Selling on ebay problem

[steve wilson]

Hi,
I've sold my old graphics card Radeon 6970 on ebay and it was working perfectly fine when I sold it. I've played BF3, far cry 3, Bioshock Infinite, Starcraft 2 HOTS amongst other games on it with no problems. The buyer is saying that it BSOD's on him as soon as he starts up a game like far cry 3. He has opened a case against me and the funds have been put on hold in my bank account. I don't want to issue him a refund because I feel I have sold the product in working order. For all I know he has dropped the card and it has damaged it or he just simply does not know what he is doing with the install.

Do I have no option but to refund him, or do I have some way of fighting this?

 

[Brainonska511]

I hope you took pictures of the card and recorded the serial number prior to sending it. In a case like this, you're probably going to get screwed.

 

[steve wilson]

I took pictures of the card but do not have the serial number.

 

[JoeBleed]

I don't sell on ebay, but in this case if it were on the forums, i'd tell them i'd refund his money once you get the card back. If it tests good for you, let him know he's responsible for the shipping back to you. IF he wants it back, he's responsible for the shipping back to him. If he doesn't want it back, refund him minus the shipping cost of you paying to have it sent back or if he paid it, don't reimburse him for that.

If it is bad, it's up to you if you want to refund it and write it off or if it's clearly damaged, does it look like shipping damage or mishandling on the buyer's part?

I also haven't bought or sold anything on the forums in several years. Figured i should say that if it matters.

 

[PottedMeat]

I took pictures of the card but do not have the serial number.

the serial number is usually on a sticker with a barcode - check the pictures, hopefully they're readable.

 

[edro]

You're screwed. eBay infamously protects the buyer.
Your only hope is that he actually sends it back.

Next time, deal with Craigslist, cash only.

 

[Golgatha]

You're screwed. eBay infamously protects the buyer.
Your only hope is that he actually sends it back.

Next time, deal with Craigslist, cash only.

Yeap, immediately request that the buyer send the card back to you. Never use eBay as a seller.

 

[drbrock]

ebay is the worst. avoid at all costs. I lost around 300 bucks on an new xbox 360 on ebay. Now I never sell on that website. I still have to use paypal for other things but if I could I would avoid ebay and paypal as a whole. Wish more websites took amazon payments or google checkout.

 

[chin311]

Yeah, eBay probably going to take their side. 90% the time they do. eBay/Paypal actually took my side in a case where I sold a BROKEN laptop as "Parts only-not working" category and the buyer tried to complain because he couldn't get it to boot to BIOS. LOL. Thankfully I won that case.

I sold a GTX560 on there recently without any issue. It just unfortunately is a roll of the dice depending who the winning bidder is.

I try not to use eBay but some items just don't move locally or it takes an eternity.

I hope you at least get the card back, that'd be best case and you'll lose shipping $$$ but the card is probably fine, he's probably just some stooge trying to install it in some slimline HP Pavilion with an AMD E1.

 

[steve wilson]

Thanks for the advice guys, I'll ask him to ship it back.

I just shipped a Dell 23" monitor today too... now this has got me worried.

 

[NutBucket]

Sounds like the guy has some other hardware issues. But at any rate, selling on ebay certainly has its risks. However I challenge someone to come up with a system that is completely fair to buyers and sellers. In my mind the only way that would be possible is if a 3rd party verified the functionality/condition of the item prior to money being exchanged.

 

[nickbits]

Thanks for the advice guys, I'll ask him to ship it back.

I just shipped a Dell 23" monitor today too... now this has got me worried.

I've only had an issue with 1 of 100 transactions. You'll probably be fine. Mostly I sell my old computer parts--cpus, motherboards, video cards, monitors, etc.

I still sell on ebay despite the horror stories. I guess mostly because I don't really care if I get screwed financially, I just want the stuff out of my house. But bulky or things that are more expensive, I only put on craigslist.

 

[Rio Rebel]

The problem is, there is always the possibility, however unlikely, that the card really did arrive DOA...in which case the guy shouldn't be screwed either. This is why I just don't like dealing with Ebay - the likelihood of the buyer lying is too great, but you can't ignore the fact that it IS possible.

