A Beginner's Guide: How To Read Ebay Speak.

Another non-productive ebay thread.
Don

Andyrich, if you are returning 4 out of 5 ebay lots, perhaps you need to be asking lots more questions and getting more images before you bid/buy. Neither buyer nor seller nor ebay want this to become an approval service where a large percent of the merchandise goes back.

erilaz: Always treat ebay as a remote version of a brick and mortar. If you are not allowed to see the back, walk away.

Totally see your point, John; no fun for anyone returning items and not the kind of buyer I want to be. That said, to what standard should I/others hold dealers to? Totally understand mistakes happen, and it is a total time sink to take photos of the back of a lot of low-value stamps; that's just going to raise the price due to the time required. But is it fair to ask every dealer every time the back of a stamp is not shown if it is indeed MNH? It is one reason I just stopped buying from sellers that don't any photos at all. In any event; just started this for a little humor not to trash all dealers; the vast majority of whom are honest and just make honest mistakes like the rest of us. It is frustrating though when I've now purchased 5 sets or partial sets of Ecuador 62 A-H and most or all were of the watermarked variety. It shows that some dealers (or at least the ones I bought from) simply didn't bother to check.

And I do have to eat a little crow on the sheet; the seller did indeed contact me prior to shipping and offered a discount. I forgot and it was my mistake. They reminded me of it and they got the apology from me they deserved. So back to 3 out of the last 5.

We should always find a way to enjoy humor, even in philately.

I have made thousands of purchases and hundreds of sales on ebay and NEVER returned an item nor taken a return. I have made a complaint or two, and received one or two, but I always work something out with the seller or my buyer so all are happy. You should be happy with what you SEE before you buy them, and send seller a question if in doubt. I get those now and then, and post more pictures if asked (always).

Yes, you should ask to see the back for all MNH (unless really inexpensive) and really for any used too (especially if expensive). (Large lots excluded for practicality purposes)

If returning 4 out of 5 items is common for you, please share your ebay id (not really), so I can block you as a buyer. I seriously would not want you as a customer if that is something you commonly do (nor would most sellers). I hope for everyone's sake that you've just have one bad day here and will avoid the seller(s) in question :-)

For me it always come back to people. ebay is just a cover page. You need to work with a seller you trust if you want to get stuff that matches your expectations. I wish everyone showed both sides of the stamp. Makes no sense not to - especially for NH, LH, grills, claims of no faults etc. One good test is to ask a seller a question. If you don't get back an intelligent response, move on. It takes time to trust someone, but I think that's the best way to deal with any giant marketplace with sellers ranging from professionals to amateurs, to scammers.

If stuff is misdescribed it goes back. James feel free to block me on ebay.

I think it is fair to say that both buyer and seller have some responsibility on ebay for the outcome of a sale/purchase - because there is plenty of pure JUNK being sold 'as-is' and it is what it is. If you buy it, knowing it is cheap, junk quality, then why complain?

I attempt to be straight forward, honest, and reasonable with every sale, every customer, but I don't "make a living" on anything ebay and certainly don't want to deal with painfully picky customers. Of course, for the few 'high-end'/expensive items I sell, I expect the buyer's expectations to be as high as the price or higher :-)

Another reason not to post here.

The OP says he returned 3 out of 4 items in one day, and blames ebay and the sellers.

I both buy and sell lots on ebay. I rarely get a return (much less than 1%), and rarely return an item (no more than a few percent-- maybe less).

Of course, there are lots of items I look at and think -- no way would I bid on that! That seller looks dodgy!

Might I suggest the OP do a bit of due diligence in future? eg for mint stamps only buy items that have back scans? Buy from sellers whose descriptions you trust etc etc.

1 out of 4 is such a poor strike rate that it suggests the main problem lies with the OP.

You have been on an anti-eBay campaign for months now. We get it, you are mad at ebay.

You have also threaten to leave multiple times. You also 'send messages to staff' more times than everyone else.

Obviously this is not the community for you. It is a shame, you have plenty to offer but if you must leave so be it.
Don

Yes, we may as well blame the victim. I've also been blamed several times in the forum for my adventures with online buying.

No, I think he should continue with his strategy of buying unbelievable bargains from unbelievable sellers and sending them back every time, rather than learning that not all ebay lunches are free.

I think getting ripped off 75% of the time might be acceptable for someone entirely new to ebay and quite naive. Continuing at that rate suggests something else.