jas1vans Posted July 19, 2018 Share Posted July 19, 2018 I bought my first two slabbed comics from a seller on a popular auction site (it rhymes with replay) earlier this week. They arrived today to much excitement and anticipation; the postman rang twice. I was disappointed to see that the lower left front corner of one the slabs was cracked off. About an 1" long 1/4" wide piece of plastic was left sitting in the bag after I pulled the slab out. I'd like my money back. The cracked slab is not what I paid for. It seems to me that the blame can be ping-ponged back and forth pretty easily. The seller can say the USPS mishandled the package, USPS can say the seller packaged it poorly. I could probably make a compelling argument for wither case. I have already filed a claim with USPS and told the seller about the damage. The package was insured. Do I need to file a claim with that popular auction site as well? Are there any other steps I should be taking? Has anyone had any good/bad experiences in dealing with this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber-Bob Posted July 19, 2018 Share Posted July 19, 2018 (edited) Did you contact the seller yet ? I don't understand why you filed the USPS claim, I think the seller is supposed to file the claim. Ask for your money back plus shipping back to him. Edited July 19, 2018 by Bomber-Bob jas1vans 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas1vans Posted July 19, 2018 Author Share Posted July 19, 2018 I contacted the seller within ten minutes of opening the package this morning. This was his reply: "Hello. I am very sorry to hear about this. The best way to handle this is to submit a damage claim they usps. This is why the packages are insured. They will reimburse you for your damage and you can submit the book to CGC (you don’t have to be a member to do this) for a re-holder. It’s only like $12. They will send your book back to you with a brand new case. I hope this helps you. Again, sorry this happens. Usps is the reason I always insure my packages." I have filed the claim with USPS but I am concerned that they can simply say that the damage was due to the seller's packaging. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Lions Den Posted July 19, 2018 Share Posted July 19, 2018 Sorry to hear this. In these situations, I always file a return request with the seller and choose the specific reason for the return. Keep everything that came with the package and keep the photos of the damage handy in case you need them again. The general procedure is you file a return request, the seller approves the request, you send the book and packaging back to the seller, the seller files a claim with the post office. In my experience, the website in question will almost always side with the buyer. Good luck! jas1vans and Keys_Collector 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cozmo-One Posted July 19, 2018 Share Posted July 19, 2018 (edited) I think it is the seller responsibility. I had one that arrive cracked, and a small piece actually 'floating' inside the case. I contacted the seller and they were very good about offering a refund or replacement. They even paid the shipping back... Edit: They did have me open a return request through ebay, so it was all tracked there as well. Edited July 19, 2018 by Cozmo-One The Lions Den and jas1vans 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Lions Den Posted July 19, 2018 Share Posted July 19, 2018 3 minutes ago, jas1vans said: I contacted the seller within ten minutes of opening the package this morning. This was his reply: "Hello. I am very sorry to hear about this. The best way to handle this is to submit a damage claim they usps. This is why the packages are insured. They will reimburse you for your damage and you can submit the book to CGC (you don’t have to be a member to do this) for a re-holder. It’s only like $12. They will send your book back to you with a brand new case. I hope this helps you. Again, sorry this happens. Usps is the reason I always insure my packages." I have filed the claim with USPS but I am concerned that they can simply say that the damage was due to the seller's packaging. You're correct, if they look at the package and determine that the damage was caused due to "insufficient packaging", they will disregard the claim. Please keep in mind that it's the seller's responsibility to make things right with you. If you want your money back, I would file a return claim... jas1vans and Bomber-Bob 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas1vans Posted July 19, 2018 Author Share Posted July 19, 2018 I'll see where the claim with USPS goes. I'm asking for a full refund. If they will not give me a full refund I'll go through that auction site. I agree that this should be on the seller to resolve. I figure the worst-case scenario is the process is drawn out a little longer and I add another seller to my "Fool me once..." list. The Lions Den 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas1vans Posted July 19, 2018 Author Share Posted July 19, 2018 There were four bubble mailers around the edges of the two slabs...but they were stacked on top of each other. Obviously USPS ignored the "Fragile" stamp on the front. The Lions