For those who don't care to/need to hear the details, from my experience I would warn people to avoid doing business with the eBay seller previouslylovedjewelry. So, the story: I see a watch they've listed, follow it for a few days, and there are no bids. I reach out, ask the questions I have. This was an auction with a higher starting price, I ask if he's open to an offer or if he'd just like to let the auction play out. He says sure to an offer. I submit an offer, he declines it then says he'd accept an offer at the starting price, since no one has bid yet. I think on it, then finally agree. It's late night at this point, so I ask him to message me in the morning (with a time given) when he's ready to change it to the buy it now price we agreed to and I would be ready to purchase immediately. Earlier than discussed I am up and see a message from him saying he has relisted the watch and that I should make the offer we agreed on an he would accept it. Hmmm... offer? Not buy it now? First sign something is off. I check the listing and he has indeed relisted it, at $1000 more than we agreed to... but with the option to make an offer. So I make the offer of the price we agreed to... and he immediately declines the offer. With a message saying "it would look strange on eBay if I accepted an offer so low." Um... WHAT NOW?! I message back saying he could accept any offer he wants and that that is the price we agreed on. Then he says since relisting he has received a few offers higher than that price, and now wants more money or he's going to sell to someone else. I am less than impressed, but want the watch so agree to come up a small amount. He keeps declining offers, saying he has even higher offers, now wants even more than the higher offer he had originally changed our deal to. I'm done. Tell him this is bad business. Two days pass, I see the watch IS STILL LISTED. Hmmm... I message, say that the difference between the price we agreed to and the other offer he claims he had and wanted me to pay, after fees, was only about $250 and that that, in my opinion, is a small amount of money to go back on someone's word over (YES, I could have just paid the difference, but would you have after that bait and switch?!) No responses back, and now the listing has been pulled... listed as "no longer available." So what happened to those other higher offers you ask? Me too. Me too. Long way of saying: avoid.
Perhaps one of the higher offers bought it? Completely un-gentlemanly way of doing business but not necessarily a scam by any means.
That is pretty bad. In my case, at the first sign of something off, I just walk out (no mattering what is the watch).
Ah the good old "I have higher offers" but that doesn't mean jack $h*t. I'm here right now ready to buy, your "higher offers" are just that, offers. People do the same crap with cars.
The listing has been ended because it's no longer available. So not listed as sold on eBay, therefore it didn't go to a higher bid, at least on eBay. And I agree, not a scam which is why I never used that word, but I do believe after an agreement there was an attempt to extract more money out of the deal. So definitely un-gentlemanly, and if that's the way business is conducted, I would then distrust other things like "genuine" or "in good working condition."
This is why we say, “Buy the Seller”. In this case, you were lucky and got your answer about the seller before any money changed hands. gatorcpa
Yep agree the guy sounds like a prick, but it may still be a genuine sale. On my eBay app sold items show as "item is mo longer available". No buy it nows show as "sold".
Absolutely. And he has great feedback, which is the only reason I considered the deal in the first place. And another reason I was surprised he would act like this over a few hundred bucks. Oh well, on to the next one!
Never said it was a scam. But yes, annoying and bad business, so someone who should be avoided by other watch buyers.
But why warn people about doing business with him? You did not actually do business with him. I understand your frustration with his poor behavior, but he did not scam or cheat you.
I agree that the title of the thread is over-dramatic relative to the actual story. If we started a "warning, warning" thread every time someone wasted our time with sketchy behavior - the forum would be over-run.
I've passed on eBay items for similar reasons having more to do with obnoxiousness than price or legitimacy. A few months ago, I was the high bidder ($23.50) on a bracelet for one of my wife's Dynamics, but the item didn't sell because the seller had set a reserve price. So I asked him what he was looking to get for it and he responded $75. I offered him $65 and suggested that was already almost 3x the highest actual bid and he refused. My highest bid had actually been $80 originally, but it just irritated me that he wouldn't take $65 for an item that wouldn't have even drawn $23 without my bid. He then relisted it at $90 with a Best Offer option and refused my offer of $70. He didn't do anything dishonest, but it just irritated me. About a month later, I found a nicer one listed and bought it for a dollar and change plus $15 shipping from the UK. No other bidders.
When I hear or read the phrase “I have a higher offer” my response usually is: congrats, great for you. And our hero is riding into the sunset........