ebay is a tough place these days... there are alot of people willing to lie to make a buck.

thankfully i have not had anything bad happen to me there but have heard lots of horror stories.

i will not buy anything from ebay where i cannot use my paypal account.

Have you left negative feedback explaining that the item you received was not as it was described to be?
I know often buyers are leary of leaving negative 'feedback' due to the seller possibly retaliating.

Have you notified the seller of the problem with the sheets? Often they will want to make it good just to keep their rating good. Possibly they will just give you a full refund. I had a seller do that once when I bought a used bag sealer that did not work properly. They didn't want to eat the cost of having it returned to them, and trusted what I said due to my 100% buyer rating. Possibly they are ignorant about what is cotton and what is synthetic, and just sold the item as they themselves had received it.

I doubt if everyone 'knows' their fabrics as you , I, and many others do.

Sue

I did check his/her feedback before buying and she had only 2 negatives in the last six months. I left a negative feedback for this transaction. I feel as this person intentionaly did wrong. Cotten is soft and nylon even makes a crinkle sound unwrapping it. Also the bag was open with a fake product info card that was cut from somewhere else. Its not an item that doesnt work. It was false advertisment.

I would not describe nylon as having a crinkling sounds. More like a soft zipper sound when rubbed together. It's often very soft and limp. Cotton can be very stiff, depending upon the finish, thread count, type of cotton fibers, etc. I've never seen a set of nylon sheets. Poly satin, but not nylon.

That said, I'm sorry you had a bad experience. I guess I've been fortunate in that my eBay experiences have been good and on the few times I've been unhappy, it's because I didn't read the listing closely or ask questions prior to the close of the auction.

Hope you get this resolved to your satisfaction.

Gloria

Did you try and contact the buyer to try and get a full refund? I would have tried that b4 leaving neg feedback, but it may not be too late.

Possibly they would still refund your money if you agreed to withdraw your feedback.

Sue

Ninos -- You WILL have to return the item if you want Paypal to give you a refund -- it's standard policy. It may be frustrating, but that's the rule.

Im not really an Ebay pro so i couldnt find how to get my money back from paypal. Instead i am dispurting the charges with my cedit card. Is thier another way? I already called the credit card and they are sending me the proper forms to fill out. They never mentioned that i have to go through paypal. Is thier something more i should know? Thanks for your help!

Ninos, go to the link below, which will take you to eBay's Buyer Central. Start a post and explain what has happened. These people will walk you through the process.

The system works best by going through PayPal for a dispute.

Here is a link that might be useful: eBay Buyer central

FYI

Web Experts Warn Of Buyer-Feedback Scams

April 25, 2007
Consumers are constantly warned to be careful who they purchase from on online auction Web sites like eBay.

Many consumers turn to the feedback or rating sections to help distinguish the good sellers from the bad.

Andy Hooper never had a problem shopping on eBay, until his most recent purchase of two wireless Playstation controllers.

he joystick wasn't working so I changed out the batteries, went back and tested it again and the joystick still wasn't working,Ã said Hooper.

Hooper contacted the seller, but got the runaround and eventually gave up, losing his $50.

He said he was surprised because he had checked out the seller prior to his purchase.

ÃThe feedback rating was very high, saying A++ seller,Ã said Hooper.

Web expert Tom Merritt of CNET said shoppers who rely on feedback ratings on online auctions or retail sites need to be aware.

ÃThere are more and more scams where people have figured out how to game the system,Ã said Merritt.

One of the big scams, Merritt said, involves a seller selling a lot of cheap items, building positive feedback.

However, Merritt said, ÃThey can go to their big ticket items like HDTVs, take people's money, and you never hear from them again.Ã

Merritt advises shoppers to be sure to check out what other items the seller is offering.

ÃIf you see a big change from what they used to be selling and to what they're selling now, thatÃs an alarm bell,Ã said Merritt.

Merritt also said to beware of fake feedback.

He said that a seller could create two different accounts and then sell to himself.

ÃThey can give themselves some positive feedback that they otherwise wouldn't get,Ã said Merritt.

Experts advise shoppers to read the feedback comments carefully as general statements like Ãgreat jobà or Ãno problemsà do not tell the whole story.

Hooper ended up buying the controllers at a neighborhood store instead.

ÃThey ended up costing me $10 more but with $50 I had already spent, I ended up spending over $100 for something I could've paid $50 for," said Hooper.

Fraud experts are warning shoppers about another form of feedback fraud that has scammers driving up their ratings by scaring people into only leaving positive feedback.

If a buyer tries to write negative comments for a seller, the scammer will retaliate with negative feedback for a buyer, according to experts.

Many buyers donÃt want anything to bring their own scores down so they leave positive or no feedback at all, experts said.

