Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
EBay scam?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Malc B on
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It's a scam alright. Unfortunately it's at the centre of our financial system: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbitrage
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Permalink Reply by abstractjuz on
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How is that dishonest or a scam?
Why does it matter where the eBay seller buys their stock if it's sourced legally?
...or are you just upset that Amazon still ended up getting your money?
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Permalink Reply by Clive Carter on
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Maddy, this may come as a shock, but even shops and supermarkets buy their stock at prices lower than the retail price that you pay. They can't survive long if they sell at cost price.
There is no dishonesty here. I think your eBay shop is enterprising. As long as you were happy with the price you paid at the time you paid it (and the goods were as expected) it shouldn't make any difference to you who the eBay shop's supplier is and what price they paid.
This is little different from, if not a good example of, the established eBay class of vendor called a dropshipper. Individuals will sell you all sorts of stuff – DVDs being a typical example – that they don't actually possess, they are simply acting as agents for manufacturers or wholesalers who do the actual delivery. Some people feel more comfortable feeling they are dealing with an individual at home.
The eBay shop might have made a greater effort to hide the name of their 'supplier', because anyone buying from that eBay shop could end up feeling foolish. Thought not a dropship example, I kicked myself when buying a small piece of software via eBay (from a vendor in the US) when I could have saved some money by buying from Amazon in the UK.
The best advice is to shop around. With the internet its there's really no excuse not to, as its so easy to compare prices.
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Permalink Reply by Maddy on
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The eBay shop explained that there'd been a problem with their supplier so they'd had to use Amazon for this DVD, but the point is I'm actually willing to pay more in order to avoid using Amazon, so I guess that's what annoys me, not the fact that they made a profit. It's their relentless drive to undercut everyone else's prices, funded by not paying their fair share of taxes in any country (except Luxembourg) that has made Amazon so dominant in the online market. Soon there won't be any other choice.
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I don't approve of how little Amazon pay in UK tax either and would like to see the situation changed. It isn't good enough when some of the companies offer to pay a bit more in tax: it brings the whole system into disrepute.
Amazon may be dominant for now, but nothing is forever. According to Gartner, the once mighty Beast of Redmond could be obsolete within a few years' time.
An attempt to change Amazon's ways by depriving them of the profits on a DVD sale, or even several, may not succeed in changing the corporation's ways soon (getting involved in politics might).
Even if I wanted to make a gesture like that, I don't have your means, Maddy: I'm the bloke that buys the dented cans at Satan'sbusy!
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Maddy I am doing exactly to same, the list of companies to boycott seems to be growing and growing now with the latest news that npower are also on the tax avoiders list.
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A friend of mine used to run an independent book shop which was in the family for generations. If a customer came in looking for a book which wasn't in stock and they asked to order it in, my friend would simply buy the book on Amazon and charge the RRP. The customer got what they ordered.
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I hope you're not suggesting that Maddy leave negative feedback for a seller that - so far - appears to have done nothing wrong?
How would that do anything other than damage their business and drive potential customers away - perhaps back to Amazon?
Was the seller aware that Maddy was buying from them to avoid buying from Amazon? Was Maddy told that her DVD would not come from Amazon?
If Maddy's problem is that Amazon are exploiting tax law to their advantage then IMHO she should be boycotting HMRC.
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P.S. Maddy - your transaction is covered by UK Distance Selling Regulations which means you can just send it back to the retailer and get a refund. Do it via eBay and they'll make sure it happens.
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P.P.S. - One of the ways Amazon get round UK tax law is to base their main operation in Luxembourg...
...which is also where eBay base their main operations - for exactly the same reason.
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