# Warning About Ebay Seller Platinumenzo (vintage Rare Hard To Find Item



## etownster (Sep 7, 2007)

The EBay seller PLATINUMENZO (Vintage Rare Hard To Find Items) is taking payments and not mailing items. He currently has 232 watches on sale. I paid for a ladies watch strap four weeks ago and have received nothing. No response to emails. Phone info is false. Belatedly checking his FB it shows a pattern of recent fraud. 22 neg FB in the last 2 months and *10 buyers claim not to have received their items.* In my case a complaint was filed with PayPal and a refund received. I suspect when the seller is not getting his price he is simply ignoring the buyer. I emailed Ebay to ask them to investigate this seller. This seller needs to be avoided.

E


----------



## pg tips (May 16, 2003)

thanks for the heads up, can't help wondering though as it's an interesting topic for a 1st post, there isn't a hidden agenda here I hope.


----------



## etownster (Sep 7, 2007)

pg tips said:


> thanks for the heads up, can't help wondering though as it's an interesting topic for a 1st post, there isn't a hidden agenda here I hope.


Nope. No hidden agenda. Diana Larue's feedback pretty much speaks for itself.

The problem with EBay's FB system, that a moment's thought will reveal, is that higher volume sellers are immune in a sense to feedback since their high turnovers allow them to "ignore" the relatively small number of customers they burn. It is one of the biggest gripes on EBay. EBay is stacked against buyers because of the three strike rule. Sellers on the other hand can get away with murder before EBay steps in. It is a shame because there are a lot of nice folks trying to run a professional business.

There are also a lot of buyers to rushed to run down every FB profile relying rather on the the posted % rating which as you know can hide a lot of nonsense. That was my reason for the original warning.

E


----------



## grahamr (Jun 25, 2007)

etownster said:


> The problem with EBay's FB system, that a moment's thought will reveal, is that higher volume sellers are immune in a sense to feedback since their high turnovers allow them to "ignore" the relatively small number of customers they burn. It is one of the biggest gripes on EBay. EBay is stacked against buyers because of the three strike rule.


I agree, I suffered badly at the hands of one trader who blatantly supplied me with goods that had no warranty, after saying in the item description it did.

when I complained, he made me out to be a complete idiot by saying that I got confused with his

and someone else's item description., thus wrecking my feedback.

when I gave him negative feedback he just made up even bigger lies in the follow up sections.

I now only buy from fleabay when I know the item or seller in question.


----------



## Stanford (Feb 10, 2007)

grahamr said:


> etownster said:
> 
> 
> > The problem with EBay's FB system, that a moment's thought will reveal, is that higher volume sellers are immune in a sense to feedback since their high turnovers allow them to "ignore" the relatively small number of customers they burn. It is one of the biggest gripes on EBay. EBay is stacked against buyers because of the three strike rule.
> ...


Absolutely agree - just today I find myself getting embroiled in an "unpaid item" dispute with a seller (not the same one) with whom payment was set up, and confirmed, through their own secure payment process.

They are doing it simply because, after two weeks of trying to get in touch with them without succcess, I left negative feedback and they don't like it. The item wasn't delivered, they didn't respond to phone messages or e-mails so what is one supposed to do?

Supposedly a reputable seller with over 3500 sales but several negative and neutral feedbacks - they are basically trying to bully me. I have made a complaint to eBay so I'll have to wait and see what happens.


----------



## grahamr (Jun 25, 2007)

Yeah I've had the bullying tactics too,

malicious Emails saying that if I "mutually" withdraw the negative feedback everything will be ok,

but if I don't the negative feedback they will leave for me will permantly damage my FB profile

and I will never buy again.

They back this up by stating that they have a greater percentage of FB so they can "afford" some

negative FB and it only brings the FB % Down minimally, whereas I dont have 2000 odd FB

so I go down the slippery slope to the lower 90 percent.- yet they are the ones who are the

con men in the first place.

Feed back? My arse...