If you buy from Ebay then eventually you will get burned one way or another. I have been lied to, misled, victim of shill bidding, sent the wrong item, sent nothing at all, had to file claims with paypal, shipper, and Ebay at some point during the 8 years I have been a member there. Only negative feedback I have is from retaliation by seller when a 1200.00 item arrived severely damaged due to his packaging and choice of freight company. He didn't care much to help me out and I had to file a claim with shipping company to eventually get my money back. I left him a verty factual neutral because it was NOT a positive transaction and he gave me a lovely negative in return that was just short of abusive.

Good luck with your claim and be very careful in the future. Read listings carefully, as some sellers will use stock photos and then have written in their descriptions that item is not same as photo (huh-what's the point then?) Be careful of things that are too big a bargain also. It's usually either a scam or stolen merchandise if someone is selling way cheap compared to other sellers. Don't just look at percentage of feedback. Someone could have 99.9% + and actually have dozens of negative and neutral ratings if they had enough feedback. Read even positive feedback carefully as some buyers will leave wishy washy positive because they are too chicken to leave a negative but you can tell by what they say that they really weren't happy. Look for multiple purchases by the same bidder (especially if bidder has low feedback) as it can be a clue to possible shill bidding by seller to inflate price.

Ebay can be a great place to save money-I just bought my kids' summer shorts for about 1/3 or what retail would have cost. Just be smart...

If the item was sent via the United States Postal System (USPS) another possibility is that you could go through the USPS for mail fraud.

I have only gone this route once, and there was a group of us taken by the same woman, but apparently federal charges were not worth the money she stole, and it was all returned. She was also banned from the site she "sold" the stuff on. (not e-bay)

If we, the consumers, do not keep sellers honest, than who will? (and I mean ALL sellers, not just the internet ones)

Mil

I have bought and sold on Ebay, and generally, have had good luck with it. Unfortunately, for the first time, I am in the process of making a claim with Paypal for an Ebay item I never received (the buyer had a 100% feedback rating)

Paypal has handled the dispute very professionally. You can correspond with them via phone or email. Since my claim is less than $500, and the buyer cannot produce a tracking number, Paypal said that my money will be refunded.
(If I had filed a claim with my credit card, Paypal states that it reserves the right to cancel my Paypal account).
I would never buy anything on Ebay without paypal.

If the item was sent via the United States Postal System (USPS) another possibility is that you could go through the USPS for mail fraud.

My understanding is that the same applies for purchases made with a United States Postal Service Money Order.

I purchased custom drapes from a seller on ebay. I received them just as promised within 3wks and they were lovely. I put in another order and had the fabric shipped to the seller. I have received neither the drapes, nor a return of my fabric or money. I cannot claim from either ebay or paypal because my bid was for a "service" and not a product. When I purchased, the seller had 100% + feedback rating. Unfortunately, I was not the only one scammed. From December last year through February, we estimate that she made over $1500 in fraudulent transactions. Prior to that time, my ebay transactions had been overwhelmingly positive.

My husband buys on EBay all the time, but he researches extensively, not just the seller, but the item. Normal retail, weight, etc. And he only uses PayPal. Only 2 items came in wrong/broken. One was a baseboard heater: the seller shipped the correct one, and told us to keep the wrong one as he didn't want to pay shipping again. The 2nd was a sink (the seller wrapped it in newspaper - 2 layers, and "built" the box around it, and sent it regular mail)of course the thing arrived cracked. We received full refund thru PayPal and were told to keep the cracked sink - which can be epoxied and used in the potting shed.

Using paypal is NOT enough...never EVER makeonline purchases unless funded through your credit card!

Paypal gives buyers the option to use their bank accounts for purchases, or to fund purchases through your credit card. It is imperative that you ALWAYS fund through your credit card because, in the event that there is a problem with your purchase, if you have funded through your bank account but the seller doesn't have money in their paypal account - you will get NOTHING back. Even when paypal finds in your favor, if there is nothing in the seller's paypal account, all they can/will do is freeze the seller's account until funds are deposited in order to refund you. If the seller walks away from their paypal account, you are permanently out the money.

Conversely, if you fund your purchases via paypal and your credit card, if paypal can't get the money back from the seller, you can contact your credit card and they will reverse the charge for you. This is your ONLY FULL protection when buying over the internet.

I've been both buying and selling on ebay for about five years now. I think it's true that sooner or later you probably will get burned.

loralee is right in that the absolute safest way is to use paypal but specify your credit card not your bank account. I've had to file a claim with paypal twice. Both times I received a refund in full (including the shipping charges I paid). The second time, the claim took 8 weeks before they settled.

There are two reasons for filing a claim with paypal. If you file a claim as "item not received", paypal will ask the seller to prove they sent it (usually a delivery confirmation will suffice). The other reason is "item significantly not as described", which fits the OP's situation. In that case, paypal will require the buyer to return the item - again a delivery confirmation is required.

Since I also sell, I'm somewhat familiar with some of the things some sellers do. I'm a little leery of the really huge sellers - when you sell thousands of items a month, lots can go wrong.

