posted on February 14, 2003 01:08:15 AM new
I sent an item to a guy who's address was a po box, it was a half.com order, month later he emails a complaint from half.com saying didnt recive the item. I checked the DC, shows it was refused, BUT the item somehow is being sent back to him. He complains to half I miswrote the address (NOPE, sent it to the address he provided to half) and tells half he wants a refund for he waited too long for the item.
Well guess what, half deducts 75 bucks out of my account (the cost of the item). A day later I checked the DC noe it shows it was dleivered to this bozo's PO box and that he appernetly accpeted it! So I emailed half, saying this guy who claimed he didnt want the item now accept it, please give me back my money, they emailed me a canned email saying the buyer did a charge back, so tough you work it out with the post office! But even with insurance, since the DC now shows the buyer recived it, so it isnt lost, so post office told me I cant claim lost.
This is horrible! Why does half continue to allow fraud bidders to have fun there!! Should I take half.com to People's Court oe something! 75 dollars is alot fo money for a diabled seller like me. this is really irking me! Any advice would help. thanks and God bless!
posted on February 14, 2003 01:44:51 AM new
Looks like your out $75.00 bucks. My piece of advice is also a question...what's with the "for a disabled seller like me"? 75 bucks is a lot of money, being disabled has NOTHING to do with it!
posted on February 14, 2003 02:15:19 AM new
you know, extra expenses I have that 75 bucks could have helped out on, as rehab, medicine, doesn't come cheap. I guess what I should have said was being recently disabled, a deduction of 75 dollars, especially from a transaction that did happen, is a bummer! Why does half so keen on helping out bidders who commit fraud!!
[ edited by ironking on Feb 14, 2003 02:29 AM ]
posted on February 14, 2003 06:18:05 AM new
with zero inflation,that 75 bucks can buy a lot more.
the problem is he filed chargeback with his cc issuer and he won.
dc does not mean anything in a chargeback dispute,sometimes ups or fed exp signature means nothing either.
posted on February 14, 2003 07:23:28 AM new
Why do you say the buyer has "won" already ? Present the facts to half again and kindly but directly state that you want paid. It may take some time, but you should get your money back.
posted on February 14, 2003 07:48:25 AM new
Why do people sell on half.com when you hear these horror stories. Granted there aren't that many but 1 to me is 1 to many. Is it better selling there than on eBay? It seems like there the buyer is always right even if you have proof that they aren't. I don't like those odds. Good Luck Ironking
posted on February 14, 2003 08:08:31 AM new
I would contact the buyer, and tell them that you have proof the item was delivered, and unless they reverse the chargeback, you will be contacting the US Postal Service and start a postal fraud investigation. Tell them also you will contact their local police department to file a fraud/theft complaint as well. You may also want to consider a small claims lawsuit. These threats might be enough, it is certainly worth a try.
For what it is worth, I had a very strange problem with half.com that was resolved successfully (from my perspective) where the address half gave me was not the person who actually purchased the item from me, but from the customer on ebay of the person who purchased it from me (told you it was strange) - Their customer contacted me because of a damaged item, and of course I had their info on file. Anyway, half.com actually called me and this worked out in my favor, but the best part is that they left a message, and I now have the direct phone number for an employee at half should a problem arise.
posted on February 14, 2003 08:11:31 AM new
I used to sell on half.com until people started listing books at 25 cents or 99 cents...it wasn't worth the trouble in my opinion
posted on February 14, 2003 08:19:29 AM new
Buyers can get screwed on half, too. I had a buyer that said book wasn't received. She waited too long to respond to half. They had marked the sale completed and there was nothing else she could do through their pathetic help system. I refunded her money directly, but if I hadn't she would have been SOL.
posted on February 14, 2003 09:01:30 AM new
reamond,the reason i said the buyer has won is because his cc issuer has reversed the charge.
a dc is no proof of delivery to the buyer,i have received packages with dc in my post office box meant for other p o box.
on amzn marketplace amzn eats the loss -under buyer satisfaction guarantee program,if the seller can produce the usps receipt showing he has shipped to that zipcode,amzn eats the loss.
