YAET - buyer says item does not work

[spanky]

link to auction

i sold a video card on ebay to a guy. i stated in the description that the auction is AS-IS. he emails me like two weeks after the auction telling me the card doesn't work, and he tried this and that, replaced this or that, blah blah blah...

then he said he contact visiontek about an rma, but visiontek wants an original reciept, which i do not have. he says that even though the auction is AS-IS, it does not even POST so I should do something about it.

so after a week of pondering if i should try to fabricate a reciept and try to rma, i decided against it, and sent him an email saying i'll offer him a refund, unless he has another suggestion. he never replied to that email.

so today, i go to check my hotmail, and i got two surprises waiting for me. one is from paypal, and the other is from ebay. the paypal one goes like this:

Dear [honest.hank],

We recently received a complaint regarding merchandise that was never
received or received significantly not as described. The details of this
transaction are as follows:


------------------------------
Complaint Details
------------------------------

Transaction Date: Jan 1, 2005
Transaction Amount: -$90.20 USD
Case Number: PP-068-868-121
Buyer's Name: [buyer name]
Buyer's Email: [buyer email]

Transaction ID: 53Y9198186972001Y


We are contacting you to let you know that we will not be continuing this
investigation because this complaint was filed 45 or more days after the
original transaction date. However, we reserve the right for the next 180
days to begin an investigation if we later determine that this complaint
should be examined.

We are committed to providing our community a safe environment in which to
transact. As stated in the PayPal User Agreement, we reserve the right to
close or limit an account in response to excessive complaints received
about failure to ship merchandise, non-delivery of services, merchandise
not as described, or problems with merchandise shipped.

You do not need to contact PayPal at this time, however, we encourage you
to work directly with the buyer to amicably resolve this matter.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,
PayPal Protection Services Department

Please do not reply to this e-mail. Mail sent to this address will not be
received and therefore, not answered. For assistance, log in to your PayPal
account and click the "Help" link in the footer of any page. If your
inquiry is regarding a claim, log in to your PayPal account and go to the
Resolution Center.

the ebay email goes like this:

Dear honest.hank:
monte.ss has informed eBay that they feel the item they received from you, 5151115737, VisionTek Xtasy ATI Radeon 9500 Pro 128mb AGP 8x, was significantly different from your description in your original listing.

It's true that two people can sometimes legitimately view the same item differently. As a result, no action is being taken by eBay at this time. However, it's important to note that sellers have an obligation to deliver an item that matches the description provided in the original listing.

Most Significantly Not as Described disputes can be solved with direct communication between the buyer and seller, and we encourage you to work with your trading partner to resolve this situation. Click the link below to view and reply to the information submitted by the buyer.

Respond to this notification

If you don't respond by Mar-05-2005 the buyer may elect to escalate this matter to a reimbursement claim.

Learn more about eBay's Item Not Received or Significantly Not as Described Policy.

You can view the status of this dispute at any time by visiting your Dispute Console, which is accessible here:
http://feedback.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewDisputeConsole&DisputeType=3

Thank you for your patience and responsiveness in participating in this process.

Regards,
eBay

so apparently, he has complained to both paypal and ebay regarding the auction, with his primary beef being that "merchandise that was never received or received significantly not as described" and "was significantly different from your description in your original listing". wtf? he's the one that never replied to my refund offer. after reading these two emails from paypal and ebay, i sent him an email saying i emailed him two weeks ago offering a refund but he never replied.

i'm just pissed off that he reported me to paypal and ebay. even though i'm not in any sort of trouble, i feel that he's pushing me to do something i don't feel i have to do. i said the auction is AS-IS, and described the item to the best of my ability. i tested th card and it definitely posted fine. for all i know, he could have FUBAR'ed it himself. now i am thinking about rescinding my refund offer.

so what do u think? should i be a scumbag here, or continue to try to be a nice guy and potentially be raped for $80?

 

[bradruth]

He crossed the line. Enjoy your money.

 

[AMDZen]

Why not just create a fake receipt for it? I do that all the time, then he can RMA it.

Still the guy is a douche

 

[ericb]

Leave it. If the auction says as-is then it's sold as-is. No warranty and no more obligation. The guy ignored your email for a compromise and tried to go above you to get the money back. More than likely the card is either (1) fine but he changed his mind or found a better one cheaper (2) screwed the card up installing it and now wants a second chance. I would end it here and call it a day.

 

[SouthPaW1227]

don't give a thing to him.

 

[jagec]

I can't believe you were going to offer him a refund, when the item was sold AS-IS.

 

[Buickbeast]

just watch for a charge back on your account Paypal won't eat the loss if the person does a charge back on their card, so they pass the savings on to you :disgust:

 

[DotheDamnTHing]

but did you know it was not working?

