Strange GS Related ebay Transaction

[bobgroger]

The buyer got refunded so he's out nothing. He's one of those pain in the butt buyers too: he asked me question after question before the purchase, repeating himself, and he kept trying to get me to give him a $100 discount as if it's my fault that his country charged exorbitant import fees. And even after he got his money back he gave me a negative feedback. I had to get ebay involved to have that removed. And even recently he keeps writing me stating he wants the carbs. I told him again and again that I don't have them but he persists, even after giving me a negative.

Ah, I misunderstood. So you have the money, the buyer has the money, and eBay got some of their money back by selling or possibly consigning the carbs to a liquidator along with the listing details. That makes more sense.

[ddaniels]

There's a reason some call it flea - bay.

[GregT]

It could also be a scam. On another forum, a couple of members keep a watch for relisted bikes - generally on ebay. The scammer lifts the pics off an original ad and relists the bike as his.
It's quite surprising how often the watchers find something. Probably every two-three months they find and report a scam seller.
And that's only looking at a specialist - and fairly rare - make of bike.

[simmoto]

I sent the seller a message asking if they actually had the carbs also. I told them their auction looked just like one that was listed earlier. lol.

[Gorminrider]

My question to seller...

Can you please tell me more about these carbs such as how did you obtain them and are the photos of the actual carbs you are selling? Thanks in advance.


New message from: 8ten1944 Top Rated Seller

Photos are accurate. We receive everything in large lots from a large company

huh! Interesting thing you have spotted here for sure. "lots from large company" being maybe Pitney Bowes maybe? they shipped an item to me for ebay...

I looked at the sellers "profile" and he/she/it has sold suzuki parts before but otherwise a very eclectic assortment of items...this seller may have "inserted" itself as a business to resell all the non-shipped or returned items?

[bobgroger]

A search for the seller returns the same scenarios... https://forums.gunboards.com/showthr...8802&styleid=7

[Nessism]

A search for the seller returns the same scenarios... https://forums.gunboards.com/showthr...8802&styleid=7

Wow. Nailed it. Good sleuthing.

[LAB3]

Back when home computers where just getting popular I'd spent a good bit of time reselling computers I'd buy cheap and upgrade. One particular time I listed a pair of matching processors but had no camera to snap a pic so I used one off an old as. My ad was taken down because of it. Another time I bought a SCSI hard drive that turned out to be stolen from a server farm in Europe. How you can ship a $30 part across the Atlantic and still make money doesn't make sense unless it's free to start with.

[bwringer]

On the rare occasion that I sell something on fleaBay, this is why I don't check the international shipping box. It's just not worth dealing with the endless hassles and exorbitant expense.

However, I have found that sometimes smaller items you can fit in a small USPS box can be mailed to some countries without a lot of trouble. Mail to and from Japan, Taiwan, and sometimes Hong Kong actually works pretty well, and I once mailed some goodies to South Africa without much trouble. But a rack of carbs to Europe? No way.

I'm sort of wondering whether it's an issue with the receiving country's equivalent of the EPA; maybe they don't allow fuel system parts from other countries. Or some other bureaucratic BS. You will likely never know.

And yeah, the seller using your photos is an obvious scammer.

[Gorminrider]

I feel sorry for your buyer in Hungary not getting carbs they probably needed.

trying to imagine a "reasonable" and "honest scenario: if Pitney-Bowes 'smelled solvent", decided shipping was restricted, and instead of returning to you, sold them to this shark ..possibly just for the cost of (not) returning them to you .

But if so who paid you? Someone would seem to be ripped off unless the Shark paid it all. Ebay? Paypal? an insurance company? It's hard not to say SCAM

[Nessism]

I've sold carbs on ebay before to buyers overseas and the shipment went through fine. I have no idea what went wrong this time but I assume it relates in some way to concerns over possible gasoline involvement. At any rate, it seems clear at this point that ebay is in cahoots with the re seller in some way. I'm not heartbroken here but do find it distasteful that my photos and description are being recycled.

Regarding the larger issue of shipping overseas, if the item fits into a USPS flat rate box the process is typically pretty seamless however there is no insurance so both parties involved are at risk. With the ebay Global Shipping Program the sellers liability stops when the item reaches the forwarding hub in KY. I like that a whole lot better than shipping myself with the risk that the item could get hung up in customs or worse, having some bureaucrat hack "restrict" some item after it's already overseas.

[Gorminrider]

....a whole lot better than shipping myself with the risk that the item could get hung up in customs or worse, having some bureaucrat hack "restrict" some item after it's already overseas.

True enough! Ebay-shipping is tempting for an "occasional seller". Perhaps Pitney Bowes (if they ARE the real shipper for ebay here) has its own blacklist with "Hungary" + "fuel-related items" on it.

It is cheesy to rip your ad off. too lazy to look but I immediately wondered if there might be something in the Ebay agreement where as you surrender copyright of pictures when posted in an ad. But- even if not, Copyright is altogether an uphill battle nowadays. Who amongst us questions where their pdf shop manual comes from?

Once it's online, it's like a coin dropped through a sewer grate.

[Nessism]

Carbs sold. Reseller got more $ than I did. Oh well.

[bobgroger]

Maybe he is shipping them to Hungary...

[Buffalo Bill]

The international treaties, exchange rates and taxes have reduced my sales reach.
Canadian import taxes killed that market.
Exchange rates to Europe killed that market.
Worldwide ban on exporting Mahogany killed all exporting of Gibson guitars.
USPS Priority is very easy for exporting.
eBay has become a repressive regime of it's own making.