I have always had pretty good experiences buying from people on EBay. So, when I recently decided that I would get a used laptop on there I didn’t worry too much. I found one for around $350 that was adequately equipped and bought it and paid with PayPal. After 2 weeks, I started to get concerned and sent a polite email to seller informing that I hadn’t received it. He immediately replied with the shipping tracking number (good sign). For some reason, I hadn’t gotten the Postal notice at my door but they had tried to deliver twice when I wasn’t home. No problem, I went and picked it up at the post office.

I get it home and start unpacking. Hmmm, the packaging is a little sparse….just some foam balls underneath and the laptop, in its leather bag, is pushed in the box on top of them. I pull out the laptop and turn it on. Well, the hinges are a tad loose but what do you expect, its not new….I can deal with that. I start it up and put in my wifi card and installation software that came with it…and just like that, I’m on the internet. Great. I download my favorite browser, Firefox, and my favorite email software, Thunderbird, and then boom…..the dreaded blue screen of death. It’s frozen up completely.

I email the seller. He says it was perfect when he sent it….used it all the time….maybe damaged by post office. He turns out to be a guy who claims his work is putting together computers and he also says a blue screen is not a big deal….give it more time or install another operating system….whoa…that’s not what I paid for….but I try to keep my cool….EBay’s always been good to me. I reboot it after a couple hours and leave it on overnight. In the morning….its dead again…..its a piece of crap. I want my money back. Seller says no….must be post office damage….he will not do returns. Uh-oh, this is turning into a raw deal. It was shipped insured, so I take it over to post office. After waiting an hour, they make me fill out a bunch of forms and then take it away to “be assessed”. They’ll let me know but the clerk says she sees no damage so a payment seems unlikely. I email the seller to ask his phone number should the post office need to contact him. No response….for 3 days…previously he was replying within hours…..uh-oh…

So, I initiated a paypal dispute…and clearly explained I received a laptop that was not in “good condition” as it was advertised and that it was crashing, etc. The seller responded. With lies!
Defense No.1 :”The buyer of this laptop first claimed he did not receive the laptop, despite the fact I provided a tracking number with paypal shipping.” not sure if he’s trying the red herring diversion tactic here but I had said I hadn’t seen it and then after getting the tracking number, I picked it up at post office.
Defense No. 2: ” the software crashes happened after the buyer installed his own software.”…did he think I bought it so I could play with Paint, Notepad and Calculator?
Here’s the rest of his nonsense:
“The laptop did not crash until his own software was installed. Recommended reinstalling the Operating system to determine if this was a hardware issue and buyer did not do so. This laptop was sold in good condition, owned it for 3 years and never experienced these types of crashes. From the very beginning, this owner was looking for a refund from not receiving it to one supposed Windows 2000 crash. I have proof of ALL e-mail exchanges with the buyer.”

How does a person sleep at night that tries to make a buyer out to be the bad guy? This buyer invested a few hours in making this broken down laptop work, in addition to time spent at the post office to tell them it might be a shipping issue. I have bent over backward for this seller and he spits on me. We’ll see where PayPal goes with this.

Here’s a concern I have with PayPal. I posted my argument in a “dispute” form on their webpage. The seller was able to post his nonsense and elevate to “claim”. This enables him to have last word apparently and I have no place I can rebut him. The PayPal email notifications are “do not reply” and the website says “We have received a statement from the seller disagreeing with your claim. We are reviewing this case and will contact you if we require additional information or when we reach a decision. No further action is required of you at this time.”

Will fairness prevail? Stay tuned.