Definitely not the norm. I've placed dozens of orders with various sellers and every transaction has gone smoothly. But I appear to be in the same boat with our fraudaholic friend, so I feel your pain.
Well the 'admin' has actually been in contact with me regarding this very seller. But it now appears the seller has actually refunded me but is also sending me abusive messages!
I'm not getting a good first impression of brickowl!
Buying and selling I've found that communication is key. I don't know your situation, but perhaps it's all based on miscommunication. Interpretations of what was expected vs. the norm. I hope that you give BO another chance as it can vary from seller to seller. If you have particular needs, mention them or ask questions. Most sellers will welcome extra communication.
Just been in touch with TheBrickaholic querying the delivery of my order and I'v received a full refund via PayPal in response, without requesting it or prompting them in any way. So... doesn't look like the behaviour of fraudsters more that of a seller overwhelmed... just a thought!
@hyperjon Please dont judge us all based on one store. Just started selling here and i do everything i can to make sure everyone is happy. Not sure what happen with the seller but just about everyone here do all they can.
I have seen all the comments, the truth is I started selling as a few extra pennies out of my personal collection. I have also, a full-time job ant 60 hours a week etc.. I did not expect the orders to come in thick and fast like they did and was very under-prepared. Those that are missing, lost not delivered. I have refunded, straight away. Yes, I've give some people a piece of my mind when I shouldn't of BUT brickOwl have supported or helped me in any way shape or form. I knew nothing of this email, they sent out and even the orders that have been delivered have started paypal disputes, so i'll be out of pocket there too, no doubt as PayPal are awful to deal with. Thats all I have to say but if it;s missing / nor arrived yet - please make contact and I will issue a refund.
Thanks for posting that - I've had an email promising a refund so we'll see what happens.
I think what's making many of us suspicious is that you're saying it's your personal collection, and yet you've got literally tens of thousands of brand new bricks listed, quantities which far exceed most "normal" store's inventories.
For example, right now you're showing over 60,000 brand new 3001 2x4 bricks, which just seems strange for a personal collection.
If it's a genuine store and you're just struggling to fulfil orders then I apologise, but coupled with the email from the site admin you have to understand why we're a little dubious.
And to the OP, stick with BrickOwl. As I said earlier, I've never had a problem before, and found all sellers to be courteous and honest. Use the feedback as a guide just as you would on other selling sites, but I appreciate that's a vicious circle which makes it hard for a new store to become established.
I have a VERY large collection and I was parting out alot to keep up with my personal stuff, i've been collecting Lego for 15 years + and I did buy alot of parts to sell with a view of making a few pennies.
@somebrickstore Yea that sucks i got nowhere near the collection you do and the orders started come in pretty fast. Hope this has a positive outcome for everyone.
@Charliesdad Its a bit odd but me and the kid use to get a few thousand everytime we went to the LEGO store from the wall. So i wouldnt say its impossible. You can fit 169 in a cup and we would grab about 15 cups. If you really get daft you can hit multiple LEGO stores in the same city and double or triple that. Thou i admit... you don't see this often. Wish i had keep all those pieces.
@hyperjon as others have stated, I sincerely do hope you give other BO sellers a chance. There are some AMAZING folks on here - just like a retail store, you have the vast majority that are amazing, great, and good, and the very rare situation where needs are not met. :-( When in doubt, check feedback (and if nervous, ensure feedback is as a seller, not a customer).
@Charliesdad, also the facts that he changed the store name, has not received one positive feedback as a seller. and 7 negative all indicating orders have never arrived.
Very disappointed 1st order with this site and with this "supplier", items advised dispatched, untrue, unwilling / unable to provide tracking or proof of posting, should have heard the tinkle of alarm bells at that point. Contacted seller who unilaterally cancelled the order and raised a PayPal refund which then failed because of insufficient funds. Now have to raise a PayPal dispute to get the money back. Gave the guy the benefit of the doubt but it is odd that everything is roses as a buyer but not a single positive as a seller. Come to think of it this site is a little shy on stats on which to base a decision to buy /sell, it could do with taking a leaf out of ebay's book in this respect. One does wonder if the guy has ever completed an order as a seller?