with paypal ,dc is good proof and paypal eats the loss.
so what does half do with a situation like that??
posted on February 14, 2003 09:03:13 AM new
using dc as a proof that he has received the book is not effective,usps worker is known to misplace items in wrong boxes.the only proof is his signature.
posted on February 14, 2003 09:56:11 AM new
It looks to me that you have legal right to take the buyer to court. I don't think that you can do anything to half.com. You haveoof that it was delivered.
posted on February 14, 2003 10:04:50 AM new
DC i.e., Delivery Confirmation, is proof of delivery. But in the future, insure rather than use DC.
The crux of the credit card charge back is that the item was not received. DC is evidence otherwise.
If half or the credit card company refuse to accept DC as proof of delivery, I would pursue it with the Postal Service. The Postal Service has an interest in DC being accepted as proof of delivery, after all that is the purpose of the service.
posted on February 14, 2003 05:57:47 PM new
mypostman does not ask me to sign on item delivered with dc.but she carries a device which scans it at my doorstep,so it is scanned twice-at the post office and when delivered to my door.
but back to credit card issuer,they dont give a bla bla bla about dc,sometimes they dont give a bla bla bla on ups or fed exp signature either or any signature.the argument is that internet sales,there is no swiping of the card and no signature at purchase.
the only way to do it is like the bestbuy and compusa,they ask for your photo id and then compare your face with the photo and the name of the photo id with the credit card name.
posted on February 14, 2003 05:59:14 PM new
we dont get enough for shipping a book on amzn or half,to protect yourself on an expensive book,add insurance as well as dc.
posted on February 14, 2003 09:52:00 PM new
ahc3, I think ironking should follow your advice and file mail fraud with the post office and fraud/theft with the police department.
I don't want to get off topic, but right now I am putting paperwork together to file similar complaints. Ahc3, since you mentioned the police, have you had any experience filing such a complaint? Has anyone who is reading this topic?
I ask because for all of us, when we need to try to get our money back, the opposite party is normally many states away. One friend had success with writing the postmaster of the zip code of the person who committed the fraud, and asked for an investigation. He wrote a detailed letter and provided supporting documentation. A postal investigation was opened, and the other party paid him back.
But, filing the complaint with the police department, is that the same process or does each police department require a special form? Do the police do anything at all when they receive a complaint? Has anyone had any success or know of anyone who had success going through this process with the police?
posted on February 14, 2003 10:33:09 PM new
Although I have not had to do this yet, I would go to my local police department and speak to the watch commander to try to get his assistance with an AOA ( assist other agency ) report. You will ultimately have to submit a report to the PD in the deadbeats home town, it's possible your PD can take the report and forward it to them. Not all police departments will do this but it's worth a try. Otherwise, get on the phone and call the other PD and see what they require to file a report.
The light at the end of the tunnel will turn out to be an oncoming train.
[ edited by sparkz on Feb 14, 2003 10:34 PM ]
posted on February 15, 2003 05:51:41 AM new
a friend of mine ordered some books from e r hamilton and for some snafu reason,the check bounced after books were shipped.but he corrected the problem.
but e r hamilton notified the usps on bad check and my friend received one copy of notification from the usps and another copy from local police.
the local police will add its own letter and attached it to the usps copy.
so he has to inform both parties the issue was resolved.
you may want to check with usps to see if it is necessary to write the local police or they do it for you.
ironking case is different than customer writing rubber check,it is a case of disputed non delivery,dc itself is just not strong enough evidence to prove the customer has the goods.
[ edited by stopwhining on Feb 15, 2003 05:53 AM ]
posted on February 15, 2003 06:45:14 AM new
DC DOES NOT REQUIRE SIGNATURE FOR DELIVERY...
AND BASED ON THAT, TO WHOM WAS THE ITEM DELIVERED? THAT WILL BE THE STICKING POINT, UNLESS THIS PERSON IS MAKING THIS A HABIT WITH OTHER SELLERS, I HIGHLY DOUBT ANYTHING WILL HAPPEN.
