Help with eBay deadbeat

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mr_burnzz

mr_burnzz

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I hope someone can give me some advice on how to handle this eBay situation.

So I bought a prepaid phone card from a guy (jtmhoang) with fairly good feedback but he never did it. It works like this..you pay him $35 and give him the mobile number and then he does something on the computer and you get minutes on your phone. The normal way is to just get a phone card and scratch the pin off and then apply to your phone. I did the former method a few times before and never had problems until now.

I emailed the guy saying he didn't do it and he says that he did. He tells me the number he applied to it and it is the wrong number I gave him. Off by one digit. I opened a dispute but the guy killed off his ebay account. Now when I look up the item to dispute, it doesn't show that particular guy but someone (fu123 something..) else on the same day with the same item. I emailed this guy asking if he is the same person or at least working with him. He denies and says no. So I proceeded the dispute with fu123 because the jtmhoang got rid of his account.

I never did this before but this is very confusing. How can I prove that jtmhoang never applied the minutes? I have an email stating the number he should apply it to and also a response that says he applied it to the wrong number. Also, how come when I open the dispute, jtmhoang is just GONE and this fu123 guy replaced him? Is it right that I opened a claim against fu123? Can't be a coincidence that he just showed up my Won list the same day I Won the item from jtmhoang.

what a headache..dont trust vietnamese people on ebay selling tmobile prepaid cards. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
Well if you paid by paypal then file a claim with paypal and see how that goes for getting your money back.

If you dont get it then basically your screwed. Cut your loses and dont ever go in for online scams like that again. Dont buy virtual stuff from anyone, especially foriengers. Just pay a little more and get a real phone card and be done with it. Not trying to sound like to much of an asshole here really but thats about all there is to it. Personally your description of the auction sounded like it smelled bad from the get go, I wouldnt even have considered it.

My rule of thumb for ebay is I dont buy anything from outside the US unless its a sub 5 dollar after shipping item like the case I bought for my cell phone and its a real tangible item that will be mailed to me.

Dont beat yourself up or get upset to much, we all get screwed at one time or another. Ive lost money on ebay a couple times when I should have known better.
 
[quote name='mr_burnzz'] It works like this..you pay him $35 and give him the mobile number and then he does something on the computer and you get minutes on your phone. [/QUOTE]

and that didnt raise a flag?
 
If the guy killed his eBay account, you can't do anything to him. He's gone. The other guy you found won't be something you can file a dispute with, since you didn't buy anything from him.

As stated above, don't buy anything virtual on eBay. Neither eBay or Paypal will do anything to help you.
 
A bit a hope for you Mr_Burrnnz.

A buddy of mine purchased a White Dualshock 3 controller from some company in China years ago.

The ebay seller then deleted his ebay account without shipping anything and then vanished. My buddy still opened a ebay/paypal claim and actually got refunded like 3 months later.

Im not sure how lucky he was in actually getting a refund, but hopefully you get your money back as well.
 
[quote name='RAMSTORIA']and that didnt raise a flag?[/QUOTE]

Seriously. You got taken for a ride due to (no offense) your own stupidity. Sucks, but learn from it and move on.
 
"He tells me the number he applied to it and it is the wrong number I GAVE HIM. Off by one digit"


this kind of makes it your fault, doesn't it?
 
[quote name='crzyjoeguy']"He tells me the number he applied to it and it is the wrong number I GAVE HIM. Off by one digit"


this kind of makes it your fault, doesn't it?[/QUOTE]

I think it is poor wording on the OP's part. He meant to say it's the wrong number, not the one I gave him.

Or he's a fucking idiot. Either one.
 
[quote name='crzyjoeguy']"He tells me the number he applied to it and it is the wrong number I GAVE HIM. Off by one digit"


this kind of makes it your fault, doesn't it?[/QUOTE]

Did you actually read his post or just skim it? Because he mentions he has the email with the number its supposed to go to. Im assuming he isnt so stupid he just gave the wrong number, then re-reads the email he sent him with the number on it (probablly numerous times to double check) and still doesnt recognize his own phone number.

Just because you can act like a horses ass doesnt mean you have to.
 
thanks for the responses. In my defense, I have done this $35 thing about 5 times before so I thought it was legit since it's been working so well. And to clarify, I gave him the correct number but when he emailed me about it, the number was a digit off. I suppose I just have to play the waiting game for that refund.

I am still very curious as to why jtmhoang is replaced by fu123 in my won list.
 
i'm sorry....but the irony of the replacement screen name is beyond comical to me...

"FU" 123

I think he's trying to tell you something...
 
Seller needs to show proof that he shipped an item. On pre-paid cards and digital download codes it is actually against ebay policy to ship them via email. You need to actually ship the physical item to the buyer. The reason his name changed is beacuse you can change the name on your account at any time. Next time look for a seller that will ship the physical item to you. But if you file a dispute through both eBay and Paypal you should get your refund since there is no proof that the seller "shipped" any item using proper methods (remember email is not one of the proper methods according to ebay user agreement)
 
You'll get your refund through the dispute, guaranteed. Ebay ALWAYS works in favor of buyers in cases like this. Also, the reason that guy's name was replaced with a different one is because he changed it, which you're able to do on Ebay. So yes, it is the same guy. He just makes himself look even worse by doing that.
 
It sounds like to me he changed his name, especially if when you go to the page you bought your item from it shows a different name, same item;for sure.
 
I've got some ebay annoyances to air here too.

Annoyance #1: Bidder bidded on Blazing Heroes for Saturn. 200+ feedback 100%. I waited a few days to get paid. Nothing. He messages me saying "I have a (-) balance in my paypal because of a problem. Can you cancel this?" I looked at his feedback and gave him the benefit of the doubt. Did a 2nd chance offer to the next highest bidder.

Will I still get charged fees on the first bidder if I do the 2nd chance offer?

Annoyance #2: Sold a JVC X'eye to someone, I specified UPS. The winning bidder has a PO Box, which, of course, UPS doesn't ship to. Usually you can get around this by leaving out the PO Box number. Instant print of label doesn't let you do that. I'm forced to ship it USPS, which is a pain in the ass for heavy things and costs more than UPS. I take a $4+ swim.

Granted, in 12 years on ebay, I've only done heavy stuff a grand total of 2-3 times.

Live and learn, I guess. I'm selling it for a friend who's happy to get anything, so I'm learning with his money at least.
 
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