Is it an EBAY Switcheroo or a Genuine Mistake?

Dec 21, 2023 | eBay Flipping | 45 comments

Is it an EBAY Switcheroo or a Genuine Mistake?




EBAY Switcheroo or Honest mistake?

Online shopping has become a popular and convenient way to purchase goods, with eBay being one of the most well-known platforms for buying and selling items. However, there have been instances where buyers have received the wrong items or subpar goods, prompting the question: is this a case of EBAY Switcheroo or an honest mistake?

The term “EBAY Switcheroo” refers to the act of a seller intentionally misleading a buyer by sending a different or inferior item than what was originally advertised. This unethical practice has left many buyers feeling frustrated and deceived, as they had expectations of receiving a specific product only to be disappointed with what they actually received.

On the other hand, there are cases where sellers genuinely make mistakes when shipping items, resulting in buyers receiving the wrong product. This could be due to human error, mislabeling, or oversight during the packing process. These sellers may be apologetic and willing to rectify the situation by offering a refund or sending the correct item.

So, how can buyers differentiate between a deliberate EBAY Switcheroo and an honest mistake? There are a few red flags to look out for when receiving a package from an eBay seller. Firstly, if the item received is significantly different from what was described in the listing and the seller is unresponsive or uncooperative when contacted about the discrepancy, it may be a case of intentional deception. Additionally, if the seller has a history of negative feedback or there are multiple complaints about similar issues, it could indicate a pattern of dishonest behavior.

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On the other hand, if the seller is responsive to the buyer’s concerns and offers to resolve the issue promptly, it may suggest that the mistake was unintentional. Sellers who take responsibility for their errors and are willing to make amends are more likely to be honest and reputable.

To avoid falling victim to an EBAY Switcheroo or an honest mistake, there are some proactive steps that buyers can take. It’s important to carefully review the seller’s feedback and ratings before making a purchase, as this can provide valuable insight into their reliability. Additionally, communicating with the seller before completing the transaction to clarify any details or specifications about the item can help prevent misunderstandings.

In conclusion, while instances of EBAY Switcheroo do occur, it’s also possible for sellers to make honest mistakes when shipping items. By being vigilant and conscientious when purchasing goods on eBay, buyers can protect themselves from potential deception and ensure a positive shopping experience. It is always recommended to report any suspicious or fraudulent activity to eBay and use secure payment methods to protect against potential scams.


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45 Comments

  1. @kaylaaustin3839

    For remotes and switching like the shoes, you can sharpie a little tiny mark inside where nobody will see it and ask them for photos then you will knw

    Reply
  2. @kaylaaustin3839

    "I didn't know it was gnna b that big " thats what she said

    Reply
  3. @mrmuffer69

    I agree 100% with listing seasonal stuff all year. Look at it this way, if they are filming a Christmas movie they film it in maybe April, so they need christmas stuff then, so if a prop master needs something not available in a prop house they are going to look online and will be buying that seasonal item in April.

    Reply
  4. @angelakmoses

    Thank you so much for the viewer question about the shoes that were sized differently. I’ve actually been in two different situations, one as a buyer and one as a seller, with this type of issue with shoes. I was given a whole bunch of shoes by family member. There was a pair of black crocs in there that sold for less than $20, the buyer opened the return because one was a size 8 and one was a size 9. I had no idea. Of course I took them back. In the other case where I was the buyer, I purchased a pair of Timberland boots for my husband. Both boots are the same size but they are clearly from two different pairs of boots. They are the same model, but if you look inside of them, the tongues are totally different and they are two different shades of tan leather. I went back and looked at all of the buyer’s pictures and the way they had them staged the shoes were never exactly side-by-side so I didn’t realize these were two different pairs of shoes. Also, I got them for less than $25 plus shipping and it would’ve cost around 12 to send them back because they were so heavy so I just kept them. Live and learn!!!

    Reply
  5. @Sunflower0678

    ???? Question: What size shelving is in your middle row? The link goes to the Sam's Club page but doesn't show the actual shelving unit. Thanks for your help. I enjoy your channel!

    Reply
  6. @foureverfunky7775

    As a shoe seller, that’s the first thing we check, the size of both shoes.

