what to do when you purchase and not satisfied with item?

[galaxywomun]

hi!  i bought a creamer/sugar set on ebay, and upon arrival it has OBVIOUSLY been thru the dishwasher, and most of the glaze/gilding has worn off.  can i return em>>??  or should i just chalk one up for experience sake??

[ironlord1963]

     I think that would mostly be determined by the sellers description of the item.  If they called it excellent and it was less then that, then the seller should be responsiable.  When I sell a item and the gliding and or the Glaze has even grazing in it, I state that in my description.  The seller should write a description clearly to included all this.  With all that said.  I would first write the seller and at least inform them of your dissatifaction, and based on their reply I would determine the next step.  If they are nice and are willing to work out a fair resolution, then make the deal and leave a postive feed back or at least neutral,  if they are less then nice about it, well negative feedback is warranted.  As a seller I always work out a good deal, and thus far I still have 100% because of this, and believe me a few times, I had to give money back and let them keep the item.

[mart]

Like Ironlord said,, much depends on how it was described by the seller !! Always let the seller know first that an item is not as described and be sure and give details !!

[CuriousCollector]

It also matters if the person lists on the auction that they will  accept returns.  I don't accept any returns, but I try to be scrupulously honest, and post plenty of pics with closeups of damage.  I had a woman return an item because it was damaged, when my auction clearly stated and SHOWED the damage -- and she returned it without asking me if she could, so she was out the return shipping, and the cost of the item and original shipping, because I'm not refunding her money! 

(I did offer a partial refund, minus shipping, but she never responded.)

[mariok54]

You also need to be very careful as to how you interpret the description. I once bought something that was described as 'all original' and 'beautiful', but the pics weren't great. When it arrived parts were missing and it was not, in my opinion, at all beautiful. I complained, but the seller returned with the argument that 'what was there was original' (can't argue with that) and in his opinion it was 'beautiful' (can't argue with that either!). All goes down to experience.

[Shelbiehall05]

This is the risk of shopping online. Items not the way we expect them to be.

[talesofthesevenseas]

I returned an item once that was a porcelain wedding cake decoration from the twenties or thereabouts because when it arrived it absolutely reeked of cigarette smoke. In my case the seller refunded what I had paid, and I paid the cost of return shipping. I would say to consider how much it will cost to ship it back versus reselling it yourself.

[sapphire]

I just received a one piece snow suit for myself (for dog walking in -20ish weather) and found I had misinterpreted the description. Upon rereading after I tried the suit on I clearing understood my mistake.

"It is made with water resistant nylon and thick, insulated, poly blend material." 

I wanted an insulated (lined) snowsuit that would offer warmth without having to pull on extra clothing, as I wear leggings around the house.

It was obvious that the seller did describe it accurately, I just didn't read carefully enough......seller received top marks in all categories as they fulfilled their requirements completely and I'll just keep track pants and a sweater at the front door. 

Lesson learned:   READ carefully and more than once.