Hi Oh Wise Ones. Bought a Sailor Sterling Silver with Naginata togi nib (ie the full silver version) on the bay. It arrived promptly, but despite being described as new, uninked etc and scratch free, it has a deep, albeit short scratch on the 'blind cap' (right term?). If held unposted this scratch would be sitting facing me when I write.

As I paid the equivalent of 55% of the full retail price (charged in shops and online, not the manufacturers suggested price) I know that I would probably have been prepared to pay this amount in a B and M shop during a sale if the flaw had been made apparent. So my real annoyance is the fact that this was described clearly as fault free, and as the ebay price was in line with the same item on other auctions, I'm minded to make a fuss.

Would you do this or just be pleased with your bargain?

And would you suggest a discount from the vendor for misrepresenting the product (and keep the pen), or simply say refund or else I go to Paypal dispute etc. And would you ask for the initial postage to be refunded too, since this isn't a matter of just not liking the goods?

Lots of questions. I apologise. As a grown-up I should be able to decide this for myself, but as a FP user, Libran, and brain-fart victim, I come to you for advice.

Many thanks

Nic

what is the seller's feedback score--above 98%?
if it is and buyer is in the u.s. e mail him/her with your concerns. i would ask them if i could return the pen or get a discount. if the buyer is from asia, it can be complicated, but the above still applies. good luck!!

My experience with most of the Asian sellers is that they will respond promptly and satisfactorily - if it was advertised as new, they will probably have another, or at least access to another. I'd simply write and ask for an exchange.

The bummer will be the shipping costs (if its Asia).

Marc

Hmm. I like something to be new if it is advertised that way. A deep scratch like that would drive me crazy everytime I picked up the pen. I would definitely call it to the attention of the seller. If they are a good ebayer, they will take care of you. If they just snub you, I would report to ebay and paypal.

Why not contact the seller and work somthing out amicably. I have sold many pens on ebay and depite good pictures and my trying to find faults, I can remember couple of incidences where I missed a tiny scratch or dent (especailly with old, used pens). When this is brought to my attention, I usually offer full refund, or partial refund if the buyer decided to keep the pen. This is done after asking for photographs to confirm the scratch or dents.

I think you get more with the seller by being polite and curteous instead of "refund or else" threatening approach. After all, we are all human and mistakes can be made and this seller should have the chance to rectify the problem, espcially if he has good feedbacks and would like to keep his reputation.

Also, could the pen being damaged enroute to you? Anyways, a picture would worth more and demonstrate your point.

Just my .02

kevin

I agree. 99.9 percent of the ebay sellers I have dealt with are great folks. Knock on wood but I have never had a problem in returning the occasional item I was not satisfied with.

It is always better to try "nice" first.

That attitude works in my law practice, too.

Save the artillery for those who do not respond to "nice."

Thanks for the replies so far. The pen comes from a local (UK) seller. His feedback is 98 and a bit %. I read the negatives and it did appear at least some of the buyers were blaming the seller for problems with local customs, so I felt the general score was good enough.

I believe it is the last pen of this type he had (according to the advert), though the pictures in all his sales are of the identical pen / box combination. They appear to be of the pen I bought, as the box it came in had one of the metal clips push through the velvet lining in a unique way. However, this doesn't seem to be the cause of the scratch: different direction, place and depth for what the clip would make.

I think Winedoc is right and that sort of approach is more in my nature. Try and be nice first, and only escalate if the response is hostile or similar.

I will also send a picture to aid clarity and show that I am not making it up.

Damn, the urge to fill the pen and write with it is retty strong.....

Nic

FWIW you aren't alone in your frustration.

I just had delivery of a rather expensive Italian LE and discovered today a small but significant crack in the celluloid barrel...as well as the beautful, big, luscious nib's being scratchy

So far, the US supplier has been OK and we agreed I should send it straight to Italy, but it's early days .....

I've emptied it and repacked it and await instructions..... the 7 or so hour time difference doesn't help

As a Norfolk/Suffolk boy myself, I hope they treat you properly

Keep a written record of everything that's been said and done...just in case!

Thanks.

I printed off the bay item description, and have copies of the message I've sent. Good advice to do that for everything till it's resolved.

Good luck with the Italian!