----------



## grahamr (Jun 25, 2007)

rondeco said:


> Stanford said:
> 
> 
> > Absolutely agree - just today I find myself getting embroiled in an "unpaid item" dispute with a seller (not the same one) with whom payment was set up, and confirmed, through their own secure payment process.
> ...


Jesus, I must be an idiot - Do people go to those lengths for FB?


----------



## MarkF (Jul 5, 2003)

If I get a delivery with a card saying " Please give me positive feedback so that I know that you have received the item and I will respond likewise" (or similar). I send an abrupt response along the line of "Go **** yourself"







I do not have the time nor inclination to get involved in such trivialities. I have never had a reply yet.

When I pay for an item and I usually do within minutes, I expect postive feedback, that is the deal, isn't it?

I leave negative feedback when it is warranted. I don't give a thought to the sellers response, why should I?

If somebody has sold 1000 watches and has 100% feedback I stay clear, it's not possible. Something is amiss.

Just like in life, honesty is always the best policy.

I followed a thread in another watch forum where a guy is bleating about whether or not he should leave bad feedback (to a seller who desreved it) becuase he might incur negative feedback in response. I have no wish to upset anybody else on that forum







but I would ban the bleater from Ebay not the seller and tell him to get a life! He has a duty to warn other prospective customers, feedback only works if everybody is honest.


----------



## Stan (Aug 7, 2003)

I agree with Mark entirely. That must be a first.
















If a buyer pays for something quickly and the sellers fails to deliver the goods as specified why should the buyer get a negative feedback on a bad transaction?

If I pay for something via PayPal at the time I agree to buy it I expect the item to be with me within 14 days if the seller is in the UK, no longer.

There are some great people on eBay but there are some stupid and downright nasty ******** too.

Sorry for the rant. 

Edit: No I'm not.


----------



## Robert (Jul 26, 2006)

MarkF said:


> When I pay for an item and I usually do within minutes, I expect postive feedback, that is the deal, isn't it?


Yes, if I sell something I leave feedback as soon as I receive payment. The only thing the buyer has to do is pay after all



> Just like in life, honesty is always the best policy.


I sold a fishing line once, and got an email to say 'very disappointed, badly packed, damaged etc'. I replied immediately saying 'very sorry, return it for a full refund' but they said they wanted to keep it. They then left positive feedback as great seller, delighted etc.









I hate the sellers that only leave positive feedback once the buyer does. Is it not an Ebay tool that does it automatically though?


----------



## Robert (Jul 26, 2006)

rondeco said:


> MarkF said:
> 
> 
> > If somebody has sold 1000 watches and has 100% feedback I stay clear, it's not possible. Something is amiss.
> ...


I think you've just made the point yourself Ron. The chances are that in 1000 transactions you come across at least one bastage who leaves negative for one reason or another. The more transactions you have, the greater the likelihood. Huge possibility of postal problems in that number - could be something completely outwith your control


----------



## mart broad (May 24, 2005)

Robert said:


> rondeco said:
> 
> 
> > MarkF said:
> ...


Steps in to agree also,there is always going to be one thats the nature of the beast.i pay quick and expect the goods to match he description if thy do not thn i have no hesitation in reporting to E Bay or PayPal and i will leave a neg if necessary.

Martin


----------



## MarkF (Jul 5, 2003)

rondeco said:


> MarkF said:
> 
> 
> > If somebody has sold 1000 watches and has 100% feedback I stay clear, it's not possible. Something is amiss.
> ...


Hi Ron, It's my opinion having met some right fruitcakes in my time. I distrust a guy with a 1000 sales and 100% postive feedback in the same way I distrust a guy with 100 sales and 80% feedback. Too much back scratching goes on rendering a lot of feedback meaningless, I would rather deal with a 100 sales 98/99% guy, that smacks of realism.

It makes me laugh when people get het up about receiving a negative feedback, it's only a really tiny bit of life surely?


