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Discussion Boards => General Discussion => Topic started by: bevernie on January 13, 2009, 11:42:32 AM

Title: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: bevernie on January 13, 2009, 11:42:32 AM
GREETINGS!! ;D About 3-4 weeks ago, I won an auction on Ebay(A nice train!). The final cost was $30.85, so I went and got a money order and sent it off (Dec. 22). Well, the person on the other end never got it. I learned that it will costs $10 to trace the MO, but they can only tell you if it has been cashed. They do not do stop payments or do refunds. What should I do?
            1. Do the trace just to see if it has been cashed.
            2. Swallow my loss and get another MO (From the POST OFFICE!!).
            3. Just forget the whole thing!
            4. Any other suggestions? ???
                                                                                            THANX!!
                                                             8)                               Ernie
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: SteamGene on January 13, 2009, 04:45:22 PM
I thought one of the advantages of a money order was that if it didn't make it to its intended recipient, one could get a replacement. 
Gene
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: jayl1 on January 13, 2009, 05:18:53 PM
Quote from: SteamGene on January 13, 2009, 04:45:22 PM
I thought one of the advantages of a money order was that if it didn't make it to its intended recipient, one could get a replacement. 
Gene

Yes,  but it is NOT immediate.  I believe the window was at least 60 (maybe 90??) days before a claim could be made at the post office.

Suggestion - Buy at your local hobby shop or an online retailer AND use a credit card..
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: GN.2-6-8-0 on January 13, 2009, 05:23:15 PM
One of the reasons i use Paypal.....
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: ccooper on January 13, 2009, 05:34:35 PM
I strongly suggest using Paypal when buying from E-bay. In fact I stay away from sellers that do not use Paypal services. registering with Paypl is easy and can be done from E-bay ( it's free ).
Curtis
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Pacific Northern on January 13, 2009, 06:51:40 PM
The main reason for using PayPal if buying on E-Bay. I stay away from vendors who do not use PayPal.
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Jim Banner on January 13, 2009, 06:54:41 PM
The three best pieces of advice:
PayPal
PayPal
PayPal
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Jim Banner on January 13, 2009, 07:05:19 PM
In the days before PayPal, I ran into the same problem.  Here is what I did.  I kept in very close contact with the seller, emailing him every 2 or 3 days.  I discussed with him what I should do, including twice offering to purchase and send a new money order.  After about 6 weeks, his money order finally arrived and he shipped the goods.  I thanked him for his being patient far beyond any reasonable time limit.  His answer was that he was not worried about the extreme wait because he figured anybody trying to stiff him would not have kept in such close communication.

Based on that, better advice would be:
Communicate
Communicate
Communicate
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Stephen D. Richards on January 13, 2009, 08:16:44 PM
bevernie,  if the above sugestions are not to your satisfaction, contact me off line and I can advise legal procedures.   Stephen
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: az2rail on January 13, 2009, 08:17:23 PM
Well as of Jan 15, paypal will be the only accepable form of payment on ebay. But this does not solve his problem.

Read the feedback on the seller, If there are a lot of negative feedbacks, then you might consider bitting the bullet and let the auction go. But if he has a good rating, and you don't think you are being ripped off, and you want the item, get another money order.

If he is honest, he will refund the first money order if it should show up at a later date. Another thing is, check that the mailing address was correct. You may have sent it to the wrong address. That happened to me once, and the money order came back as undeliverable a month later.

Bruce
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: jestor on January 15, 2009, 04:40:49 PM
All my EBay paypal purchases debit my checking account.  ;)
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: richG on January 15, 2009, 07:39:49 PM
Quote from: jestor on January 15, 2009, 04:40:49 PM
All my EBay paypal purchases debit my checking account.  ;)

Same here. I have not had a credit card for over ten years.

Rich
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: James in FL on January 15, 2009, 08:37:42 PM
Ernie,
From some of your previous posts you "claim" to be an "older gentleman" (55+) I can only give you the benefit of the doubt.

However from some of your previous posts, I question that claim.

That said:
Surely, if in fact, you claim your are somewhat advanced in age (40+) you are familiar with the term "Return receipt".
My dilemma is that whenever sending "monies" through the postal system (Cash, Checks, or Money Orders) you would not request a return receipt.

Something smells like fish to me.
You post on a forum that you "sent it".
What proof do you have?

Hopefully (if the seller never received the money order) the seller will give you a negative feedback as some type of scam artist.
I would.

Bid on my item and don't pay.
I'd blast you.