Nic

I think it's very dependent on the specific situation. I had an auction recently where I protested the shipping with the seller because it was clearly listed as $x for Priority Mail shipping but it came 1st Class instead. I waited two days longer than anticipated. In the end, I resolved the matter with an apology from the seller and an explanation that satisfied me. I told him when he asked what I wanted that his shipping fee was reasonable (it was actual postage plus no more than $2), so I didn't want to bleed him. I just wanted him to acknowledge the error and will hope he will be more careful with other items in the future. I felt comfortable leaving positive feedback after my emails.

I also had an auction recently I got a darn good deal on. I knew going in that the photo was not the same as the item I'd be getting because I had been monitoring this seller's auctions for the item for a while until one of them came in low enough to merit a bid. The item showed up with a flaw that wasn't represented in the photo that I know to be a flaw I have seen on others of its type. I didn't say anything about the flaw and left positive feedback because the flaw doesn't bug me in light of the excellent deal I got.

I bought a rare Parker 75 for 110$.
the pen in good condition was 200$+ so I was happy with my winning bid.The pen was described as mint.
When I got the pen I was very disapointed,it was heavily used and some of the silver plating missing.
I didnt want the pen.I told the seller I didnt want the pen because it wasnt even close to the MINT condition he said the pen was in.
After some time I got my full refund.I was very disapointed but I rather wait for a better pen then to get a pen that doesnt live up to my satndard even if its for a good price.

Yeah, I tend to take the non confrontational approach to most things like this, too. I think it's upsetting to feel something was misrepresented, but there are a few things to keep in mind. First, was it an honest mistake, was it an oversight, or was he clearly misleading you? Depending on the Seller's experience with these things, their attention to detail and such, it could go either way. A mistake or oversight is a lot easier to accept than a purposeful lie.

Second, how much do you like the pen? How rare is it? And How good was the deal? All of the above can determine your response.

I think if you can seperate your feelings from a more objective assessment of these things, you can make a more reasoned decision.

If it's intolerable to you, if the scratch is unacceptable to you, then regardless of the reasons 'Why', you should firmly tell the Seller your intentions of returning it for a full refund (including initial S/H, but not your return shipping cost to him). Most Sellers realize that it's not worth the hassle to argue (if they cannot appreciate the need to keep customers happy or be honourable), so the issue is really if you like the pen and can tolerate the imperfection. If he's foolish enough to actually deny your request, simply dispute the charge with your credit card issuer. Don't make it a therapy issue.

All I can add to what has been said already is to make sure you tell the seller what you want/expect, but yes, do it politely.

I recently won an auction for a hat that was advertised in my size. When it arrived the size tag in the hat was one size too small. I wrote the seller and explained that I would not have bid on the hat had it been listed correctly and that I wanted to return it and to be refunded for the hat and shipping both ways--I did not feel I should be out any money due to the seller's error. The seller agreed and once he received the hat I received the full refund. I then left positive feedback stressing the high integrity of the seller.

Had I wanted to return the hat for some other reason (the shade of grey wasn't quite what I wanted or something like that) I wouldn't have expected to be refunded shipping.

As a new seller my refund policy is along the same lines--if I make an error in the listing then I'll give a full refund.

Good luck,
Tom

All good advice...my daughters say I should write (another)book on How To Complain(successfully)!! I don't think so!

I always advise that one should be ready, as many are not, to answer the question "What do you want me to DO?" .... better still, as Tom says, to say it 'up-front'.
And as I say about Spain, be 'Polite but Persistent' ........ confrontation rarely works!

I assume you say the same about UK? "Polite but persistent"" Confrontation hardly works? This is the case, I think.

Hello all, thanks for the inputs. As always, sensible and sage. Positive outcome in the end. After a few emails I had the choice to keep the pen or return for a full refund, with apologies for not having noticed the scratch and mentioning it. I was in two minds about what to do, but felt the error was genuine. In the end I opted to keep the pen.

Once the seller and I were on the same wavelength about the matter I felt happy to hang on to the pen. The seller then sent me a gift to apologise for the initial lack of customer satisfaction, and I have to say it was a generous and touching gesture.

I had decided to leave positive feedback once I'd decided to keep the pen and before knowing he would send the gift, as I felt he had done the right thing as a seller to offer me a refund and as such I felt it merited positive feedback. So, after a shaky start, I'd be happy to buy from this seller again if the right pen came along, and would equally give a thumbs up if asked about him.

Thanks again to you all for your views.

Knowing that a seller will try to make things right is really the difference between a positive experience and a negative one.