    Reply
  7. @PdiddytTube

    well about time (kidding) but I have been done sourcing garage sale since early September .. its been just estate sales since then for us in the northeast

    Reply
  8. @ronaldschmidt4748

    New Orleans Saints Championship Hat, Lot of 4 Chess Books, Royal Albert Enamel Collander, Lot of 7 Junior League Cookbooks, Catholic Lithograph Print,Set of 4 Rada Knives, Arcadia Trails Shade/Tent, 1969 Ford Mustang Hot Wheels Redline, Hack Slash Volume 4, Deluxe Scrabble Game, Peter Rabbit Nursery Set. Thanks Lonnie and Candice Take Care. Out

    Reply
  9. @KenVanTassell

    A friend of mine who is a postman says "Cash is king" when giving gifts to postal workers!

    Reply
  10. @luckyduckystore

    Hi. Did Candice use photo room app for the black background or something else?

    Reply
  11. @gaylebartlett4631

    Maybe we should all give the Mail person an EBAY gift card!!!!

    Reply
  12. @stefan8303

    Good point taking photo of both shoe tags. I've only done it with Nike before but that was to show authenticity. Haven't thought about doing it otherwise to protect myself. I'll do both shoes and box if I have one from now on. With this buyer issue, if they had been used not new at least when returned you could check if the wear in them was about the same or a different used shoe had been returned, not that it would make any difference, except knowing if you were at fault or not.

    Reply
  13. Anonymous

    Where’s Lonnie’s nice white chair? I noticed the stool is back. Hope it didn’t break. Love your videos thanks for sharing honestly with your viewers!

    Reply
  14. @carolc.3440

    My postal carrier is awesome. I give him gift cards throughout the year. In the 25 years we have only had 3 carriers. They have all been great, we are very fortunate

    Reply
  15. @wink853

    Hope you guys have a very Merry Christmas! Thanks for the info, knowledge and entertainment!!!!

    Reply
  16. @emilysimon2676

    I wait to list some "seasonal" things like wearever super shooters or cocomotions until the fall because I can get so much more during that season!

    Reply
  17. @SnaggleKrate

    I bought a pair of mismatched size sneakers because I did not check both shoes. Revealed this in the listing and they sold anyway. SWORE to check both shoes in the future. Forgot and bought another mismatched pair. Sigh. Revealed this in the listing and they also sold. I feel like I've used up all the good luck with selling mismatched sizes.

    Reply
  18. @dlbartlett9078

    Have you thought about giving your carrier an ebay gift card? I could be just one more customer to the ebay cause. That's what I'm going to give out.

    Reply
  19. @jacobedwards6776

    I sell 99.9% shoes on eBay and Amazon. Switcharoos are EXTREMELY rare on eBay. I would say I’ve had 1 INAD in the past 500 pairs sold MAYBE

    Reply
  20. @brianhenry2385

    Peter Rabbit Wedgewood Set: that’s the type of shipper that I do by slitting open a brown box and to give the retail box a single cardboard wrap, right tight up against the product using the retail box’s edges to make the folds on the wrap. I just make the cardboard longer then the retail box to create flaps to close the ends and stick a label on it.

    Reply
  21. @brianhenry2385

    Postal Carrier: give a good carrier an eBay gift card!

    Reply
  22. @brianhenry2385

    Shoe Swap: a third possibility is that the Seller walked out of the store with a box that had been mixed up during re-shelving. It happens in a shoe store or dept store when a shopper has a few of the same shoe out to test fit different sizes. He takes the pair that fits and then he (or a salesman) puts the rest back in the boxes and a careless error happens in the store. The next shopper then just grabs a pair without trying them on, buying the mis-matched pair. It happens.

    Reply
  23. @gem_drops

    Another scam, someone switches items around on Poshmark. I sent a bag that was authenticated by Poshmark, User (Buyer) said it was not as described. They sent back another style of the bag which was destroyed but with the same brand and color. Poshmark did nothing and said that their authentication does not cover accuracy of item only if its authentic…. Can you believe that. Very expensive lost, I initiated a legal case through authorities with little assistance

    Reply
  24. @gem_drops

    In the photos, if they have a side by side… the shoes would be the same size….

    Reply
  25. @Antiqueexcavator

    I agree with Lonny about being 100% sure. I, too, am a long time reseller on eBay with over 7 figures in sales. I, too, still make stupid mistake. I disagree with Lonny about being 80% sure that the show return was a scam. I’d bet $1 that the shoes were as the buyer said, sized wrong.

    Reply
  26. @Antiqueexcavator

    Great advice about taking photos of identifying details of every item included in a listing.

    Reply
  27. @robincormier8809

    My first thought about the silverware was "Thats not going to look good." Glad it worked better with the black one. One of my good customers gave me a $50 gift card to a specific new trendy restaurant…it was for sushi!! Yuck! Luckily, my sister purchased the card from me and gave it to her son. Keep up the good work!!

