Need some more eBay advice...

[Aussie2B]

... because I always seem to get 0 feedback bidders who don't know what they're doing. x_x Here's the situation this time:

I sell a fairly valuable game on eBay, and the bidder sends me a credit card PayPal payment... even though I state in my auction terms that I don't accept them. This has happened lots of times before (if only people were smart enough to read the details of what they're buying...), and it has almost always worked out well after I send an email explaining the problem. However, this time I send an email, wait a few days with no response, send another email directly through eBay this time, and I finally get a response a day later. It basically says "That's the only way I can pay. Relist the auction." In other words, I was totally brushed off. I respond listing all the possible options I can accept, explaining that they are very simple. Wait a few more days, no response. Again I question if the bidder is actually receiving the emails that are sent straight from my email account, so I send out another eBay message stating that I can accept a credit card PayPal payment with my boyfriend's PayPal account (which is something I've never done before, but I just wanted to get the transaction over with). It's been a few days, and still no response. Out of curiosity, I check the bidder's recent bidding history, and I see that they purchased another copy of the same game a day or two after I sent the last email. I think it's pretty apparent that I'm being ignored at this point.

The funny thing is... I still have the credit card payment sitting in my PayPal account, waiting to be accepted or denied. I'm really getting fed up with having this problem with my bidders. I can't possibly make the text about not accepting credit card payments more obvious in my auctions, so I think I should just bite the bullet and upgrade my account. I'm thinking I should upgrade to accept the payment. I'm guessing the bidder won't be happy about it, but tough luck. It'll teach them that winning an item on eBay is an obligation to complete a transaction and you can't just brush off a seller. I don't want to steal, of course, so I'll definitely send the item. If the seller doesn't want it, that's what eBay is for, buying and selling. If they leave negative feedback, I'll just leave the same explaining how the bidder handled this transaction. And if they try anything funny, I'll make sure to ship it out with a delivery confirmation to prove that it did arrive at the bidder's location.

So... any flaws in this idea? I believe I have the right to do this as a seller, and if I was the bidder, I'd be unhappy to receive two copies but I'd accept it as my fault. At no point did I tell the bidder that I was going to cancel the transaction, so I never misled them. What do you guys think?

[imanerd0011]

I think you are doing everything just fine. Accept his payment and send the game out. It's his stupid fault for buying the same game twice.
I don't sell on Ebay (only buy), but I would advice in not letting people with under 10 feedback bid on your auctions. It seems that most of the time when someone gets screwed, it's by some newbie.

[lurpak]

make sure you get proof of posting.
accept the payment. the money is yours anyway.
the game is his.

[Vroomfunkel]

Technically they have entered into a legally binding agreement to purchase the game from you. So, as long as you send the game there is no problem with accepting the payment.

However, I would advise sending the item by a trackable, signed for service - otherwise you may find that they file a Paypal charge-back against you, and if you cannot prove not only that you posted the item, but also that they received it, then you may well lose the money. All they have to do is lie and say that it never arrived - and given their track record so far, this does not seem unlikely.

Vroomfunkel

[jonjandran]

The only Flaw I see is that you will be charged for every transaction from now on if you upgrade your account.

No more free Pay-Pal. :/

[8bitnes]

Paypal allows a one-time reversion back to a non-credit card accepting account. All you have to do is ask and it takes less than 24 hours to complete the process. So I would accept this payment, send the item and revert back if that's what you would like to do.

[Aussie2B]

However, I would advise sending the item by a trackable, signed for service - otherwise you may find that they file a Paypal charge-back against you, and if you cannot prove not only that you posted the item, but also that they received it, then you may well lose the money. All they have to do is lie and say that it never arrived - and given their track record so far, this does not seem unlikely.

That's the only thing I'm worried about. Would a delivery confirmation be enough or should I get a tracking number too? Or are they one in the same? I usually send packages the cheapest way possible, so this is all new to me. o_O If I pay for a delivery confirmation, how will I be confirmed of its delivery?

[16-bit]

However, I would advise sending the item by a trackable, signed for service - otherwise you may find that they file a Paypal charge-back against you, and if you cannot prove not only that you posted the item, but also that they received it, then you may well lose the money. All they have to do is lie and say that it never arrived - and given their track record so far, this does not seem unlikely.

That's the only thing I'm worried about. Would a delivery confirmation be enough or should I get a tracking number too? Or are they one in the same? I usually send packages the cheapest way possible, so this is all new to me. o_O If I pay for a delivery confirmation, how will I be confirmed of its delivery?

Delivery confirmation is not tracking. Paypal is fine with it as long as it is under $250. Over $250 you need signature confirmation.