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[OM] Am I out of line? (Ebay politics)

Subject: [OM] Am I out of line? (Ebay politics)
From: Michael Darling <miked2002@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Wed, 29 Dec 2004 00:09:54 -0500
Since there are some experienced sellers on this list, and this is about
some OM equipment, I hope the OT police won't crucify me :)

Here's my question -

I listed a Zuiko 65-200 on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3853167242

It made the reserve and the guy sends me a Western Union money order, while
I explicitly asked for USPS money orders. Having never dealt with WU, I
queried the local agents to find that none would cash the money order to a
walk-in customer. This is in line with the policies outlined by WU on their
website, where they say that their money orders are "just as good as a
check" and that it is up to the individual agent to decide if they will cash
them out.

This is after it takes a week and a half for the MO to arrive. He also
wanted the box shipped to an address other than his home - in c/o his name
to a UPS store.

So I tell the guy I'll accept the MO and I send it to be deposited in my
account. The bank puts the $130 in and says that if the MO comes back bogus
in the next 2 weeks it will be deducted, which is exactly how they handle
checks. I notify the buyer about this delay as soon as I am aware of it.

Tomorrow will be the end of the 2 week period and I receive an email from
the buyer stating:

>I have attempted to be patient, but at this point in time I think I have
>exercised a reasonable amount of understanding by anyone's standards.
>
>As of this date, I cannot possibly leave positive feedback.
>
>On Friday of this week I will file a fraud complaint with Ebay.
>
>On Monday of next week I will file a fraud complaint with the Internet
>Crimes Division.

Now does anyone else think this is harsh? $130 is the average cost for one
of my textbooks (I'm a full time engineering student) and more than I make
in one week at my part-time job on campus. I have no way to absorb losses
like other sellers might, so I'd be a fool to not take advantage of all the
protections afforded to me by my bank that I can. I tell this to the buyer,
several times.

I've been forthright, courteous, honest, and prompt in all of my
communications with this guy. I've answered his emails to me within hours
and clearly stated my situation and my intentions. I even provided him with
the contact information for my bank so he could ask them about how they
handle WU money orders.

So if you were in this situation - as a buyer or a seller - how would you
handle it?

Right now it's looking like I should have returned his payment and just said
"Sorry, try reading my payment instructions (in the auction listing) again!"

-mike



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