Ocean Blue! O' the Joy!

[WEBellSystemChristian]

I would think even with the crack you got a great deal.
D/P

One of the handset caps alone would be well worth the price he paid for the whole set!

[WEBellSystemChristian]

Soooooooo.....

Any updates?

I'm dying to know what's come of your beeeeautiful med blue!

[Kenton K]

Well, its a long story that hasn't ended yet.

It started when I first clicked Buy It Now. Like usual, I paid immediately with paypal to the seller account. After I clicked "confirm payment", the site took some time to load and I was worried that another buyer had processed payment and snagged the phone before I did. After a minute, a page showed saying there was problems in paying. I opened my paypal and it said that I paid to an "unregistered account". Paypal seemed to be holding the $40 in escrow.

Anyways, I checked the original listing and it said I had won; so I knew that the phone was claimed. I sent the seller a message describing that the payment on my end seemed not be going through. I wanted to see if there was a problem on his side so we could figure out how I could pay. I got a response from the seller saying that ebay said I had already paid on his side and that he would ship the next day. I said OK, and send the seller detailed packing instructions for safe phone shipping. The seller said it would be packed safely.  I figured the payment error would just a small glitch, or the seller paypal account wasn't confirmed yet.

The next day, the seller claimed he shipped, although the ebay tracking number wasn't giving any info. I assume he just typed the number wrong. A few days later, the phone arrived. I saw the package and was immediately apprehensive. At this point, I didn't know that there was a crack yet. The package was an old shoe box, not corrugated, very thin. One of the corners was crushed in a good three inches. I picked up the box and heard the phone cluck from one side of the shoebox to the other. Not a good sign.

I opened the box to find that the seller had very little used news paper to pack the phone. All of the paper had compacted and proven useless. Inspecting the phone, I was happy that it was indeed blue, but noticed right away the giant crack. I initially though it was due to shipment, but looking closer I saw dirt and discoloration through the crack. That meant to me that that crack was old, at least old enough to discolor and fill with grime. I opened up the original ebay listing and sure enough, spotted the crack. I also found a second smaller crack near the line cord. This one was from shipping, as there was no discoloration and dirt through the crack. It also had a white look, as bent plastic does. I also noticed that the priority postage cost $16, and I paid $21 in shipping costs. I guess $5 went into "handling".

I messaged the seller to see if I could get at least a partial refund. I mentioned that it was cracked before shipment and you could obviously see it in the listing photos. The seller has adamantly said it was in good condition before shipping, and the crack is due to shipping. He offered to give a $21 item price refund if I shipped the phone back to him, which is crazy, given shipping back to him would have cost me at least $12. I would still be out around $35 (out of the $40).

I then tried to file a claim with ebay or paypal. As it turned out, ebay is not letting me file a claim at the moment. The reason being, ebay knows I haven't technically paid yet, or the seller hasn't received payment. My original payment is still unclaimed, and I have the opportunity to cancel the payment. However, I don't want to give the seller an opportunity to shift fault from himself to me citing an nonpaying buyer. In 30 days, the unclaimed payment will be refunded. If the seller claims the payment (im not sure how he would), then I can file a claim and ebay would most likely side with me. Or, I could just take the $40 hit and keep the phone.

So, at the moment, I'm just waiting. No real progress. 
I also noticed that the seller just received a negative feedback from a buyer claiming that he paid, and the seller never shipped.
Obviously a new, inexperienced seller who doesn't know trading etiquette.

Also, a thing to take away is to always pay with credit card through ebay. It can be hard to recover a paypal balance because the funds are transferred immediately. It is like a debit card. Credit card companies offer an added layer of protection because you don't pay immediately and companies offer insurance.

http://www.ebay.com/usr/heavenlyhart7c0j

Ken

[WEBellSystemChristian]

$40, ripoff or not, is still a deal for what you have. My two tone blue cost $60 and it has a crack in the front, not to mention the paint I had to so lovingly remove!

Worst case, you get a .$40 caliber hit to your wallet. You get to keep a damaged and mixnmatched (yet still repairable and undo-able for the most part) phone, plus you could put nasty feedback on the seller's page for misrepresenting an item and whatever other unprofessional things he did.

[TelePlay]

Interesting that the seller has been an eBay member since Nov 13, 2003 and has a feedback score of "0" with 1 positive and 1 negative. 11 years of "inactivity?"

[WEBellSystemChristian]

Interesting that the seller has been an eBay member since Nov 13, 2003 and has a feedback score of "0" with 1 positive and 1 negative. 11 years of "inactivity?"

And both pieces of feedback are in 2015. Really? Only two responses in the current year after 11 years of being a member?

Interesting...

[Dan/Panther]

I avoid (0) Feedback sellers like the plague. I understand they have to build trust, But not on my bank account.
D/P

[Bartonpipes]

Despite all of the problems with the seller, you still have a Mediterranean blue! Personally if I were you I would hold on to it as tight as you can.
Even with the damage and lack of a matching dial I would say it will look very good when it's finished, well worth the hassle.

Just my thoughts.

[Dan/Panther]

I agree with Andrew. They don't come along every day. You can always sell it if you find another.

D/P