to complain about 'new' boots?

[ForkForever]

Bought some good quality boots off Ebay from a new seller with zero feedback - I'm her first buyer. They were in the 'new with defects' category for condition, which means according to Ebay that they are brand new, unworn, but may have stitching or colour irregularities or be seconds for some reason. Nothing was mentioned in the description and the photo showed them in a way that they looked in ecxellent condition.

They got here today and have very obviously been worn. The soles have obvious wear on the heels, which I could live with on its own but . More annoyingly they have clearly been worn by someone who walks in such a way that the back part of the suede (behind where your heel goes) is crumpled and floppy. Like they walk with their feet falling off the sole inwards, if that makes sense, so the heels of the shoe have collapsed a bit.

But I feel bad to raise it as they are a new seller which I know is stupid. Also I would have to pay out to return them which seems unfair - why should I be out of pocket for their lie?!

[JamieandTheMagicTorch]

Pronation - that's the term for a gait like you describe.

YANBU

[Kayano]

I would do it.

I laugh at my evil sil's 50% feedback rating.

[ForkForever]

Pronation? You learn something new every day

[GoldShip]

I'd message them first. Tell them you want to return them and they must refund you first. Say you're going to report them and give bad feedback if they don't

[ItsAllGoingToBeFine]

How much did you pay?

I only ask because you need to return them tracked, and you need to pay for the return.

[ForkForever]

That's the thing ItsAllGoingToBeFine - returning them tracked would put me out of pocket by a tenner! She sent them standard second class parcels, which makes me have evil thoughts of just saying they never arrived...

[ForkForever]

oh great and her listing says 'returns not accpeted' so what now?

[2cats2many]

DEfinitely report her. She might only be a 'new seller' because she's pulled this shit before, been given bad feedback and has had to change her profile.

[StatisticallyChallenged]

You can get fairly cheap but still tracked returns through couriers - try parcelmonkey, collectplus etc.

[Randomchocolatebiscuit]

'returns not accepted' doesn't apply if the item is significantly not as described.
Raise a claim with eBay, you might get your money back without returning them.

[ForkForever]

I will have to return them by tracked post most likely - can't see them refnding me oterwise, having read the bumf about returns/refunds.

Arrghhhhh

Seriously considering just saying they never turned up - she is going to have to refnd me whatever I say but at least that way I don't lose money returning them to the lying cow.

[MadgeHarvey]

I'm not sure that doesn't make you as bad as her tbh. Just go down the 'significantly not as described' route and make clear that you want a refund on the postage. I always refund postage if I've screwed up a listing in error.

[LineRunner]

Tell her how unhappy you are, and why.

As a new seller I'd appreciate the chance of putting things right. What she should do is say, sorry I messed up.

Are they usable for you at all? The seller could offer you a full or partial refund and tell you to keep them anyway, if she values her 'stars'.

Oh, and lots of private sellers have 'no refunds', but that's for 'change of mind' refunds. If you are unhappy with the item because it's a bit crap, that's a different story.

[ForkForever]

They are not wearable by me, no. The support for the heel of the foot has collapsed and now its not possible to walk properly in them - they way they have been worn means you end up walking to the side of your foot, with your foot not properly on the sole, iyswim?

She can refuse though can't she, to refund return postage? In which case what then? I am stuck with boots I can't wear that I have to pay to return, or just lose money on

[andallthatjargon]

We've had full refunds before and got the keep the item when it's not been as described and the seller hasn't co-operated. Ebay protects buyers not sellers.

[garlicnutty]

Yep, contact her through the Ebay system and request a refund. Tell her you won't send them back unless she pays postage. Attach photos of the damage.

When she plays her face, report to Ebay. They insist you contact the seller first, anyway.

Someone raised a complaint about an item I'd sold, although I'd resolved it with them. My PayPal account was frozen for a really long time - couple of months, I think - so complaints really can do damage.

[cerealqueen]

It would be very poor of her to mess up her first sale in such a way. Ask for postage, I've refunded postage when something I had sold had a broken clasp that I didn't notice, it was just the decent thing to do.

Send her a nice email, pointing out the defects and that the boots don't comply with ebay policy as to what constitutes 'new with defects.'

[squeakytoy]

I suppose if it is her first sale, she has nothing to lose anyway, she can just set up a new ID. Did the photo not show the boots. If I sell footwear I would always show photos of the soles, front and back so that the buyer knew exactly what to expect.

[ErikNorseman]

I'm pretty sure you get the postage refunded too if it's a faulty item. I don't know if eBay can enforce that but I did when I returned a faulty freeview box. But then that was a proper business seller so valued their feedback.
Fwiw it's not advisable to buy anything over about £5 from a seller with no feedback. They could be scammers or just bad sellers (like this one)

[LineRunner]

Can you email photographs to show how worn down they are?

[ForkForever]

Messaaged her last night bt still no reply...

They do look new from some angles, its only the back and heel area where they are worn down. But they have very baltantly been 'worn in' to someone's feet and way of walking and I wouldn't of bought them had that been clear. I always like to get new shoes and break them in myself!

[LineRunner]

I know what you mean, OP.

So I think you open a SNAD dispute (you will get your original paymenty and P&P refubded) and hope that eBay don't require you to return the boots. You need to say that as part of your case - these boots are not sellable as 'new' and why should I pay to return them?

You can also invite the seller to send you a pre-paid label for their return.

[ForkForever]

Going to give her til the morning to reply which will be 36 hours since i messaged her. Then open a case.

[ErikNorseman]

Just open a case now, she can still respond with a case open. You don't need to wait. The best option would almost be her ignoring you, then PayPal may refund without you having to return! You should open a case immediately by the way so PayPal will freeze the funds. Otherwise she can withdraw them to her bank account and cancel her PayPal account in which case you won't see a penny.

[ForkForever]

I thought the funds were frozen for new sellers until they got positicve feedback? Mine were when I started selling a year or so ago.
Bt yes ok will open a case now, thanks for advice!