For those who frequent my Facebook will know that I buy a lot of photography stuff off eBay. From lenses to cameras, from cleaning kit to filters, in 2011, I clocked a total spending of over SGD $10k. However, not all purchases are for myself, I have started to help my fellow photographer friends and my photography students to buy stuff too. The savings are too good to miss it than buying off the shelves in local camera shop unless it’s urgently in need.

Like all online portals, all the users on eBay are real people; they are differentiated into good or bad. In my experience of buying off eBay sellers, I met my share of “Cheats” or irresponsible people or worse, bogus sellers who will trick you into paying for an auction item but the item never arrived. And seriously, eBay & PayPal is not really helpful when you get cheated. Don’t believe? Try to contact an eBay representative by phone.

I wrote this article to warn the local Photography Circle in Singapore about some really bad & irresponsible sellers on eBay.   

Online Cheat Profile 1:
eBay Seller ID: “jhlny2002”.
Real Name: Joon Lee
Seller email: jhlny2002@yahoo.co.kr
Claimed Location: USA.

Case:
I bought a Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm F4-5.6 from this seller “jhlny2002” on 04th July 2010. I was given a USPS tracking number LJ262998848US for tracing the parcel. The mail type was “First-Class International Mail”. After 30 days, I didn’t receive the parcel so I contacted the seller and the seller replied me & told me it will take some time. Fine, so I waited. By the 50th day, I wrote to the seller again and this irresponsible seller just ignored my messages & emails. The tracking number given was traced to a parcel on http://www.track-trace.com/ which left the country of origin on 6th July 2010 and no further updates after that..

I tried to contact USPS several times and I was asked for the receipt number. So I wrote back to this seller again and requested for assistance as it will be much easier for him to contact his local USPS office since he is the person who ships out the parcel and he has the receipt. However, this seller continues to ignore me and refused to assist me. All my attempts to contact USPS failed as they do not has a direct number for you to call from outside USA and their online HELP all requires the Receipt Number which this Seller refuse to give or even respond to my correspondence.

I decided to call eBay and report the Seller & highlight this incident to PayPal as well. By then, it’s already the 75th day then I realized eBay has this 45 Days policy which any transaction that has been completed after 45 Days, they will not do anything. So I guess this Seller must be aware of this policy and decided to make off with the money I paid for this lens. He claimed he had shipped, well, if he really did, he will assist and reply, however, fellow photographers suggested that this seller can just post a bogus item on eBay to sell, after receiving payment, then ship something really cheap like a Pencil to another fake address and gave the buyer a tracking number and the delivery will never be completed.

Today, as I write, more than 180 days had passed and my lens never arrives.
So beware of this seller “jhlny2002”.

Never buy anything from this Seller or end up high & dry like me.