Caution To Doll Collectors Buying Off eBay

[erudolf]

Hi,

I don't post here much anymore but wanted to leave some advice to buyers now that the market is being flooded by flippers who don't know anything about what they are selling.

If you are considering buys a doll off eBay and details matter to you, make sure they confirm that the pictures you are seeing are of the EXACT doll you will be receiving. I just got burned on the D23 Jasmine. I noticed that some of them had really nice hair and other had hair that was tightly wound and far away from the body. I spent a small fortune on one pictured with nice hair....not what I received. I received one with the hair I didn't like and I could tell from other variances that it was not the same doll. eBay won't do anything because they decided that the differences weren't significant enough and I can't even leave negative feedback for the seller pulling a bait and switch.

Needless to say, I will never be buying from that seller again and will be asking fir confirmation on exactly what I will be receiving from now on.

If you care about the little details, be careful!

 

[Elphaba]

Whoa, I'm really surprised that eBay isn't doing anything to correct the matter. The photos were not of the item received, that is a serious problem! OF course the exact condition really matters to collectors. Can you take it to a higher up of whoever you contacted at eBay?

I have also seen recently on eBay, one seller selling two of the same doll (normal enough for a scalper, unfortunately), with obviously the exact same photos with exact same scratch pattern on the box (yeah, NOT possible). I have also seen sellers with low, 0, or even in one case, -1 feedback (!!! Very suspicious!) and multiple people bidding on that item they posted. I just have this tensed shoulder feeling for the winner, like, ouch this is not boding well for you...

Prices too high for me so I'm just looky-looing but some pretty concerning trends on there.

 

[amm3]

That is such a shame. I don't blame you for being angry. I always email sellers before I bid or buy anything asking them a ton of questions to confirm that the photos are of the actual doll I will receive and asking them to verify that there is not any damage that is not visible in photos. If the seller doesn't respond or acts as if they are annoyed by my questions, I just move on. I probably pester them to death, but a good seller will understand you are paying them a lot of money and be willing to answer your questions to make you feel comfortable with your purchase. I also never buy from a seller unless they have a lot of feedback and it is 100 percent positive. Even then, I still feel nervous ordering off of ebay when it is a lot of money.

 

[Ninpin]

That is depressing. It's a collectible, expensive, and honestly I believe that all photos should be of the exact item for sale regardless of whether or not they mention this in the listing of a collectible. Using random photos from Google is scamming imo. I understand with general merchandise and low-end stuff that stock photos aren't a big concern, but with these dolls - NO WAY! You should definitely be able to get a refund!

So sorry!

 

[Disneylover]

When I bought live action lie Cinderella on eBay, I was super paranoid that it would get lost in the mail, stolen, or a scam since the eBay seller didn't answer to my first two emails lol! Turns out the seller had a family emergency.

 

[starry_solo]

I would escalate it with ebay further.

 

[amm3]

Hi,

eBay won't do anything because they decided that the differences weren't significant enough and I can't even leave negative feedback for the seller pulling a bait and switch.

Needless to say, I will never be buying from that seller again and will be asking fir confirmation on exactly what I will be receiving from now on.

If you care about the little details, be careful!

I don't understand, why can't you leave feedback?

 

[movingthestars]

People absolutely suck. I recently sold like 5 dolls on ebay, and I always make sure to include lots of photos and specify that the pictures are of the EXACT items they will receive. If it doesn't say and you can't clarify with them, move on. I know everyone wants to look for a deal but for buying dolls, I've always found it worthwhile to pay a bit more and go for the seller with many photos and (LOTS OF!) 100% positive feedback.

 

[movingthestars]

I don't understand, why can't you leave feedback?

Probably if ebay closed the case feedback is then impossible. So there is no retaliation feedback I guess.

 

[staykawaii]

Do you have pictures we can see?


Unless it's something completely drastic like instead of how it is sold in stores it's been unbraided and retied into a pony tail and held together with a rubber band... Something extremely different than pictured then unfortunately I dont think there's much you can do.

in eBay's eyes you received the item listed and all is fair game... I agree the picture should reflect what you're getting, especially with how much was spent... but it sounds like this particular seller has or is selling multiple red jasmines, so I seriously doubt a seller would take a new picture for each single doll they're listing... It's just not practical.

maybe you could redo it yourself, or resell her? /: I hate that that's happened to you... I can't tell you how many times I've ordered a doll (monster high or Disney) and unboxed the horror of box hair.

 

[erudolf]

People absolutely suck. I recently sold like 5 dolls on ebay, and I always make sure to include lots of photos and specify that the pictures are of the EXACT items they will receive. If it doesn't say and you can't clarify with them, move on. I know everyone wants to look for a deal but for buying dolls, I've always found it worthwhile to pay a bit more and go for the seller with many photos and (LOTS OF!) 100% positive feedback.