----------



## pg tips (May 16, 2003)

the 710 has just had a right nutter,

She (the Mrs) sold some items recently one of which was purchased by said nutter for a grand total of Â£3.74 that included the p&p.

within minutes of the auction ended the buyer emailed her and asked if she would mind hanging on til the end of the month (some 11 days) for payment as she didn't have the money til payday! She also said that she knew this broke the ebay 7 day rule!! he had 100% feedback as a buyer although some were phrased as paid eventually etc so she obviously had done this before.

to cut short she eventually paid 29 days later after numerous emails and the non payer procdure being invoked.

She then left the most creapy, lick arse pozzy I've ever seen obviously encouraging the 710 to not neg her!

all for Â£3.74!!!!

ebay is a **** hole, I expect to get ripped off now, it's part of what ebay has turned into, if it's not dodgey gear it's extortinate postage charges.

I am not afraid to leave a neg but I always email the other party 1st and explain. So far every time they have been so frightened of losing that 100% icon they have caved and resolved the situation.

One guy even refunded me double what I paid and told me to keep the item!!! Just to protect his 100%

My neighbour, great friend but a right wide boy, is an expert at this, he has dozens of accounts, shill bids his own items up sells to himself etc etc, his feedback looks like he's the virgin mary!


----------



## grahamr (Jun 25, 2007)

pg tips said:


> One guy even refunded me double what I paid and told me to keep the item!!! Just to protect his 100%
> 
> My neighbour, great friend but a right wide boy, is an expert at this, he has dozens of accounts, shill bids his own items up sells to himself etc etc, his feedback looks like he's the virgin mary!


























I am on a very steep learning curve here, Lots of sales 100% FB =Dodgy

Lots of sales some neg FB =ok - I think


----------



## pg tips (May 16, 2003)

if your spending a lot of money (only you can decide what "a lot" is to you) don't just look at the feedback score.

Read the feedback comments and look who is leaving feedback.

If the seller has sold 300 items, they are all watches, all the feedbacks are from different people then you have a good idea that the feedback rating is genuine, or as near as your gonna get)

however if he has sold 300 items but it's all junk or it's all new or it just doesn't look right and there are just a few buyers who seem to buy his items regularly then be suspicious.

If you want you can check all the items he's sold over the last 3 months and go into each sales bid history, if the same buyers bid on his items but don't win or only win a few times especially if the items are different or even win the same item more than once, then he's using another account(s) to push the sale price up (shill bidding).

Don't get me wrong, there are good guys out there, but the bad guys can catch you out!


----------



## mel (Dec 6, 2006)

I'm sitting with just under the three hundred mark 100% +ve FB, but that's over a fairly long period. I may have been lucky I guess, I treat people the way I expect to be treated, and so far it all works.









If I know I'm gonna have a prob getting an item packaged and posted - delays - whatever, I always let folks know there could be a problem. If there's something wrong with the item (only twice in three hundred nearly) I refund in full on return, less postage costs - no return - no refund. Works for me so far. Communications is the answer, let folks know what's happening to their item. Many sellers forget that buyers pay up front for something they may only have seen a picture of, and it helps a lot to keep folks informed.







I always send an e immediately after payment telling folks when I expect to post. I follow that up with a confirmation I've posted and an estimate of when Postie Pat might deliver, and I ask for FB when the item arrives.

I also "under-describe" rather than "over-describe". If there's anything wrong with the item, I tell it like it is, and I like to say something like "cosmetically its about 7 out of 10" when I know myself it's an 8 or more out of ten. I find then there's little or no snash from buyers, they get better than they they thought they were buying and are happier. Does it affect the sales price? Maybe, but there's no hassle from buyers of -ve FB.

Buying I check FB and look for any negs, follow them through as to why - both buying and selling FB. Then I look at how long the seller has taken to build up his rating. If he/she has been on the bay for a few years, I feel it's highly unlikely that they would snafu up their good FB for the sake of a couple of pounds or so.

