Ebay dispute - Bought a sealed that said it had no damage but arrived damaged

Hey everyone, 



It seems there have been a lot of people asking for advice on their Ebay transaction that didn't go to well and now I am having one.



Long story short. I bought a sealed game from a user on Ebay who has 239 100% rating and before I bought the game I asked him if there was damage to the box and he said there wasn't any. The listing only had the front and back images of a GBC game.



I received the game a few days ago and have been going back and forth with him ever since. The box looks to have been smashed. You can see a crease on one side of the box and another crease stretching from the side of the box to the front about 1/4 an inch. In other words there is damage to the box. There are also a few needle sized pin holes in the shrink wrap.



At one point during our conversation he admitted that there was damage after he said there was no damage before I bought the game.



I asked him what we should do and he said there are no refunds. I basically said, there was damage on the box and suggest a small discount. He refused and asked me to send him pictures of the damage. After sending him multiple pictures and him denying seeing the damage in the pictures he finally said he would offer a full refund or I need to keep the game. He proceeded to say that Ebay would side with him because he provided all the proper images that I asked for.



If I keep the game it sends him a message saying he can bully people and win, whereas if I return the game I'm concerned he will say something like, it was damaged when I shipped it to him. Also, if I keep the game, do I rate him bad as I am almost certain he will rate me bad as well. So that's my dilemma.



Don't know if it's against Ebay's policies to share conversation with other users or not, otherwise I should share our back and forth to better show this situation.

Comments

  • File not as described and return for a full refund. If you have pics of damage that wasn't in the description the photos then you'll win, and the seller will have to pay your return shipping. There is no reason to go back and forth with an uncooperative seller, you cease communication and let eBay handle it.
  • It sounds like the seller offered a full refund for return? Did I misunderstand? I'd just take it.



    It's not the best to ask for partial refunds. Definitely make sure not to word it in any way that the seller can twist it as feedback extortion (i.e. "Give me a partial refund or I'll give you negative feedback"). Sellers can offer partial refunds, buyers really can't ask for them. There are shitty buyers out there just trying to scam a few free bucks. The seller might be being rude because he thinks you're trying to nickel and dime a freebie out of him for damage he sees as superficial. In cases where you get some great deal on a boxed game, then it arrives damaged, you have no real recourse to both get compensation and keep the game, which it sounds like what your ideal outcome is.



    If you have a difficult transaction on Ebay, just open a significantly not as described case and let Ebay deal with it. They will side with you if the seller misrepresented the condition, seller will be forced to pay for return shipping, it sounds like you already have pictures proving the condition you received it in . Sellers can't leave negative feedback for buyers, so you're fine there.
  • The question is do you want a partial refund and the item or a full refund and the return. If it's the second option, that's super easy.
  • If you have messages from the seller on ebay admitting the item was damaged and he didn't disclose... what's the problem? And ebay generally sides with buyers anyway. Send that game right back and get your money. The only thing wasted is your time.
  • Just file a not as described case and get a refund...the only way the seller can refuse a refund is if the item is as described and you just have buyers remorse.
  • FYI: the pinholes are there from the factory. People often call them "vent holes." The crushed box, on the other hand, is not the usual factory condition.  
  • I'd say that sellers who are not into game collecting probably would not view a sealed game box with a minor crush dent as damaged. To a collector it means a world of difference, but to the average seller it gets neglected.



    If the seller offered you a full refund including shipping, I think they have made a fair effort to resolve this.



    I wouldn't assume bullying right away. Maybe ignorance of / failure to understand details that are important to collectors.
  • I've been screwed a couple of times on ebay recently and one in particular flat out lied saying famiclone he tested personally to be working and it didn't even have power supply board hooked to motherboard and missing CPU and PPU chips. He basically accused me of lying but offered return for refund but I figured hell with it I wanted a partial refund but seller would not budge so I just gave him a well deserved negative feedback and considered a $30 loss because I paid $60 plus shipping and all I asked for was $30 back but seller would not hear of it. Pisses me off when someone is accusing me of lying no way in hell would I send it back and have him go through a bunch of crap saying I sent it back not as he delivered. Don't mess around with giving them a negative I tried to avoid it but when someone lies then that's it go ahead and leave them the negative is what I say because when they lie to start with then you can't reason with them because they really are trying to screw you over. Plus, sounds like this one was doing that if he didn't have a lot of pictures of the sides and stuff showing the crush damage I just don't know why people want to be so difficult. Sellers fault for not adding more pics regardless if he understands the collectible aspect of it or not always fishy when they don't have a lot of pics of every side of an item to avoid troubles and let buyer see exactly what they will get.
  • Based on the limited info we have here it's hard to say what the sellers intent was. Seller may have even been in the wrong. One thing is for sure though - if he offered a full refund including shipping costs, then the seller offered an acceptable solution.



    If OP is unhappy with the game, I don't understand - why would you keep the game and elect to give negative feedback? It seems that the seller gave you a way out. Just return the game and take a refund.



    Bad feedback should be reserved for sellers that don't want to offer a solution
  • How is this even an issue, send it back, he offered to accept the return... next case on docket!
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