Another one you should probably add here to the community watch is Fettfocus, who I noticed has a feedback thread with a handful of positive ratings, it seems from having made purchases but not sales here (so far).
I bought an item from him on his ebay account Lstachak, and he switched the figure in the auction for a poor quality substitute- what was basically a beater, where I was expecting the near mint condition sealed piece from the pictures. The listing clearly implied I would receive the same one, and I got a different one that was severely damaged.
The one he sent me just wasn't even the same figure as what was pictured on the listing. He gave me lame excuses trying to blame it on shipping damage or fragility, but the box was pristine, and the weapon was missing. He's done everything in his power to sabotage the return and block me from sending it back and refuses to refund for it unless I take a loss on the case. I'm getting the picture of a jaded ebay seller who is trying to punish the buyer for returning non-conforming goods.
This has spilled over into the RS forums when I posted a watch out thread about him, and he brazenly lied about the whole thing and tried to blame me for not returning it!! (I had stated I would return it and asked to return it over a half dozen times by that point and even gave him instructions on how to print a postage label, which ironically were nearly the same as the ebay CS provided!).
In the long run however his misguided effort to defend himself and cover up the scam actually worked in my favor, because he immediately put his foot in his mouth and lied in a way that I was able to verify with third party sources. In fact I would go as far as to say that his own statements in defense in the watch out thread actually helped me win the case!
When I called ebay to escalate the case and finally return the thing, I took a page from the guys who say they are "vetting" the posts there and decided I would double check his statements in case I had made a mistake and misjudged him. I asked customer service if he did in fact call in to get me an advance return postage label as he claimed. At first I expected only to be able to verify that he called, in the hopes that this would indicate his willingness to resolve.
But to my astonishment ebay CS actually told me they keep a logged transcript of all calls and responses from both trading partners as part of the case notes, and that they told him the exact opposite of what he claims in the watch out thread! Yes he did call ebay on June 26, but the assertion that he sweet-talked ebay into providing me an advance return shipping label, and that I was refusing to utilize it, was a complete fabrication!
Instead of verifying his defense in watch out section, I had inadvertently proven him a liar, which strongly implicates him in covering up his nefarious deed. If it was either a mistake or even if he believed his claims, why is he lying about it?
It took ebay CS all of about 30 seconds to find the case in my favor after that.
I didn't have to go over how the item I received was different from what was listed (I had already uploaded pictures to compare it to the resolution system). The phone call to ebay CS was entirely centered around FettFocus' statements, and it was ebay CS who actually confirmed that he was lying. I also pointed out that he lied again on his feedback claiming I refused to return it. When I went back and counted all of the requests, promises, or mentions of return shipping where I told him that I would in fact send it back, I counted a sum total of 12 times where I either specifically stated that I would send it back or implied that I would return it by requesting a return label or actually instructing him on how to provide the postage that would allow me to do so in accordance with ebay policy and contract law.
I run a furniture business, so I was well aware of my rights in the case of non-conforming goods, and I double checked his listing, which had absolutely no terms other than the typical "no returns" policy, which I think is common knowledge that doesn't apply to SNAD cases.
Furthermore, the guy's statements here on RS are completely inconsistent with the ones he left in the resolution center. Here he states that he "doesn't care" what condition it's in, that he will take it back regardless of whether or not it matched the description, and he promises to refund me for it if I return it.
On the resolution forum, he flatly refuses to accept the return and refuses to refund for it at all.
I returned the substitute figure swap he sent me within 24 hours of being given the appropriate capability to do so, and I was forced to wait 2 weeks for it to get there, because UPS stupidly neglected to scan the box at one point. The earliest date I was eligible and officially authorized to return it was July 1. It was logged into the system with tracking on July 2. However there was a gap in the tracking between USPS handing it off to UPS on the 3rd or 4rth and it registering on UPS tracking on the 16th. Fettfocus used this as an excuse to block the return and neglect to refund me.
When the box finally did arrive back to him, he promptly sent it back to me again!! and I still didn't get a refund from him, despite his public promises here on RS. I called UPS who told me he literally called them himself and refused the parcel, sending the return back to me.
I had to call ebay and appeal a case I had already won! The reason notated by ebay was that fettfocus had promised to refund and never sent it. UPS registered the tracking as the receiver of the return refused the parcel and canceled the return order.
The bottom line here is that this guy has seriously questionable ethics no matter what way you slice it.
If he had simply made an error in sending me the wrong figure, why not just say so & diffuse the situation from day 1?
I also discovered that he has had four of these figures, and they are not that common- TIE pilot in sealed Kenner ESB baggie. He sold one in Novemeber, one in Feb, and the one I bought in June, plus the beater he shipped me instead of that one, makes 4.
He obviously has the stock to have sent me the wrong thing. As a retailer myself, if I have duplicate rare items, and the consumer says I sent the wrong one, my first response is to check my stock and assure the consumer that I've sold others without complaint.
It's extremely suspicious that he has neglected this. Did he even bother to check to see which one he sent me after I reported receiving the wrong one?
And last but not least, I found an ancient report from someone else who left a neg on his feedback with an eerily similar claim. I don't normally put much stock in feedback so old (14 years in this case!!!), but the details are a little too similar for my comfort level. Another ebay buyer claiming he promised a near mint, sealed item, and he delivered a resealed card & lied to cover it up.
I got a refund from ebay under buyer protection, but sadly I still lost part of the purchase- it turns out I had used an ebay coupon to make the purchase, which is non-refundable under ebay Buyer Protection and anyhow would have expired by now. So even though ebay found in my favor (twice) my refund amount is $20 less than the purchase price plus shipping. On the other hand, in his efforts to bully me into accepting a defective substitute, the idiot sent the thing back to me a second time, so I have it again after returning it. Ironic, no? lol
I'm sorry this is so long- it's a really unusual case with a lot of twists and turns.
The only other thing I would like to point out is that I checked with an attorney who confirmed that the seller was responsible for the return shipping cost, because Stachak was in breach of contract with a responsibility to cure at his expense. In neglecting that responsibility he has violated contract law as well as ebay policy, which actually supports this.
And I don't think anyone could argue with the obvious lack of integrity and business ethics here in sending me the wrong thing, trying to force me to keep it, making it difficult to return, passing his expenses onto me, lying to the entire RS community as well as myself, and promising to take it back and refund me regardless of the circumstances, and then failing to do so.
This guy is all kinds of wrong on so many levels. I've tried reaching out to him on PM as well as phone calls (he gave ebay a fake #, but I looked up his real one). He hangs up on me and will not explain himself. I'll eat the $20 loss of buying power and get rid of the thing to make up for it, but I strongly feel I am still owed an explanation and apology here.
I will be posting additional watch-out threads with the rest of my proof.
