Is It Wrong To Sell An Item On Ebay Knowing Its Faulty?

Question

I'm sick of always being the one who gets scammed on ebay, I mean I buy from sellers with good feedback, usually over 100 feedback all positive so you'd think I'd have no trouble we'll you'd be wrong. I've have been scammed 3 times since August last year. Last August I took out a loan for £500 to buy a PC, Bought one of ebay brand new from what looked like a business. Never arrived. They gave a tracking number but it wasn't the right one, either way I filed a dispute with Paypal and it went there way, I contacted Poilce etc who are useless, so I'm still repaying the £500 for something I dont have.Next up was a Sky satellite receiver for £50, just didnt arrive, but got my money back through Paypal.Next up a laptop, Cost £200 paid via cheque and it arrived. It died slightly over a week later and the seller has basically told me to get stuffed, scammed again!!, to save up that £200 took me half a year. Should I put it on ebay as working and let someone else get scammed for a change.

Answer 1

Of course not, and you know that. Just because someone cheat you does not give you the right to cheat an innocent party.

My advice is to report ant loss to the proper authorities, and try to collect best as possilble. Be sure to report the matters to Ebay and leave the appropreiate feedback.

Going forward, you should build the risk of loss into the calculation you use to determine the price you are willing to pay on EBAY. If the risk is 3%, pay 3% less. Also, always use judgement on who you by from.

For what it's worth, Ebay has 100's of people working on fraud prevention.

Good Luck.

Answer 2

Dinky, I know this is probably not exactly what you want to hear. But you should not stoop to the level of those who have done you wrong. Not all ebay participants are like that.

I both sell and buy on ebay. As a seller, I have a total return policy. I don't care what the reason is, I will take an item back (not including shipping of course). And believe me I have had some weak excuses.

As a buyer, I have only had three disputes. In one case I was ripped off by a seller of fakes (diesel jeans in this case) who promptly disappeared. Another time a woman sold me fraudulent tapes and I had to go through the dispute resolution process which cost me $20 U.S. and several weeks of annoyance. The woman was finally removed from ebay, but it was a hassle. And the third time, I was scammed by a guy who sold me one thing and sent another (cheaper and not even the same item) and refused to even talk to me. I reported him of course, but didn't pursue dispute resolution because the item was only $40 U.S.

When buying from ebay sellers I check two things immediately before bidding: Their feedback (naturally), and how long they have been on ebay. If I still have any reservations, I may contact some ebay members who have had transactions with the seller, even if they left positive feedback.

Ebay is not totally safe. You take a chance every time you make a transaction (both buying and selling)...just like any other online transaction (and brick and mortar store transaction for that matter).

Answer 3

As a Ebay Seller and Buyer , I can tell you that Ebay is not easy money and no headaches , Unless there is a return policy or warranty you can purchase you take a risk , a good seller with 100 feedback will try to keep you satisfied.

I have listed items accurately with details of not working or damaged and received more than I ever imagined , If you decide to sell an item falsely you may not like the outcome , if you're truly upset with your Ebay purchases, I recommend you not use Ebay or try to resolve your problem by contacting a Ebay rep.

I feel your pain . Items go through so many hands , it is very hard to figure out who is at fault all the time, as a Seller I have received few complaints , and when I have, I too have doubts on buyers who have claimed to have not received an item, I use delivery confirmation and it is covered by Paypal protection, as of today everything I have sold has arrived safely, and those who messaged me that there item did not arrive wrote back and changed their story.

The time you spend on selling damaged goods which will result in negative feedback and being forced to return money , will make you more bitter and upset , it just isn't worth it.
If you can forget about it.

Answer 4

I believe that the seller must describe the exact condition the product is in. He/she can sell a faulty/broken computer, but it must be described as such. If not, the seller is at fault.

As for you reselling it, PayPal might actually decide to take action that time, and end up banning you from the site (it would be just your luck!) I wouldn't personally do it.

As for buying stuff on eBay, I would recommend you only buy something that is not some sort of a electronic entertainment. Computers get a lot punishment, and they have several parts, so I would personally never buy a computer off of eBay.

Answer 5

I think you should retire your eBay account and never go back there. Better to buy your stuff in a High Street shop or from a reliable mail order company (with their own Web site and a verifiable phone number). That way you're guaranteed after-sales service, warranty, etc.

If you try to sell broken stuff and get caught, you'll just get shafted again. Unless, of course, you want to go to the effort of making up an entire fraudulent history/address/etc., which is what the people who scammed you obviously did.

Answer 6

If you want to sell it on Ebay you should put on the listing that it is faulty so people know and say what is wrong with it.
I wouldn't advise you to put it on the listing as working and let someone else get scammed because you could end up getting banned from Ebay.

Answer 7

Hi there

Its ok if the seller states in the listing that the item is faulty, I've seen auctions like this. Sometimes, item are sold as faulty but that parts that are working may be able to be used for a similar item. For example, a faulty pc, the working parts may be good for someone else to use in their pc if they are compatible.

Scott

Answer 8

got the shaft myself on two items on ebay. One the guy got away with it, the other.......hahaha had a friend who lived about 15 mins from his house which was half way across the country from me. Paid a visit to him at his house and who would have thunk it, had my money sent back and didn't even have to send him the bad item.

Answer 9

no, ripping someone else off is unlikely to make you feel better! i would write a stdongly worded letter/email to ebay and ask them to review their code of conduct for buyers/sellers, they always spouting off about how safe ebay is, make them accountable for the problems you have had!

Answer 10

Make a complaint to consumer affairs. Ebay should not be letting people use their sight to rip other people off.