I bid and won a 45rpm picture sleeve that was advertised at being in mint condition. This seller has 1872 total feedbacks with 0 negatives or neutrals. My problem is that I am reselling this item and in all fairness I cannot give it a mint grading. Near mint is about the best i can do. I want to leave feedback because I know how important it is but I feel the product was misrepresented. I still want the sleeve of course. Is a "neutral" appropriate ? Shipping was right on time as well as the communication.
posted on May 17, 2001 09:33:36 AM
Mint/Near Mint is subjective to the person doing the looking. Especially if no real grading guide is available.
If you are happy with what you got and paid less than NM for the piece, then leave positive or none at all.
If unhappy email the seller and ask for a refund.
posted on May 17, 2001 09:34:54 AM
Why not email and discuss what he thinks mint is versus yourself?
In the camera world mint varies from Major Retailer to Major Retailer. Then you have your ebay sellers version of the world.
Your standard may be higher. If you got it close to mint and you got a fair deal for even ex++ then why pull a crappy move on a seller?
I bought an item for a song, the item turned out to be non-leather. Well still not so shabby a deal, but misrepresented as leather. Not the sweet deal it started out as. So the seller refuned me the money.
I won't post a neg.
I read your posts clean1, you seem to have high standards for some things/people and low for others. I suppose a double standard is something we all have to live with.
posted on May 17, 2001 09:35:27 AM
I think it depends.
Did the listing say, "Mint condition with no ____s, _____s, or _____s." And then it did have one of those things?
Or did it just say mint with no explanation.
If the second, and you didn't ask any questions before bidding, I'd say you have to take part of the responsibility.
If it were listed mint and it was torn or in less than good condition I could see a request for refund or a neutral or neg. But since you're saying here that you'll grade it near mint, I think this might just be a difference in perception between you and the seller.
posted on May 17, 2001 09:54:22 AM
Capriole wrote:
"I read your posts clean1, you seem to have high standards for some things/people and low for others. I suppose a double standard is something we all have to live with."
My question was in regards to the condition of an advertised product. Not my personal virtues thank you.
posted on May 17, 2001 09:57:20 AM
I agree with twelvepole. if it is something you want to return then a neutral would make more sense. It is a very subjective area and I hope you contact the seller before leaving a neutral.
posted on May 17, 2001 10:01:59 AM
I do not in any way want to ruin this guys reputation. I am going to keep the item as I intended, leave a positive feedback but I guess I am going to email him and express my disappointment and urge caution when he lists anything as "mint".
I suppose I was mistaken that it is common practice to consider something that is mint as being in the same condition or close to the same condition as new.
posted on May 17, 2001 10:10:54 AM
>I still want the sleeve of course.
This is something I can never understand. If you don't want to return the item and get a refund, then what's the complaint. If it isn't up to "standard", then why do you want to keep it?
When I get a compaint, I normally offer a refund, and if the refund is turned down, I don't want to hear anymore complaints. Refunding money when the buyer is unhappy is the accepted way to do business. If you don't want to return the mercahndise for a refund, what else is it you would like the seller to do?
posted on May 17, 2001 10:21:06 AM
I am very much becoming insulted . I do not expect a refund. I am not going to harass this guy. I very much take offense by someone assuming that I fall into this streotyped catagory of being a scammer or complainer. All I'm trying to say is that if you buy a set of glasses, say 12, and you find a crack on one, you may want to keep the set but at the same time you may also want to inform the seller that it wasnt in as good as shape as they said they were.
Isnt our feedback system one of things that was put in place to do these types of things?
posted on May 17, 2001 10:23:05 AM
Judging by the seller's feedback, he or she is a straight shooter and deserves the opportunity to rememdy the problem before any deragatory feedback is left.
If you have a problem with the product, a responsible buyer always tries to resolve the issue with the seller before posting a negative or neutral comment. Commom sense applies here, as I do not believe it was the seller's intention to misrepresent the product. Mint and other such ratings are usually arbitrary wordings.
My bet is that the seller will remedy the problem to your satisifaction. That is why they have an 1800+ feedback rating.
Treat others as you would like to be treated yourself.
posted on May 17, 2001 10:34:48 AM
I have been dissapointed 50% of the time when buying glass on eBay. Now I eMail every seller who has an item I'm interested in, for clairification of condtion.
Stating in an auction description that an item is "...in mint condtion," is not good enough! Sellers need to explain/define WHY an item is in MINT conditon. Then, their interpertation of MINT could be better judged...
posted on May 17, 2001 10:39:56 AMAll I'm trying to say is that if you buy a set of glasses, say 12, and you find a crack on one, you may want to keep the set but at the same time you may also want to inform the seller that it wasnt in as good as shape as they said they were.
Maybe so, but I'd think there is a little more subjectivity involved in determining the difference between "mint" and "near mint" than "cracked" and "not cracked". Any such grading system will lead to disagreements at some point, but with 1800+ feedback comments (and no negs or neutrals), it seems apparent on the face of it that this seller is not one to exaggerate as a general practice in his descriptions.
Maybe you could try putting the shoe on the other foot. Since you said you were planning on selling the item yourself, suppose the buyer, upon receipt of the item, left you neutral feedback that said "Item not quite as nice as described"- how would you feel?
posted on May 17, 2001 11:03:28 AM
I agree with the posts that say you can't assume that "mint" means the same thing to all people. I recently bid on a doll that was described as "mint" with little or no other description, but before I bid I emailed the seller and asked about everything about the doll that I consider necessary for it to be "mint." The email went on for a solid page, and the seller promptly responded confirming each and every point. Seems like it would be easier to just put it in the auction listing the first time, but not all sellers do it.
If it was something I said (there was only 2 posts made between your replies) then I appoligize.
>I do not expect a refund. I am not going to harass this guy.
Again, no insult intended, but to leave a neg or a neutral on a seller over a peice of merchandise that you DON'T want to return and be refunded for, looks wrong from where I set.
>All I'm trying to say is that if you buy a set of glasses, say 12, and you find a crack on one, you may want to keep the set but at the same time you may also want to inform the seller that it wasnt in as good as shape as they said they were.
And that's fine, but to tarnish someones feedback, and insist you want to keep the merchandise, when they might very well refund your money instead of leaving you stuck with merchandise you aren't happy with isn't fair.
>Isn't our feedback system one of things that was put in place to do these types of things?
It is in place so people can judge how we conduct business. If this peice is, in your opinion "near mint" instead of "mint" (a subjective call, even with coins which have a standardized grading standard) I would either be so unhappy that I wanted my money back (and would leave a neg if I didn't), or it would be a border line case, and I would give the seller the benifit of the doubt.
Oh, JFYI, with coins (which do have a an acceptable grading standard) some real ugly coins are considered Mint State. Anything that can happen to a coin before it is placed into circulation (bag marks, rim nicks, tarnish, etc.) do NOT knock it out of Mint State. Of course, with coins, there are 11 grades of Mint State.
posted on May 17, 2001 07:49:32 PM
microbes and mrpotatoheadd said it better than I can. If the item is so close to being as described that you want to keep it and not ask for a refund, why on earth would you feel a neutral could possibly be in order? This isn't meant as an accusation. I'm really curious about your reasoning here.
In the title of this thread you asked for help in being fair. The replies that have been given are attempts to offer that help. I can't speak for you, but I would keep the item and leave positive feedback for the seller. And it wouldn't be a "less than enthusiastic" positive either. Those sting almost as much as a neutral.
[ edited by dubyasdaman on May 17, 2001 07:54 PM ]
