to open an ebay case with everything that isn't as described?

[TinyDancingHoofer]

I don't mean if there is a tiny loose thread or mark but if something is in "good condition" when the entire lining needs resewing or buying a "beautiful flowing silk chiffon" dress and it turns out to be nasty polyester. I have 7 cases open and feel they are all justified but my friend said that i should just accept that it is a part of ebaying, getting stuff that looks a lot worse than it is and sometimes stuff is a lot better than you expect. I sell on ebay too and would be mortified if i had misdescribed stuff the way other people do, it would feel like scamming people out of their money. Just wondered what everyone else does?

Oooooh. I agree with you on this. The amount of people who don't even to bother to describe the fabric, or describe it wrongly. Sometimes I think ebay is just full if shysters looking to pull a fast one...only I sell stuff on there, and my stuff is exactly as described. I would take issue with everything.

Do you buy a lot of clothes on Ebay, OP?

I recently bought a dress on EBay described as very good condition and it had yellow sweat stains in the armpits! I contacted the seller and they did refund it to be fair.

I sell on eBay and give accurate descriptions. However I had one buyer complain that a handbag she bought from me didn't have a shoulder strap..... Well that bag NEVER had a shoulder strap and the photos showed that!

I think if it's described as used you have to be prepared for it not to be perfect, but if an item is torn or stained the seller should specify that

Strange that you have had so many badly described items, I am almost 100% satisfied with my eBay purchases. Maybe you need to be more discerning about what you buy, make sure it has really good photos, or a very detailed description? But no, Yanbu of ourse, you must open a case if you are missold something by an inaccurate description.

7 open cases will ring alarm bells at ebay HQ

Yes I agree with Erik - I have almost never had any problems with Ebay stuff. I have bought loads of clothes on Ebay (probably over 100 items over the years) and the only issues I have had were the dress with sweat stains (yuk) which was refunded and also I bought some shoes which were sold as a size 6 but were actually size 5 (however they happened to fit me anyway so I didn't complain). Oh and I did also get a North Face body warmer which was obviously a fake so I reported that to Ebay.

Like Erik I am very selective about what I buy - if the item is used and the description is a bit vague I steer well clear as I tend to assume it will be well used! I only really buy used stuff if it says only been worn once or twice or is in excellent condition (although obviously the seller could be lying.....). Also the kinds of things I buy (dresses to wear to weddings etc) are not the kinds of things people would wear every day so they do tend to have only been worn once or twice.

I personally only sell my used stuff on Ebay if it is in pretty much perfect condition as I cannot be bothered with dealing with returns / complaints. So if something is not as perfect I either charity shop or use as cleaning rags.

I think that it's very hard to describe things the way someone else would want.

I have low standards about my own clothes so have to resort to painful honesty, especially with clothes. And lots and lots of measurements.

I often get feedback that items I've sold are in much better condition than I said, although occasionally something turns out to have a small hole or a mark I simply didn't see despite looking carefully.

I just can't believe that there are really that many people on Ebay trying to sell cruddy goods; the repercussions for sellers are too painful. Or maybe I'm just a wimp seller, not sure!

I thought maybe OP bought like 15 items/week, which could explain her high dissatisfaction rate.

And check the feedback before buying, if they have consistently good feedback as a seller you should be safe enough.

I buy a lot of stuff of ebay as it is easier for me that getting to the shops and it saves money, maybe 20 things a week. I probably sell twice what i buy. I don't expect stuff to be perfect but if someone specifically says perfect condition and it is full of holes then i feel like it was mis-sold and i should get my money back. As a seller i have only had one case against me when they said something was 17.5" and i had said it was 17" approx. But i have bought things that are BNWT size 10 and they arrive a used size 6!

Describing a dress as silk when it's polyester is totally misleading and I would be unhappy with that. My teenage daughter has just had a clearout and sold 5 items and I've kept a watchful eye on her descriptions even though the used items are in immaculate condition. As new to selling, I'm paranoid about keeping my seller feedback intact. Same as Robin, I only intend to sell new or pristine used items. So, no, I disagree with your friend OP and wouldn't accept the good you describe - that would be a slippery slope.

This is why I don't sell clothes on ebay. Every tiny little detail has to be included in the listing, or someone will open a case against you.......

Not sure how buying 20 things a week saves money (I probably buy less than 20 things a year, from all possible outlets). But anyway...

Amazed to hear such stories. Is this problem just particularly rife with women's clothing, maybe? YANBU on the stories you've given. I presume every time you demand money back & open cases & give neg f/back where appropriate? I mean you don't want to deal again with someone who sells something blatantly mismatching description, so may as well give neg f/back. Do the sellers generally have lots of negs, or do many buyers just shrug it off? I never would have thought most buyers were such wimps.

I don't think I've ever had a buyer just shrug off a minor defect or worse. Guess I wouldn't know if they had (Disclaimer: I rarely sell clothes).

Do you give sellers the opportunity to address your complaints before opening cases and open a case if they're unwilling to do so, or do you simply proceed to open a case against the seller every time you receive an item that you believe to have been misdescribed?

If the former YANBU, but if the latter, as seller yourself, I would suggest you watch out for karma biting you on the bum in the form of buyers who don't do you the courtesy of informing you of their complaint before opening a case against you.

Yes I think it is important to give sellers the opportunity to make amends before you open a case against them.