My 2p worth


----------



## Robert (Jul 26, 2006)

Look at this guys feedback - 160153778132 - 100% record and a score of 76. Looks good until you realise his total sales probably don't exceed $40. If he started selling anything valuable he would have a seemingly good record.

Dare say some people buy these to increase their own feedback score for the sake of $0.01


----------



## grahamr (Jun 25, 2007)

mel said:


> I'm sitting with just under the three hundred mark 100% +ve FB, but that's over a fairly long period. I may have been lucky I guess, I treat people the way I expect to be treated, and so far it all works.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Wise words Mel


----------



## andythebrave (Sep 6, 2005)

I used to think that a seller should leave feedback immediately the buyer has paid but not any more.

It is quite possible that a buyer could pay straight away, receive the item and then submit a spurious claim to Paypal to the effect that the item was significantly not as described or wasn't sent at all (if not sent by trackable means). In this sort of case it is not beyond the realms of possibility that the seller could end up with no item and no money. Now that's something a seller would want to warn other sellers about surely.

And yes, this has happened to me.

Regarding the 100% feedback on 1000 transactions - yes there tends to be some bamheid around to spoil the party but not always. An item missing in the post shouldn't ever result in a negative provided the seller acts in a responsible way and is seen to be doing so. So, I guess that I would not be suspicious of a large number of transactions with nothing but positive feedback.

But give me a seller with a hundred or so, all positive, and all from very low feedback/new members and then I'll point the finger and say "Oi, multi-faced ebay personality, NO! If I wanted to buy dodgy replicas at way over the odds from a shady gangster who wouldn't know a decent days work if it kicked him in the groin then yes I would be passing you vast amounts of my hard earned. As it is, you can p**s off".


----------



## pg tips (May 16, 2003)

I've bought loads of cheapies off ebay from usa with no tracking, I could quite easily raise an item not recieved dispute and get my money back and there is nothing the seller could do esp if I waited til after they'ed left feedback.

As I'm honest I don't do it, and as it doesn't happen often it means sellers keep sending stuff letter post and keep the cost down.


----------



## William_Wilson (May 21, 2007)

This is a situation I encountered a few weeks ago. I was looking for a watch and found a seller with something I wanted. The price was quite nice, not ridiculous, as was the shipping. So far so good. The seller had several hundres FB, all positive. The country was listed as Germany, but I noticed the town was in southern Italy! I looked at other auctions and the seller was definately in Italy. I investigated the FB, the seller had only been a member for three months, but had over 300 FB. His feedback was from real people, varying countries, join dates and FB's. His trick was that he was selling E-books for $.01, no shipping. He was buying feedback. I went through his entire FB, 98% were for E-books, the other 2% were for cheap paint ball guns sold within Italy. He had just started selling new watches and nobody had actually ever bought one from him. As near as I can tell the reason he said he was in Germany was that the legitimate sellers of those watches were in Germany. This is an interesting variation on the fake feedback scam. At least more creative than shill accounts.

Later,

William


----------



## MarkF (Jul 5, 2003)

andythebrave said:


> I used to think that a seller should leave feedback immediately the buyer has paid but not any more.
> 
> It is quite possible that a buyer could pay straight away, receive the item and then submit a spurious claim to Paypal to the effect that the item was significantly not as described or wasn't sent at all (if not sent by trackable means).


I don't understand.









There are 2 deals in every transaction, the first is payment, if that takes place quickly, what more could you want? Nothing, so leave good feedback. Waiting to see if this or that happens or until you are entirely satisfied renders the whole system meaningless, see "back scratching". If you are unhappy at a later date then you can leave follow up comments.

If you sell something and are paid quickly, then IMO you are honour bound to leave positive feedback just as quick.


----------



## Boxbrownie (Aug 11, 2005)

mel said:


> I'm sitting with just under the three hundred mark 100% +ve FB, but that's over a fairly long period. I may have been lucky I guess, I treat people the way I expect to be treated, and so far it all works.


