Belt Auction

Ebay collectable shill bidding problem Six Million Dollar Man?

I bid a maximum of 50 pounds to win this 70s toy and his accessories. All were advertised as being sold for someone else (alarm bells I know) and in great condition. I had to bid against a zero feedback bidder (the actual seller I expect) in the last few minutes and was not hapopy to do so. But I did pay up because I ended up bidding against a real buyer as well. The item has arrived and although I still want it the condition is very poor and does not match the description. What advice do you give me? Hi, I have done just that. Thanks Mike. loslunas you are right. I should have bailed but I really wanted this. I planned to win and then demand to pay the price before the zero feedbacker came in. But another bidder wanted it too and it went higher than the zero took it.

Public Comments

1. I would write the seller and tell him that the item was not as advertised and that you would like some money taken off of your wining bid. DO NOT tell him that you want to keep it no matter what though in the first e-mail. See what he has to say. Best of luck to you.
2. send a mail to the seller telling him your grievances, hopefully he'll offer a refund. Failing that, if you cant get a reply or resolution to your satisfaction, report an issue to paypal.
3. not a lot you can do only give negative or neutral feedback. negative warns other users the seller is a cheat and a liar
4. if you paid by paypal you can file a dispute but good luck. first flag i ever see is a zero bidder o drop out right there. other than that is lesson learned and leave bad feedback
5. Go through the official eBay complaints channel. The actual format of the bid is inconsequential (0 bidder, for a friend, etc) they are legally bound to supply the goods as described.
6. Go to the e-bay arbitration board. But do so only after contacting the seller and stating that you feel that you should leave negative feed back. But be advised that they may make you an offer you have to refuse (like return the merchandise and they will refund the purchase price). An old adage comes to mind: Don't play the game if you can not afford to loose.
7. with ebay you cant win -if you leave negative feed back - then you will recieve it - ebay will not help - if seller has left feed back then its ok to leave negative
8. There is probably nothing *you* can do to determine whether the bidder is a shill -- although on lower-value auctions you can see the id's of the bidders. (Until the price reaches a specific level). You can look at other auctions from the same seller, and see if that bidder comes up frequently. (Look at closed auctions, too). If you have a suspicion, eBay has a reporting section where they can investigate. As far as the item condition, eBay specifically has a place to complain, but they insist that you try to work it out with the seller first. They require that you have contacted the seller, and described the difference in the items description and the actual condition. The seller may offer to refund your payment, (usually minus shipping) after you send the item back (be sure to certify the mail). If the seller refuses to cooperate after a reasonable time, you can complain to eBay, and to PayPal if you paid that way. Remember that your complaints appear on your profile -- anyone buying or selling with you can see what you said about everyone else, which can damage your own reputation. Be sure you use FACTS, and not SUSPICIONS in posting feedback.