Please Help! eBay Sale - Buyer Claims Game Faulty

langford28 on 08/02/2016 - 09:24
Last edited 08/02/2016 - 11:14 by 1 other user

Hi guys,

Hoping to draw from the wisdom of the Ozbargain community.

Here are the facts:
I sold a PS4 game and was delivered to recipient on Friday (confirmed by tracking number). The recipient messaged me via eBay on Sunday evening to say the game was not working and wants to return to get a refund. 15mins later the recipient opens a "New Significantly Not as Described Dispute Case". I tested the game before sending it out so it was working beforehand.

So I suspect foul play here. What should I do? Is it their word against mine?

EDIT: I forgot to mention I did take a photo of the back of the disc with the the numbers etc. Does it help my case?

Any advice appreciated, thanks.

Gaming

Related Stores

eBay Australia
eBay Australia
Marketplace

Comments

  • QW3RTY on 08/02/2016 - 09:32
    +5

    Collect detailed specifics and have him return the game and process a refund upon receipt?

    Re-test & re-sell the game and move on I suppose.

    • the-mal on 08/02/2016 - 11:26

      Collect detailed specifics and have him return the game and process a refund upon receipt?

      Except this scam is as old as the hills - have a product that doesn't work? Buy an identical product from eBay, when it arrives claim it is DOA and return your original broken product to the seller to claim a refund. Seller is left with the dud or a dispute, buyer gets a fixed item for free.

  • [Deactivated] on 08/02/2016 - 09:34
    +1

    And this is why I hate eBay, you've done everything right and they'll find in favor of the buyer. He/she has prob done the old switcheroo, return a scratched game, keep a working game, and get a refund.
    Sometimes it's better just to donate your item to charity, you'll feel better for it in the long run than dealing with the crooks on / at eBay

    • langford28 on 08/02/2016 - 09:36

      yeah that's my concern, it's a lose lose situation for me isn't it?

      is there any way it will go my way or is it always the buyer in this situation?

  • tomleonhart on 08/02/2016 - 09:42
    +8

    Post his address up here :P We'll get bikies to pay him a visit.

  • ItsMeAgro on 08/02/2016 - 10:14
    +2

    A lot of people don't know this, but: if the disc really is scratched, it can usually be fixed very easily, google "fix scratched CDs". I fixed a scratched $120 collectors edition game back in the day by wiping brasso on it for a few minutes.

    • mattyman on 09/02/2016 - 14:37
      +1

      Toothpaste works just as well. :)

  • blitz on 08/02/2016 - 10:53
    +2

    I did take a photo of the back of the disc with the the numbers etc

    I'm not sure if you disclosed this fact in the item description, but in my experience this can help deter people who are trying to pull the type of scam your customer is attempting.

    • langford28 on 08/02/2016 - 12:17

      I didn't mention it in my listing but I will start now :)

  • CyberMurning on 08/02/2016 - 11:05
    +1

    well why not try to explain to ebay first, and argue that maybe the buyer is not honest? im confuse on how ebay/paypal decide which side is right and wrong in many similar cases like OP.
    one side says not working one side says working.

  • the-mal on 08/02/2016 - 11:37
    +16

    I forgot to mention I did take a photo of the back of the disc with the the numbers etc. Does it help my case?

    Yes, this changes things massively.

    I don't think the numbers/barcodes on discs are unique to the disc, I think they're unique to the SKU (in fact I think this backs that up).

    But I wouldn't let the buyer know this - I'd send them a message through eBay to the following effect:

    Hi there,
    The game was working perfectly when I sent it as I tested it prior to sending and it was packed securely in it's case.
    Just so you know, I have pictures of the disc prior to sending it to you that captures the condition of the disc and the serial numbers on the disc itself. If for whatever reason you return a disc that is not the disc that I sent you I will be informing eBay and PayPal as this would be violating their terms and conditions.
    Are you sure the disc you're returning is the same one I sent you?
    If you're absolutely sure that it is the same disc then please return it, I will verify with my pictures, and I will verify that it is not working, and if all checks out then I will process a refund.
    Kind regards

    That should at least get them thinking "Is this worth the risk" if they're pulling a swift one (which I can pretty much guarantee they are the way your story reads).

    Next time I'd take a video of yourself putting the disk in and it loading up prior to sending them. I always do that with any electronics I sell on eBay - full unedited video of me turning it on, showing it works, then putting it directly in the package to send off. Covers all bases with these kinds of jerky buyers.

    Good luck!

    • langford28 on 08/02/2016 - 12:16

      thank you the-mal!! this seems to be the way to go
      I'll send that comment to the recipient :)

      thanks for everyone's feedback

    • Member 0230 on 09/02/2016 - 11:19

      @the-mal just thought i'd say it: you're a legend.

      that's copy-and-paste quality right there.

  • cDNA on 08/02/2016 - 13:04

    I hope eBay puts a big fat strike against this guy's account, so everyone can see. This smelled fishy from the get go.

    • langford28 on 08/02/2016 - 14:45

      yeah, the account actually has all positive feedback for the last 12 months!

    • rukia on 08/02/2016 - 17:54
      +4

      Buyers can't get negatives unfortunately. So they are free to scam and scam until ebay closes the scammers account.

  • whooah1979 on 08/02/2016 - 18:03

    There is only one thing you can do. That is to accept the return and issue a refund.

  • TheOneWhoKnocks on 09/02/2016 - 22:07

    Let us know how you go mate. Keen to see what this douche will attempt next.

    • langford28 on 10/02/2016 - 23:37
      -1

      recipient is sending it back tomorrow, see how we go

  • Scaregdearimasu on 21/02/2016 - 16:13

    Yeah I had a similar problem. Sold a ps3 game in great condition just missing the manual. Game works fine on my ps3 but the buyer says they couldn't to get it to work at all and he allegedly tried it on 2-3 different machines and it still froze and wants a refund. I tell them thats fine send the game back and if I see it doesn't work I'd give them a full refund. They said it wasn't worth the effort/time/money to return it and if I didn't give them a full refund right away and allow them to keep the game they'd give me negative feedback so I put them in to ebay for feedback blackmail and ebay gave them a warning and nothing more. Buyer still gave me bad feedback which ebay wouldn't remove even though it's against their Tos to use feedback to persuade sellers to give refunds ect. Anyway hope your experience goes better then mine.

  • langford28 on 18/03/2016 - 11:07
    +1

    sorry for the late update.

    For those interested, I received the game back. I got the original disc back and everything and tested it and was working fine! Not sure why recipient couldn't get it to work on their PS4.

    Anyway, I decided refund them and I listed it back up on eBay and resold it :)

    • [Deactivated] on 15/04/2016 - 23:07

      they probobaly had a ps3 xbone
      or simply couldnt admit they change of mind
      :P

      • wukachuka on 24/04/2016 - 12:33

        Or they played it and finished it, then returned it for a refund.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join