PayPal Buyer Protection Policy-Hardball Seller - Advice

inotkaayo on 03/02/2017 - 10:43
Last edited 08/02/2017 - 18:17

Greetings Ozbargain Community,

Like the rest of you , I am addicted to online shopping especially ebay specials.
My concerns are of paypal protection policies, and the buyer protection in general.

Last year, I bought a Camping tent on ebay from a seller in Brisbane. 32 days after usage, the tent
broke. Since ebay returns only cover 30 days, I communicated with the seller thru emails and called numerous times on the phone. The exchange went for a month with just excuses on delays and no definite response from seller.

I got so frustrated that I raise a paypal complaint. Next day , I got a call from the owner of the shop advising me to ship the item back to them for evaluation w/c I did. The seller was very prompt in answering my emails . After a week they got back to me and said that Coleman Australia had void my warranty because of misuse and I have to fork out $160 to have it repaired. I emailed him that I need the official statement from coleman on their findings. But I got no reply. Paypal escaltion advised me that they will now close my complaint unless I escalated the case to a claim. Since I didnt get any response from the seller, I escalated the case and waited for 2 weeks on paypal's decision. Verdict came : Unfortunately we cannot cover you for buyer protection since the item broke after use which is a warranty claim. Paypal buyer protection only covers you if the item is damaged when it arrived.I should communicate with the buyer to get resolution with the case.

Weeks after Chirstmas period, I talked the owner by phone who promised to give me details on how to proceed with out of warranty repairs, this is also followed up by emails. Guess what. I get the same treatment the first time - Promises and excuses. In my last email I asked him for contact details for manufacturer so I can deal with them directly.

I am from Victoria so cant go to the store personally. The store is legitimate with its on website: http://www.outbackadventures.net.au/ and facebook site getting 4.7 out of 5 customer review.

It looks like the seller is playing hardball and want me to go thru all the hassles. Its frustrating as a consumer.

What would be your advise for this situation.

EDIT:

3/2/2017 - The seller didnt give me an invoice for the purchase, I had contacted Coleman Australia thru their website and they asked for the invoice. They will give me a response by next week.

6/2/2017 - called Coleman Australia to follow-up, A customer rep advised me to contact the seller as they do not handle out-of warranty repairs.( the poles are not covered under warranty ) . They re-iterated from their website : If you have a question regarding a warranty or return you must take the product back to the place of purchase .

Since the issue is not deemed with regards to manufacturing defects they are basically hands-off ;(

I also asked the rep if they could give me the report regarding the findings. The rep was not willing to give it to me nor give the contact number for the Coleman inspector. Again I should get it from the seller.

8/2/2017 - Called seller and cleared the situation . Raised a report for ACCC against the manufacturer / distributor. This is my last card.

thank you for all your comments and suggestions, Mods you can archive this thread.

General Discussion

Comments

  • holdenmg on 03/02/2017 - 10:59

    What is the nature of the problem that renders the tent broken or unusable?

  • [Deactivated] on 03/02/2017 - 11:08
    +4

    What would be your advise for this situation.

    Bikies.

    • inotkaayo on 03/02/2017 - 11:17

      thats a bit harsh for a $400 transaction ;)

      • Baysew on 03/02/2017 - 11:26
        +7

        Bikie.

  • Calmago on 03/02/2017 - 11:18
    +1

    Your problem, isn't really with the seller, it's the manufacture. Your product is covered under a warranty, which has been sent back, evaluated and deemed misused.

    I do a substantial amount of camping and i've been in some pretty shitty conditions. You must have been in a cyclone to claim the poles snapped in winds. Your more likely to crush them as they are made of fibreglass.

    • inotkaayo on 03/02/2017 - 11:25

      The weather was just 40- 45kph on a Mallacoota beachfront camping.

      I thought of that too, but when the seller doesn't reply to my emails and refuse to send the report from the manufacturer, I had doubts.

      In my last email follow-up , I asked for them to send me the manufacturer contact , so I can deal with them directly- ;(

    • ronnknee on 03/02/2017 - 12:00
      +3

      Exactly this.

      Did you receive the item? Yes.

      Is the item as described? Yes.

      Now, OP might say that "No, the item is not as described because it broke after using it". However the intent of that assessment is to check if it's a genuine product and brand new (which would've been yes to both).

