You’re right. I think I was in this negative mindset even before they shipped, thinking that they weren’t going to honor the sale, because I’ve read too many instances of preorders getting cancelled and having been personally burned in the past. I let my emotions get the best of me instead of giving this reputable seller the benefit of the doubt. Curious to see how it all plays out though. Cheers.
@xileets@stagecoach@codytcas
-Ok the seller sent me a new tracking number 5 days ago (3/25/23) but it’s still in the label created phase. Their original shipment to me arrived a couple days ago. I haven’t opened it. Assuming only one karp like the said. Guess I’ll wait a little more on the new tracking to update and hope it’s before I can file Item not as described
At the end of the day even if seller does decide to shaft you eBay will make you whole again, not as exciting as getting the cards you ordered by better than nothing
Auction ended at $293, then the seller cancelled immediately without any messaging. Luckily i contacted the second highest bidder and sold it to him for his bid of $280.
I would’ve been less annoyed if the original auction winner didnt even make a second offer. That “i could do $200 tonight” is so trashy
I also did not end up denying the cancel request, as i just figured itd be more headache than its worth
The one positive on his side is that unlike most other customers who engage in this practice, he at least admitted he impulsively bid. He didn’t come up with some lame excuse like “my turtle was using my account.”
Did i say mad anywhere? Didnt think so, i said annoyed. When i asked him i was being courteous, and anyone asking that at most would expect a 10% discount, not ~ 30%.
This might belong in the unpopular opinions thread but I personally never feel like someone is “wasting my time” or feel any animosity toward someone when they don’t pay for winning an auction.
Online auctions are flawed; they create a gamified buying experience, akin to gambling in some ways. And especially in the card space where there are no returns, overbidding & buyer’s remorse are very common.
I welcome buyers to message me and tell me that they overbid and I will always cancel the order, no questions asked. I would never want to put anyone in a situation where they’re strapped for cash because they bought a card that they wanted in the heat of the moment.
We live in a world where returns & exchanges are easy in every other retail setting. I think a fair compromise is no returns but also a liberal degree of forgiveness if buyers don’t want to pay post-auction.
This is truly a refreshing take. I am not a seller myself, so I am not sure how much of an inconvenience non paying buyers are to someone who sells on a regular basis, which I am guessing it can get annoying. Heck, I am not even sure if I would have your tolerance and attitude if I was ever in this situation.
It does provide me something to think about if I ever get into a position of selling regularly to be more tolerant and forgiving. If somebody does something which is contrary to my happiness, I would also lean towards giving them benefit of the doubt that they do so out of ignorance and not out of spite. But not sure if I was running an online business how feasible this mindset it.
Overall I had 10% animosity towards this buyer, whatever that means. I will say it does waste my time, waiting for the cancel order to go through, re-listing or reach out to the second highest bidder.
Id kind of disagree, its the end user that is reacting to a countdown. I understand the countdown can put pressure on bidders but theres a responsibility you have to own as a bidder to that amount. Kind of goes for most things in life imo
So many factors I don’t let anything phase me. When a top bidder doesn’t pay they’ve forced the second highest to max out and without the winning bidder taking part you wouldn’t make as much anyway.
Then they shouldn’t be bidding on pieces of cardboard with cartoon pictures on them. If a person is really that strapped for cash, then they shouldn’t be bidding on eBay auctions. Period.
Your word is very, very important. By bidding on an auction, you are essentially entering into a handshake agreement that if you win the item, you will pay for the item. If you break your word, no one is going to want anything to do with you and you will become known for it. People talk.
Don’t get me wrong: I think your sympathy is certainly noble, but I don’t feel the same type of way for someone who foolishly bids on a niche, non-essential good when they knew ahead of time they couldn’t afford it and then proceed to inconvenience the seller by backing out of the deal. Again, we aren’t talking about food, water or oil here.
Here is another perspective: what if the seller was in desperate need of money and was auctioning off some items in order to put together some funds to take care of whatever need came up, only for the buyers to cancel because they “couldn’t afford to pay?” Now they have to relist the auctions and go through the process all over again.
I absolutely agree that returns/cancellations are part of the business world and that every seller should consider it a cost of doing business, but it doesn’t make it any less frustrating when it happens.
I think instead of blaming someone for a gambling addiction or an acute lapse in judgement we should say, how is the system failing and enabling non-payers?
eBay doesn’t require any payment up front for bidding nor does it require the user to report any income or to show their bank account balance. The system could actually just be much better. Again, online auctions are flawed just as much as human judgement. Similarly, you can blame someone all you want for getting into credit card debt but there’s also the predatory credit system that must also be scrutinized.
Thankfully we’ve seen eBay make changes in their payment policies for Buy It Now listings, requiring up front payment. A better step in the right direction than blaming users for clicking buttons on a screen. The UI/UX of eBay is intended for us to make irrational decisions and continue our addictive behaviors.
Here is another perspective: what if the seller was in desperate need of money and was auctioning off some items in order to put together some funds to take care of whatever need came up, only for the buyers to cancel because they “couldn’t afford to pay?”
You could also blame the seller for being irresponsible for putting their much needed cash reserves in shiny cardboard. It’s a moot point if you proceed with an approach of blaming human judgement rather than the system or their intersection. @smpratte And I also disagree with the notion that most sellers are selling cards for their livelihood but I recognize that there are those who do.