 

[DotheDamnTHing]

if you knew it was not working and sold it, even as as-is, then i think you have some liability

 

[AdvancedRobotics]

you offered a refund, and he didn't take it. Enjoy your money!

 

[imported_Phil]

This auction is AS-IS. As mentioned before, I have verified this video card
to POST, but beyond that, I do not have the time to fully test it. Before I
upgraded, it recall it to be working wonderfully. This card has never been
abused (ie - overclocked or modified).

Um... I, personally, would see a dead card as being fairly different.
</2c>

 

[jpeyton]

Paypal will take your money anyways (or put your account into negative). I always ask buyers if they can pay via BidPay or MO instead; most don't mind.

 

[spanky]

Originally posted by: DotheDamnTHing
but did you know it was not working?

no, i did not purposely sell a defective video card. a few years back, i was more into upgrading hardware so i would change video cards quite frequently. the replaced cards were either sold, or kept for back up's. i actually sold 2 other video cards (link 1 link 2) from the same closet cleaning episode and haven't had complaints.

 

[kranky]

You probably ran into one of the people like some of the members here. Buy something, try to o/c it, kill it, then demand a refund because it "doesn't work."

 

[spanky]

Originally posted by: Dopefiend

This auction is AS-IS. As mentioned before, I have verified this video card
to POST, but beyond that, I do not have the time to fully test it. Before I
upgraded, it recall it to be working wonderfully. This card has never been
abused (ie - overclocked or modified).

Um... I, personally, would see a dead card as being fairly different.
</2c>

but it was not dead when it was in my possession. i doubt it was my packaging either becuz i put it in the retail box, then put the retail box in another bigger box stuffed with peanuts.

 

[SSP]

Even though it says as-is, your auction says you got it to post. If he cant get the same result, and is indeed a dead card, then I think you should refund, simply cause it didnt post like you said it would (who knows why).

Anyway, its a grey area, and since paypal and ebay isnt doing anything about it, i guess you're in the clear.

 

[spanky]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Paypal will take your money anyways (or put your account into negative). I always ask buyers if they can pay via BidPay or MO instead; most don't mind.

i currently do not have any money sitting in my paypal account. could they draw from my CC on file, or from my checking account?

 

[Zorro]

Originally posted by: AMDZen
Why not just create a fake receipt for it? I do that all the time, then he can RMA it.

Still the guy is a douche

I would call this FRAUD.

 

[Abix]

As-Is means As-Is. If you didnt say 'Guaranteed not DOA' or anything like that, and if the card got damaged on the way to him and there was no insurance on it, then its his ass. As-Is means As-Is. No guarantee, no refund.

 

[maziwanka]

Originally posted by: bradruth
He crossed the line. Enjoy your money.

yep

 

[spanky]

ok, thanx for hte input. i'll take the a$shole approach... if he can manage to get his money back, then more power to him.

 

[jpeyton]

Originally posted by: spanky

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Paypal will take your money anyways (or put your account into negative). I always ask buyers if they can pay via BidPay or MO instead; most don't mind.

i currently do not have any money sitting in my paypal account. could they draw from my CC on file, or from my checking account?

No, if there is no money in your account it will go negative. Then they'll bug you by e-mail for 3 months about it before they let NCO collections hassle you with 8PM phone calls. PayPal Sucks

I accept PayPal for my auctions because you scare away business if you don't, but I find that if I offer people a 3% discount on their total price (which is what PayPal takes anyways), most don't mind paying via MO, Cashiers Check, or BidPay. All three of those methods are bulletproof in regards to CC chargebacks...and PayPal is not.

 

[BatmanNate]

I always interpret "as-is" to mean broken or partial broken at best, so there really isn't room for him to complain.

 

[spanky]

Originally posted by: jpeyton

Originally posted by: spanky

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Paypal will take your money anyways (or put your account into negative). I always ask buyers if they can pay via BidPay or MO instead; most don't mind.

i currently do not have any money sitting in my paypal account. could they draw from my CC on file, or from my checking account?

No, if there is no money in your account it will go negative. Then they'll bug you by e-mail for 3 months about it before they let NCO collections hassle you with 8PM phone calls. PayPal Sucks

I accept PayPal for my auctions because you scare away business if you don't, but I find that if I offer people a 3% discount on their total price (which is what PayPal takes anyways), most don't mind paying via MO, Cashiers Check, or BidPay. All three of those methods are bulletproof in regards to CC chargebacks...and PayPal is not.

the 3% discount is an interesting proposal. i might start doing that, but most of the time, i ebay stuff when i need money and ppl sending me paypal is generally faster then anyhting that may come in snail mail. anyhow, i don't see how this guy who is complaining about the video card has any case at all against me. if he didn't piss me off with the paypal and ebay complaints, i probably would have just ate the $80. now i'll let him do the eating... bon appetite!