Unfortunate end to my Jones

[MrShoe]

Last Thursday I was the happy high bidder on an Ebay auction.
For sale was this 92nd Gordon highlanders tartan.
Made by Kathy Lare. Used for bagpipe band. Since i rarely see much in my size I was excited.

The seller sent me a note Saturday stating he had headed out of town for a family thing and would drop it in the mail upon his return. I sent a reply that I was not in a hurry, so it was ok. Last night, Wednesday, I still had not received a shipping confirmation so I sent an email asking if he had tracking information. No response...

I just checked the transaction to see if it indicated shipped and it said awaiting payment. Oh know I thought, my payapl payment must not have gone thru. I look at the details and it show "payment refunded" in the notes sections it said "items stolen"

Dang nabbit!! Oh well the search for a well built wool kilt continues.

Question....what would you leave as feedback?

[artificer]

Hmmm. Seems a bit suspicious.
He didn't contact you or anything...? I call shenanigans.

Did the auction end much lower than you might expect?
Claiming an item stolen would be one of the few ways to get out of
not sending an item that went for way less than you hoped.

I'd keep an eye on the seller (make them a favorite) to see if it gets relisted.

[MrShoe]

Did the auction end much lower than you might expect?

If it was indeed made by Kathy Lare her new hand sewn kilts start @ $450 so my bid of $65.55 would have been a steal. My complaint is there should have been a reserve set if that was the issue.

I'd keep an eye on the seller (make them a favorite) to see if it gets relisted.

I will most definitely be watching the listings to see if it is listed again. He had 3 each of kilt, glen garry, and pith helmet and 2 hose hair sporran . Two kilts sold for about @ $66, two Glens for @ $3, two helmets for @ $5 and both sporran sold for about @ $41. One kilt new got the min $25 bid. The other went for $67.

[Cowher]

Ask if he has a second one then ask how much he wants for that one. If he does then save the emails and alert eBay. They should help you out. It would prove that he still has a item that you bid on.

[ForresterModern]

Ask if he has a second one then ask how much he wants for that one. If he does then save the emails and alert eBay. They should help you out. It would prove that he still has a item that you bid on.

If you are going to do this generate a new ebay account to use for this specific purpose so that the seller will not recognize it as the same buyer he just cancelled on. Don't list your location specifically as that is a dead giveaway.

Contact the seller as your proper ebay entity first to find out what the issue is with why your sale did not go through. Then do the second buyer inquiry, saying you were wanting to bid on the item but missed the auction, and asking if they had any more of the same item at any price. If they respond that they do but at a higher price you have them nailed for fraud through ebay's fraudulent practices rulings. Take them down. Unscrupulous ebay sellers are more common but so are the ways of dealing with them as this type of enterprise has matured and evolved from what I remember it being 5 years ago.

[KWD]

Never fear Mr. Shoe, I have sent an email to him from avery well established eBay user name (+400 on the feedback) so he doesn't think it could be someone scamming him. I inquired about the tartan, and price if he had more. I will keep you informed.

[cessna152towser]

If you look at the eBay feedback for tdthumper you will see that he only has one feedback from a buyer, all the others are from people who sold to him.
He might not appreciate that as a seller he is contractually bound to complete the sale and thinks he can use this excuse to back out. I'd be minded to demand to see the police report of the theft on the basis that once the seller had received the Paypal payment the property which was allegedly stolen now belonged to the buyer.

[Spartan Tartan]

I'd be minded to demand to see the police report of the theft on the basis that once the seller had received the Paypal payment the property which was allegedly stolen now belonged to the buyer.

This is a very good point. If the item was stolen AFTER the auction closed, it would seem that the stolen property was yours. And, in fact, YOU were the victim of theft.

[EagleJCS]

One thing I don't see anyone has thought of - perhaps the seller stole the items and the police caught him/her? Given there were several apparently uniform-type items, it's possible a local pipe band or band member had those items lifted and the police saw the sale of those items on ebay.

[MrShoe]

One thing I don't see anyone has thought of - perhaps the seller stole the items and the police caught him/her? Given there were several apparently uniform-type items, it's possible a local pipe band or band member had those items lifted and the police saw the sale of those items on ebay.

Good point. However the note he put on the PayPal refund transaction detail was "had items stolen" not had stolen items.


Kyle,
Thanks for contacting and checking it out. I sent him an Email and a message through Ebay asking if the pipe band would have any additional items being retired any time soon. Of course I have not had a reply to ANY of my correspondence.

I would like to know if a Police report was filed, but I am sure I will never head from him. Maybe I will do a little detective work of my own. I have his Name, Hotmail address and about the location he would ship from. I could try contacting some of those he has had transactions with, but don't know if it is worth all the trouble. Well... having the kilt would be worth the trouble, but i'm sure I won't ever see that one.