Ebay Partial Refund Scam? Thoughts Please

I sold this item recently and it arrived at it's destination in Singapore on the 20th. It was sold through eBay's global shipping program (I just read this could highly impact import fees for the buyer). The buyer sent this message on the 21st

"Hi

Thank you so much for the bowl. You have done a great job in packing it securely and I have received it safely.

One issue with this bowl is, this bowl was broken one chunk on the mouth rim and it was repaired. Please refer to pictures.

I do sincerely believe that you may have miss this out unintentionally and you were totally unaware of it.

You can see from the picture clearly the unevenness of the connecting surface and the break line accompany the two chips edge on the rim. The two chipped on the two ends are badly patched up and you can see it is rough. It was definitely repaired.

Can we work out a partial refund and I will accept this as it is. As this a major fault and it has a big issue with its' value, shall we settle at 40% off ? After which we can close the case and leave each other with good feedback.

Hope to hear from you soon

Thanks

Truthfully

William"



A few things stuck out as odd in the initial message.
Firstly, the eBay and Paypal transaction list the buyers name as Tan Kok Hooi and this message was written by William.
Secondly, he refers to "a case" which he has not opened.
Thirdly, He closed the message with Truthfully (never seen that before).

Here are the five photos he sent me.


I responded that I respectfully disagree with his assessment. I told him that I do not negotiate partial refunds, but I will honor my return policy which is 14 days.

He responds

" I do not return what I have purchased

I will proceed to open a case then"

He then responded again about two hours later

"Like I said, you may have missed this out unintentionally as this is only be inspected on a closer look

This piece info of being repaired is not represented in your photo or description and it is totally unfair for buyer who bid aggressively thinking that this is a perfect piece

I still hope we can solve this amicably"




He has yet to open a case despite his threats (as perceived by me). I've bought and sold antiques, primarily PGP, for 10 years. I personally studied this piece for several weeks prior to listing it. It has a octagonal shape which they attempted to flair outward toward the lip. There were a few spots where this didn't work out perfectly. There is a kiln crack on the rim which isn't open, a few small glaze pops, and a kiln split on the rim. His photos are blurry and possibly altered IMO. I think the line might possibly be caused by a varying thickness in the porcelain, similar to a Japanese geisha lithophane cups. I'm not sure what else I can do? My current plan is to cease contact and only refund his money upon return receipt. Any thoughts?

The piece had 21 bids, 16 unique bidders, and nearly 50 watchers. I actually felt like I might have sold something that I shouldn't have, since I wasn't done researching it.


Here's the listing-

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Antique-Chi...gQGr15SpVkX0aZkZo4MxE%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

 

I hate to keep mentioning return because I could get an empty box in return.

Another thing that appears off about this buyer is his feedback. He has multiple feedbacks from single sellers over long periods of time.

See - http://feedback.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...world=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2050430.m2531.l4585

 

Smells bad.
Perhaps you should go to ebay first.

 

Well,to be fair,it DOES look like a repair. I always do the finger flick on glass or porcelain (though I know some folks hate that) and if it doesn't ring true,I don't buy it. The fact is,if this guy wants to push it,he will win. Were it me,Id think about how much I paid for it,what my true profit margin was,and just give him his partial. This is why I never really sold on feebay,who needs the hassle ?
I looked at your auction pics,and you can definitely see the area in question.

 

Hi mr2real - By any chance did you test the bowl with a black light? A lot of times black light will show repairs. I agree with you, though, that the bowl appears to be in pretty good shape and I don't think your buyer's photos are showing a repair but rather a manufacturing issue. Buyers sometimes don't understand that repairs are made by the manufacturer to correct defects on items before they are sold. I also agree that I would not refund until item is received back.

I wouldn't let the name "William" bother me. Asian students in the US frequently adopt English names informally because most Americans can't pronounce or remember Asian names.

