Ebay: Let the Seller Beware II

Recall that I sold my saddle to a first-time Ebay buyer, DB. I think the saddle was for his spouse. Read here to see my first post as well as parts Three (III), Four (IV), and Five (V) for the whole saga!

Photo from Ebay listing

The sale...
DB bought the saddle using the Buy it Now feature, no questions asked. A buyer brand spankin' new to Ebay, one previous sale, buys a two thousand dollar saddle, and not one syllable of communication, no questions about fit, or condition.  That has never happened in my years of history selling maybe ten saddles on Ebay.  Before you shell out that kind of money, you ask questions.

Red Flag! But they did pay.  Still, I reached out to them before shipping the saddle, via email. I wanted to make sure a normal-sounding person, a non-scammer-type, responded. I got a brief but cordial response, so I shipped the saddle.

The $$$ changes hands
The saddle was in DB's possession for almost a month, and I heard nothing in that time -- we had exchanged emails re: the shipping, nothing afterward.  I usually keep money on hold for ten days or so, in case there is an issue -- even though the sale was posted as "no returns." Eventually, though, I apply it to something -- in this case, the money was used to cover my plane ticket home when dad got sick -- a $1500 ticket.

One month-ish later...
Then Paypal contacted me -- after twenty-five days, DB has opened a dispute  on my saddle. Paypal always encourages buyers and sellers to resolve disputes directly with each other -- filing a dispute is supposed to be "the last resort."  The buyers skipped this step, so I really didn't, and don't, have a good sense of what the problem is. The information in the dispute summary is less than twenty-five words and is sketchy at best. The only information I have is a line on the claim report:  the saddle is damaged "internally and externally." There was mention of a slit above and behind the stirrup bar, where it was noted that flocking could seen. To me it sounds like they don't know that's how you flock the saddle and it's part of the design.  Certainly any slits were not made by me or my fitter.

I don't know. I took closeup photos of the saddle in the Ebay post, including the seat, but I did not photograph the saddler's flocking area, nor have I ever seen that area photographed on an Ebay saddle sale. The saddle is only two years old, and it has received super care and regular maintenance. I rode it in regularly for 18 months, and semi-regularly in the last few months before the sale.

Let me harp on this some more...
Why didn't DB contact me? Why did DB let a month go by?

This makes me very suspicious. I have to question what why there was no communication, and might have happened to the saddle in the time it was in their possession. Could it have been damaged by accident, or did they try to have it adjusted unsuccessfully?

On an emotional level, bypassing the step of communicating with me is a giant middle finger, and it does not bode well for this buyer's judgement, honesty, or sense of fairness.

The saddle was sold with the stipulation that returns were not accepted -- that's why the saddle is so much less expensive than at consignment shops, which take 25% commission but permit and manage 3-day to 1 week trials, etc. Buyer's remorse is not an acceptable reason for a return. That said, if I had heard from the buyer right away, I would have been able to follow the chronology of the concerns. But after a month? What happened to that saddle is anybody's guess.

 It did not help when I read this thread on the Chronicle of the Horse about how Ebay buyers almost always prevail on claims. If you read it, I don't think you'll ever sell anything of value on Ebay again. I know I will not.

Stay tuned for Part III...