Sad thing is this seller has tons of feedback and I've probably purchased from them before. They said "oh, I see what you mean" and when I said I wanted to return it she said "oh, I'm sorry to hear that, please open a return request" and then fought me on it saying that I got the same "product/item". I guess what angers me the most is that this is a seasoned seller that should know that collectors are particular and she just didn't care. She got her money and ran. And I know that she did it because the price has dropped since I bought it and is probably saying to ebay that that is the only reason I want to return it, but that isn't the case. Sure, I was annoyed that I bought too quickly, but I was just going to eat it until I actually saw the doll and didn't like her hair at all. And since then I found a doll that looks absolutely perfect from a nice seller that provided extra pictures (learned my lesson and asked for them) and I actually bid the same amount I spent on the first one so that I could make sure I got it, so it really wasn't about the money. It was about spending a ton of money and not getting what I paid for.

Probably if ebay closed the case feedback is then impossible. So there is no retaliation feedback I guess.

Exactly right, since they ruled in her favor I can't leave negative feedback so not only does the seller skate through loopholes in terminology, but ebay is preventing anyone else from being warned.

Do you have pictures we can see?


Unless it's something completely drastic like instead of how it is sold in stores it's been unbraided and retied into a pony tail and held together with a rubber band... Something extremely different than pictured then unfortunately I dont think there's much you can do.

in eBay's eyes you received the item listed and all is fair game... I agree the picture should reflect what you're getting, especially with how much was spent... but it sounds like this particular seller has or is selling multiple red jasmines, so I seriously doubt a seller would take a new picture for each single doll they're listing... It's just not practical.

maybe you could redo it yourself, or resell her? /: I hate that that's happened to you... I can't tell you how many times I've ordered a doll (monster high or Disney) and unboxed the horror of box hair.

Here is a comparison pic. Left is what I thought I was getting and right is what I got. It tried to take the picture from the same angle to get an accurate comparison. Maybe I'm crazy....but they just look totally different to me. I also have another version that highlights all the differences but I'm curious to see what you think first. I just think the hair lays so nice in the first one, going high up and then straight down. The one I got goes back and then down and the twists are super tight so that you can even see space between them in one spot. Maybe I'm being knitpicky, but for the price I paid, I feel like I should be.

I'd have to disagree though on the part about taking pictures of multiple items not being practical. They are making hundreds of dollars in profit....how lazy can they be? I made my peace with scalping a long time ago and realized that to some extent I had to just do it right back to stay even close to even, but it just seems like more and more like these sellers just feel entitled. Like we should be thanking them for taking our money and doing things the right way is just too much to ask. Really annoying...

 

[erudolf]

I would escalate it with ebay further.

I'm going to try but they already closed the case so I don't have high hopes.

 

[Quasimodo]

Aw I hate to add salt, but yes the doll on the left has MUCH better hair. You're not being crazy at all. The hit or miss hair is what makes me hesitate to buy her myself. That and her torso being a different color from her face and arms really bugs me. I can't justify the current price because of those two things. She's beautiful of course, just not what I expected.

 

[staykawaii]

I DEFINITELY see the difference you're talking about but again I don't think it's enough for EBay. /:

 

[keatalex]

I can definitely see the appeal of the first doll. Her hair looks great! Mine is good but her hair isn't as high as I've seen some of the others. I really can't complain tho. I got her free. You on the other hand spent a good amount so you should be able to get exactly what you pay for! I hope you get the new jasmine you're bidding on.

 

[movingthestars]

Exactly right, since they ruled in her favor I can't leave negative feedback so not only does the seller skate through loopholes in terminology, but ebay is preventing anyone else from being warned.

While of course I understand why in some ways, I really dislike this policy for a lot of reasons too. I recently bought a framed pin set for a really low amount, the seller never shipped it (I'm sure because of the price I got it for), I got my refund immediately but then couldn't leave feedback to warn. Not good.

 

[amm3]

As someone who is very particular about the details, I totally understand how you feel. Things like that don't bother some people, but for others, small details like that can ruin a doll. I have dolls that have rhinestones slightly misplaced and they drive me crazy. LOL. I also tend to be more particular if I am spending a lot of money versus buying at retail. If I am paying five times or more what something went for retail, I expect it to be perfect.

On the other hand, I can see eBay siding with the seller, because whoever is making that decision is not a collector and probably doesn't think it is a big deal. I also agree that for the amount of profit scalpers get for just buying and reselling these dolls, taking a few minutes to snap a few pictures of individual dolls is really not that much to ask. And many just post stock photos, which is unbelievably lazy.

 

[Elphaba]

I don't like what I'm reading. When I used to be active on eBay (admittedly some years ago), I don't remember it being like this. I don't understand why photos that are not of the exact item for sale are even permitted. I don't know how I feel about putting stock photos at all, but at the very least, they should require a crystal clear disclaimer, STOCK PHOTO - NOT ACTUAL ITEM.