Den 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Lions Den Posted July 19, 2018 Share Posted July 19, 2018 16 minutes ago, jas1vans said: There were four bubble mailers around the edges of the two slabs...but they were stacked on top of each other. Obviously USPS ignored the "Fragile" stamp on the front. In my experience, bubble mailers aren't enough to prevent damage with the USPS. I usually double box everything and put extra packing material around everything, including the inner box. Unless someone drives over it with a bus, it'll be OK... jas1vans 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber-Bob Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 1 hour ago, jas1vans said: I contacted the seller within ten minutes of opening the package this morning. This was his reply: "Hello. I am very sorry to hear about this. The best way to handle this is to submit a damage claim they usps. This is why the packages are insured. They will reimburse you for your damage and you can submit the book to CGC (you don’t have to be a member to do this) for a re-holder. It’s only like $12. They will send your book back to you with a brand new case. I hope this helps you. Again, sorry this happens. Usps is the reason I always insure my packages." I have filed the claim with USPS but I am concerned that they can simply say that the damage was due to the seller's packaging. It will cost you a lot more than 12.00 to get the book reholdered. You have to factor in the shipping back and forth. Also, if the slab is damaged, they will inspect the book. If the integrity of the grade is compromised you will have to pay for grading and receive a lower grade. This is not the approach you want to take. The seller is taking advantage of you. here. This is his responsibility to fix it, not yours. You should out the seller's name here to prevent someone else from buying from him. Sorry this happened to you but don't make it worse by letting the seller take advantage of you. This is not normal procedure. jas1vans, The Lions Den and MyThreeSons 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas1vans Posted July 20, 2018 Author Share Posted July 20, 2018 Thanks for all the help! I'm reaching out to the seller to tell him that I'll call USPS in the morning to see what they suggest. I am going to assume that they will be telling me that the seller should be the one filing the claim. Once I find out from USPS, I'll go from there. If I have to file a return claim on ee bay, then that is the route I'm going. I'm not looking to put the seller out there right now. He's been very responsive and seemed appreciative of the feedback I gave...or he's just full of spit and trying to take advantage of someone. The next 24 hours will tell. Maybe he's genuine and will work to make this right. Maybe he's a huckster just trying to make a quick buck. If the latter is the case, I'll gladly share his name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Love Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 The proper response should be that the party that purchased the insurance is the one to process the claim. That would be true even if the cost of the insurance is borne by the buyer of the book. Another thing to keep in mind is that there are time limits to get a return going through Ebay. You don't want to be the one processing the claim through USPS, no matter what they say, because the claim may not be handled until after the window of time to return the book through Ebay has closed. The Lions Den and jas1vans 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExNihilo Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 3 hours ago, Bomber-Bob said: It will cost you a lot more than 12.00 to get the book reholdered. You have to factor in the shipping back and forth. Also, if the slab is damaged, they will inspect the book. If the integrity of the grade is compromised you will have to pay for grading and receive a lower grade. This is not the approach you want to take. The seller is taking advantage of you. here. This is his responsibility to fix it, not yours. You should out the seller's name here to prevent someone else from buying from him. Sorry this happened to you but don't make it worse by letting the seller take advantage of you. This is not normal procedure. This. Sure, the cost to reholder is $12, but it's gonna cost you at least $15 to send the book to CGC and it's gonna cost like $32 for CGC to send it back to you. All said and done, it'll cost at least $60 to reholder the book. I had this happen to me before, I reached out to the seller who immediately apologized and offered me a $30 refund to cover reholdering. I knew reholdering would cost more, but it was a book I REALLY wanted and I didn't mind spending an extra $30 on a 4 figure book so I just covered the remainder myself. I'm of the state of mind that the seller is on the hook for making sure you're made whole or compensated to your satisfaction up to the cost of reholdering (assuming the book is undamaged). If the book IS damaged, then yeah, return that puppy and get a full refund. It is the sellers responsibility to file an insurance claim with USPS, not yours. Bomber-Bob, The Lions Den and jas1vans 