Forum

Refund Advice?
 

*Warning, may be a bit of reading here*

(First post too, hello)



Ok I sold a left handed Samick guitar to a guy over here in the UK. I am stationed in England (USAF) =} and I often sell to Brits because the shipping is faster than shipping items to stateside customers (APO mail is slow!)

The problem. The buyer bought the guitar from me by outbidding the highest bidder. He won the guitar for 69GBP and 25GBP to ship via Parcel Force 48 w/insurance. He paid fast. I listed the guitar as "Used" and "Sold as seen in pics". Under the "Return Policy" tab I have it set to "No returns". In the "Seller's Payment Instructions" tab I have this listed "Item will be shipped within 3 business days from receipt of payment. Paypal only, payment is to be expected within 3 business days. All sales are final, no warranty is expressed or implied. Questions? Please ask!"

In the listing I wrote "Hi everyone! Up for sale in this listing is a 1990 Samick Super Strat. It is in nice shape for being 21 years old. Recently setup with fresh Fender Super Bullet strings (10-46) Has some small chips in the finish and a minor ding here and there. Nothing structural is wrong with this guitar. It is only cosmetic.....hence the low price."

Then I go on to say "Alder body, 25.5" scale with a 24 fret neck. It has a standard 6 screw tremolo (no arm included), S/S/S pup configuration, and sealed tuners. For a lefty that is into 24 fret necks but has wanted a Strat this is the perfect compromise. Strat tone with 24 frets! I bought this guitar for blues and to experiment with the S/S/S layout.....but I'm a metal guy at heart, hence the sale. Guitar is priced LOW for quick sale. Sold as seen in pics."

So, the guy wins the auction on August 29th then I get an email from him about two days later saying there is an issue with the electronics. Apparently only the neck pup is working on it. I wrote him back and explained that the electronics weren't tested and that they may have had an issue, it sat in my closet untouched for a few months. That is the reason it was sold as "used" and "Sold as seen". I only listed what I DID know about the guitar.

So, he flips out and then opens up a dispute through eBay. He opened the dispute in the "Item does not match description" category. Then listed the item as "broken".

So, in order to make it right I quickly ordered replacement electronics for it. I paid out of pocket for: 3 single coil pups, 3 pots, 3 knobs, 5 way switch and all wiring associated. It was all purchased from a guitar salvage seller on eBay....all pulled from a 100% working Stratocaster. When I wrote the seller to tell him I have ordered replacement parts for him he didn't respond. So, I decided to just offer him the refund instead. I offered to issue him "Partial Refund" now through Paypal, then the remainder when I get the item back in the same condition as I sent it out.

He refused the offer and went on to say he wants a full refund NOW as well as for me to cover his return postage. :suspicious: What? I declined his terms and tried to explain to him that it wasn't acceptable, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the money AND the guitar if I did that. He went on to call me "Spurious"....which I looked it up and it means "⊗⊗⊗⊗". Nice. Very friendly indeed.

So, I have given him a number of options.

1. I offered to give him partial refund NOW and send him the replacement electronics, and fresh strings (they'll need replaced if it is going to get rewired). And he is to find his own way of repairing the electronics using the partial refund.

2. I offered to install the electronics/strings free of charge as well as cover the cost of shipping the repaired guitar BACK to him. All he has to do is cover his own costs of sending the guitar back to me.

3. I offered to give him a full refund AFTER I get the guitar back in my hands.

He has so far refused all of these options. My feedback is 100% and has been since I joined in 2006. I've got nearly 550 perfect transactions under my belt. I don't see any reason for this guy to think I'd scam him, but from the way he is clawing at getting a full refund BEFORE he sends the guitar back to me....well that is making me question his character.

He keeps saying if he accepts partial refund then eBay won't protect him and the case will be closed. He keeps saying eBay will protect him if I send him a refund NOW and it will be incentive for him to send me back the guitar.

What I'm confused about is first of all why, after me being as reasonable as possible in the situation (considering I'm going way out of my way to make the problem with the guitar disappear) does he keep refusing anything I offer him. It isn't like I'm being completely unreasonable.

