Unhappy buyer, what would you do?
The_Hook_Up
8,182 Posts
Ok, I sold a John Lennon Roots LP on ebay. A bootleg of John Lennon's rock covers. There all kinds of clues that are supposed to make it easy to tell if you have a "real" bootleg or "fake" bootleg, and lots of disagreement on these "clues". So all I did was describe the copy I had. I made no claims that is was "original"(as that is up to a very nerdy Beatles debate on what ones are original);I just described what my copy looked like (dead wax markings, printing on the spine). Needless to say, it went for a tidy sum to a buyer in Japan. He wrote me and says "I ordered an original copy, you sent me a FAIK". He obviously didnt read my auctions very carefully, nor ask me any questions before he bid and won. Another clue he didnt read my auction is that it is stated that "shipping costs are non-refundable". He says he will not return my copy until I send him money for him to ship it AND send him an "original" copy(whatever the fuck that is). WWSSD?
Comments
I would explain to him that you did not claim it was original, and that was up to him to decide based on the description. Also point out that you said the shipping was non-refundable. Tell him if he sends the record back, you'll offer him a full refund on his bid, but you can't do more than that.
You posted all the info possible. It's tricky since it's a bootleg, you don't wanna
get the auction pulled. What more can you do?
I think it's the buyers fault for not figuring it out himself...
In situations like this I always say I don't know the origin/date of the pressing.
Then people know it's authenticity is up for debate, and I won't be settlling
that particular debate.
"You sent me a fake bootleg"...Ge the fuk outta here!
these are not people, we're talking a Beatles collector over here. Like mold, best you can do is to keep him dormant. Refund money, refund shipping cost and add $20 for peace of mind.
Dealing Internationally always comes with the obvious communication problems and I've found that a photo is worth 1,000 words.
Especially when dealing with things like Beatles, Elvis and Blue Notes where you have to be a friggin encyclopedia to keep up with all the variations.
I just had a similar issue with a $67.00 LP that the buyer claimed was a 2nd press and that it is virtually impossible to tell by photos because the only "clue" is the thickness of the jacket. I
I refunded his $$.....but only AFTER he had sent it back to me.
real OGs go as high as $300 and "faiks" go for around $150...so he didnt get ripped off regardless of what bootleg he bought.
He said he was going to let Ebay decide? I suppose he meant he is opening a dispute with ebay.