eBay - buyers beware no real protection from bad sellers

I have used eBay to sell my used lenses and decided recently to purchase a Nikon lens that is no longer in production from an eBay seller. When I received the lens I realized immediately that it had been exposed to a lot of water for an extended period of time - long enough to destroy the outer covering of the lens case. This was not disclosed by the eBay seller. When the seller refused to take it back and provide a refund I fell into the eBay trap.

eBay does provides only $200 protection for buyers UNLESS:

.....items are only eligible for PayPal Buyer Protection up to $2,000.00 USD (Top Tier Coverage Amount) and should be identified as eligible items in the eBay listing if:

1. sellers eBay feedback rating is at least 50;
2. At least 98% of the sellers eBay feedback is positive;

3. The seller has a Verified Premier or Verified Business Account in good standing;

4. The listing was on an eligible eBay site (eBay.com and certain other eBay sites self identified as such)
5. PayPal is listed as an acceptable payment method;

So unless you buy from an eBay merchant, your coverage is at best $200. With disputes the buyer has to initiate a claim on PayPal. There is no way to file a grievance with eBay so the seller is able to continue to sell defective merchandise. Even the $2000 coverage from an eBay Merchant is valid ONLY if the merchant has a 98% positive feedback rating, which means very few merchant transactions are really covered.

With PayPal a buyer with a dispute must use one of the online forms on the PayPal website, and then wait for 30 days to hear back from PayPal. If they refuse to get involved then you are back to dealing with your credit card company's dispute process. If you linked your PayPal account to your checking account then you are really out of luck and have to take the loss.

Item 5 from the eBay website is rather humorous in that eBay forces sellers to allow buyers to accept PayPal payments, with PayPal of course wholly owned by eBay. It may be legal but it certainly is not ethical conduct, but then monopolies don't really need to worry about legality or ethical conduct.

There is no mechanism to publicly air grievances with a seller on eBay so in the future any photo gear I buy will not be from eBay sellers but from people on Fred Miranda or Craig's List or from merchants with a long track record such as Berger Brothers or B&H.

out of interest, what is a "lens case" in this context? was the lens itself OK? if so, then you haven't got a problem, have you?

interesting post. i figure i'm taking my chances when i buy on ebay and i always suspected that the "purchase protection" wasn't worth much, but so far -- touch wood -- i haven't run into an out-and-out crook and have managed to negotiate resolutions with sellers when problems have arisen. having said that, i haven't bought anything really expensive (and probably wouldn't).

montereyphoto said:

When I received the lens I realized immediately that it had
been exposed to a lot of water for an extended period of time - long
enough to destroy the outer covering of the lens case.

Click to expand...

--
my web albums:
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/theabsurdman
http://www.flickr.com/photos/74185915@N00/

Look, I'm going to break it down for you into 2 points.

1) If you buy off ebay, expect it to be junk.
2) If you are confused, see #1.

People have quality issues buying used from Adorama and B&H. Why would you IN YOUR WILDEST DREAMS believe that someone you do not know has any idea in the world about how to judge lens quality?

In the imortal words of my ex-boss, "you're smoking the good stuff".

Wake up.

I have bought and sold over 400 items on eBay and the items are not junk!

I have saved almost 50% on Nikon equipment that was just as new.

There are some bad people in eBay and the newbie on eBay can and will get duped but not if you know what you are doing.

Everyone must remember that all the rules and protection favors eBay and PayPal not the buyer or seller. You GOT to follow their rules to the letter of risk loosing your a$$

--
Greg Gebhardt in
Jacksonville, Florida

You do take your chances, however, I've been pretty forunate that I've gotten 4 great used lenses over the past couple of years off ebay at a significant savings. The pro level lenses I've bought have all been from reputable sellers, and purchased brand new. Luck? Perhaps to some degree, but you just have to exercise some caution. Bad things still can happen, but minimize the risks....
--
http://www.warrenlophotography.com

yeah, that sounds plausible in a jaded sort of way but it doesn't work out like that in practice. most ebayers are honest and lenses are a reasonably safe purchase if you do your research, read between the lines of the ad, email the seller any questions and use your common sense. i've bought about a dozen so far and haven't been stiffed yet.

gevalia said:

Look, I'm going to break it down for you into 2 points.

1) If you buy off ebay, expect it to be junk.
2) If you are confused, see #1.

People have quality issues buying used from Adorama and B&H. Why
would you IN YOUR WILDEST DREAMS believe that someone you do not know
has any idea in the world about how to judge lens quality?

In the imortal words of my ex-boss, "you're smoking the good stuff".

Wake up.

Click to expand...

--
my web albums:
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/theabsurdman
http://www.flickr.com/photos/74185915@N00/

1) If you buy off ebay, expect it to be junk.

montereyphoto said:

2) If you are confused, see #1.

Click to expand...

I am agreed !!! in fact i already stop buying anything from ebay for long time after being burnt couple time.
"Fool me once , shame on you !
Fool me twice shame on me "

The modal of Ebay is base on "TRUST" and " Honnesty" !!! No offend to those folks in here who say they are honest !! but i can't take it unless i see it

By the way as someone say " excelent condition" which is maybe to them but to me look like trash !! so we can not argue about that

I have sold lenses on eBay. As a professional photographer I know what a sharp lens is and convey that when true. I also have bought some of my lenses on eBay and have so far been very happy with the prices and quality of the items. Is there a risk purchasing there. Yes, but for me it is a risk worth taking.
Richard
--
Equipment: 1 camera, 1 lens, 37 years

If you're not careful and smart about your ebay dealings, you can be burned easily. Even if you are smart and careful, you can still be burned, but at least you minimize your chances. Just like if you blind fold yourself and then cross the street, it doesn't necessarily make crossing the street a bad thing. Just be smart.
--
http://www.warrenlophotography.com

I don't know how much your lens is worth but you can sue the person directly (or at least threaten to). My understanding is that eBay will give you their address so you can go directly after the seller (assuming they are a verified seller, which is the only type I ever buy from).

When I buy something expensive on eBay I always ask the seller for their address and telephone number and call them at their home. If they refuse to give this out then I don't pay. I've never had a seller not give me their telephone number and I've had many buyers ask me for mine as well. Talking to someone on the telephone can expose a lot of things.

Rich H

if you go looking for the 'bargain of the century' then you will surely find plenty of crooked dealers just happy to take your money, wherever!

I have 5 years of selling and buying on ebay under my belt and have had just the single dodgy purchase (I was scammed out of £300 in my first 3mths of ebay membership, it taught me a lot) - in the early days it was 'absolute bargains' that I went after but soon found out that for the most part these just don't exist, persue them and you often get what you paid for!

Just like the bloke recently trying to sell me the new AF-S 500f4 VR for £3750 - a bargain he said, yeah right!
--
Mark