Please, please, please don't tar us all with the same brush. I buy and sell here and my experiences are 99.9% positive and no other site I've bought from or sold from can live up to that. In my 4+ years on BrickOwl, I've never had an order not received and as a seller, only 2 (one international) went astray in the post and I had no problem verifying things and issuing a refund. The only major complaint I had was an order to the US which was taking longer to arrive than the customer expected. However it was within the time window allowed for the chosen service.
Sellers I've used here vary in service because they all have unique qualities but they have never let me down and what I receive is as described.
I think a seller with a massive inventory, who works largely alone, will get overwhelmed - particularly during Jan and Feb while PAB online is closed. I'm not excusing poor service but it is a factor to consider. It's also important I think, for all sellers to have a good grounding in customer service skills. It's absolutely key to any business.
@waynstar so eloquently said! I'd add that anyone CAN at least see the source of a seller's feedback (each one shows if they were the buyer or the seller) and all written commentary left. You have to click on the seller's feedback rating on their home page, which opens a more detailed feedback screen. :-)
Hang in there, @Mickeyr , my experiences here are very similar to others on here - truly, 99.999999% of the sellers here ARE awesome, super-nice, dedicated, hard working folks that want nothing more than to earn your business and friendship over a shared love of the plastic brick! :-)
@Calibrick Feedback (yes I read it) left by sellers does't seem to correlate to his performance as a seller. Selling implies an exchange of money and goods, so far this is a 1 way street, no goods sent (by the look of it to any other real buyers either)! Refunds might have been "processed" but so far no cash has materialised in my PayPal / card account (despite a PayPal dispute being raised), or possibly anybody elses. Now raising a claim with my Credit card.
Comments
I'm not getting a good first impression of brickowl!
Although I appreciate your responses here
Tyson.
If so, same here.
I have seen all the comments, the truth is I started selling as a few extra pennies out of my personal collection. I have also, a full-time job ant 60 hours a week etc.. I did not expect the orders to come in thick and fast like they did and was very under-prepared. Those that are missing, lost not delivered. I have refunded, straight away. Yes, I've give some people a piece of my mind when I shouldn't of BUT brickOwl have supported or helped me in any way shape or form. I knew nothing of this email, they sent out and even the orders that have been delivered have started paypal disputes, so i'll be out of pocket there too, no doubt as PayPal are awful to deal with. Thats all I have to say but if it;s missing / nor arrived yet - please make contact and I will issue a refund.
I think what's making many of us suspicious is that you're saying it's your personal collection, and yet you've got literally tens of thousands of brand new bricks listed, quantities which far exceed most "normal" store's inventories.
For example, right now you're showing over 60,000 brand new 3001 2x4 bricks, which just seems strange for a personal collection.
If it's a genuine store and you're just struggling to fulfil orders then I apologise, but coupled with the email from the site admin you have to understand why we're a little dubious.
And to the OP, stick with BrickOwl. As I said earlier, I've never had a problem before, and found all sellers to be courteous and honest. Use the feedback as a guide just as you would on other selling sites, but I appreciate that's a vicious circle which makes it hard for a new store to become established.
I have a VERY large collection and I was parting out alot to keep up with my personal stuff, i've been collecting Lego for 15 years + and I did buy alot of parts to sell with a view of making a few pennies.
It is genuine.
Anyway, that's the end of it for me.
I buy and sell here and my experiences are 99.9% positive and no other site I've bought from or sold from can live up to that.
In my 4+ years on BrickOwl, I've never had an order not received and as a seller, only 2 (one international) went astray in the post and I had no problem verifying things and issuing a refund.
The only major complaint I had was an order to the US which was taking longer to arrive than the customer expected. However it was within the time window allowed for the chosen service.
Sellers I've used here vary in service because they all have unique qualities but they have never let me down and what I receive is as described.
I think a seller with a massive inventory, who works largely alone, will get overwhelmed - particularly during Jan and Feb while PAB online is closed.
I'm not excusing poor service but it is a factor to consider.
It's also important I think, for all sellers to have a good grounding in customer service skills. It's absolutely key to any business.
Hang in there, @Mickeyr , my experiences here are very similar to others on here - truly, 99.999999% of the sellers here ARE awesome, super-nice, dedicated, hard working folks that want nothing more than to earn your business and friendship over a shared love of the plastic brick! :-)
I was told mine was processed on Feb 26th and would take 10 days. Nothing so far.
On Monday I will be taking this to my credit card company and also reporting it as fraud to the police.