Ebay auction advice

[MB_Mike]

I purchased a set of french euro lights for the 280 on ebay early September. The seller didn't ship until early October. They are coming from Germany via DHL. Is there anything I should be doing beside waiting? Is there a statute of limitations on this sort of thing? Should I file a complaint with Paypal now just in case?

[Big_Richard]

On a side note,

I avoid DHL like the plague.

Their unethical business model irks me.

I dont know if it goes on over there, but if they decide to inspect your package, the receiver will get a bill for $60 something dollars. Too bad if the item is worth $2.

It happend to me and i threw the bill in the bin. Never heard from them again, but i suspect if i ever use them again they'll hold my item untill payment is received, which aint gonna happen. They can goto hell 

[flutes]

Mike the Paypal complaints process is pretty good, but you need to have gone through reasonable steps to contact the seller - however PayPal can really only do anything in cases of non-shipment.  I've used it several times for electronic goods that were apparently never shipped and there was no intention of ever doing so and I've received a full refund with very minimal hassle.  I don't know how well they'd do in a "help me get this shipped" complaint.

Aside from contacting the seller and leaving negative feedback there's not a lot you can do if you still want the item.  There's no formal "items must be shipped within x days" policy that I'm aware of, but if the seller had promised something re delivery and then hadn't, um, delivered, you'd not have been wrong to cancel the order.  If you'd cancelled and had money refunded through the complaints process that obviously doesn't get you the lights you wanted!  For bulky/fragile items that are difficult to ship I think it's good to get agreement from the seller beforehand as to how quickly they can pack and ship, and more importantly how.  Establishing good communication and a good relationship is the real trick - I've had a few packages where things have gone not so well, but a happy resolution was reached just through negotiation (although this has always been with high-volume sellers - people who value their reputation).

I hope they turn up soon....

Matt.

[thysonsacclaim]

I generally never use DHL. However, it is odd that it has taken so long for the item to arrive.

I have and still do ship or receive items to/from the far east (Oman, UAE, India), and yes those can take a while and are usually held by customs and inspected. Things can sometims take a month or more depending on the particular country and its relations with the US.

Coming from Germany, or anywhere else in Europe, I have never had very slow shipping. They obviously took their time shipping it and for that I would leave a comment, perhaps saying the shipping wasn't very fast. Do you have a tracking number?

I ask because I have sometimes had to deal with the ploy of someone saying they shipped an item but didn't actually ship it at that time. For example, if they set a static shipping price, they may be less inclined to ship if they find out the actual cost is much more than they chargedyou for.

If you don't have proof it was shipped, I would call Paypal. At the very least, they will annoy the seller. At most, they will help you amp the pressure up if he hasnt really shipped it yet.

Cheers and good luck with your purchase.


EDIT:

Forgot to say... I've had several things held by US Customs and Border Patrol. If you do have a shipping number, it wil say it has been taken to be checked (at least with UPS)

I had Swedish Butter Cookies confiscated once. What a shame. But for non-food items, if it's not illegal usually no problem

[MB_Mike]

The seller provided me with a tracking number after a month but its been almost another month and the package still hasn't arrived.

Also the tracking number doesn't provide much information such as the destination address which really bothers me. How do I know its a tracking number for MY package?

One more thing, in my mind this person waits an inordinate amount of time to "ship" then provides a bogus tracking # which I finally get fed up with only to have had the time expire on opening a case with Paypal...IS this scenario a real possibility?

[flutes]

You should be able to get either the seller to send the consignment note, or DHL should be able to get you a copy of this.  You can at least confirm the validity of the destination address.  If he refuses to provide any of this I'd start to shift my strategy from one of trying to expedite delivery to one of recovery of money...  Again, to help with the dispute process it makes it much easier on you if you can show proof (eg email) of trying to resolve the situation.

[13B]

A tracking number if its legit you should just be able to plug it into DHLs website and it will bring up the details of your consignment, where it currently is and where it has been, dispatch date and anticipated delivery date.  I work for Mainfreight and our website provides all this info if you have the tracking number, as does any decent freight forwarder.

First step is to try DHL web site and if the tracking number doesn't work, call a local DHL office and ask why the provided tracking number doesn't work.  If the number doesn't exist, tell Paypal that, and they will start the process for refunding you for a fraudulent sale.

You could also tell the seller you want the correct tracking number, or a good excuse, pronto otherwise you'll leave both negative feedback - remembering sellers can't leave negative feeback anymore, only buyers.  If the case drags out to more than 60 or 90 days (I can't remember which) you can't leave negative feedback or open a case against the seller, so bear this in mind if it seems you are waiting in vain.  The seller might be just waiting until that time is up and never send the item.

What is the feedback rating of the seller and % - usually those with a good record work hard to look after it?  Its the first thing I look at when considering bidding on something on eBay, and usually think long and hard how much I need an item if the seller feedback is less than 10 or less than 95% satisfaction rating.

Drop me a line if you want, I'm probably the most eBay savvy here (1000+ purchases, 3000+ sales, rating 2507/100% and a member since 1999), and we'll have a look at what we can do about your situation.

Cheers,

I.

[MB_Mike]

Check this out:

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/sale-wanted-trade-giveaway/1550646-fs-w116-french-euro-headlihgts.html

WHAT A COINCIDENCE! I started a complaint through Ebay and the same day these got posted and the pics are exactly the same as the auction I bid on.

Anyway, here is the info I rec'd back from the seller. You be the judges:

Dear cnyirishman,

Hi,
sorry for the delay. The tracking number is
302277035206 and you can track it at www.dhl.de (you can switch to
english).

Thank you!

[MB_Mike]

BULLSHIT! It is the same guy! I just re-read the old listing

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260658753912&ssPageName=ADME:X:eRTM:MOTORS:1123

I doubt he is a scammer but something isn't right here.

[thysonsacclaim]

Indeed! Ian you are quite the adept eBay-er 

I've done a few sales myself, but your history makes me look like a novice 

[flutes]

How'd you go Mike - did you get any further details?

[MB_Mike]

Opened a complaint and waiting. Thanks for checking in but unfortunately nothing new.

[wbrian63]

Mike - I have a set of French lights - not willing to sell, but maybe this piece of information will help you.

The ONLY difference between French lights and "other" lights is a yellow lens that snaps onto the fog light reflector. It has a Bosch part #.

Maybe, just maybe, that part is still available from Bosch.

Would you like me to see if I can get you that part #?

It may take a few days, I'm headed out of town early tomorrow morning, but I can probably get it next week, if you're interested.

[MB_Mike]

That would be great. Thanks.

[MB_Mike]

I think I can close this chapter. My wife just text me that a huge box just came in the mail (USPS?) with German writing all over it. Ill post more when I get home...until then...

YEE HAW!