Double_0_7

Have any of you ever been ripped off? What did you do about it?

Have any of you ever gotten to view the car or item, and see that its condition was completely misrepresented? Did you still purchase the item?

If that has never happened to you, I'm sure you can still imagine it happening.

The question is: How did (or would) you handle it?

I am asking because I won an auction for the corvette i wanted. I am probably just suffering from the jitters about the purchase, but what if it's nothing like they said? With ebay, everything is sold as is, and the auction winner enters a legally binding contract to purchase the car. They say you should check everything out before you bid. I think I did as decent a job as I could from 175 miles away, and am not releasing a cent until I lay eyes on the car, but what if I get there and my dream turns into a nightmare?

Has this ever happened to any of you?

gdh

You can always back out of the deal, this has happened many times on eBay just clarify your reason on your reply post if he sends you a bad referral.

The_Dude

It is perfectly acceptable to back out, if the seller misrepresented the item. However, if the seller did answer all of your questions truthfully, and you didn't ask the right questions, you are _morally_ obligated to go through with the transaction. If you decide to back out anyway (which I, in no way, endorse if the seller was truthful with you), I don't think there is really anything the seller can do to you legally. He can report you to ebay, and you will have one strike against you. 3 strikes and you are banned. He can also leave you bad feedback, which doesn't seem to count for much unless you are a seller.
My wife sold a Mustang on ebay. The first buyer, came and looked at it, but refused to purchase it even though my wife was as truthful as possible in her description. He claimed that her pictures weren't descriptive enough and didn't show some body damage very well. He should have asked more questions before bidding. He did, however, pay her the listing fee ($50), so she wouldn't give him bad feedback, which was nice, because he certainly didn't have to do that. So, she put it up for auction again, with a "buy it now" price. An underage bidder bought it and wouldn't reply to emails or telephone calls. The third time we got an honest bidder to purchase the car. Selling cars on ebay is a headache.

rrent

I've bought and sold loads on ebay, including a '65 Impala. Only had a couple of small bad experiences - other than bidders just disappearing. The young fellow who bought the Impala drove down with two of this buddies from Iowa to central Texas with a trailer gave me certified funds and we were both please as punch.

On one hand I would hope a buyer wouldn't just change his mind, but even if he did there was hopefully a second highest bidder. On the other hand if it was misrepresented - I think any of us would back out.


If you'd post the auction URL we could go take a look at your NEW CORVETTE

:cheers: :cheers: :cheers: and good luck

R. Bruno

If the car is not what you expected just start negotiating downward until you reach an agreement. That "binding agreement" is scary sounding but what is the owner going to do?

Anar76

Actually, I just saw on one of those court tv shows a case where a guy won an auction on ebay and backed out, The seller tried to sue him, and after hearing all the details and what not the judge just dismissed the case.
he had all that binding contract bs from ebay, but the judge obviously didnt think it was that binding..

Oh the funny thing: that car was a 73 vette :)
thats why I stopped channell checking.


[Modified by Anar76, 6:39 PM 5/23/2002]

Injected

If the car is not as represented in the ad it's the seller's breach of any contract, misrepresentation is misrepresentation whether is be online or not. If it is walk away, don't be intimidated by anything he says. Hopefully it will all work out well for you, good luck!

Greg

FERL 73

I've made a decision to never spend so much that I can't just write it off and chalk it up to experience if I get hosed by the seller. I recently bought a Qjet 7042208 and it turned out to be nothing more than a parts carb. It cost me $26 shipping included. The seller didn't indicate it was junk. A week after I got the first carb another 7042208 was on ebay and I bought it also. The seller wouldn't respond to my email and it was like pulling teeth to get them to ship it out. I finally received the second carb and it was in very good shape. I've made quite a few purchases before these two and never had any delays or misrepresentation. I don't think I could by a car without seeing it unless it was a 67 BB for $500. In your case I would go to pick up the car in person and if it were misrepresented in any way I would walk away from the deal and not feel bad. If it turns out that my bid is more than it is worth I would pay the amount I agreed to pay and consider it a lesson learned.

Injected

P.S. - Meant to say that I'm a private seller and have sold over $20,000 worth of classic auto parts on Ebay in the past 2yrs, about 50 auctions. With the exception of one buyer I had nothing but excellent experiences with the other parties. The one I had a problem with wanted me to pay for the replacement of a Muncie 4 speed after he did a 6500rpm clutch dump upon installation in his vehicle, there's always going to be one pr!@k in the crowd no matter what you do.

Greg

thejaf

There is somebody on this board who should comment about Ebay and Corvette buying ..... :( You just have to be careful

StingRayPonyGirl

I've usually had really good luck with ebay, either that or I'm so naive the corvette people look out for me. :hat Last week I bought a hard top for a very good price and haven't been contacted by the seller. I'm hoping he's out of town and hasn't read my emails, but I suspect he doesn't want to let it go for that price. Oh well, I was spending my interior money on it anyway. I'm sure your car will turn out to be great, it looks very nice in the pictures and for that price I thought it sounded like a pretty good deal. Good luck. :seeya

Bobbyg75

I was going to bid on a car and called the seller. We agreed that if the car was not as represented I could walk away. I also dealt with a seller that never shipped the goods. Since I paid through Paypal I sent them a complaint and they reimbursed my paypal account after about ten days. I have been overall pleased with items purchased on eBay. Beware of shipping costs because some buyers artificially inflate the true cost to make a couple extra bucks. Also, ensure you check the sellers feedback!

MIKER

http://escrow.com/

Double_0_7

I have not changed my mind, and would love the car if fairly represented. I sent him an e-mail requesting more pics, and he sent them. They kinda assauged my fears. Tomorrow while I'm at work doing nothing but daydreaming about my car, I'll find a free picture hosting site and post the pics for you guys.

I guess the one good thing is that for someone who drives as much as I do, a couple of hours each way isn't so bad. I can drive down before he would even expect the deposit, and check it out, buy it, and drive it home. No delivery charges.

edit: i have sold two motorcycles on ebay, 1 wrecked, one perfect, and had nothing but the best of luck. It's just that I have never bought anything, and am kinda nervous about it.


[Modified by Double_0_7, 4:58 AM 5/24/2002]