Item not really as described - shoud I chalk it up to expereince or email the seller?

[Finbar]

I've not been in this position before, so advice gratefully received.

Won some boys shorts. Paid on the 8 June .
Had to email seller to check when she had sent them as not received by yesterday. They arrived today (!)
They were described as '"excellent condition", then "slightly worn" - Photo seemed ok

They are def worn - in fact faded on the knees and there are a clear couple of biro or berry stainmarks on one knee.
What would you experienced eBayers do?

Was thinking of emaling her to give the opportunity to comment. Am really disappointed in the lateness and the condition- but don't want to get into a dispute or get any negative feedback myself.

Similar happened to me, twice . Both offered a refund. one i sent the item back (expensive Boden dress that had been sent in a dirty bag) the other said don't bother. That item said good condition but it was fit for the bin. Strange what some people will sell! Neither left negative feedback.

If you send it back though presumably you have to pay postage

bump for THE Finnerator

so do you think the email is a good starting place rather than goign straight on to leaving neutral feedback?

I would ask for a full refund including shipping costs. If not given, open a paypal dispute, get your money back and leave negative FB.

Sellers cannot leave buyers negative FB.

email to let them know of the problem and then send item back for a refund.

sellers can't leave negative feedback for buyers btw.

so do you think the email is a good starting place rather than goign straight on to leaving neutral feedback?Yes, you should ALWAYS give the seller a chance to rectify the problem before leaving neg or nuet FB.

A good seller will do what they can to make you happy.
Again, if they don't do anything about it, leave them NEG FB, not neutral, and put their star rating all the way down.

They can't BEG you back and if they leave a negative positive on your FB you can have that erased.

Depends a bit on how much you paid.

It has happened to me both as a buyer and a seller. As a buyer it's really annoying, and I chalked it up to experience (was a 99p item, so not worth the postage to return).

As a seller I'm pretty fussy about describing condition, but i've had a couple of items with defects that I'd missed at listing -- it's easy to do if the pattern is quite busy and you're listing a lot of stuff at once. In both cases the winning bidder emailed me and I knew they were telling the truth rather than just trying it on, so I refunded the item cost in full without them returning the item.

it's your call, but definitely don't leave bad feedback without emailing first. I'd probably email just saying, "the condition of the item wasn't what i'd expected' and wait to see what they offer. Unless the item was v. cheap in which case I"d probably let it go. But tbh the combination of 'excellent condition' with 'slightly worn' in the listing would have put me off buying in the first place -- excellent should really mean pretty close to immaculate imo.

Email the seller to complain and maybe s/he will offer you some money off. You can't threaten negative feedback in exchange for money back - its against the rules I think. But if you say "I think they are worth only £2" the inference will be clear.

I have had other advice to go straight to Paypal - as that's what they are there for.

Am torn - it seems a bit heavy ; but also my friend is right - that is what they are ther for

But you need to give the buyer the chance to put things right before you take formal action. Maybe she will be mortified -- okay, maybe she won't, but you have to give her the chance.

What is her feedback like? I do always check through comments as well as % positive, just to get a feel for what kind of ebayer they are. But it could be an honest mistake, so you need to give her the benefit of the doubt. If she doesn't reply or is unhelpful, that is the time to go to Paypal.

How much dd you pay for the item? The couple of times that people have raised issues about defects I'd overlooked, both buyers said words to the effect that if the defect had been fully described they wouldn't have bid so high, which I think is fair. But if you only paid 99p, then I think raising a formal dispute is possibly overkill, though strictly speaking you're in the right. But email first and see how she responds.

Put yourself in the position of the seller: Would you prefer someone to email you and give you the chance to rectify what could have been a genuine oversight or would you prefer them to go straight in at the top with Pay Pal and -ve feedback??

I think you should definitely give her the benefit of the doubt and email her first. If she then refuses a refund or just doesn't reply then I would consider taking it further.

I once bought a shirt for my son and when it arrived, all the seam had come undone. Contacted the seller and she was beside herself that she'd missed it and sent it out in that condition.

Mistakes happen, so at least give her a chance to redeem herself I think.

No, definitely contact her and give her a chance to put it right herself. IMO it's only sellers who refuse to refund or put things right that deserve negative/neutral.

Please ignore your friend and try and resolve the issue with the seller first.
Yes Paypal get involved with disputes but you are expected to try and resolves issues first.
and as the others have already stated a seller can't leave you negative feedback.

If you try to open a PayPal dispute, the first thing it will tell you is to try to resolve the problem directly with the buyer first. That is definitely what you should do - PayPal disputes are for if that doesn't work.

Bear in mind that even if the item has been described misleadingly, PayPal will only refund you the item cost and original postage - the cost of the return postage (which has to be recorded) has to be covered by you. So depending on the cost of the item it might not be worth your while doing that anyway.

If you contact the buyer, however, they may offer you something better - eg. partial or full refund without returning the item. If they refuse point blank to offer anything at all then at least you can feel justified in leaving negative feedback.

I was unhappy with stains on a coat I bought a couple of months back and felt I'd been deliberately conned (despite only paying 99p+postage). However when I contacted the seller she was very apologetic, offered a full refund without me returning the item, and posted me two extra things by way of apology