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#1
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Anyone heard of Ebuyer? Returns advice
X-No-archive: yes
I am sitting here smelling the coffee mulling over a problem, that my friend has just about got over, wondering if there may not still be someone with a useful last ditch suggestion. My friend asked her husband to buy her an item from Ebuyer for christmas which he dutifully did. Unfortunately I had been unable to find the item on ebuyer due to Ebuyers misspelling. I did come a cross the item just after he had ordered and realised it may not have the required spec. I left a message on her phone to the effect about which she did nothing. If my call had been returned I would have urged him/her to send a cancelling e-mail in case they did decided to DSR the item. Suffice to say they waited until after christmas (maybe twenty days after purchase), found the spec was under requirement. They spent about well over £300 with Ebuyer of which this item was £150. They asked if they can return this unopened item at their own cost and purchase the next model up (for around £180) instead. They have not received a helpful response. I guess that is the end of the matter unless the item turns out to be faulty or unless someone has a suggestion. I am not sure of the exact correspondence, just that nothing useful has come of it. Ebuyer obviously took the marketing option over xmas not to act like many high st stores, and the likes of Amazon, with respect to extended returns periods. My friend was a bit naive and ignorant and has paid the price. BUT it does seem daft that Ebuyer be so willing to lose a customer and gain further negative references when the option to upgrade the item at the customers cost would have had a very different result and promoted positive feedback. I'm sure this isn't the first or even the thousandth time that Ebuyer have been accused of needlessly being their own worst enemy wrt customer relations. The items sells on Ebay for around £140 inc delivery and the replacement can be sourced from elsewhere cheaper than Ebuyer so the loss may not be too bad, just annoying and inconvenient. |
#2
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Phöènix wrote:
...twenty days after purchase ... asked if they can return this unopened item at their own cost and purchase the next model up (for around £180) instead. They have not received a helpful response. Let me guess, they used enotes? ebuyer have an automated returns page - not enotes. http://makeashorterlink.com/?Q14923657 If you use the right tool, you'll get better results... -- Mike |
#3
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Mike Redrobe wrote:
Phöènix wrote: ...twenty days after purchase ... asked if they can return this unopened item at their own cost and purchase the next model up (for around £180) instead. They have not received a helpful response. Let me guess, they used enotes? ebuyer have an automated returns page - not enotes. http://makeashorterlink.com/?Q14923657 If you use the right tool, you'll get better results... Thanks, I have passed that on. Looks to me as if they will probably have to take a hit on the re-stocking fee in which case they will go elsewhere for the replacement and steer well clear of EB in future. Similar reaction to many people new to online buying I guess. |
#4
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"Phöènix" mindyouownbusiness wrote in message ... Looks to me as if they will probably have to take a hit on the re-stocking fee Maybe ebuyer should pilot a 'try before you buy scheme' where punters can purchase any items and return them within 3 months unused at no cost. With the huge margins available on IT components, its sure to be a winner. g. |
#5
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Fat Freddy's Cat wrote:
|| "Phöènix" mindyouownbusiness wrote in message || ... ||| ||| Looks to me as if they will probably have to take a hit on the ||| re-stocking fee || || Maybe ebuyer should pilot a 'try before you buy scheme' where || punters can purchase any items and return them within 3 months || unused at no cost. || || With the huge margins available on IT components, its sure to be a || winner. || || g. Maybe you shouldn't have to pay for the item until you are fully satisfied either. |
#6
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R D S wrote:
Fat Freddy's Cat wrote: || "Phöènix" mindyouownbusiness wrote in message || ... ||| ||| Looks to me as if they will probably have to take a hit on the ||| re-stocking fee || || Maybe ebuyer should pilot a 'try before you buy scheme' where || punters can purchase any items and return them within 3 months || unused at no cost. || || With the huge margins available on IT components, its sure to be a || winner. || || g. Maybe you shouldn't have to pay for the item until you are fully satisfied either. How about they send an engineer to fit it, you don't pay until the next model comes along, they upgrade to that model at no extra cost. Of course the engineer will be on call 24 hours a day to sort out any problems and if you're lucky if you have a **** when the engineers there he'll wipe your arse for you. Seriously your friend made a mistake, it happens, but why should 6 weeks after they bought it ebuyer refund them? It's not an on-line thing, if you bought a car battery from Halfords and tried to take it back 6 weeks later because it didn't fit your car would they? not without a big fuss I suspect. |
#7
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Fat Freddy's Cat wrote:
"Phöènix" mindyouownbusiness wrote in message ... Looks to me as if they will probably have to take a hit on the re-stocking fee Maybe ebuyer should pilot a 'try before you buy scheme' where punters can purchase any items and return them within 3 months unused at no cost. Do you think so? Sounds a bit over the top to me. Bet they're glad you're not their marketing agent. I think Amazon may have done quite well out of the 28 day extension over christmas but it would probably be a different matter as the norm. Far too many ASSHOLES around trying to take advantage. With the huge margins available on IT components, its sure to be a winner. You seem to be remarkably badly informed. Try reading the group a bit more before being tempted to post. g. Seems to me you have decided to make some wild assumptions in respect to my post just as an excuse to make another of your anti consumer rants. If you would like to explain the relevance of your post and your assumptions I may happily point outwhere you have strayed. Alternatively I may just tell you to go blow it out your ASSHOLE. |
