Buying multiple items from one ebay trader.

Eurorunner

I bought an item from an ebay trader. Now want to buy several other items from the same trader - to save on delivery charges.
The only way he could facilitate this has been to give me an invoice for the first item - and then under 'additional charges' - hes put in the amount that equals the sum of the other items. None of the other items are listed on the invoice.

His system never allowed the possibility of buying without immediate payment (and individual delivery charge) for the additional items - whereas this is what i've done with the initial item.

Just wondering if i should go ahead with this? My concern is that I have no protection if theres a problem - as theres no record of me ordering any other items.

jor el

I wouldn't, sounds dodgy. You'll also have unpaid items listed for the other ones.

Bondvillain

They wont be unpaid items, as such, as the OP hasnt actually bought them through ebay, they've simply informed the seller that they want these additional items, so the seller has totted up the cost and added it to the invoice for the item actually bought.

It's strange that although he obviously has "immediate payment required" in place (many sellers now do, it cuts down dramatically on non-paying bidders) that he doesnt have a facility to combine purchases, although this may not be entirely his fault, as I do know that ebay's combined invoice service has been acting up for some period now.

I'd suggest a polite email to confirm what your actually buying for your records, as (no slight on him) but your concerned that you may not be covered should there be any issue. Any competent & confident seller should oblige (after all, he's saving considerable fees by not selling the items through ebay - which although beneficial to him, IS against ebay rules, so be careful when wording any emails. He may think he's being set up for a sting) .

Im assuming you're paying by paypal, & if so, the amount you pay should show as the value of your original transaction anyway, so there would be an element of protection there which would act as a deterrent to the seller were he to hypothetically attempt any dodgy dealings. Enquire about registered post too....

Finally, Check his feedback, paying close attention to any non-positives he may have and see what they say. If he looks ok regarding feedback on quality of goods and delivery, chances are he probably is. It's only a small minority of chancers who get the majority of sellers a bad name on ebay...

dropes

this may help, months ago i wanted to buy multiple buy it now items from the same seller. but he wouldnt give reduced postage unless I made a single payment (reduced paypal fees for him).

so he got me to purchase and pay for the 5 items individually. he them refunded the 5 payments to me and sent me a new combined invoice with the discounted postage. The invoice listed the 5 items and I paid with a single payment.

I havent purchased anything on ebay lately so I dont know if this will still work.

(if you do this ensure the seller does a proper 'refund', and not just 'send' money to you.)

jor el

If the seller hasn't got a proper combined purchase set up, then personally I'd avoid. You'll be left completely unprotected against him not sending the items you paid for. If it's a small enough amount, or a significant saving, and you want to take the risk, then go for it. But understand the situation before you do.

Eurorunner

Thanks for the feedback folks. I've given him three options;

1. combine all items on the one invoice but all items must be detailed

2. pay for the original item via ebay/paypal, invoice the rest seperately without shipping and i'll pay by credit card.

3. reverse the whole ebay process and stick the lot on an invoice and i'll pay for it all together by credit card.

Not sure if the third is possible but i'll see what he comes back with.

Bondvillain

Option 2 is probably the most viable.

I've checked with the very helpful people at Tamebay and they have confirmed that a seller who has "Immediate payment" in place can not provide multiple purchase invoices at time of buying.

This is an ebay glitch, and not any reflection on the seller's honesty or ability.

It's ironic really, as due to the new feedback implementations, ebay have recommended to sellers that they should use "immediate payment" to cut down on non-paying bidders (running at up to 30% of all purchases for some unlucky vendors) So although it's awkward, don't automatically assume that it's just a case of an unhelpful seller....

ruprect

Seller sounds OK to me.

When I did multiple buys before I just bought more and when I went to pay the last one they all appeared.

If this does not happen email him explaining. I would tell him I will pay for the last one and use the sellers discount box in paypal and subtract what was overcharged.