      OP should stop taking it out on the seller since he has already provided a repair option. OP should deal with the manufacturer directly.

      • inotkaayo on 03/02/2017 - 12:59

        The seller advised me about the repair but no details on how to pay, etc.
        when on the phone. He keeps promising to send me the details on email.

  • godofpizza on 03/02/2017 - 13:25
    +1

    doesn't the tent have a 1 year warranty from the manufacturer?

  • djkelly69 on 03/02/2017 - 13:28
    +4

    Sounds like eBay/PayPal is spot - the issue is a warranty claim, nothing to do with the purchase/sale process which they are involved in.

    • inotkaayo on 03/02/2017 - 14:23

      I do partially agree. I asked paypal to give me a trascript of the email exchaged as I will add it as evidence for logging a dispute in Consumer affairs victoria. Paypal wouldnt give it to me for legal reasons.

  • alteyez on 04/02/2017 - 01:50

    This isnt exactly under ebay/paypal warranty at all and should be brought under manufacturer warranty not the seller.

    If you received the items and they were as described then that's the seller's job done you trying to raise a dispute via paypal to get a chargeback if anything you're basically trying to steal from the seller and I'm very happy that paypal refused your dispute.

    Why not just reach out to Coleman Australia directly atm seems like you're just using the seller as a middleman.

    • inotkaayo on 04/02/2017 - 08:18

      Noted, I had updated the topic tile. Ebay returns.

      I dont get what you mean Im trying to steal from the seller. Read my post - it means unresponsive seller. only respond when I escalted the case to paypal.
      When paypal closed the case sugeesting to communicate with the selller. The seller is back to its usual ways. He doesnt even give me the report or give me
      the contact for Coleman australia - Brisbane to verify the report.

      • Ughhh on 04/02/2017 - 08:31

        So you haven't even tried googling Coleman's website for contact details yourself?…..

        • inotkaayo on 04/02/2017 - 08:32

          Did that. See EDITED: row

  • wasdw246 on 04/02/2017 - 17:24

    Gladiolus

  • minniethemoocher on 04/02/2017 - 20:35
    +1

    You should be able to print out the order from eBay for the tent for Coleman.

    • inotkaayo on 06/02/2017 - 16:17

      Got the update. Just as what I was suspecting, coleman australia doesnt have anything to do with my case… brushed me off and advised to contact the seller instead.

      Back to square one…

      • minniethemoocher on 06/02/2017 - 18:13

        Can you buy new poles?

        • inotkaayo on 07/02/2017 - 07:40

          Good question…But unfortunately not. The fibreglass poles is integrated to the instant up frame - new model.

  • razorack999 on 07/02/2017 - 07:58
    +2

    Its bad luck plain and simple. How was the seller to know that the tent would be fine for 31 days usage and then fail- in relatively high winds. You chose to save money via purchasing on ebay, and then when something goes wrong you want the primo service from the seller that you would have presumably got had you paid a higher price that would cover this situation.
    IMO the seller has absolutely no case to answer. Your problem is with the manufacturer, and predictably, they are walking away due to the nature of the transaction involving ebay and 3rd person.
    It is stories like this that help you, me and others, to pause and reflect before they buy on ebay. There is no such thing as a free lunch.

    • inotkaayo on 08/02/2017 - 13:00
      -1

      Are you saying that it is ill advised to buy on ebay or when its on special., if so does the seller know that the merchandise was bought for less so that might explain the cold treatment ?

      There is always a risk when buying online. you cant take that away. My thoughts here is how are we protected as a buyer.

      • razorack999 on 08/02/2017 - 13:09
        +1

        Its not the job of the retailer to fix anything under warranty period. The responsibility always rests with the manufacturer.If purchasing goods on an auction site somehow invalidates the warranty on the goods, then that is the risk that we all take when buying online/ebay.
        Ebay have of course a vested interest in making sure that you have your hesitation in buying with them, minimised via buyer protection statements. But like everything on Ebay its a bit of a charade.

        • inotkaayo on 08/02/2017 - 18:24

          The purchase is not auction , Its for a brand new item on ebay special last year 15% sitewide. Anyway, that wouldnt make any difference to the seller or me. Thanks for your comments…got the picture now

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