8500. That's why I do it. My time is valuable enough that what I save not having to wade through the dreamers and traders is worth the occasional guy who flat-out ruins an auction. Yes, I thought about it and this is my decision. One solution annoys me almost constantly, one annoys me once every few weeks.

[mike6024]

You breached contract John, failure to perform. I left negative feedback for a seller in such a failure to deliver situation. Refunding the money doesn't cut it.

[John348]

Can't ship what I can't find

Edited December 30, 2017 by John348 (see edit history)

[1937hd45]

Just remembered the outstanding $50.00 I have on one eBay sale. A week has gone by and no payment, sent two friendly reminders. Slow pay is one thing BUT if you make a Buy it Now offer, and I accept it, (and the FREE postage)  STEP UP AND PAY ME. Happy New Year!  Bob 

[auburnseeker]

I'm with John in part on this.  I have some "store items"  these are the worst thing one can have.  My original thought was a good way to move auction items that didn't seem to sell at auction.  Well the problem is those items have been in that store for 10 years now.   Since that time I have sold and moved both my house and my shop.  I hate to say it,  but I should terminate every store item and close my store.  Every once in a while,  someone will buy something from it. Maybe once every 2 months.  Almost everything in it is a 10.00 item with the occasional pain in the butt to ship piece of trim at 20.00.  I haven't had my hand on most of these items since I moved plus a relisting glitch that has let me relist items that sold (I know it exists because it has happened about 2-3 times a year just about every year since I started selling and research has shown the exact same listing sold to someone else months earlier ).  Sometimes things do get lost or broke.  If the seller refunds your money within a day of payment with an apology of why,  I'm perfectly fine with that.  It's happened to me as a buyer as well.  It has never been something rare or valuable though.   I've never left negative feedback for this, and fortunately I don't think anyone has for me.     

Think about the number of times even recently you went to a retailer that was suppose to have something in stock that they didn't.  I've even checked online inventory before going to the dealer and they showed the same at the store scratching their head as to why the number was off. 

 

I would be sure to follow up on the negative feedback.  I always do, especially if you have a legitimate reason why the sale couldn't be completed. 

 

Edited December 30, 2017 by auburnseeker (see edit history)