A Cheap Crappy Pin II…
Yesterday, I told you about the hapless (hopeless!) eBay shopper who purchased a cheap, crappy pin. Remember, the seller stated “THIS IS A STERLING SILVER PIN” and “THE MIDDLE IS IVORY”. As promised, what follows is the series of email justifications for the fraud sent by the seller after the auction. I corrected a few of the major spelling mistakes in order to increase the readability somewhat.
I’M VERY SORRY IF IT WAS NOT IVORY, I REALLY THOUGHT IT WAS. I’M NOT A JEWLER BUT MY FRIEND TOLD ME IT WAS. I DO [KNOW] IT IS DECO AND A OLD PIECE I HOPE YOU STILL LOVE IT EVEN THOUGH IT WAS NOT WHAT YOU EXPECTED. IT IS A NICE PIECE. I DO TRY TO TELL THE TRUTH AS MUCH AS I HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF. PLEASE CONTACT ME IF YOU YOU NEED TO.
In summary, it’s not what he described and he absolves himself of any wrong-doing because he’s not an expert jeweler. Phrases like “silver-colored” and “looks like ivory” are apparently too complex for his simple intellect. When the buyer sent an email stating that she would not have paid that much knowing it was not ivory and requested a partial refund, he sent the following reply:
LET ME SEE WHAT I CAN DO. YOU REALLY PAID NOTHING FOR THE PIN SINCE IT IS OLD IN EXCELENT CONDITION AND APPRAISED OUT FOR MORE THAN $100.00.
Old? How does a non-expert determine the age of a piece of jewelry if they can’t even tell what it’s made of, especially if it’s in such supposedly excellent condition? Who did the appraisal? Zsa Zsa Gabor’s personal shopper? A greeter at Wal-Mart? The fry-guy at the local McDonald’s? So, if I understand this correctly, the seller had the pin appraised, usually done by an expert, yet had no knowledge of the pin’s composition. The sellers point of view: You only lost $35, which, in my eyes, is basically nothing, so you really got a great deal. Yeah, that’s sounds legitimate. It gets better…
WHEN I GOT TO MY SUMMER HOUSE [IN] UPSTATE NY, I WAS WATCHING ON CABLE THE SHOW “AT THE AUCTION”. HAVE YOU EVER SEEN IT? ITS QUITE INFORMATIVE. ANYWAY THEY HAVE A INTERNET SHOPPER CALLED TOVA WHO PURCHASES THINGS ON EBAY AND THEN ITS APPRAISED TO SEE IF SHE PAID TO MUCH OR WHATEVER, ANYWAY SHE BOUGHT A JADE SET EARINGS AND NECKLES AND WAS TOLD IT WAS JADE AND CULTURED PEARLS. WHEN IT WAS APPRAISED, IT WAS NOT JADE BUT WAS CULTURED PEARLS AND SHE ASKED “CAN I RETURN IT EVEN THOUGH IT WAS ON EBAY?” THE ANSWER WAS NO, BECAUSE BUYER BEWARE AS IN REQULAR SHOPPING YOU CAN ASK ALL THE QUESTIONS YOU WANT AND IN EBAY THEY CAN SEND YOU ALL THE PICTURES YOU WANT AS WELL AS THEIR PHONE IS AVAILABLE AND YOU CAN E MAIL AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. ALSO WHAT WAS SAID NO SELLER WOULD [FALSELY] SELL AN ITEM ON EBAY WHEN THERE IS FEEDBACK, AND THEY ONLY TELL YOU WHAT THEY KNOW. I NEVER SAID I WAS A JEWLER WHICH I’M NOT. I’M AN INTERIOR DESIGNER WITH NO KNOWLEDGE OF JEWLERY, AND I CAN ONLY TELL YOU WHAT I THINK IT IS AND WAS TOLD TO ME WHEN I BOUGHT IT. FIRST OF ALL, I’M VERY SORRY YOU ARE DISPLEASED WITH IT. I PROBABLY DO THE SAME AND CHALK IT UP TO EXPERIENCE. WE BOTH LEARNED A LESSON. THANK GOD YOU DID NOT PAY A LOT FOR IT, AND IT IS A NICE PIECE — OLD, AND ART DECO AND WELL WORTH OVER WHAT YOU PAID. HOPE YOU UNDERSTAND
Oh, I see, now! It’s the buyer’s fault! Silly me for thinking it was the seller’s fault for having misrepresented (purposefully or otherwise) the merchandise in the first place. I am particularly touched by the meaning of the last part of his reply: You are so lucky that the item didn’t cost more because I would just have to keep that additional money too, and while you would be properly chastened into learning a valuable lesson into the inner workings of online auctioning, I would be laughing all the way to the login page of my PayPal account.
