I have been part of the key team of an organization that brought Internet to India on 15th August, 1995 and have seen its growth over the years. Online selling and buying portals have been one of the growing B2C industries.
It made buying & selling very easy for millions of customers. I have been very happy doing so with such portals but had not ever tried eBay until recently. Had heard and viewed adverse remarks about it but did not trust these without giving it a try.
TRUST ME, what all adverse I had heard of eBay, not only of India or Asia Region but eBay as an entity, proved to be CORRECT and is indeed shocking. My complaint No. 1-10205428961 of last week with it refers.
The modus operandi of using customer money for its business growth is evident from the following chronology and unfair trade practice -
1. You buy a product online and pay for it.
2. The product shows that the shipping is free but when you proceed to buy and submit it, the billing invoice generated includes handling / shipping charges that are not disclosed and are not even in fine print.
3. Even then you buy it and proceed to make the payment through its payment gateway (PaisaPay) claimed to be its Guarantor for your money. PaisaPay ID 33853831745
4. You are provided with the seller details etc. and the expected TAT.
5. In few days’ time when you check with the Seller about the product, you are told that the product has been shipped ( in my case on 16th of June, 2013 vide DTDC Courier Airway Bill No.Z92076849 ). Surprisingly, when you go to DTDC website to track it, the tracker doesn’t reveal you any information not even error 404 page.
6. It doesn't get delivered to you even after 8 days within the NCR region of Delhi. Seller is in Gurgaon and me as a buyer am in Noida. Ultimately, it never reaches you, proving that the shipment details provided to you are fake.
7. Then you will be asked through emails and SMS to confirm receipt of the product and if you do not confirm it within a week’s time, eBay will assume that you have received it already - VERY FUNNY !!. What if the buyer was travelling ?
8. You get an SMS to tell eBay of your buying experience with it by giving a miss call to a Mumbai landline numbers. If you dial a number where you have to say NO, you will get an acknowledgement SMS stating that eBay Executive will get in touch with you within 48 hours that never happens.
9. NOW IS THE QUESTION THAT I NEED TO ASK eBay India-
A) What is the sanctity of the Shipment details provided by it to the customer that include Courier Agency, Airway Bill No. and date of shipment etc. ? Why doesn't DTDC tracker work for these details that are unheard of ?? Where did it disappear ??? The fact is that it was not at all shipped and the details provided are all FAKE.
B) Why doesn't Seller pick the phone on the second instance when a customer follows up for its product? In my case it was Mr. Gaurav Sharma of vitalinfoway.
C) Why no response or acknowledgement to my emails having spoken to the Customer Services Executive as well as its Floor Supervisor ( Srinivas - Help Desk Floor Supervisor in this case )who asked me to write to him on an email id that I have been stopped to disclose here as another person’s email id although it belonged to eBay not any individual. I have been barred second time to post this feedback for obvious reasons by these dumb guys.
D) In the light of the substantiating circumstances that I have mentioned above, how can eBay India defend & claim that it has not indulged into Fraudulent Act and unfair trade practice by cheating an innocent buyer, punishable under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code ?
I leave it open to you all potential buyers of eBay who might still be very optimistic about it.
Sadly, disassociating myself with eBay, disappointed & cheated I am
RK Khushu
PS : Just to share with you guys that this post was removed by eBay immediately after I submitted it because it contained my email id and my contact mobile number. Second time also, this post was removed as it contained contact email id of eBay where I was asked to write. It should give you some insight into the business model of the eBay India that has indulged into unfair trade practice and cheating.
