new ebay con trick.. well it was to me

[charlie_morris_minor]

ok lets make it clear i am not bashing ebay here i am just wanting to make others aware so they can possibly avoid the same con as me..

the con is buying something from china where they set the delivery date to be after the final date you can claim from pay pal for none delivery of goods which is 45 days. and then close the account probably having done a few hundred trades in the same sort of way.. a sort of catch 22 con if you like.

i feel sure some would like the full details of what i was buying etc etc...

I wanted tablet style computer but for a specific purpose which means the spec is not important (i.e can be naff) and if it does not work out, i do not want to have spent a lot of money on a flash tablet.. so i go to ebay to find a low spec one. I find one that is just what i want, it is in china but I have bought several items from china in the past with no problems, so not a problem. I check the feedback, almost 20K items sold over 99% positive feedback and negative feedback, complains of slow delivery.. well his add does say he posts once a month etc etc I am not in a hurry either i should add. the trouble is the auctions normally end within about 10 quid of what a same spec item in the uk is so no good to me but i keep looking and happen to see one that is finishing at an odd time of the afternoon so placed my maximum bid of 32 quid ( i told you i did not want to pay much) i set this limit on the grounds if what i got was rubbish or the idea i have does not work out, well i can afford to lose 32 quid/ the wife will not kill me over it. i wait to be out bid.. only i was not i won it for 31 pounds. I get my delivery date ok it is in about 60 days.. what i was expecting..

i sit back and wait it does not arrive i give it a bit more time then go to open a none sending claim which is of course set at 45 days doh.

If any one thinks i am after sympathy I am not as i have clearly said i was prepared to lose the money if it did not work out..I am not bashing china i have bought from there in the past and will again. I just thought i would bring it to other peoples attention in case they got caught out with a larger sum of money.

[Plin]

Thanks for bringing this up - always good to be made aware of possible pit falls. I know you say it is not a kings ransom to lose but it is still frustrating when you work hard for your money and someone else thinks they can just walk off with it. Hope you find a cheapie tablet elsewhere soon.

[bmcecosse]

It may still arrive - fingers crossed. I've ordered various small items from China/HongK and never been let down - although always slow slow boat delivery. But thanks for telling the tale !

[irmscher]

You may find they have drop shipped it to a uk distributor [agent] and its these that havent sent it yet .I bought a car dvd cd player £5 and thought if it doesnt come its only a fiver and blow me 7 weeks later it turns up shipped from Birmingham .And dont forget like the record slow boat to China Radio still works after 2 years

[charlie_morris_minor]

alas i fear i will not see it the seller is no longer registered with ebay and his feedback for the last month is 98% negative! so i am not hopeful.

[bmcecosse]

Oh dear - bad luck. £32 out the housekeeping.....I would be a dead man.....!!

[rayofleamington]

Thanks for the tip - wherever you buy goods there is some risk (not usually high risk, but it depends on where you buy..) so knowing how to reduce the risk is helpful.
I'm pretty street wise on ebay and have still been caught a couple of times, but all my china purchases have been legit so far (although one v.cheap item broken in transit). I'll watch out for the >45days issue in future.

[MarkyB]

£32 out the housekeeping.....I would be a dead man

Are hit men very cheap in Scotland or would the Mrs DIY

[bmcecosse]

DIY.... I live in constant fear........ Not called SWMBO for fun......

[charlie_morris_minor]

fortunately for me the money did not come from the housekeeping but from the sale on ebay of kitchen collectables (i.e. a load of old creme egg / nescafe mugs and egg cups that had been sitting in a box since we moved a few years back)

Fortunately for me after my wife stopped laughing.. i managed to do some scope creep and after some sweet talking ended up with access the mythical holiday budget and have now got a tablet which we are both very happy with.. thank goodness.. a slip up here really would have meant goodnight vienna!!