MANY TIME PEOPLE SELLING ITEMS THAT ARE NOT WHAT THEY SAY, UNLIKE ME. SORRY TO SAY WHAT YOU PAID WILL NOT MAKE OR BREAK ME. I BOUGHT RUGS SAYING IN PERFECT CONDITION I GET THEM AND THEY ARE NOT. I BOUGHT 2 TIMES DOG STATUES THAT HAVE HAD CRACKS. I JUST WROTE IT UP AS EXPERIENCE. [GETTING] VISIOUS WILL NOT SOLVE ANYTHING. I STILL HAVE NEVER GIVEN ANYONE BAD FEEDBACK NO MATTER WHAT THE SITUATION HAS BEEN. I BELIEVE [IT] WONT CHANGE ANYTHING AND IT WONT PREVENT ANYONE FROM BUYING FROM THAT SELLER EITHER. IVE READ AND STILL BOUGHT. BUYER BEWARE. DIDN’T MOTHER TEACH YOU [TO] ASK QUESTIONS? I HOPE WE CAN RESOLVE THIS PROBLEM.
Unbelievable! I have to run through that again just to make sure I read it correctly. “MANY TIME PEOPLE SELLING ITEMS THAT ARE NOT WHAT THEY SAY, UNLIKE ME.” Sounds like he is desperately trying to distance himself from the lurking eBay scam artists, yet has done exactly that — sold an item that was not how he originally described it. “SORRY TO SAY WHAT YOU PAID WILL NOT MAKE OR BREAK ME.” Well, then pay her back, you moron! I forgot we’re dealing with Mr. Rockefeller here, Mr. Money’s-No-Object himself, Mr. Your-$35-Is-Nothing-To-Me. “I STILL HAVE NEVER GIVEN ANYONE BAD FEEDBACK NO MATTER WHAT THE SITUATION HAS BEEN.” Oh yeah? Well what about these recent feedbacks you left, you lying, two-faced hyprocrite:
- Back in April, ejajan1 bid on an item, then backed out, supposedly then asking the seller to release him from the auction. The seller rightfully refused and ejajan1 wrote “HELD BACK TRUE CONDITION AND DAMAGES” a month later.
- Also in April, ejajan1 sold an electric scooter (supposedly valued at $4500) for $1575. The buyer disputed the surprise $400 shipping charges, and ejajan1 wrote “DONT TRUST HIM. BUYS THINGS. BACKS OUT. TWICE NEVER PICKED UP. HAD TO RELIST.”
- About a non-paying bidder in June, ejajan1 wrote “THE WORST. NEVER RETURNED E MAILS OR RESPONSE TO SEND MONEY OWED”
I’m not claiming the feedback was unjustified, but I don’t think a blatant lie is warranted, although it seems to be commonplace for him. He certainly HAS left negative feedback, despite his contrary assertions. We are left with one final insult: “DIDN’T MOTHER TEACH YOU [TO] ASK QUESTIONS?” I guess it’s just further insight into the character of the seller.
With ejajan1, it certainly is caveat emptor.
