eCRATER.com Forum Index

SearchSearch
ProfileProfile
  Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   
Log inLog in

Can a disgruntled buyer shut down your store?

 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    eCRATER.com Forum Index -> Suspended Stores
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
collectioncompleters



Posts: 2

PostPosted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 5:49 pm    Post subject: Can a disgruntled buyer shut down your store? Reply with quote

I had a very unique & unfortunate turn of effects take place recently. I list sports cards for sale & also use other sites such as eBay & eBid. Yesterday, I had a particular card that sold on eBay with the buyer using the Buy It Now option. Before I noticed the sale (as we can't watch our PC 24/7), less than an hour later, a seller went onto my eCrater store & submitted an order for the same exact card.

I contacted the eCrater buyer & advised them that unfortunately I would not be able to process their transaction as the item is no longer available. The PayPal payment actually never went through as the buyer was using an unconfirmed address so PayPal held up the payment. I just simply denied it.

I now have received an email from the buyer stating that what I did was wrong (although if I were to have sold the card to him & turned away the eBay buyer then I definitely would have violated eBay's terms AND did the exact same thing to that buyer that this eCrater buyer is complaining about). He is saying that he is going to contact eCrater to get my store shut down. Is this something I should be concerned with? I do not believe that I did anything wrong.

Any advise would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
cosmicray



Posts: 7286

PostPosted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 6:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is the danger that can happen when you have a low quantity (e.g. one) of an item, and try to offer it on multiple sites. There is no easy answer. Possibly the best way to approach this (assuming you want to continue taking the risk) is to put something in your terms that says that items are subject to prior sale elsewhere, and will be removed within 24 hours of such a sale occurring. That may still violate the ToS here, but this kind of situation comes with the risk inherent.

A side question... do you have any indication that the buyer here may have been a losing bidder over on eBay ? It's always possible that someone knew about the availability in both places, and used eCRATER as a hedge against losing an auction on eBay. And then it turns out the both offering were in fact the same single unit. Oopps.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
collectioncompleters



Posts: 2

PostPosted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 7:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

cosmicray wrote:
A side question... do you have any indication that the buyer here may have been a losing bidder over on eBay ? It's always possible that someone knew about the availability in both places, and used eCRATER as a hedge against losing an auction on eBay. And then it turns out the both offering were in fact the same single unit. Oopps.


No, these are definitely two different buyers. I guess my concern was two-fold. Of course I'm worried about my status on eCrater, but also I was concerned about any ethical violations as a seller. I really do try to do what's right by my buyers, but I was really stuck between a rock & a hard place. I felt that the buyer who purchased the item, thus starting a transaction first, had rights to that item.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
MaggietheCatsMeows



Posts: 2853

PostPosted: Tue Jun 05, 2012 9:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I don't think one complaining buyer can shut you down since you have canceled the sale and no money changed hands. Every once in a while a trouble maker comes along and makes threats etc. You do not have any feedback as a track record however.

In all probability the disappointed buyer will not follow through.

When I looked at your store I noticed you have very lengthy legalistic terms. They sound like the terms of a drop shipper as you refer to rights to use your site. This is not your site. It belongs to eCRATER so you cannot ban anyone from using it. Also you state you reserve the right to change things without notice.

If you are not a drop shipper you need to write your own terms that laymen can understand.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
MoonwishesStore
moderator


Posts: 17389

PostPosted: Wed Jun 06, 2012 8:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
I contacted the eCrater buyer & advised them that unfortunately I would not be able to process their transaction as the item is no longer available. The PayPal payment actually never went through as the buyer was using an unconfirmed address so PayPal held up the payment. I just simply denied it.


One, there was no need to contact ecrater about this. Two, since you did not receive payment via PP or any other source if I'm reading this correctly, you never had a sale in the first place and so the 'non-paying buyer' doesn't have a leg to stand on in any case.

As the other posters mentioned this is one of the problems of having the same inventory on more than one site. If the payment had gone through, ethically the first paid order should have been shipped and the other buyer get a sorry email, but in this case, only one person paid and in that you were fortunate. Your problem person can't even leave you feedback, so most certainly can't shut down your store.

Uness you showed a huge amount of canceled sales due to being out of stock on items, I doubt that ecrater would actually interfer although you can get suspended if you are showing sold stock in your store--note the operative word is suspended not shut down. Suspended stores are given the chance to fix the problems and then ecrater will reopen the store. But you have to be very careful about selling something on the other site and maintaining your invenotry here.
Back to top
View seller's profile Send private message Visit seller's eCRATER store
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    eCRATER.com Forum Index -> Suspended Stores
Page 1 of 1

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum