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Viewing instruments/equipment before you buy on eBay... you can't!


warwickhunt

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Just had a suspension on my ebay account as I'd breached eBay's policies; I phoned them to get details as the email was a bit vague!

I sent a message asking a seller if I could check out the condition of a bass and he duly sent his address but it transpires that asking to view an item before actually buying  it, isn't permitted.  I argued that there were many instances (especially a bass) where a seller's description and/or pics might not be sufficient.  However, they say that the only permitted course is for a buyer to purchase it, then if it doesn't match the description you can file for a refund... REALLY?  

This isn't so much a rant (their policies are part of T&Cs so you can't argue) but a heads up to be careful when communicating as your account can be suspended (3 days) with the potential for them to delete your account.

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Yes, I had a seller who had a wrap on the knuckles from FeeBay for sending his address. 

In the House of Cards-like refrain "you may say that, I couldn't possibly comment", you could send a photo with a phone number hidden on a bit of paper by the instrument (not too obvious of course).

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18 minutes ago, foxyFuze said:

Yes, I had a seller who had a wrap on the knuckles from FeeBay for sending his address. 

In the House of Cards-like refrain "you may say that, I couldn't possibly comment", you could send a photo with a phone number hidden on a bit of paper by the instrument (not too obvious of course).

Or this......

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My account has been suspended for the same reason. Their argument was that I should agree to buy something and then reject it if not satisfied (alloy wheels with tyres)

I have subsequently arranged to purchase items advertised on eBay for cash by simply messaging a photo of my phone number written on a piece of paper.

Ironically if I had been permitted to view before buying the transactions would have gone through eBay but after the way they treated me I decided they can fcuk off!

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I've bought 2 basses on Ebay. First was a standard win-the-bid type sale and on the second the buyer suggested I try it out and sent me his address. I gave him the cash so I  guess that's what Ebay doesn't like.

Making us complete the sale, then reversing it if something isn't right, gives us all of the hassle and them none!! All that cash is sitting in their bank account gathering interest!

I don't use Ebay any more.

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I don't think I'd ever buy a bass on eBay, its just too much hassle. Not only with not being able to try, but the postage. What happens if it gets damaged when you send it back after trying and not liking it?

I'd restrict it these days to new boxed items or something I can collect and try out before giving cash (ie so it would need to be very local).

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Also, when listing things, having PayPal as a payment option is compulsory. You can say "cash on collection, I don't accept Paypal" in the description, but you can't list without this payment method.

So, going back to the OP matter, is it after the commitment to buy that Ebay get up-tight on contact details, or is it only before you click "Buy" ?

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I am very suspicious of Ebay now, after an horrendous lost/returned mail episode. 

A firm sent me a non-ebay paypal invoice. I duly paid, noting all my details were correct. There was no browser auto-fill going on.

A week or so later, no item. Contacted the firm who said item sent over a  week ago......to a click and collect outlet!! After much analyses and proving points on both sides,  I headed to the outlet,  only to find that they had rejected the item due to no Ebay collection code.

Contacted paypal. It took a week to sort but it transpired  - and this came from a UK paypal rep's mouth - that ebay had somehow managed to change my preferred address to a non-paypal-verified address. Even when I went into my Ebay and paypal accounts,  only my home address came up. The rep said he had flagged numerous occasions of this happening and it's not been acted upon.

Slightly off topic but note this as another Ebay red flag.

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3 hours ago, Grangur said:

So, going back to the OP matter, is it after the commitment to buy that Ebay get up-tight on contact details, or is it only before you click "Buy" ?

They don't want direct (unsupervised) contact i.e. anything other than their messaging and defo no face/face.  Their stock response to my questioning about buying unseen was that a buyer can return an item to the seller (I'm unclear who'd be out of pocket in the courier costs?) if it isn't 'as described'.  I argued that a vintage instrument could very easily be misdescribed / misrepresented and only having the instrument in hand would reveal, despite a detailed description... which let's face it rarely happens!  

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I'd imagine that most sellers of something *nice* will always have it available by another channel too?  e.g. I've a bass for sale at the moment, it's on ebay for visibility but I have it listed here, Facebook, Reverb etc. so always worth a quick google to check!

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It's a far from perfect system, but I've bought a shedload of basses and a few amps on eBay, mostly from abroad, and have to say I've never had any trouble whatsoever.

It's generally a more friendly experience buying and selling,on this forum, but flip side of that is I've been shafted twice

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3 hours ago, Moos3h said:

I'd imagine that most sellers of something *nice* will always have it available by another channel too?  e.g. I've a bass for sale at the moment, it's on ebay for visibility but I have it listed here, Facebook, Reverb etc. so always worth a quick google to check!

There's a new complication with ebay: you now can't list anything saying "this is up for sale in other places, so it might get ended".  Doing this gets your listing removed.

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