You come here asking for help... we only know one side (allegedly) of the story.

No sympathy from here.
Suck it up







Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Jim Banner on January 15, 2009, 09:21:40 PM
Ernie, I for one have no reason to doubt you.  I see on your profile that you list a town, state, age and email address.  Good enough for me.

I NEVER sent a payment by mail with a return receipt requested.  Why spend the extra when I already have a receipt showing that I bought and paid for the money order?  I assume it also works that way south of the border as well.

I never pay for insurance on shipments either.  Two reasons for that:
- if an item it lost or damaged, the USPS and Canada Post both point fingers and say the other did it.  Then neither pays.
- insurance is sold at a profit, which means on the average I pay more than I will on the average collect back.  My experience has been that about 1% of items get lost.  But insurance costs about $2 on a typical (for me) $50 purchase.  So on 100 items, I would pay $200 for insurance and collect only $50 back.  I still insure my home, my car, etc. because they are expensive items that I cannot afford to lose.  But a $50 or a $100 item is not going to cripple me financially.

Ernie, in your original post you gave four options.  The second one is probably the best.  But as I said before, discuss it with the seller. 
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: WGL on January 16, 2009, 02:56:52 AM
  Our credit union recently announced that it would not permit its debit card to be used in transactions with 3 states, because of widespread fraud. I wonder how many people lost money before issuers of debit cards stopped payments.
  When I pay by credit card, my credit card company & then I stand between the seller & my bank account.  If I find an unauthorized charge on my credit card bill, I just have to notify the company.  Nobody gets my money until I approve the charge.  As I see it, debit cards give sellers direct access to the buyer's bank account.   Debit cards may be popular because they omit the steps of an intermediary & writing a check, but do they have safeguards equivalent those that credit cards have?  I also don't trust banks to protect me from somebody's bad check, because they will cash it & make me pay them back if it bounces.
  There must be fans of debit cards who are at least as careful as I am & can explain why they think that debit cards are as safe as credit cards.
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: pdlethbridge on January 16, 2009, 05:15:56 PM
WGL I use my debit cards as credit cards and I save on costs, usually a $1.00 fee and I don't reveal a pin number. Best of both worlds.
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: WGL on January 17, 2009, 02:49:44 AM
  One's bank statement with account information could also be sent to the wrong address, but it's not so easy to cancel a bank account.  :(

  I didn't know that one could use a debit card as a credit card. 
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Rangerover on January 17, 2009, 09:26:56 AM
I've used a debit card for all my online, pay bills, local purchases, and travel for the past 5 years. Mine is a Visa bank debit card, issued by my bank. It has the same safeguards as a Visa credit card. I believe that Visa and Master  debit cards are both treated like credit cards, but always ask your bank about these issues if you have any doubts, that's what I did. If there is a fraudulent transaction, it's treated the same as a credit card. It seems that some who really get stuck with either their credit or debit cards are by unscrupulous sales people, especially at gas stations, youngsters and foreigners, who carry a swipe card reader for their own criminal activities. Never allow someone to swipe your card on 2 different card readers. And notify the card issuer as soon as there is questionable activity on your statement. It can be reversed on either a credit card or a debit card, but you have to do the footwork. I have never had a problem, but I've known others that have with both type of cards.
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Terry Toenges on January 17, 2009, 01:00:51 PM
I learned by experience never to use my debit card for online purchases.
My wife ordered something using the debit card and we got billed for more than the price quoted on the phone.
This was from one of the infomercials on TV.
While we finally got a refund, it took months of writing to the BBB and to the State AG to get our refund. The bank was no help.
In the meantime, our bank account was screwed up because the company deducted more than they were supposed to.
Another problem with online debit paying is if your computer goes down. That just happened to me.
Last Sunday night, I was trying to replace my CPU. I screwed up the new one. I tried to put the old one back in and screwed it up, too. I had to wait until Tiger Direct delivered me a new one. I got it yesterday and I was able to finally to get back on line last night.
There is no place down here that sells CPU's and I would have had to make the 160 mile round trip to find a store in St. Louis to buy the CPU. I don't have a St. Louis phone book and couldn't look for stores online, 'cause the computer was down.
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Britton on January 20, 2009, 06:31:11 PM
Quote from: bevernie on January 13, 2009, 11:42:32 AM
GREETINGS!! ;D About 3-4 weeks ago, I won an auction on Ebay(A nice train!). The final cost was $30.85, so I went and got a money order and sent it off (Dec. 22). Well, the person on the other end never got it. I learned that it will costs $10 to trace the MO, but they can only tell you if it has been cashed. They do not do stop payments or do refunds. What should I do?
            1. Do the trace just to see if it has been cashed.
            2. Swallow my loss and get another MO (From the POST OFFICE!!).
            3. Just forget the whole thing!
            4. Any other suggestions? ???
                                                                                            THANX!!
                                                             8)                               Ernie
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Britton on January 20, 2009, 06:35:06 PM
If you have to use money orders I recommend Western Union and always keep the receipt with the tracing number you can see if it has been cashed by yourself by using the numbers on that receipt, also they will stop payment if you can send in the original receipt and amount and they will issue you a new Money order in your name. I would pursue it never take no as an answer its your money and your merchandise. If you find out that it has been cashed but you have received nothing you can report that seller to Ebay! Good Luck.
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: thirdrail on January 21, 2009, 07:12:54 PM
First, I will have nothing to do with PayPal as it royally messed up ticket payments for a series of events a volunteer organization I was a member of used it for. We got the money, but no advice as to what it was for!