    Reply
  28. @daverice4755

    Hoka are popular long distance runner / Backpacker shoe. On long run or hikes feet change sizes. Someone having a size 11 & 11.5 foot is not uncommon.

    Reply
  29. @BeagleBellow

    Hey guys, as much as a return on shoes of different size suck. You can all ways sell each shoe separately. There are people who loose 1 shoe or people who have 2 different size feet [ some because of swelling]. may take longer to sell but not a complete loss.

    Reply
  30. @scmrjim

    I give my mail clerks cookies.

    Reply
  31. @trueheart1372

    Do not give or buy gift cards theres a scam 2hen you buy them somehow they have the info and immediately drain them

    Reply
  32. @darktoylord

    I usually drop off at the post office so my postal carrier only picks up every once in a blue moon but he has to deliver A LOT. I doubt he is in the market for action figures from me but I think I am going to give him an Ebay gift card. If it's not spent on me, at least it will be spent on a fellow reseller.

    Reply
  33. @garymazoki3168

    Hi Lonnie and Candice thanks for the great content you have helped me a lot in improving my sales and technique in running my eBay store

    I worked the last 4 years as a mail carrier before my retirement and I always appreciated a cold drink on hot summer days. I still remember a customer meeting me at the mailbox with a cold Coke that was great

    Reply
  34. @modandpopthrift1230

    I’m with you Lonnie

    No one can be 100% sure in that case and there is NO reason to assume a buyer is trying to cause problems from the start

    I think people REALLY have to stop making up stories about buyer intentions… we CAN NOT know what a buyer intentions are and it doesn’t help anybody to make up fairy tales about buyer

    Just take the return and move forward with the business

    Reply
  35. @jimhorne8855

    My wife bakes homemade cookies and candy for the mail carrier and others.

    Reply
  36. @darktoylord

    I don't recall where I heard it from but a great suggestion for anything that could possibly be swapped out and returned as "not as advertised", make some sort of mark on your item. Like a little dot with a sharpie underneath the battery cover. Something that you will be able to identify as your item in the event that it is shipped back.

    Reply
  37. @tinbinhminh1521

    HI Lonnie and Candace, I left 1 part out of my question about switching the Hoka from a buyer, so you TWO can have a Objective opinions !!!! My HOKA was authenticated, and Right after THE SWITCHER EBAY BUYER filed return claim, The Authenticated Center DENIED RIGHT AWAY !! THEY SAID MY HOKA is authenticated and they are sure the pairs is matched, and this Buyer lied. SO the ebay scammer switcher never got any return. THE EBAY authentication caught them (the cheater) RED HAND. I am sure they targeted right at beginning when they started to buy my HOKA… I am sure they have their same HOKA but different size at home.. I AM SO LUCKY, that my HOKA is autheticated, otherwise i have to refund to that ebay cheater and take back that mixed-match shoes. THANK YOU VERY MUCH BOTH OF YOU. MERRY CHRISTMAX AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS.

    Reply
  38. @showandsell7148

    I felt like Lonnie broke an unwritten rule of the South! lol Your viewer wrote in and asked about his ‘shoe situation’, certain they were the same size. Then Lonnie started talking percentages about how likely it was the viewer was correct!?!? Lonnie, you live in the South! Here’s a percentage: that is 100% a car ride home conversation. ‘Candace, the viewer with the shoe question…I think he might have overlooked they were the same size…’ Why would you say that out loud?!? It made no difference to the overall point that we should all be taking pictures of both shoes tongues. When I was watching, I felt like I could hear the viewer screaming, ‘I said I remember, they were the same size! Why are you disagreeing with me?’ Then pounding the unsubscribe button til the mouse broke. It’s okay. We still love the channel. I think Lonnie may have simply been channeling that relative we all have who says or does something inappropriate at the family holiday party, but well, ‘he’s family’, so we put up with it. Don’t feel bad Lonnie.If I am honest in my family, I’m probably that guy, too.

    Reply
  39. @ToyAddict

    In November I went through all of my Christmas items and ended and relisted them to refresh the listings.

    Reply
  40. @BEATRIZMELENDEZCZ

    My carrier is the best. We have great relation with him and for Chritsmas we provide a thank you gift and during the Year we give him things we harvest in our land. He saves me so much time and money. It take me around an hour the full trip to may post office. That end up saving me money and time.

    Reply
  41. @Charliemcbride77

    I have a great carrier and I just gave her a $50 gift card

    Reply
  42. @macha1617

    When I got married 50+ years ago stainless was not as nice as 18/10 is today.

    Reply

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