Problem with seller from US on ebay.com

josejeya26

josejeya26

Disciple
Here it goes. I bought a Samsung Galaxy Vibrant from ebay.com for $285 including shipping. I asked the buyer to declare the item as a gift worth $200 for the customs. Instead the buyer declared it as used mp3 player worth $50. Customs have charged me Rs7000 as duty for undervaluation and mis-representation. I have refused to accept the item. Complained to the seller about the declaration. Seller informed me that he declares all item as worth $50 as mentioned in his listings and is not responsible for the custom charges. I asked him to declare the items correctly. I have filed a dispute with ebay. Seller has said that he`ll only refund the item after receiving it in original condition. I have already refused to accept the item and is now back with customs. He is holding me responsible for any damages to the item, eventhough i have not even seen the product. Shall i escalate it to a case on ebay? Where do i stand legally? All your help is appreciated.

Regards.
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
How can you be held responsible for illegal declaration. The person who declared it should be held responsible.

Unless Indian Customs law holds recipient equally responsible. All rests on ebay decision now.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
you are in deep soup.

as it is coming throgh ebay usa,you have one thing that your seller declared it as mp3 player and that too 50 usd.

customs guys are quite smart,they maintain their own list of market prices and they dont go by declared value.

anyone can realise that it is phone from samsung.

now best way out it is to go to customs and do some jugaad to solve matter.

as i see,your phone wont go back to seller.it will go in some customs officer's pocket.

so go to customs and do jugaad telling them truth.

fix up deal and get done with it.

seller is right at his place and his mistake is he misdeclared your phone's cost and labeled it as mp3 player which is caught by customs.

so go to customs and solve matter saying seller did mistake and kindly reduce the fine.

be polite and firm.

you should sail through as ultimately its your money.

seller must have got his money and ebay wont be of much help.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
I did go to see the customs people. They have refused to reassess the matter. I have asked the seller to raise hell with USPS and get his item sent back promptly. He has promised to refund the money after he gets his item back in original condition. I worry that the item might be damaged by the customs people or during transit and he`ll refuse to pay the money. I have a copy of his custom declaration. Will that be useful if i file a complaint with ebay.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Just deny the fact that you ever asked the seller to undervalue the item. Instead, file a dispute on ebay claiming that the seller undervalued the item without asking you.

Get the item shipped back to the seller & get a refund. I hope that you did not mark the item as received on your ebay account.

And next time, use Aramex Shop&ship for getting stuff from the US.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
WHy cant he just wait for a month and automatically click he didn't recieve the item at all ?

Just tell it didnt come to him and ask them to confirm with courier if they delivered... In that way ebay will have to return back the money to his card.. Am I missing something here ?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
pauldmps said:
Just deny the fact that you ever asked the seller to undervalue the item. Instead, file a dispute on ebay claiming that the seller undervalued the item without asking you.

Get the item shipped back to the seller & get a refund. I hope that you did not mark the item as received on your ebay account.

And next time, use Aramex Shop&ship for getting stuff from the US.
Click to expand...

Hello there,
I did not ask to undervalue the item. I asked him to declare it as $200. I never accepted the item. It`s with speedpost now and they are sending it to customs for cancellation of tax. I have no control of the shipment. Am i responsible for the return shipment?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
ur being stupid when the seller is in us and u already paid.

Either pay 7k or something low if possible and get the phone. And chances are high tht u might loose the phone and amnt paid. Coz in the middle u have indian govt officials in customs. So either bribe or pay 7k.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
I would suggest doing some SETTING with the customs to get the phone out. Explain them the situation patiently and pyaar se and things should be done. Obviously you will need to cough up something at least.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
m-jeri said:
ur being stupid when the seller is in us and u already paid.

Either pay 7k or something low if possible and get the phone. And chances are high tht u might loose the phone and amnt paid. Coz in the middle u have indian govt officials in customs. So either bribe or pay 7k.
Click to expand...
I have 100% buyer protection from ebay.com. I really want to give the seller a chance and try to get his item back. Could he get his item back by complaining to USPS? When gora shouts, Indian people do listen.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Wrong decleration itself is not a nice things. This has made things complicated. The only option is to request the officer to consider your case and release the goods with minimum payment ( duty or otherwise). Mind you, you have already spend some amount on phone.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
gennext said:
Wrong decleration itself is not a nice things. This has made things complicated. The only option is to request the officer to consider your case and release the goods with minimum payment ( duty or otherwise). Mind you, you have already spend some amount on phone.
Click to expand...
Hello there,
The tracking info on the site says that Origin Post is Preparing Shipment Does that mean they`re going to send it back home? Should i still intervene?

Regards.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Customs authorities have the power to confiscate items if dispute not resolved within certain time limit period.

I'm not sure if USPS takes precedence and the item is sent back as undelivered.

Customs officials also need to release the parcel from their custody back to postal service for return delivery ie i guess is the indian post now.

If a courier company was involved I'm sure some understanding could be reached and parcel delivered back to seller.

if ebay decides seller is responsible for paying charges only then the seller may agree to it.

Alternative suggested by some may be come to an understanding with officials but i doubt it's worth it.

If officials decide to penalise for false declaration fine + duty may run into much more.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
I suggest you take the delivery and then file for ebay protection. Otherwise the item shall be misplaced! It is in the customs warehouse and soon demurrage (dont know the exact spelling but means keeping charge) shall start. Worse there is a lot of theft from customs warehouse.

Ebay guarantee works even after delivery. So use it. (You will be asked to return the item. But dont worry as the Courier cost shall be refunded by Ebay)
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
matoind said:
I suggest you take the delivery and then file for ebay protection. Otherwise the item shall be misplaced! It is in the customs warehouse and soon demurrage (dont know the exact spelling but means keeping charge) shall start. Worse there is a lot of theft from customs warehouse.

Ebay guarantee works even after delivery. So use it. (You will be asked to return the item. But dont worry as the Courier cost shall be refunded by Ebay)
Click to expand...

Update. Called speedpost now. They have declared they`ve shipped the item back to the US on Saturday. Seller has promised to refund the full cost, if he recieves the item in original condition. But tracking info shows that i never received the item. Will i be held responsible if the item is damaged or worse, if the customs stole the phone and sent him an empty box.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
^^ no, you can always claim that you have not received the item. Even, if the seller plays some stupid games here, after 30 days you can say that you have not received the item and claim the refund. As per my experience, you are still safe to get your hard earned money back.

It happens when we get the items from abroad. I had couple of instances and in one case, I had paid the extra amount and received. In another cases, I refused to receive and finally, the seller had refunded my money. So, you should be getting it and be careful when you deal with international seller, look for their feedback etc.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Back
Top