And second, if I issue him a full refund prior to getting my item back....who protects ME? I could still get a negative feedback rating from this guy even if I did the full refund! :mad2:



Can anyone give me some good advice? I don't understand this guys problem.....he's complaining about a guitar that was sold "as is" not working to his satisfaction and wants to create endless drama for me. What part of "No Warranty", "No Returns", "Sold as seen" and it being over 20 years old didn't he understand? :rant:

He is acting as if I purposefully sent him a broken guitar. I only sold a guitar that I had no use for....it had been sitting in my closet collecting dust! He got it for CHEAP! :noidea:

Welcome to the forums. Sadly - and I feel for you - your mention of "No return" has little bearing on eb ay - they require a return policy so you are not protected by simply stating that =(

Your best bet is only to issue refund after receiving back the item. Let the buyer pay the cost. As for negative feedback - well that's your choice. You sell enough - you see that - will one neg. feedback look bad? Not at all - you up your sales to get more positives and move on.

Lot more folx will contribute so wait patiently. I would not send money without receiving item back first.

Very interesting story and an example how things get stupid enough even when reason is on our side. It´s very difficult to maintain calm and the way eb ay is made encourages this talk to talk between buyer and seller. The problem is that in a buyer perspective on a certain phase they just want a full refund whithout giving a damn for what a seller thinks even if what sellers says is legitm and being honest. i find this very problematic and most of the times is better to lose a battle than the whole war if you know what i mean.

I know i probably didn´t add nothing to help you out in your issue but my best advice would be refund him whithout the shipping costs and keep going....That happens to all of us...unfortunately

At this point, I wonder if the OP will receive a negative regardless of what he does. This does happen - buyer will not give a fug.

Well sometimes If you do this long enough, your gonna get a pigheaded buyer who will not cooperate no matter what kind of compromise you come up with. Unfortunately, ebay/paypal will side with the buyer. If you do this for a living, I would do everything in my power to avoid a neg, if this is just a hobby, and a way to make some extra cash on the side, I would fight this tooth and nail. You will probably lose, but at least you went down fighting. You could win, stranger things have happened, but it doesn't look good. I wish you the best of luck.

The UK, where you at? RAF Alconbury, RAF Molesworth, RAF Mildenhall, Lakenheath, RAF Croughton, RAF Menwith Hill, RAF Fairford, RAF Feltwell.=}

The guy will get his refund and keep your guitar, so you might as will give him the full refund. Tell him to ship it back and when you get it you will refund his shipping cost. Either way you are going to lose, but this way you have a slim chance of actually get the guitar back to resell. Other option is to report you credit card linked to ebay/paypal lost and close your bank account and go stealth.

Sorry to hear your story. I personally don't believe eB gives a flying flip about sellers but here's hoping you'll have a good outcome. Keep us posted.

Thank you for your service! My son was in AFJROTC during high school along with 4 years of Navy Sea Cadets at Tinker AFB (also during his HS years). He joined the Navy this past March and is now stationed on the USS Enterprise.

We're based at RAFM, but live on base on RAFL.

The buyer finally escalated it to eBay customer support. Despite all that I offered and all that was listed in the listing they sided with him.

Strangely I'm happy to be done with it, it was giving me a headache. He is doing what I actually wanted him to do, send the guitar back THEN get refunded. He refused to do this before.....but now eBay is making him do it. I actually dislike selling on eBay, it is an expensive hassle. The UK eBay doesn't seem to have the "list for free and don't pay unless it sells" program. Plus, with the exchange rate final value fees SUCK. :mad2: For instance, the Final Value Fee for this guitar was around 32 quid which as of today is $50!

I wouldn't even sell on eBay UK if I was back stateside, the only reason I do it is because I don't want to deal with APO mail and buyers asking "Where is my item".....I ordered some guitar parts back in May and still haven't got them, even after they sent me more thinking the first order got lost! :rant:

ohMy. Wish I'd seen that listing. Stunning axe although I prefer their basses.

Although you say you are happy with what's happened, don't think it will still go OK.

He might be nastier enough to not send the correct guitar back.

Had you thought of that? :juggle:

A nastier thing is that he might send back a rock. Its happen to me many years ago. The 3rd thing i ever sold on ebay the buyer sent me a rock. The person got my item and money. Lucky it only sold for $48 and not hundreds.

never bend over for ebay terrorists

be polite in the way you tell him off :eek:

this kind of scenario really pi55es me off

you try your best but its never good enough

thank god 9 out of 10 buyers are reasonable people!