Yup.....for me 491 with 100% FB as a seller......and one shitty buy which was not as described by a long mark which gave me one neg FB as a buyer...now my overall is 99.8%

I think ebay ought to seperate the buyer/seller FB...would make it fairer and easier for all.

Mark....I take great pride in 100% as a seller....not everyone on the bay is a crook or as distrusting luckily









Best regards David


----------



## andythebrave (Sep 6, 2005)

MarkF said:


> andythebrave said:
> 
> 
> > I used to think that a seller should leave feedback immediately the buyer has paid but not any more.
> ...


Yes, there are two parts to each transaction, the seller is bound to send the item to the winning bidder and to ensure that it matches the description and the buyer's responsibility is to pay and be happy or unhappy depending on whether they have what they thought they were going to get. The point I was making was that while there are many dodgy sellers out there there are equally as many dodgy buyers who thrive on sellers who leave them +ve feedback as soon as they pay but before they do their chargeback and leave the seller with nothing.

Sure, follow up comments are possible and I have used them in the past but they do not magically change the +ve to a -ve. Careful sellers will check the feedback and comments from all their buyers and cancel bids if they see anything untoward but not everyone has the time/patience/werewithal to do that.

So, a transaction is not complete until the payment has been sent, the item sent and received and any possibility of fraud post-sale has been eliminated through the passage of time.

If I had a mind to I could easily acquire goods for a net nil payment using ebay and Paypal as could anyone else, I feel it important to be able to spot this type of fraud without second guessing positive feedbacks. Positive should only be left for a whole transaction that has gone well from start to finish - a seller left with no item and no money can hardly be expected to agree that that was a good transaction.


----------



## William_Wilson (May 21, 2007)

MarkF said:


> andythebrave said:
> 
> 
> > I used to think that a seller should leave feedback immediately the buyer has paid but not any more.
> ...


This comparison may not be entirely apt ... but ... Neville Chamberlain made a deal in good faith, and that really bit him in the ass! There are as many unscrupulous buyers as sellers, some caution isn't uncalled for. I have a buyer account and a seller account and have been on the wrong end of a deal both ways. As a seller you don't have any better idea what you are in for than the buyer does. A few years ago, we had a transaction go south in a big way. A number of items were purched and an elderly retired U.S. Senator's credit card was used to make payment. That turned into an international criminal investigation. I agree blackmailing people for feedback is wrong, but caution is wise.

Later,

William


----------



## MarkF (Jul 5, 2003)

I fully understand your points Andy but we will still have to disagree









I don't agree that the parts in the transaction are "linked" at all, once money has changed hands the first part is finished, that's just IMO.

What you are suggesting really will render feedback meaningless. It's awkward, there will never be a feedback system that suits everyone.


----------



## andythebrave (Sep 6, 2005)

Fair enough. As individuals we will all treat life and its foibles in our own inimitable ways, that's what makes it so unpredictable, frustrating, bewildering, frightening and sometimes exciting and worthwhile


----------



## James (Jul 17, 2006)

wow so long a thread.

my life is more simple, trying to figure out shall I have tomato juice or orange juice with lunch


----------



## mrteatime (Oct 25, 2006)

James said:


> wow so long a thread.
> 
> my life is more simple, trying to figure out shall I have tomato juice or orange juice with lunch


tomato,,,,,with black pepper and worcestershire sauce


----------



## andythebrave (Sep 6, 2005)

James said:


> wow so long a thread.
> 
> my life is more simple, trying to figure out shall I have tomato juice or orange juice with lunch


I wonder what they would be like mixed?


----------



## Silver Hawk (Dec 2, 2003)

andythebrave said:


> ...and then I'll point the finger and say "Oi, multi-faced ebay personality, NO! If I wanted to buy dodgy replicas at way over the odds from a shady gangster who wouldn't know a decent days work if it kicked him in the groin then yes I would be passing you vast amounts of my hard earned. As it is, you can p**s off".










:rofl:


----------

