eBay

hirocksale · ‎12-23-2025

On Sunday I won an auction for a welding machine. I got it for the initial listing price because nobody else bid on it. The seller said he'd send it today but now he claims he "dropped" it getting it ready for shipping and he can't sell it now because it's damaged. It's completely obvious that he just didn't like the results of the auction and he's welching. He has since refunded me against my wishes. Do I have any recourse? Does eBay just let this kind of thing slide now?

ypdc_dennis · ‎12-24-2025

Seller will get a black mark from eBay.

Too many of those and the seller is penalized with higher fees and account restrictions.

If the sale is cancelled then a refund is required. The buyer gets their money back.

reallynicestamps · ‎12-24-2025

The Grinch in me would be sending him a sympathy message.

"I am disappointed at not getting the welding machine. It was a real bargain since without an underbidder it sold for the opening bid and my maximum bid was (triple or quadruple what you won at).

Oh well, at least I won't wait impatiently while the usual holiday crush delays delivery.

I will be shopping again in 2026 .

Have a happy new year."

But I am old and grouchy.

flipistics · ‎12-24-2025

@hirocksale wrote:
On Sunday I won an auction for a welding machine. I got it for the initial listing price because nobody else bid on it. The seller said he'd send it today but now he claims he "dropped" it getting it ready for shipping and he can't sell it now because it's damaged. It's completely obvious that he just didn't like the results of the auction and he's welching. He has since refunded me against my wishes. Do I have any recourse? Does eBay just let this kind of thing slide now?

Ultimately there's nothing you can do to force them to send the item. You can check the reason they gave for cancelling the order. If they selected a reason like "buyer requested to cancel" or something similar, contact eBay and let them know that you did not do so. The seller *should* get a strike on their account. eBay REALLY doesn't like it when sellers cancel an order unless it was requested by the buyer or there was a problem with the buyer's address, etc. As a seller, if you get more than a small number of strikes you're not going to enjoy what happens.

Keep in mind though, it's plausible that they're telling the truth. God knows they wouldn't be the first seller to break something while packing it, especially something heavy. If you keep an eye on their store and don't see it relisted, it may be legit. If they put up a new listing for it, then probably not so much.

hirocksale · ‎12-24-2025

The reason given was damage. He said he'd send me pics but never did. I used the report seller option so eBay at least knows my side. I think he's just going to try to sell it locally. I was shocked that nobody bid against me, It's a desireable machine and I won it for basically half price. I understand why he did this but it's still a scumbag move.

flipistics · ‎12-24-2025

@hirocksale wrote:
The reason given was damage. He said he'd send me pics but never did. I used the report seller option so eBay at least knows my side. I think he's just going to try to sell it locally. I was shocked that nobody bid against me, It's a desireable machine and I won it for basically half price. I understand why he did this but it's still a scumbag move.

Is that the reason he gave, or the actual reason that was selected in the cancellation? I can't remember if damage is one of the options eBay provides or not. If it is, then he probably got a strike from it and there's a reasonable chance it could be true. If someone was trying to pull one over, they'd be more likely to select an option like problem with address or buyer requested cancellation.

hirocksale · ‎12-24-2025

Hi ------,

Unfortunately, the seller had to cancel your order due to the following reason: I'm out of stock or the item is damaged.

Here's a summary of your refund. You should receive it in 3-5 business days.

That's what I received. I think the chances of that being legit is basically zero. We're talking about a $6k welder, this wasn't some knicknack. Even if it was damaged I still might have taken it if I had the option. I don't think he cares about a strike because he hasn't sold anything else recently, that's no punishment at all. They should lock his PayPal account untill he sends me what I purchased.

john_koenig99 · ‎12-24-2025

@hirocksale wrote:
They should lock his PayPal account untill he sends me what I purchased.

Yeah...That's not going to happen. You get your money back. That's the main thing.

hirocksale · ‎12-25-2025

Which is why eBay sucks now, I seem to remember them taking things a lot more seriously back in the day. I don't want my money back, I want the item I got an excellent price on. Seriously, what is the point of this if an auction isn't an actually enforceable contract? Nobody shops eBay to pay retail. Are they just trying to be Amazon now? I predict failure. I'm certainly not going to waste any more of my time here. Guess i'll save my pennies and buy it from my local supplier, at least I'll have a warranty.

john_koenig99 · ‎12-25-2025

@hirocksale wrote:
Which is why eBay sucks now, I seem to remember them taking things a lot more seriously back in the day. I don't want my money back, I want the item I got an excellent price on. Seriously, what is the point of this if an auction isn't an actually enforceable contract? Nobody shops eBay to pay retail. Are they just trying to be Amazon now? I predict failure. I'm certainly not going to waste any more of my time here. Guess i'll save my pennies and buy it from my local supplier, at least I'll have a warranty.

Well, if the deal was "excellent", maybe it was just too good to be true, in the first place.

I've been a buyer in ebay way longer that I've been a seller, and I know first hand that things have always been "buyer beware" when it comes to incrediblke deals. It was not less so than nowadays.

reallynicestamps · ‎12-26-2025

Those "strikes" are called Defects when they are for sellers.

Defects lead to higher selling fees, restrictions on the number and value of listings, or even closed selling accounts.

hirocksale · ‎12-27-2025

It was an auction that could have gone either way, that's the whole point of an auction. I already said I was willing to pay way more for it. It's obvious I'll just have to let this go but I'm used to dealing with equipment auctions where you'd literally wind up in court if you tried to pull something like this.

reallynicestamps · ‎12-27-2025

You can leave appropriate feedback.

"Sale was cancelled, I was the only bidder, when the seller carelessly dropped and broke the flittermaushaus."

Calm professional factual.

And an intelligent reader will see what you are saying .

marnotom! · ‎12-27-2025

@hirocksale wrote:

It was an auction that could have gone either way, that's the whole point of an auction. I already said I was willing to pay way more for it. It's obvious I'll just have to let this go but I'm used to dealing with equipment auctions where you'd literally wind up in court if you tried to pull something like this.

The problem here is proving your allegations, though, because that’s what you have right now as opposed to actual evidence. @reallynicestamps has an excellent suggestion.

By the way, I'm unclear on what you mean by the "auction could have gone either way" in the context of your posts.

hirocksale · ‎12-27-2025

I mean sometimes auctions get bid up really high. The bid I put in was way more than what I won it for, It's just that nobody bid against me. There's no option to leave feedback.

reallynicestamps · ‎12-28-2025

No option to leave feedback? Usually a cancellation does have that option, unlike a settled Claim.

The idea, I think, is that a cancellation is a mutual friendly agreement that the transaction should not continue, while a settled Claim is less friendly but it's over and there is no more to say.

mrdutch1001 · ‎12-28-2025

"Guess i'll save my pennies and buy it from my local supplier, at least I'll have a warranty."....

and therein lies the answer!...THAT is the very reason why many a wise buyer would never purchase a high value piece of equipment off eBay!

hirocksale · ‎12-28-2025

The whole reason this site got famous is for people buying stuff like Ferrari's and yachts off of here. It makes perfect sense if I'm saving enough money to replace any broken part twice over.