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Stop and Think

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It all started with a mistruth, misrepresentation, lie, whatever you want to call it in their listing, auction, posting, etc. Being kind I'd say the seller was wholly irresponsible. Most worrisome is that they didn't research or verify what they said. Do they think their customers aren't going to check?

Unless their "mistake" is egregious, I give them a chance to make good before it escalates: reporting them to the FBI for internet fraud, the USPS for postal fraud, disputing the payment, bad feedback, etc.

Sellers often overweigh their silver knowing more silver is more money. Even the cheapest scales are deadly accurate so this ruse is easily busted. A fair compensation is to replace the missing silver or refund enough money to offset the difference, the latter happening only once in my decades of buying.

I calculate a refund based on the per unit price I paid including shipping, tax, commission fees, and purchase price. For "missing silver" purchases, sometimes the missing silver value exceeds the price! In other words, I'm cutting these skanks some slack they don't deserve.

Sellers without first-grade math skills get confused, but others can compare the partial refund to the shipping costs. If shipping costs more than the partial refund then stop. Think. We can both walk away amicably by accepting this fair offer. Again, basic math here.

Though it was less money than they hoped, it's more than they'd have after paying for shipping both ways. Further, how many hours will they waste for emails, unpacking, relisting, resending, and answering questions when it could be solved with a mouse click in seconds? Which is where we're at now.

An artificially high price can be expected when people lie. It doesn't take Captain Obvious to figure out what would happen if they were truthful: less money, more hassle. Many sellers relist the item EXACTLY the same after all this. Too dumb to learn or hell-bent on thievery, they'll find someone even less intelligent so their lie will be truth eventually. Problem solved.

As a matter of principle, some sellers do not give partial refunds. However, this is not a case of finagling a lower price based on nothing. Buyers want what was promised. The seller hasn't handled the situation honorably; they should keep quiet because "their" way started it all!

When returning an item, if all I have is an oversized box then so be it. Can't be too careful. Shipping companies relish destroying packages. Odds are that all the back-and-forth won't be kind. Luckily, I pack well in anticipation of such treatment.

I need instant karma and a dash of schadenfreude for wasting well over an hour of my time. I only wish the return shipping costs went into my wallet as "compensation" for my time and shipping supplies. USPS is struggling so they appreciate the boost.

Long ago in this whole fiasco was an option for a bad seller to act wisely and save money by accepting a generous, no-brainer offer. Egos aside, what would explain such an asinine ending? Time and time again, it baffles me.

Posted by M: April 4, 2025

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