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadroch Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 May I ask how many feedbacks the seller has. I'm trying to decide if he is naive or sinister. jas1vans 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas1vans Posted July 20, 2018 Author Share Posted July 20, 2018 His feedback score is over 1050, been a ee bay member since 2006, over 500 positive feedback with only 1 neutral. Looking a little closer, he changed his user ID in 2014. Maybe he took some heat in the past and has learned from it or he's just gearing up a poor operation under a new name. He told me that the USPS should refund my purchase in a week or so as this has happened before. He insisted that if I'd like to return the book that he's fine with that as well. He has been very responsive to messages. My initial impression is that he's not trying to run a scam on me. I'm just guessing he doesn't want to go through all the work to do the return. If USPS will refund me the whole purchase plus shipping and I get to keep the book, I'm OK with that. I'll just send it in to get reslabbed after I open my own account and have some books that I feel are worth slabbing. I am concerned that this may draw out beyond ee bay's time to get the return going. I am hopeful that my immediate message to him regarding the damaged product will show that I'm not trying to game their system. If this was a book of huge value I'd be a little more upset. As it is, I'm still learning more about comic collecting every day. If I take a loss on this the most important thing is a lesson learned. I paid $25 for a copy of Captain Savage and His Leatherneck Raiders and saw a FAR better copy in a five dollar bin a couple weeks later. This situation feels less dirty than that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber-Bob Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 10 minutes ago, jas1vans said: His feedback score is over 1050, been a ee bay member since 2006, over 500 positive feedback with only 1 neutral. Looking a little closer, he changed his user ID in 2014. Maybe he took some heat in the past and has learned from it or he's just gearing up a poor operation under a new name. He told me that the USPS should refund my purchase in a week or so as this has happened before. He insisted that if I'd like to return the book that he's fine with that as well. He has been very responsive to messages. My initial impression is that he's not trying to run a scam on me. I'm just guessing he doesn't want to go through all the work to do the return. If USPS will refund me the whole purchase plus shipping and I get to keep the book, I'm OK with that. I'll just send it in to get reslabbed after I open my own account and have some books that I feel are worth slabbing. I am concerned that this may draw out beyond ee bay's time to get the return going. I am hopeful that my immediate message to him regarding the damaged product will show that I'm not trying to game their system. If this was a book of huge value I'd be a little more upset. As it is, I'm still learning more about comic collecting every day. If I take a loss on this the most important thing is a lesson learned. I paid $25 for a copy of Captain Savage and His Leatherneck Raiders and saw a FAR better copy in a five dollar bin a couple weeks later. This situation feels less dirty than that one. Unless something has changed, if USPS issues you a refund, they keep the book. This is true whether you are the seller or buyer. Also, I don't think they issue partial refunds/you keep the book scenarios either. I think you are correct, the seller is not trying to run a scam here but he is having you do HIS work. He is taking advantage of you. Get a refund directly from him, including the cost of shipping back to him. jas1vans 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evilskip Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 I had a cracked case arrive last Saturday. I filed a claim with ebay, the seller contacted me and apologized. I sent him the book back Monday (with an ebay prepaid label). He got it Wednesday and I was refunded the same day. I would have left him positive feedback, but as soon as you file a claim that option is no longer available to you. Bypass USPS on this and file the claim with ebay. And yes, every freaking Priority Mail box containing a CGC book I've gotten looks like apes danced on it. jas1vans 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HENRYSPENCER Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 seller. jas1vans 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadroch Posted July 20, 2018 Share Posted July 20, 2018 I've been using some cheap slabs as coasters, and for carrying microwave trays too hot to handle. But I digress. Cracked slabs suck, but most 9.4 books in a cracked slab are still a 9.4 book. See if the seller will negotiate the price or simply return it. jas1vans 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas1vans Posted July 26, 2018 Author Share Posted July 26, 2018 Update: I got a full refund AND remain in possession of the damaged slab. It doesn't seem like the correct solution but I'll take it. The Lions Den 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
