Another reason not to send PayPal payments as gifts.

DO NOT SEND A PAYPAL PAYMENT FOR GOODS AS A GIFT!

I started a thread awhile ago about sellers who ask buyers to send payments as gifts so that they don't pay the PayPal fees. My contention in that thread, and the contention of several other members, was that sellers should pay the PayPal fee as a cost of doing business. It was also pointed out that it is part of the PayPal seller's agreement that a seller pays fees.

Here is another issue. Not surprisingly, if you send a seller a payment as a gift, meaning there is no record that it is for goods, you cannot file a dispute if there is an issue with the item. I doubt sellers here are thinking in this way in requesting payments as gifts, as I believe their motivation is to avoid paying the fees. However, buyers must protect themselves.

DO NOT SEND A PAYPAL PAYMENT FOR GOODS AS A GIFT!

I am getting screwed on a transaction here from all angles. Here's the lowdown:

* I bought an SACD from a seller here recently. All discs in the thread were claimed to be EX to mint.

* The disc arrived with two bad, very obvious scratches. It is not EX. It was not damaged during shipment. It was packed in a quality padded mailer. The case was not cracked or crushed. The disc was not loose in the case.

* All I did was open the package, take the case out, open the case, remove the disc, and look at the play side. The scratches were immediately noticeable.

* I contacted the seller asking to send the disc back for a refund. His contention is that he played the disc only once and that he inspected it before he mailed it and it had no scratches. He initially refused to take the disc back.

* Now he is saying that he will take the disc back and if the disc is scratched and playable, he will issue me a 50% refund. If the disc is scratched and not playable, he will not refund any of my money.

* Frustrated, I looked into a PayPal dispute but realized that I sent the payment as a gift and cannot file a dispute.

So I'm screwed here unless the seller comes to his senses and accepts his responsibility as a seller who wants to continue here in good standing. Of course, I can always leave negative feedback.

DO NOT SEND A PAYPAL PAYMENT FOR GOODS AS A GIFT!

 

It always comes down to the trust you place on the other party. Sellers increase their prices if they can't accept gift payments, so there is a small cost to buyers on each transaction. It is basically a form of insurance, and each person has to weigh what that is worth to them. For the most part, people are overinsured in their financial dealings.

 

I would rather pay more and have recourse if there is an issue.

 

The seller is being a ****. I left him negative feedback. If you want to know who the seller is, send me a PM.

 

Was able to find it with a few clicks...interesting. Thanks for the heads up.

 

No problem. I figured folks could find it. At the same time, I've received a few PMs from folks asking me who it was. I've told them.

I don't screw around. And I don't lie to screw sellers. It's pretty well known around here that I'm all about the discs. If I say a disc arrived in lesser condition than described, it arrived in lesser condition than described.

 

SEND PAYPAL PAYMENT FOR GOODS AS A GIFT IF YOU FEEL LIKE IT

I have used the Gift option - no problems. I sometimes do it with sellers I have had a fair number of buys from, but I have done it with some first time buys.

 

The dispute issue is one I had never thought of before. Of course, the majority of sellers here are accurate in their grading and will own up to a mistake. However, after this experience, I am not taking the chance anymore. If a seller wants the payment sent as a gift, he doesn't get my business. That's it.

 

My sympathies Keith, sincerely. You had to have wanted the disc badly to go against your own rule of paying as a Gift. What I've done, since Tim got in trouble w/Pay Pal for paying that way one too many times, was when asked, I inform them I'm adding a few bucks, because I'm not losing my account over that. So far, nobody's had a problem with that, and even thanked me for the warning, or "heads up." Maybe this seller will hopefully do the right thing...if not, well, I'm sure as hell never buying from him...again !!! Good luck.

 

Me too...the Seller either makes this right or I'll never buy from him no matter what he offers. Our Classified Section is a community, so to me we should all support a member that has been wronged. This isn't e-bay...this is the SH.tv Classifieds...if a respected member points out someone ripped him off then that is good enough for me.

Make this right, Seller.

 

Thanks, MYKE. That's not a bad idea to throw in a couple of extra bucks to pay as goods instead of a gift. We have a nice community here, but money is money. Buyers have to protect themselves.

I cannot resolve this issue with the seller. After the crap he pulled, if he came back and said he would take the disc back for a full refund, I wouldn't trust him. It's too late. I've left him negative feedback. I'm done with him.

 

I checked the seller's posts and he only seems to be here to sell stuff, he hasn't taken part in any discussions lately.

 

Guess I got lucky with that seller.

^This is a most unusual policy...

 

You can report him to the powers that be here, as a former gort you know they can revoke his Marketplace privileges.

 

Yes, but from the seller side the disc was 'undamaged'. Most unusual.

I had this sort of thing happen with vinyl once. Denied any damage (I'd played the disk through a couple of weeks before the sale). When I got it back, it was quite damaged but then I remembered where the disc had been sitting just in its' inner bag and what was rubbing against it ... it was poking out about half an inch and scuffed badly just on that area. Always put your discs back.

oops. full refund.

 

Agreed. I noticed this evening that he had 53 posts. Makes me wonder if he signed up here just to gain access to the classifieds. In trying to defend his track record, he mentioned to me that he also sells on eBay.

Oh, I did that. However, the Gorts generally do not get involved in Classifieds disputes because it is hard for them to determine who is really at fault. I understand and respect their position. That said, they will ban members from the Classifieds, or even the entire site, who develop a track record for screwing other members.

 

do they skip or you didn't play them at all?

 

This guy posted for a month from Christmas of last year until late January to gain access to the classifieds. Most of his posts were one liners, such as "He will be missed" regarding the death of Gerry Rafferty. As soon as he qualified, he immediately shifted to the Classifieds where he has only listed items, and has made zero comments outside of the Classifieds since his first classified ad (5 pages of Classified posts over 7 pages total). I don't consider him to be within the spirit of the forum and doubt seriously he'll see any of my $.

 

I didn't play the disc. All I did was inspect the play side. The bad scratches were immediately obviously, and I put the disc right back in the case. I didn't touch it after that since I was trying to return it for a refund.

Figures. I didn't check his post history, but I had noticed earlier this evening that he had 53 posts, just enough to gain access to the classifieds.

He doesn't get our sense of community.

 

I'm sorry to hear about this, Keith. Thank you for bringing this to everyone's attention, as I was unaware Paypal would not allow for a dispute given this set of circumstances. Needless to say, I will certainly never again pay using the gift option for Paypal, nor would I ever purchase anything from the seller.

Over the course of a number of purchases via the Classifieds, I have only had two or three sellers require the gift option. In the future, I would be willing to pay the difference to avoid having to use the gift option.

 

+1

 

Thanks, and no problem. I just wanted to bring this to everyone's attention so that others don't get screwed.

Sellers asking for gift payments is a recent phenomenon. I've seen it quite a bit over the past 6-8 months, but never before that.

 

I was being asked to do it over a year ago. Weirdest was a $.32 difference. Seller begged me to accept a refund, then re-pay as a gift...for $.32 !?!?

 

I've been aware of it for some time now. As a seller I would NEVER ask or expect anyone to pay that way - HOWEVER, on occasion as a buyer here on the forum I've just sent a gift payment as goodwill gesture. It's normally appreciated and shows some empathy. Sometimes the shipping to Australia is expensive so If it's someone I trust I can't see any problem. Otherwise they get slugged on fee's for the whole transaction. BUT I do see the sense in not doing this to perhaps an eBay seller, just incase you need to make a claim, and as Keith has pointed out you would be F#çked.

 

For $0.32?