New to Scambusters, been ripped off on TM :(

[Emmecat]

Good morning folks.

Thanks for having me on Scambusters. I'm really hoping you can help me.
I'm a long time user of Trade Me. Often a Top Seller and I like to think I do my absolute best to be honest and upfront with my trades. We've got lots of kids and having moved to a home with less storage, lots of crap to get rid off too lol. So I go through peaks of selling lots then selling not much at all.

Up until this last week I've had very little issues over the years with other traders, most are lovely and honest. However I've now come across a trader who is just point blank refusing to refund my money or provide the item I paid for.

Her name is MajesticFeather, her real name is Bree Henson of New Lynn, Auckland. This is the link to her feedback: http://www.trademe.co.nz/Members/Feedba ... er=6108511

Last week on Wednesday morning I used a buy now to purchase a Hatchimal for my children to share. I paid immediately via internet transfer and she responded quickly and seemed pleasant to deal with. It was sent the next day with a tracking number. On Saturday morning the package turned up and it was a bunch of old (not valuable) kids books. I immediately emailed her and she responded pretty casually that the courier must've taken the wrong package and that if she couldn't sort out what had happened then she'd refund me that day. Of course I never heard back again until Tuesday this week when she made an excuse about being at work and that the money would be in my account that night. Obviously that never happened either.

I've lodged a complaint with TM Team Policing unit and I'm pretty sure they removed her other listings straight away and have contacted her. Ive also followed up with her several times via email and text but no response at all. Í'm ok to take this further and have told her that but I"m feeling really pissed off about the whole thing and just gutted that she's blatantly taken my money like this. I know it's not much for most people (just under $100), but that's a fair whack for us on one low income.

What else should I do you think? Is there anything I actually CAN do? I've laid a complaint with the courier company too btw as I didn't want to sign for the package but they pushed me hard too and I didn't want to cause a scene in front of my little ones. I did take a couple of photos of the package as it arrived. I understand it's not their fault if it's the wrong item but I don't think they should be making people feel like they HAVE to sign for something they don't want.

Any wisdom from you folk would be much appreciated. Thanks

[digidog]

Hi Emme and welcome to ScamBusters. I'm sorry that your post seems to have slipped through the net... things tend to get pretty quiet here over the holiday period.

Note that her account had only been operating for one month before she ripped you off. Unfortunately TM has always had a number of deadshit traders and petty thieves and it sounds like you've come across one. Her behaviour is unacceptable and I'd like to see TM follow up on this one. Have you had any response from their policing team since your original post?

Your trade falls into a grey area. It's not really worth filing a Disputes Tribunal claim as that will cost you $70, and you can't claim for that amount from the court. Non-delivery is easier to prove, but sending different items with an inferior value will always come down to a "he said/she said" arguement.

You could try to file a Police complaint, because to my mind Bree's actions constitute deliberate fraud. However annecdotal evidence suggests that most Police stations turn away any TradeMe complaints under $500. That gives you an idea of the extent of the problem nationwide and allows petty criminals to get away with some pretty blatant theft. The system is a bit buggered in that regard. Even if TM eventually ban her, it only requires a change of email and a different IP address for her to open another TM account and do the same thing to other buyers.

However, if you were to ask via a lawyer, TM will supply her full contact details. And sometimes a legal letter is enough to make bad traders see the error of their ways.

In any event many of our members will choose to blacklist her so here's her TM details.

trader: MajesticFeather
name: Bree
loc'n: Waitakere City
joined: November 2016
status: Authenticated

http://www.trademe.co.nz/Members/Feedba ... er=6108511

Please let us know if you make any progress.

[Rose1]

I am new to this forum and sorry cannot comment on other posts here, but when I had only joined this site first time ever, 1 or 2 days thur/ friday 11th 12th ago not long at all after, I had posted some thing about what others where talking about I noted had made some spelling errors, I then tried to correct my spelling, so I went to find the edit button, and what I can still see now and then was that there is no edit button to press after you type at all?

I then immediately emailed their site just after I write my lines at that time right after explaining that" I was a first time forum person on here", and that my originally qs was (how does one edit) as is clear to them I am a first time user, we had a wedding yesterday to go yesterday Sat to late at night so I was not hm and no where a computer to answer what I can se eno in our email at home about my qs of help.

This am Sunday 12th I open my emails and Scam busters said that I had 15 mins to make any edits? and that only hd 15 mins in which to do so then it disasters? however scam busters I hope you can see my first email, the qs was "how" does one edit, I did not say I could edit my work as if I could I would of.

It is also presumed that we all know here you only have 15mins in which to edit your work well that was no known to me, as the then fined of saying it has always worked for the past 5- 6 yrs in whoosh this site has been opened, but I am a "new user" and wondered if they read carefully in my originally post was not that id did not have enough time, rather I asked "how does one edit there work" then they could of lead the new user in this case my self along to find where the edit button was or is. um no nice for new users not to be given benefit of doubt.

[Rose1]

to the original post, so did you check with the Post office? as may be what the seller said was true?

I was once told by trade if say there was a repetitive habit form Sellers do do so then fine to judge that way may be, but say I person has used TDME for 5-10- plus yrs and there is no evidence at at of such behaviour, then a postal euro happened just once or twice in all that time, would it be fair to give benefit of doubt.

I take it you though you may of had track and trace, may be there was a dishonest person with in the mail system, rare, but does happen.