Speaking to an agent, is it impossible ?

[bunny4jeff]

I received a (non-reply) email from ebay informing me of an electrical item I bought recently which has been deemed unsafe or dangerous to use. It advised me to stop using it and contact the seller . I promptly looked up the item, which I remember buying, but it is no longer visible in my purchases, therfore Im unable to contact the seller to ask for a refund.  I am trying to contact a human being on Customer Service, as the chatbox can not help me when it cannot locate my item. I have the item number and description which ebay gave me in the email but to no avail. The chatbox wont connect me to an agent without finding the item so I am at a brick wall. There is a phone nuimber but once again it is answered by a robot who wants the item number....so looks like I'll be unable to get a refund for the dangerous item. Is there another way to contacy ebay?

Many thanks if anyone can advise.

Item details: 234910399749 - Powerful Car Vacuum Cleaner Wet/Dry Cordless Strong Suction Handheld Cleaning UK

[jckl1957]

I don't think Ebay will be able to help with this.

You may be able to find the seller by looking at your feedback left and received.

However, generally, sellers are unwilling to help in this sort of case and Ebay have fulfilled their obligations by telling you about the recall.

My purchase history goes back more than 3 years - is it possible you bought as a guest?

If so, the email you got when you paid may help with seller's details as there won't be any feedback for a guest purchase.

[papso22]

That item number doesn't come up in advanced search so I don't think you will be able to find the seller.

[red_magpie · Accepted solution]

eBay won't be interested. Their own money back guarantee only lasts for 30 days. Thereafter they will still pass on safety recalls, but any responsibility rests with the seller.

If you can't contact the seller (many eBay sellers don't want to know about problems) you could try the manufacturer's web site for information. Failing that you could ask advice from trading standards or citizen's advice, or see whether your payment provider may be able to help.

You may just end up having to bin it. eBay does warn buyers in the user agreement that they don't guarantee that items sold here will be safe, or even legal. Would you have bought it from a shop that stated this? Buying from unknown sellers on eBay isn't like buying from the shops. eBay is a jungle.