Not really a rant, but....a story.
6 weeks ago, something changed with one of the local TV stations, and I couldn't get channel 10 anymore (I have an antenna). After some research, I realized that the signal was too strong, so I went to ebay, and bid on and won a brand spankin' new (to me) cable attenuator. Price? $0.01. Shipping? $1.89. Total? $1.90. The seller's feedback rating was only 97%, which is as low as it goes without ebay putting him out of business, but what could go wrong with a $2 item? I paid via PayPal, and sat down to wait for my new little bundle of joy. Soon, I'll be able to watch Nashville again.
Two weeks pass. I look at the tracking info the seller has conveniently provided, and the thing is in some post office in someplace in Pennsylvania that I've never heard of, but he used First Class shipping instead of Priority Mail, so the thing won't technically be late for another few days. I get tired of missing episodes of Nashville, so I drive to Fry's and pay $4 for another attenuator.
Three weeks pass. I don't need the attenuator anymore since I have the one from Fry's, but it's about the principle of the thing, dammit. USPS tracking says it's still in Pennsylvania. I email the seller, politely tell him I haven't received the item. He points me to the tracking number and tells me to deal with it. I prod him again, convincing him of his responsibility as the shipper, and he emails the post office, which responds with "we'll look for it, but if you have insurance on the item, you should file a claim now." As if.
So, six weeks pass (yesterday). I email him again, stating that I still haven't received the item, and it's time for him to issue a refund. His response? "I did everything I was supposed to do. I did nothing negligent. It was lost in the mail." The end.
Ahhhh....ebay buyer protection. The claim needs to be filed within 45 days, and this is day 43! Good thing I checked. My very careful reading of the ebay buyer protection policy is that if the item doesn't arrive, the seller is on the hook for the refund. So, I file a claim. When you file a claim, ebay gives the seller a week to work it out before proceeding. The seller's response? He sends the tracking info to ebay (clearly stating that the item is indeed *not* delivered), and requests an expedited decision from ebay.
Either I don't understand how ebay buyer protection works or he doesn't, because according to my reading, he just proved my case for me.
I had been holding off on sending feedback, to see what he eventually did. Feedback is written and submitted now.
The moral of the story? Don't buy $2 items from people with low feedback ratings. It's more trouble than it's worth.
ebay is supposed to rule within 72 hours.
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