In fairness, I believe it's quite possible that William believes it has been repaired and if that's the case a return seems to me to be the fairest way to resolve. There is no way I would do a 40% adjustment. I don't believe there is any requirement that a seller must offer an adjustment. It's either a return or nothing.
Don

 

Hi,
If he sends it back and you are worried take your ad & originial photographs and the unopened box to the Post Office and ask the Postmaster to watch while you open the package. One time I had the bad feeling that I was not getting my item returned because the weight was so different in shipping. The Postmaster watched me open the package and low and behold it contained a cheap FTD vase not the Depression Glass vase I sent. Thank goodness the buyer sent me an email showing the supposed cracked vase in my original packaging. With the statement from the PO and ebay it was all cleared up, Otherwise I would have been out the vase and would have had to pay for the shipping of the FTD one.
greg

 

This piece had a very nice ring with the tiniest of flicks, lol.


Seriously though, It did have nice ring.

It does look like a repair? What method of repair? It looks nothing like any of the porcelain restorations I see online.


My mark up is $1 to $332, how is this relevant.

If this guy wants to push it, he will win? He will win the opportunity return my item for a refund? I've suggested that and he doesn't seem to be responding well.

 

Unless the photos he sent are better on your monitor, I don't know how anyone can see any repair on this.

 

This is your customer's picture


This is your picture You can see the small chip above her hair and the line shows in your picture. More obvious in the mouse over on the ebay listing, but visible here too. Whether is it in fact a repair is debatable.
I would tell him if he is not happy, you will give him a complete refund upon the return on the bowl. You might also mention you will be opening the package at the police dept so that you have a reliable witness that the item is indeed in the box.
Was shipping expensive? Will you loose much if you offer to refund that as well?

 

The very first of your photos in the listing actually look like they have the same line as in the photos your buyer sent. Not clear on either but at least the same location. (I think). As to what to do I don't know. I spend a fair amount of time on the Ebay seller's board mostly just reading and the chant there is usually to apologize and offer full refund on return. Not sure how it works with GSP though.

 

You sold it on feebay. You will lose any dispute.

You only have to decide if you want to lose a partial amount or the whole amount.

 

Singaporeans are about the most honest and honourable people on the planet. He'll know darned well that attempted fraud carries a very very long spell in a most unpleasant prison.

As others have said, using a Western name is VERY common - I've many Chinese friends who do just that. The use of "Truthfully" is classic Singlish, too.

If he's a collector, he may think that it's stil worth having the piece at a lesser cost. In this instance, I'd be inclined to negotiate.

Oh, and I'd not touch GSP with a bargepole. It's an utter ripoff for buyers AND sellers. It doesn't actually mean he will have paid import fees on arrival, they're bundled (usually wrongly!) into the exorbitant shipping fees.

 

I agree. Making some profit ($150+) is better than making no profit ($0) at all.

From your original listing photos, it does look like the bowl was repaired and you just unfortunately missed it.

Also, I'm sure if you knew the bowl was repaired prior to listing, posted images and stated it was repaired within your description, the bowl wouldn't have achieved the $300+ result that it did. Better to cut your losses, accept his partial refund request (or at lest negotiate it) and move-on. Not worth the time, money, hassle or possible negative strike to your account/reputation over such small profits.

 

Your return policy may be 14 days.....eBay's is longer......much longer..!

The guy seems to be honest about his complaint......& while I'm not a fan of partial refunds.....if he were to accept 30%.....I'd be inclined to run with that.
If not.....return for refund......I'm sure you could sell it again....with the proper disclosures..!

My friends wife calls herself Katrina....her real name is Soocheechwan....something or other..!

 

In the second photo, I can see a nearly identical scar on the opposing side of the bowl directly below the crack in the rim. I'm sure both were caused in firing. It probably looks exactly the same under a blacklight. Also, there is no rim chip on the side he is complaining about, it must be bad lighting.

 

I'm going to request a photo of the other side under blacklight. If it has the same mark, I will only accept a return. If it doesn't have the line, I will consider negotiating.

 

Nice bowl. To me it looks like Tongzhi/Guangxu period.

 

By the way, did you insure?
I use U-pic for international packages. It is cheaper than Usps. I had a broken dish( one out of 9pc set) in a package sent to China. I filed a claim for half of the purchase value and about 3 weeks later got the check. That is how I covered the partial refund. But the buyer has to be cooperative with signing the claim forms.

 

I'm sure post office has some sort of pre-existing condition clause, lol. Yes, I did insure.