When dealing on eBay I either pay by credit card or Cashier's Check. The advantage of a Cashier's Check is that you CAN stop payment and have a new one reissued. Fortunately, my credit union will give me up to six a month at no charge since I'm over 55.

I'm not sure about that Jan. 15 PayPal only advice, as Larry Lowrey (GATCO) is still selling on eBay and he won't touch PayPal either.

If I see something I'm interested in, I'll email the seller and ask if he takes credit cards or Cashier's Checks. If not, it's his loss, not mine. And, I've had a 100% favorable rating since I started on eBay in 1999.
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: Irocian on January 23, 2009, 02:06:25 PM
If you buy on ebay and then pay with a Postal Money order if the seller cashes it and does not send the item it is Postal Fraud and serious charge.
I have bought and sold on ebay with over 2000 items changing hands and i have had postal orders lost and they were tracked after 30 days and then refunded if not found and cancelled.
Then you send another payemnt to seller showing him proof you sent a payment and that it was lost and therefore you have done what you had to do to get your money back and then get seller payment.
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: jacksonjag on January 23, 2009, 09:45:44 PM
Ernie - According to the USPS website, you can fill out Form 6401, & pay a fee of $5.20 for a lost Money Order!  (assuming you sent a Postal MO)
Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: hotrainlover on January 24, 2009, 10:04:07 AM
I have used Postal MO's a lot.  When I first started using them, I did NOT know, and was sending BOTH copies of it to the sellers...  That was wrong.  I was actually lucky, and was notified by one of the SELLERS that I was doing it wrong....  It is good to ask questions, when trying new payment methods!
My point is this...

If you have not paid the Ebay person, AGAIN, you need to.  You may have to take the loss, while (maybe) waiting for your money.  It is a SMALL price to (re-) pay, compared to not having your bids accepted, due to negative feedback.  Ebay stores will NOT usually work with neg. buyers...

Whoever said-  "communication" was the key, is absolutely correct....

Title: Re: HELP!! EBAY "SITUATION"
Post by: jwoj69 on March 16, 2009, 01:40:54 AM
YOU SEE THIS IS A TOUGH ONE, I DO BOTH ON EBAY BUY AND SELL. USUALLY I WOULD BITE THE BULLET AND USE PAYPAL.  YOU PAY FEES AS SELLER, BUT IF THERE IS A PROBLEM.
THEY WOULD STEP IN, AND SO FAR I MANAGE NOT TO GET STIFF IN 8 YEARS,. NOW WE HAVE NEW RULES AND YOU CAN'T USE MONET ORDERS ANYMORE. TO ME ITS UP TO YOU CUSTOMER (AND A LOT OF PEOPLE HATE PAYPAL) BUT IN THAT CASE GET AT LEAST TRACKING 65 CENTS!!! BUT SINCE IS TOO LATE, OPEN COMMUNICATION, SOMETIMES ASK FOR HELP (DISCOUNT TO COVER SOME LOSS) MAY WORK. SPENDING ADDITINAL $10 JUST TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPEND WILL PUT YOU EVEN DEEPER TO LOSS UNLESS SELLER GOT YOUR MONEY ORDER AND SAYS HE DID NOT.
BUT NEXT TIME PAPYPAL OR AT LEAT USPS WITH TRACKING.
AND YOU SHOULD KEEP WITH SELLER ( IF YOU USE MONEY ORDER), GIVE HIM THE TRACKING. SO THIS BOTH OF YOU KNOW WHERE IS THE MONEY,..
JACK