#8
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Oscar wrote:
R D S wrote: Fat Freddy's Cat wrote: "Phöènix" mindyouownbusiness wrote in message ... [snip ignorant sarcasm and brainwave marketing suggestions] Seriously your friend made a mistake, it happens, but why should 6 weeks after they bought it ebuyer refund them? It's not an on-line thing, if you bought a car battery from Halfords and tried to take it back 6 weeks later because it didn't fit your car would they? not without a big fuss I suspect. Your a little mistaken in your response. I had written that it was their own fault as they had been naive and a little ignorant despite my attempt at warning them. You're post suggests some impression that they or I felt they had some rights in this respect. I think it is a shame that Ebuyer did not feel able to use a little more discretion as they could have suggested a compromise re-stocking fee and would have sold a more expensive item and gained a long term customer and further recommendations. They informed Ebuyer a couple of days after christmas. This was probably at most only 10 or 12 working days after they recieved the item, so 6 weeks is a bit misleading. They have been corresponding but at no time did Ebuyer say they could return the item as "incorrect item ordered" and pay a restocking fee. I know our feline contributor decided to read his own inference into my statement of assumed fact about the restocking fee but that is only for his own nefarious motives. BTW, not that it is relevant, but I suspect you may be wrong about the car battery in many cases. It's called managers discretion and many use it to keep customers happy and retain their custom. |
#9
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"Phöènix" mindyouownbusiness wrote:
Maybe ebuyer should pilot a 'try before you buy scheme' where punters can purchase any items and return them within 3 months unused at no cost. Do you think so? Sounds a bit over the top to me. Bet they're glad you're not their marketing agent. I'm somehow getting the vibe that no, our feline friend doesn't think so. I took it to be a joke. It's called "a sense of humour"; you might try it some time. -- iv Paul iv |
#10
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"Phöènix" mindyouownbusiness wrote:
Suffice to say they waited until after christmas (maybe twenty days after purchase), found the spec was under requirement. They spent about well over £300 with Ebuyer of which this item was £150. They asked if they can return this unopened item at their own cost and purchase the next model up (for around £180) instead. Had the item proven to be faulty they'd be covered by SOGA but DSR is quite explicit in defining the period of cover and no longer applies. You are therefore relying entirely on goodwill on the behalf of eBuyer. They have not received a helpful response. If they have indicated they would accept the goods back with a re-stocking fee it is more than they're obliged to do so I wouldn't regard them as being unhelpful. I guess that is the end of the matter unless the item turns out to be faulty or unless someone has a suggestion. Ebuyer have offered a solution above and beyond their legal obligations, it's up to your friends decide if they will accept the offer. If they consider it unacceptable they're free to use other avenues to dispose of the unwanted goods and obtain replacements. Ebuyer obviously took the marketing option over xmas not to act like many high st stores, and the likes of Amazon, with respect to extended returns periods. Those companies I suspect are on somewhat higher margins and enjoy larger volume of sales than eBuyer so can probably afford to fund the inevitable cost of such a policy. Had your friends wished to exploit an extended "no quibble" return policy they should of ordered from a company offering one, and paid the premium for doing so. My friend was a bit naive and ignorant and has paid the price. BUT it does seem daft that Ebuyer be so willing to lose a customer and gain further negative references when the option to upgrade the item at the customers cost would have had a very different result and promoted positive feedback. Ebuyer, like many mail order companies, rely on large volume of low margin sales. If your friends is only doing a few hundred pounds worth of business them, even if they do a similar amount every year, I'd wager ebuyer will NEVER recover the cost of doing "the right thing" in this particular case so it may well work out more cost-effective to write-off a potentially expensive customer. It's unfortunate when you're on the receiving end but "managers discretion" is entirely that; the management have the right to choose if they wish to retain a customer and bear the cost of doing so; they're equally entitled do decide they don't want your custom. I'm sure this isn't the first or even the thousandth time that Ebuyer have been accused of needlessly being their own worst enemy wrt customer relations. They do have something of a reputation for it. People buy from them and will continue to do so because they're cheap. They have a record of abysmal customer service which is almost certainly a commercial decision to adopt minimalist customer service policies to maintain the low operating costs that allow them to compete on price. The items sells on Ebay for around £140 inc delivery and the replacement can be sourced from elsewhere cheaper than Ebuyer so the loss may not be too bad, just annoying and inconvenient. That's life, and the cost of placing business with a vendor based entirely on price. At some point buying "cheap" will cost you more! -- iv Paul iv |
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