i have a problem with an online purchase, i didn't get what i ordered, i

[sam sarrha]

i ordered 2 of something nice and got something similar but a piece of crap with a crack in it, and it didn't work very well.. i had to fix it. the guy just shines me on.. i sent him a digital photo of what i got, but i had the quality too high and he couldn't open it.. his reply was .. 'just as i suspected!!'

i ordered on Yahoo.. in one of my chat groups on the subject..Crystal Radio's.. i had mentioned his site earlier.. he does supply some mighty nice crystals for detectors.. best i have seen, one person there said something like..'yea if you can get him to....' I unfortunately discovered what he was talking about, he sent me 4 wrong items in 3 orders, they were about equal value and i could use them so i didn't make a big deal about the first 2, but i ordered 2 really nice detector stands, one for me and one for my nephew, and got 1 very BAD reject, no shiny black top or spiffy wood.. one leg was off when i got it and 2 more fell of fixing the first..

he obviously has a bad case of 'Aversion', and thinks he is right and i am wrong, he said he photographs the items in each order before he boxes them. indicating i am trying to cheat him.. having lost $16 dollars and my faith in someone i started to like i am concerned.

my concern is that he seems to have a reputation with this behavior, is there anything i can do to help him tighten up his act.. i dont really think he is deliberately doing a bait and switch scheme, but that is what is happening.. unfortunately he doesn't sell the items i ordered any more anyway..
when i was a kid and ordered something like this and didn't get it or it turned out to be crap i was really affected badly.. i think most of the people who order his stuff are old science nerds like myself and kids, whichever, it is a small closed community. he does have some nice looking things, but the quality sucks on some of what i got.. and didn't get.

what can i do.... how could i approach it effectively. yahoo does want to know if you have trouble with people you buy stuff from on their service.. should i send him a letter with return notification of receipt and ask him to reply in 14 days, yes or no he is aware of my concerns and will or will not do something about it.. then report it to Yahoo.

i have Aspergers Syndrome and have no concept of social interaction.. i just feel like i got stepped on again, such is life. people have abused me and cheated me all my life because i am autistic. i just dont want others to get cheated by this guy and be made to feel like i do now.

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. Email him or write

and explain your problem. Give him a chance to fix it. Then if he doesn't fix it, complain to Yahoo.

[Kutjara]

2. First off, don't beat yourself up...

...for getting ripped-off. It's not your fault. Plenty of people with supposedly 'normal' interpersonal skills get ripped-off every day. It's perfectly normal to feel like a victim and turn the blame on yourself. We all do it. Nobody likes to be a 'sucker,' but we all have been at one time or another.

To answer your question, your course of action really depends on how much money the things you bought cost. If they were only a few tens or hundreds of dollars, there's no real point going to court (even small-claims court), because it will cost you more to do that than the goods were worth.

Since you say the community of people interested in these items is small and closed, you might try appealing to its members. Post your experience on the Yahoo group and other places where such people gather online. Shame alone might work on the guy. If he genuinely made a mistake, he will quickly rectify it. If he meant to rip you off, that will quickly become apparent too. Either way, you will have caused him more discomfort than he's caused you, which should give you some comfort.

In the end, you may never get this guy to do the right thing, but at least you can let the rest of the community know what they're dealing with. And performing a public service like that can feel very nice. :)

[Horse with no Name]

3. You might let him know

that if he sent it through the US Mail, he could be looking at mail fraud charges. The FBI is very interested in online shopping fraud because they are aware that a few bad apples can virtually take down an entire industry.
http://www.ic3.gov/

[sam sarrha]

4. thanks for your input.. i didnt lose much this time, but Ive lost millions

to others.. i have the same neurological format as bill gates, i am a visual perceiver, a visionary.. i see the solutions not the problems, except in social situations where its blank, i cant recognize faces or remember names.. when i am in a group of people i have no idea what they are doing, it is very stressful, so much input it is like being electrocuted. since i was a child i have been abused, beaten, raped as a child, cheated and humiliated on every occasion possible many many times by others because of my disabilities. i have survived to become a fairly positive person, but i dont know how, probably meditation, My wife is a Buddhist, Buddhism has helped me a lot.. Meditation has saved my life.

i have produced products and have never made any money from them, but others have.. lots of money.. i gave up designing things..my wife wants me to try to do a particular project i made for her personal use, she says it could be prescribed by doctors and sold on the Internet. i just make little crystal radio reproductions and loop antennas..now. check out Dave.. google: Dave's Crystal radios, see what i mean, they are wonderful. i am also making an ultra lite solar, gas/electric hybrid powered commuter vehicle, it is a work in process. i made it 25 years ago, my wife wants me to restore it and at least show it in parades and as a Green Display of personal involvement in alternate transportation at craft fairs and things like that., maybe if i got a grant, we are too in debt after having 4 good jobs outsourced since 2000, we have used our entire retirement chasing jobs around 4 time zones. i am a technical savant, i do electronics and research.. but i never get thru the interviews on most jobs.. when i work i have my eye in the microscope and my nose to the grindstone.. i did 2.4 times more work, with NO errors, than anyone else on our 20 person team building electronics for the F22 and Delta3. but i get nervous and dont come across well in the interviews, i dont say the right social things.. which id dont say at work because i am WORKING.!!! why dont they get it.?? i miss out on a lot of good jobs.. i am too old and beat up to do hard labor anymore.



i want to do something about the problem, but i dont want to get sued doing it.. it isn't a big deal, i just dont want kids to get ripped off, and the guy could do a good buisness i he got it together..

thanks for your input

[OneBlueSky]

5. the lesson her might be when shopping online . . .

only do business with reputable companies, and avoid dealing with individual sellers . . . when you deal with people you don't know, you knowingly take the risk that they may try to rip you off . . .