9 out of 10?? Lol. 6 if lucky

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

Hmmm

not in my exp son

but you are stateside lol;)

Hope you don't have a buyer that is a total scammer and will indeed get back your guitar to resell. Unfortunately, he doesn't even have to send you back an empty envelope. After a few days he will automatically get back his money. Keep us posted, as I would like to see the outcome. Good luck.

I'll keep everyone posted in the matter, hopefully he does send the guitar back. I'm going to install the parts I bought that were intended for him, as well as buy a few other parts to spruce it up a little....maybe even a hardshell case. Then, I'm going to sell it again.....although it will be awhile as we are moving from England in a few months.

Once we get back stateside I'll relist it. Or, I might take it to a guitar shop and use it as a trade in instead. I'm undecided.....all I know is I sold it because I no longer wanted it. I can't get into Single Coils!

single coils???

absolute Chinese to me that bud:)

Actually that guitar is Korean :eek:

Single coils is what makes the music! They pickup the string vibrations....
Single coil - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Heavy metal dudes do noise to make their music ;) (heehee)

alrite...absolute korean then:doh:

Makes sweet music :)

i can play the guitar.....and i can fly a rocket to the moon too;)

naaa,wish i could play

You can do whatever you set your mind to GTB

Haha! Yeah, that is why I decided to sell it. It is an excellent guitar actually, Korean stuff isn't bad at all. I've got a lefty LTD H-207 that is AMAZING to play. I have a Korean Ibanez RG too and it is great. I also own a Korean Agile AL2000 that is mind blowing, it is way nicer than the Epi LPs I've played (although they weren't bad) and it is on par with a few Gibby LPs I've played. The rest of my guitars are MIJ Ibanez RGs....I also have a custom lefty UV too.

Playing metal doesn't work out well on the single coil pups.....it's more of a bluesy/oldies/light classic rock pup. "Pup" is slang for "Pickup" in case someone wasn't aware.

The Humbucker pup cancels the "hum" or bad feedback associated with the single coil design. Perfect for high gain, loud music.

Anyhow this Samick is a fine example of an early 90's Korean Samick. Very nicely made and it is in good shape. All the more reason I hope to get it back in one piece.....then I can give it some TLC and sell it off to a person that will love it and play it.....and not give me grief over it being used and 21 years old.

I like how this is going - good guitar discussion

Well, the buyer sent me a tracking number.....so hopefully it isn't a bomb or a rock....or an empty box. I let everyone know how it goes!!! :pry:

*UPDATE*

Well, the guitar showed up. Everything seems fine with it, it wasn't smashed or anything.....doesn't seem to be anything wrong. eBay issued the refund based on the payment the buyer sent me initially. So, I didn't pay outta pocket in that respect (aside from the $40 I spent when he first paid me....I had to deposit that back in).

I have since rewired the guitar and everything is working perfectly.....I'm going to relist it at some point, but I think I'm going to avoid listing it on eBay.co.uk. The fees on there are INSANE, I gotta take the exchange rate into consideration.....so it REALLY adds up.

Anyhow, I haven't gotten any negative feedback from this guy but I'm expecting it from him later on. Hopefully he'll leave me alone since he basically got what he wanted by force.

Just thought I'd update everyone that was curious about this case. There really isn't anymore to say about it.....that buyer was horrible. I'll avoid him like the plague.

Glad to hear it worked out well - i would not count on the buyer leaving a negative unless he really is twisted - most folx don't want to ruin other folx...most.

I hope you're right.....the last thing I want is a negative when I honestly tried to make the issue right in the first place. We'll see.

Well the guy left me a negative......

This is what he said: "BEWARE! Withheld info about dodgy Guitar electrics.Case Escalated,eBay refunded."