A little bit of negative feedback won't hurt you as a buyer - as a seller I want to avoid buyers who have a history of non-payment. I also block buyers who have retracted bids.

I would ALWAYS contact the seller first - give them the chance to make it right before leaving feedback. I once bought some slacks. When I hadn't received them after three weeks, I emailed the seller - twice. She finally responded saying she had gotten married and gone on her honeymoon and forgotten to mail them. She refunded me in full AND mailed the jeans Priority Mail. I left positive fb for her.

You have 90 days to leave feedback, so I'd hold off on negative fb until it was clear that the seller had no intention of making right what had gone wrong.

I am a major Ebay-head, and have been a member for a long time, as both a buyer & a seller. I think the secret to successful buying is don't let yourself get too caught up in the moment & the excitement of bidding against others. ALWAYS read the descriptions very carefully, then read it again. Make sure you understand exactly what you're bidding on; check dimensions given, get out your tape measure if necessary to get a better visual idea of the size of item you're buying. Don't bid if you have unanswered questions. Even if you think you may never see another item like that again, chances are very good that you will. So shop with a cool head. Check the seller's return policy.
I have never, ever had a bad experience on Ebay. To me it's a wonderful venue for finding my next widget, or even just window shopping. Yes, it is a buyer-beware place, just like everywhere else you shop.

I purchased 13 items on eBay, witho only a slight problem with one: I bought an under-cabinet fluorescent fixture.

UPS delivered it with the bulb clearly broken inside. I called UPS to complain, and told me that they would come to inspect it. What they did was refund money to the seller! I was never told by UPS that they work with the seller when this happens. Had they told me, I would have contacted the seller myself.

I paid such a low price, that I didn't leave negative feedback. Actually, it was UPS's fault anyhow.

My pet peeve about some of the sellers: The "I don't know much about it(item) so I really can't tell if it's working". I've seen this claim made with professional audio equipment often :)

My pet peeve about some of the sellers: The "I don't know much about it(item) so I really can't tell if it's working". I've seen this claim made with professional audio equipment often :)

I usually translate that to "I think there's something wrong with it, but I'm not enough of an expert to fix it and I don't want to know any more about it." That is right on up there with "It'll buff right out" as a warning flag. (If it's so darn easy, why don't you "buff it right out" and sell the item for more money?).

Generally for me that means it's time to walk away. It's hard enough buying something long-distance sight-unseen. It's another when the seller seems to be shading the truth.

This was in the business section of our newspaper today.

Pitfalls of PayPal can touch off a reversal of fortune for eBay sellers
James Derk-Scripps Howard News Service

I have been using PayPal, the online payment system, for more than seven years. In the industry you hear all kinds of horror stories about every Web site, but my personal experience with PayPal has been rather calm.

Though I am not a terribly active eBay seller, I do use PayPal to sell signed copies of my new book, so I am using the Web site quite a bit to accept payments and print mailing labels.

Recently I did sell a Playstation game console that developed some issues; maily I place it on eBay "as is" for someone to use for parts or to repair.

Someone with zero feedback on eBay bought it and promptly paid with PayPal. I gave him good feedback on eBay and shipped the device.
I forgot about it for a few weeks until I sold a book and had to go into PayPal's site to print the mailing label. I noted on my list of transactions that my account had been debited and the Playstation buyer now had a "reversal" near his name.

Turns out he had received my console and reversed the charge, something I didn't even know was possible. So he had the money and the console and positive feedback on eBay. A pretty good scam, I thought.

This will be easy to reverse. So I called PayPal. Representatives told me the issue was my fault because I didn't respond to three e-mails they sent me. I check my inbox and didn't find any e-mails. PayPal then told me to appeal. "I am sure they will rule in your favor," the clerk told me.

I appealed and 24 hours later received a form letter stating that the issue was my fault and I was out of both the money and the equipment.

This dance of annoyance went on for days and could fill a couple of columns, but I want to share with you what I have ultimately learned.

First of all, e-mails from PayPal are among the most "phished" in the world, meaning many "fake" ones come to your mailbox hoping you will log in to fake PayPal sites and give away your info. Windows Mail, the new mail program in Windows Vista, does a great job in filtering out what it thinks are "phishing" e-mailsllltrouble is it also filtered out these real e-mails from PayPal. So I never got mine, as I get hundreds of spam mails a day to that folder.

Michael Oldenburg, a PayPal spokesman, told me that the vast majority of users on the site are happy with how PayPal works and many of those are focused on fraud prevention. When disputes are filed, he said, "they are usually worked out amicably during that process."

My recommendations are simple: keep very little money in your PayPal account. If your account is hacked or a transaction is reversed, there won't be much money in there.

Also keep checking your PayPal account and don't rely on e-mails to notify you of anything. It is up to you if you want to avoid the platform altogether (if you read the complaint site PayPal Sucks you'll never wan to use it again) but it has become ubiquitous on eBay (PayPal is owned by eBay). Just be careful out there.