A good case for using this forum.

 

[steve wilson]

The problem is, there is always the possibility, however unlikely, that the card really did arrive DOA...in which case the guy shouldn't be screwed either. This is why I just don't like dealing with Ebay - the likelihood of the buyer lying is too great, but you can't ignore the fact that it IS possible.

A good case for using this forum.

It is possible, but I feel it is unlikely. I feel like I am being screwed and there isn't anything I can do about it.

 

[Golgatha]

Sounds like the guy has some other hardware issues. But at any rate, selling on ebay certainly has its risks. However I challenge someone to come up with a system that is completely fair to buyers and sellers. In my mind the only way that would be possible is if a 3rd party verified the functionality/condition of the item prior to money being exchanged.

heatware.com is the only place you'll find a fair system for feedback. They have no monetary incentive to take sides and the feedback speaks for itself.

 

[dbailey]

What a douche.. if he can boot into windows, the card is most likely working fine.. he probably has some driver conflicts and doesn't know what to do.

 

[xeledon20005]

John Connor is a forum member here he might be able to help you i remmber reading his thread the same thing basically happened to him except with headphones.

 

[Mixolydian]

That's why even when an item works, you still sell it "As-Is"

 

[Garet Jax]

It is possible, but I feel it is unlikely. I feel like I am being screwed and there isn't anything I can do about it.

There are 2 cases where you are being screwed:

1) The buyer bought a replacement piece to one he already owned that was broken. He is going to ship you back the broken one and keep the good one. Since you didn't necessarily store the serial number, you will be out of luck "proving" he did this.

2) The buyer isn't very good at hardware and damaged the video card when he installed it. There is really no way for you to prove this either.

Without thinking this through exhaustively, there aren't many other cases I can come up with where you are being screwed.

 

[Garet Jax]

That's why even when an item works, you still sell it "As-Is"

That doesn't really help matters if the buyer submits a case to paypal/ebay.

 

[Ketchup]

When I was using eBay (I don't anymore) I sold everything "as is." Saying "no guarantee but it was working fine for me." Sure, one will lose a few bucks selling this way, but it would prevent something like this from occurring. Never sell a used computer part with a guarantee of any kind.

 

[Ketchup]

That's why even when an item works, you still sell it "As-Is"

Yup, beat me to it.

 

[Ketchup]

That doesn't really help matters if the buyer submits a case to paypal/ebay.

They will submit it, but once PayPal looks into it at all, and sees those words, they will drop it.

 

[Garet Jax]

heatware.com is the only place you'll find a fair system for feedback. They have no monetary incentive to take sides and the feedback speaks for itself.

True - except that heatware allows you and your friends all to leave feedback for each other. It doesn't force there to be a transaction in place for feedback to be left.

I could say that because eBay only allows feedback to be left when a transaction has taken place is better because money has changed hands. Even if I am pulling one over and not really selling my item to a friend, I still have to pay eBay for the luxury of list/selling the item.

Both systems are different, neither is inherently more trustworthy than the other. Selling something sight unseen is always a risk for both the buyer and the seller.

The reason I never started selling items here is because people without any heatware, I needed to ship the item before receiving payment. That is just bass ackwards in my mind.

I have been buying and selling things through newgroups, forums, craigslist and ebay for a long time (20+ years) and I have only ever been ripped off once (maybe twice). In that one case, I contacted the police and they pursued it. The guy now has a warrant in my home state for his arrest - given that he doesn't live here means that it doesn't amount to much. The second case I believe they pulled a fast one on me (by buying a working model and sending me their broken one), but I have no proof and just let it go.

 

[Garet Jax]

They will submit it, but once PayPal looks into it at all, and sees those words, they will drop it.

That hasn't been my experience because the onus is on you the seller to prove that it arrived in working condition.

Now - I haven't had to deal with a case of this in a long time so it is very possible that the rules have changed - so I reserve the right to be wrong