When I used to sell things on eBay (not Disney stuff, but I don't see why it wouldn't apply) I never would have thought to put a photo of the item that WASN'T MINE. Like I'm selling these vintage headphones, but they're a little yellowed, so I'll do an image search of this same headphone model and put someone else's photo up instead... in fact if I didn't disclose everything about my item in photos and description I was breaking policy and probably would be banned from selling! So what has happened?

Also, why would feedback be disabled when there is obviously a dissatisfaction issue going on. Since the beginning we have all had to worry about whether someone we leave negative feedback for will leave "retaliatory feedback" back, but the solution to that is, in the clearest cases where the negative feedback would be deserved, feedback can't be left? Then what is the point?!

Maybe I'm just being an old fogey because I'm really surprised at the large minimum bid increments too. Used to be a dollar minimum across the board, unless I think the seller paid extra to change that. Big increments are a turn-off for me. I think I'm definitely having a "Back in mahhhh day..." moment :sad:

 

[bookhugger]

I'm sorry to read this

 

[cambridge1066]

Hi,

I don't post here much anymore but wanted to leave some advice to buyers now that the market is being flooded by flippers who don't know anything about what they are selling.

If you are considering buys a doll off eBay and details matter to you, make sure they confirm that the pictures you are seeing are of the EXACT doll you will be receiving. I just got burned on the D23 Jasmine. I noticed that some of them had really nice hair and other had hair that was tightly wound and far away from the body. I spent a small fortune on one pictured with nice hair....not what I received. I received one with the hair I didn't like and I could tell from other variances that it was not the same doll. eBay won't do anything because they decided that the differences weren't significant enough and I can't even leave negative feedback for the seller pulling a bait and switch.

Needless to say, I will never be buying from that seller again and will be asking fir confirmation on exactly what I will be receiving from now on.

If you care about the little details, be careful!

I am so sorry to read this, erudolf, and I second the others who suggested taking this issue further. I at least have heard that eBay will take action if there was enough evidence that the product received was not the one advertised. At least in this transaction, it sounds like even though eBay doesn't want to go further it DID concede it wasn't the same product.

 

[Ninpin]

After reading this thread earlier I did go search for different eBay listings to see if I noticed any differences in her hair without a side-by-side comparison, and yep, I noticed right away that some dolls had "better" hair than others, and the one you wanted was the one I would have wanted too! Pleh! At the same time, I guess I can see why eBay wouldn't think it was a big enough difference. Still sucks though. I would be very upset.

 

[stuberzo]

I totally understand and agree with this entire thread!

I believe that some sellers are selling so many items that when they have multiples (3 D23 dolls for example) they take photos of one set and then keep "relisting" with the same photos. It is lazy but these scalpers have TOO many items to sell, right? It's horrible but I think that is their thought process.

I always pester the sellers with questions and I figure if they can't be bothered to answer or if they say they are too busy to take more pictures, they won't get my business.

I've never bought an item on eBay that only has a stock photo. I am SO picky about face paint and hair and the exact position of bows and ruffles. I don't care if I'm paying $10 or $1000, I plan to look at the doll every day for a long time, I want it too look exactly how I want.

It's so hard to know if the seller has used the wrong photos and everyone has a busy life but I like to double check.

It is sad that a seller would use photos of an item different from the one you receive but it does happen.

I've sold dolls on eBay and I would never post someone else's photos as my own or reuse photos from a different item.

I've heard a lot of sellers who have multiples say "they are all the same". And I just want to scream "no they're not!" So many details can vary from one doll to another. Most people don't get it but I totally understand. Whenever I pick out a doll in store or on eBay I look at every angle and detail to pick the one I like best. I dread ordering dolls directly from disney store.com because I can't choose the one I want. It has mostly worked out well though.

I hope everything works out! I understand your grief and ebay really should hold them responsible and not let them off on a technicality. But unless someone at ebay corporate collects dolls, I'm not sure they'd understand.

I wish you the best and everyone else buying dolls as well.

 

[erudolf]

Well, I tried escalating it and got a voice message from a manager. He said that he knows collectors are passionate but that THEY decided that the differences weren't significant enough. Maybe THEY would feel differently if it was THEIR money... He also had the nerve to say (paraphrasing here) that he wished me luck if I needed to find a resolution outside of eBay for my activity. Disgusting. He might as well have said, "yeah, I know you spend thousands and thousands of dollars here, but we care about the business of a scalper with outrageous prices more than yours.

 

[amm3]

Sorry erudolf, you must feel so frustrated. This is exactly why I get nervous making huge purchases on ebay. I am sure you spent quite a lot of money on that doll. It should be an ebay policy that sellers HAVE to put photos of the actual item they are selling.

 

[bookhugger]