PC bought on EBAY auction received with serious water damage, sender has denied refund, what should I do?

Ngaichuen on 29/05/2014 - 23:54

Fellow Ozbargainers,

I would appreciate some ideas on how to to deal with an Ebay auction dispute.
I have purchased and received(courier organised through Interparcel) a second-hand Desktop workstation I have purchased from an Ebay Auction. In short, the computer arrived with cosmetic damage around the corner of the case and side panel and water stain all over the exterior case and the internal components. Base on my observations, I have reasons to believe the damages to the computer maybe caused by a number of factors below:

  • Miss-handling of the parcel which had caused the parcel to be exposed in rain / water for an extended period of time

  • Miss-handling of the parcel (excessive force/impact to the parcel) during the delivery which caused the dents around the exterior casing and dislocation of the internal components

  • Possibly In-sufficient packaging

A video documenting the damage to the parcel can be viewed online from the following link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JJjp02UuDU

The courier, Interparcel will not cover the damages to the computer as computer is listed as a restricted Item which they had made it clear in their terms and conditions page "ITEMS ARE SENT AT YOUR OWN RISK."

I have opened a dispute through paypal to request for the seller to refund the full amount plus postage fee rebated to sent the damaged machine back to him.

The sender denied my request stating that "No insurance was stated in the eBay listing or requested by yourself. The eBay listing states a return policy of 14 days, return paid by buyer. That period has now expired. As a good will gesture you can return the machine (at your cost) and I will send an identical replacement (at my cost)." Although the seller is willing to replace the machine, but I would still prefer a refund.

However, the return postage on the original listing states that "14 days after the buyer receives it" and I have only received the item yesterday.

I am thinking I should escalate this to a paypal claim as I think I am eligible for their buyers protection policy. has anyone here has similar experience? I would appreciate if you can share your experience? Thanks

Cheers,

Computing

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Comments

  • bbqwer on 30/05/2014 - 01:41
    +3

    With paypal dispute/claim, best case scenario for your outcome is: paypal will ask you to send back with tracking id ( you pay for return postage ) regardless buyer/sender fault!!! Thats it end of story.

  • altomic on 30/05/2014 - 01:48

    does it work? if it does then clean the stain, where the dint/scratch is - cover with a black marker and get on with life.

    if it doesn't work then paypal claim

    • Gina Rinehart on 30/05/2014 - 02:13
      +1

      It looks like it's full of water… I wouldn't accept it if I were OP.

    • exc3113nce on 30/05/2014 - 07:59
      +1

      It's not just whether it works now - but future faults + electrical hazard.

      In regards to the postage insurance - check this thread

    • altomic on 30/05/2014 - 09:32
      +2

      I retract my previous statement after watching the entirety of the video. that puppy has been swimming!!!

      paypal dispute for sure.

  • sparkles on 30/05/2014 - 09:17
    +3

    I would claim via PayPal, pay the return postage and move on. So much water everywhere inside. Definitely DO NOT turn it on LOL. It looks as if it has been left in the rain for a day. What was the packaging like?

    • Ngaichuen on 30/05/2014 - 10:21

      The package felt wet when I first inspected it. I would definitely not turn it on, not worth the risk of frying everything

  • Ngaichuen on 30/05/2014 - 10:20

    Thanks for the comments guys, I have escalated the case with paypal to claim a full refund. if it doesn't go anywhere, I am prepared to lodge a dispute with VCAT, I can image that he won't be happy if he finds out that he'll need to fly to Melbourne from Perth to attend on a hearing. some people just like to try their luck….

    • bbqwer on 30/05/2014 - 11:39

      fly to melbourne ? are you kidding ? Seller can easily ignore the hearing and dont care at all.

      the questions is, what do you have to lodge dispute with vcat ? by using seller ebay id ? good luck with that.

      • Ngaichuen on 30/05/2014 - 11:54

        I actually do have his legal name displayed in the paypal dispute, it's not hard to track him down as he has registered a linkedin account which has his employment details listed.I have called his employer and was able to verify his identity by actually speak with him in person to discuss this incident prior to lodging the paypal dispute.
        Not quite familiar with a vcat dispute, but I would imagine if he doesn't show up, then the case is in my favour? potentially he'll get a credit default?
        well I certainly don't want it to end up in VCAT, hopefully paypal will honour their buyer protection policy.

  • flatwhitepls on 30/05/2014 - 12:12

    Water damaged should be covered by the courier. Damages to the corners is fine as inter parcel clearly says on their website its not recommended to be used to ship a computer. However water damage is courier's fault. Who is the courier ?

    Other things to note, if hes an individual and not registered as a company there is not much you can do.Your only option is dispute by paypal, VCAT won't help you.

    • Ngaichuen on 30/05/2014 - 12:38

      The seller cannot get Interparcel to take responsibility for the delivery (courier is TNT).
      I have spoken to someone at consumer affairs, they cannot deal with individual vs individual disputes, it has to be business vs individual. They mentioned VCAT as the way to go for my circumstances…hmmm…

  • frondono on 30/05/2014 - 12:18

    looks like it was picked up off the local verge collection

  • mooney on 30/05/2014 - 23:16
    +1

    I can't tell from your post whether you think the seller has duped you or whether this is purely an issue with the courier.

    If it's a courier issue and there was no shipping insurance offered or asked for then (from my perspective) the offer of a replacement (with some postage costs) seems completely fair. Plus I'd say your behaviour in calling his workplace is completely excessive and does not show any empathy that he may have lost out too here and is trying to find an acceptable solution for you both.

    It's always tough when an issue arises with an eBay purchase, i've been on the side of the seller before and this situation is best resolved by calm heads… If I was your seller (and was genuine) and you called me whilst I was at work I'd get the shits big time and likely refuse to help you.

    Of course, if the seller is a con artist then I feel for you. People can be massive arseholes. I hope you find a reasonable, fair, solution.

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