L_at_@K! RARE -- 2 EBAY SELLERS CONVICTED ....

From: Jerome Fine <jhfine_at_idirect.com>
Date: Wed Apr 18 09:06:22 2001

Jeff Hellige wrote:
It is possible though to get some good deals, especially on
non-classic computer stuff, on eBay. Not to mention that many of the
sellers are very reputable. I doubt the number of bad eggs,
percentage wise, is any worse than going to flea markets and such.
At least with eBay there is some recourse if there's a problem with
another user, which isn't always the case with flea markets. I know
I check a sellers feedback very carefully, as do most people. One's
feedback rating makes a big difference.

Jerome Fine replies:

I agree that there are both good not not so good experiences with eBay,
but on average, I have been quite satisfied. Of the few times I have
actually bid, I usually wait until the last minute since the first few times
I bid, I was always overbid. Of the fewer times I was the top (only)
bidder, the most difficult part of one transaction was the payment - the
vendor had stated that Master Card was accepted, but did not qualify
that BillPay (or one of the other services was also required) and I was
not able to do so since I am not in the US. After many e-mails back
and forth, I ended up sending a US Money Order, but I found that the
attitude that I had made the mistake the most annoying.

Also interesting is that 90% of the items actually work even though the
conditions of sale were always "AS IS".

The best situation I found was for an auction that I did not win. The fellow
had stated that additional (magneto optical) disks would be available to
the winning bidder. I sent an e-mail just in case and I ended up buying
many more than I really can use because the price was so low - although
the shipping was expensive since the disks are so heavy.

So, overall, I assume that eBay is likely to have a few rotten apples, but
then again, some of them will be the buyers in addition to the vendors.

Sincerely yours,

Jerome Fine
Received on Wed Apr 18 2001 - 09:06:22 BST