eBay problems, resolutions, shenanigans, questions and info (not bike finds)

I've missed out now, the buyer was being so unhelpful it put me off in the end. This is good to know though, sounds less je a great idea, will keep in mind if another one ever comes up

I tried anyany.com recently and got a quote for a boxed up frame from Bristol to London.
The cheapest I could get was £75, sound reasonable?

No. Try a parcel aggregator like interparcel or parcel2go and you should get that for significantly less. I don't think I've ever paid more than £20 for sending a frame in the UK.

@andyp cheers. that's what I thought. First quote was silly like £180 I said no then they dropped to £75 and then loads of quotes came in at £75ish.

I recently sent a boxed up frame (box has to be less than 1.5 metre) Bristol to London with Parcelfarce for about £17 for 24hr delivery.

nice one @aniki that's helpful.

A little eBay advice required if possible?

So I won an auction on a bike this weekend at well below the sellers Buy-it-Now asking price. Now I’ve just received an email saying he has refunded the item and been sent me a message explaining he’s damaged/threaded the rear hub whilst packing it up.

Thing is, it could be a legit and expensive mistake as it’s an Afine 11 hub, but I can’t help feeling he’s trying to get out of the sale somehow.

I’ve asked him for a bit more info on the fault and told him I was going to take it to be serviced straight away anyway if that helps. Short of asking him for photos what other steps can I take?

I’ll admit its a pretty good price on my part, but I still want the bike at the end of the day.

Ultimately if it's all because he's too ass hurt to send you the bike for cheap, now he's refunded you, there's nothing anyone can do to force him to give it up. You could leave negative feedback but that's about it.
If he's legit, try getting his phone number, talking through the problem and try negotiating with him. Beware though that if you end up doing a deal outside the bay, you may not have any comeback if he decides to pull a fast one...

It is annoying though as i thought i'd found the perfect bike for my needs, and I was prepared to pay a bit more if i'm honest. But now i get the feeling he's not going to own up to being a bit disingenuous (he's tried to make out that a threaded bolt is a fault and warrants a refund - how do you thread a bolt by undoing it anyway?)

He's got 200+ good feedback though so there's that at least. I just need to reach out I suppose and make a better offer

Have you asked to buy the bike w/out the damaged rear wheel?

The rear wheel has the Alfine hub attached though, which is one of the things I was looking for.

Also looking at the axles on those things it looks unlikely he could've threaded it, especially whilst undoing it, so it's more likely the nut, which wouldn't be costly to replace.

Either that or the whole thing is BS.

Also looking at the axles on those things it looks unlikely he could've threaded it, especially whilst undoing it, so it's more likely the nut, which wouldn't be costly to replace.

Just keep messaging him about it then. If he's going to waste your time, you can waste his too.

110% the story is bullshit so he doesn't have to sell to you at that price.

It'll probably get relisted tomorrow night.

There's absolutely nothing you can do about it so don't waste your time thinking about what could have been etc, just move on and find another bike.

You could put in huge bids on the relisting then pull out of the sale after winning it.

Might make you feel better short term but if the buyer reports you you get an unpaid item 'mark' on your account, two or more of which supposedly get you excluded from a lot of sales.

New fake account obviously.

I bought a frame off a guy on Tuesday, it was collection only, won the auction at 99p. Messaged him the day I won it, also messaged him yesterday morning via his phone number on the auction description and I've heard nothing back, what do I do??

Similarly to the issue upthread, the frame will probably become 'damaged' and unable to sell to you...

Selling a bike on eBay at the moment. Got a buyer interested, have told him happy to meet at predetermined location. I.e local Morrisons carpark as I do for all my sales. He says he wants to pick up from my place as it's safer...

I'd consider it to be quite the opposite? Public place. Vs giving my address and being relieved of the bike in a burglary over the next week or so.

Am i being too cautious? He did appear to be asking some weird questions about headsets covers and gears. He also wants a bike where the saddle is level or lower than the bars?! Questions that somebody parting with a couple of grand for a bike wouldn't need to ask...

Also, what gives with Paypal must be an option?! I'm not sending the bike and paypal just means they can pick it up and say they never received it. I went through this with my bike last time I sold it and it didn't get collected for 6 months!!

On the other hand, the common advice to avoid buying a stolen bike is to meet the seller at their home.

Personally, I wouldn't buy anything from someone who insisted the deal was done in a carpark.

I don't follow your logic regarding their questions: ignorance and disposable cash often go hand-in-hand.

PayPal must be offered, but it doesn't have to be used and you're right to insist on cash if it's collected, for the reason you gave.

I've just heard too many stories of Strava based thefts.

Perhaps I could meet him at my local station (only 2 mins away) and when he turns up take him to my place? I have the receipt for the bike etc so have no issues proving ownership.

open a case in ebay resolution centre and see if they can resolve it between you and the seller most the time ebay wont get a response from the seller so you'll just end up getting your 99p back. in more expensive cases if you've paid through paypal you can raise a dispute resolution through paypal as well. sellers probably sore that the frames gone for 99p because he didn't put a reserve on it.

What's his eBay history like?

If he has a lengthy history I'd feel more confident; new-ish account with no sales, just purchases, then less so.

It's not easy to balance protection for both parties. Explain your concerns to the buyer and see what they suggest: perhaps you could ask for ID/proof of address?

Wot @Scilly.Suffolk sez.

You look dodgy to him if you seem to be hiding your address.

You could want to mug him for the cash in the car park / at the station.

If I were him I don't think I'd risk it.

I've caved and provided the address...

I'd be daft to risk a genuine sale.

Thanks chaps.