I made a best offer on that Sebo C3 which was accepted. I emailed the seller to inform him that I would be paying the next day when I got paid. On the morning I was going to pay, I had an email from the seller saying that unfortunately when getting the cleaner out if the loft he dropped it and damaged it so it no longer looked like the picture. He said the tool cover had come off and the cleaner was scratched.
Call me cynical, but I smelt a rat, thinking that since my offer was accepted he was offered more for the Sebo and decided to sell it to someone else.
I really only wanted the power head anyway, so I asked the seller for a photo of the damage as I would still be interested in the cleaner at a lower price. I didn't get a response so I contacted the seller again and asked to buy the power head on its own as it was only the main unit that had been damaged.
The seller then told me that the whole thing had been taken to the tip and if I didn't believe him he would offer me accommodation at his house so I could see the cleaner at the dump!
I was naturally very sceptical about the seller's explanation who was very offended that I could even suggested that he accepted a higher offer. If I had been the seller, I certainly wouldn't have dumped the cleaner without making sure that the buyer was happy with the reason for cancelling the sale. I would have also taken detailed photos of the damage to prove that I wasn't trying to pull a fast one. I also find it hard to believe that he dumped the whole cleaner including all the tools and power head that didn't suffer any damage. He has sold many cleaners and power heads in the past and some offered for spares or repair, so why would he get rid of some valuable parts when he could have made money on them?
I haven't left feedback yet though I still have time, but I can't prove that the seller accepted another offer and he can't prove that the cleaner had been damaged. He suggested that I would leave him nasty negative feedback but he would do the same for me if I did. Obviously the facility for sellers to leave buyers negative feedback has been withdrawn, so he won't be able to leave negative feedback for me anyway.
What does everyone think. Would any of you have accepted the seller's explanation? Was I completely out of order to suggest that he had accepted a higher offer after mine? We know that sellers end auctions early if they are offered a buy it now price and I am sure that some sellers have accepted a higher bid even after the auction has ended. Perhaps this seller is totally honest and just a bit naive to get rid of the evidence before settling things with me, but it all seems very fishy to me.