He got what he wanted in the end.....and still left me a negative even after I tried all I could to remedy the situation. This guy sucks.

that guy is a pr1ck,you could message him and be nice,ask him to revise it to a neutral as you tried your best to reolve the issue

negative was harsh

but at least you got the guitar back

that would of really topped it off if he`d of sent you a brick or two instead

I did message him to revise it to a neutral....but got no response as of yet.

dont hold out too much hope on that one

if he was a reasonable guy the neg would of been a neutral anyway

though stranger things have happened

dont judge us Brits harshly, I would say 99% of my sales go well, it depends on the product though, some goods attract scammers

i agree oompz

most buyers are nice people,every now and then you will get a bad apple

I like the Brits! It's just this one guy that is being unreasonable and stubborn.

naaaa,this is more than been unreasonable and stubborn


he`s been a complete ******* ****head

Agreed. It didn't hurt me too bad though...it gave me a 99.2% rating. Still, there was no need for the negative.

some ppl lgo out of their way to trouble others

mostly jealous ppl but some are just that way out!!!

rise above it(cool runnings)

Warning, may be a bit of reading here
All sales are final, no warranty is expressed or implied. Questions? Please ask![/B]
Good thinking to include this! :clap:

"Hi everyone! Up for sale in this listing is a 1990 Samick Super Strat. It is in nice shape for being 21 years old. Recently setup with fresh Fender Super Bullet strings (10-46) Has some small chips in the finish and a minor ding here and there. Nothing structural is wrong with this guitar. It is only cosmetic.....hence the low price."

So is one to assume the electronics is structural?? because it certainly isn't cosmetic. You state nothing is structurally wrong with the guitar

Then I go on to say "Alder body, 25.5" scale with a 24 fret neck. It has a standard 6 screw tremolo (no arm included), S/S/S pup configuration, and sealed tuners. For a lefty that is into 24 fret necks but has wanted a Strat this is the perfect compromise. Strat tone with 24 frets! I bought this guitar for blues and to experiment with the S/S/S layout.....but I'm a metal guy at heart, hence the sale. Guitar is priced LOW for quick sale. Sold as seen in pics."
You mention the PUP here but do not mention the electronics do not work. Maybe putting in the listing you are only stating What you know about the guitar would have made buyers think harder. And I've never heard of as seen in pics. I think "As IS" is what you meant.

[B]So, the guy wins the auction on August 29th then I get an email from him about two days later saying there is an issue with the electronics. Apparently only the neck pup is working on it. I wrote him back and explained that the electronics weren't tested and that they may have had an issue, it sat in my closet untouched for a few months. That is the reason it was sold as "used" and "Sold as seen". I only listed what I DID know about the guitar. So, he flips out and then opens up a dispute through eBay. He opened the dispute in the "Item does not match description" category. Then listed the item as "broken".
Sorry to hear he jumped the gun so fast. You explain yourself well but...maybe you did this...but did you didn't address a remedy to his problem? (rhetorical question) It appears all you offered him was additional information so maybe he's not hearing a solution.

So, in order to make it right I quickly ordered replacement electronics for it. I paid out of pocket for: 3 single coil pups, 3 pots, 3 knobs, 5 way switch and all wiring associated. It was all purchased from a guitar salvage seller on eBay....all pulled from a 100% working Stratocaster. When I wrote the seller to tell him I have ordered replacement parts for him he didn't respond. So, I decided to just offer him the refund instead. I offered to issue him "Partial Refund" now through Paypal, then the remainder when I get the item back in the same condition as I sent it out.
You meant well but you didn't ask him first. Who will install these parts you ordered? Him? all So now he has to fix what he thought was already working, if he even knows how or has the time because how the parts would be installed wasn't addressed (at this point right, unless you did)

He refused the offer and went on to say he wants a full refund NOW as well as for me to cover his return postage. :suspicious: What? I declined his terms and tried to explain to him that it wasn't acceptable, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the money AND the guitar if I did that. He went on to call me "Spurious"....which I looked it up and it means "⊗⊗⊗⊗". Nice. Very friendly indeed.
You are wise to consider he might have kept the item and money, especially since the conversation wasn't as civil as it could have been.

So, I have given him a number of options.
1. I offered to give him partial refund NOW and send him the replacement electronics, and fresh strings (they'll need replaced if it is going to get rewired). And he is to find his own way of repairing the electronics using the partial refund.

2. I offered to install the electronics/strings free of charge as well as cover the cost of shipping the repaired guitar BACK to him. All he has to do is cover his own costs of sending the guitar back to me.

3. I offered to give him a full refund AFTER I get the guitar back in my hands.

:pry: Sorry this happened to you. I wonder what would have happened if you had said " I am Sorry" up front.
Can't go wrong with that IMHO but he may have behaved just as badly.

.

Mellisa is a wise wise lady:thumb:

the simplest of things can make a huge difference