Vendor failed to agree a meet to hand over a purchased item & item is removed from purchase list

[yorkshireman1955]

I purchased a fibreglass hard top for an E Type Jaguar which is obviously a large, heavy and fragile item. The vendor said they are in Scotland but said they were coming down to England in a couple of weeks and we could meet up and hand over the item. The vendor has constantly made excuses and after I said I was willing to drive to Scotland to collect it has suspended all contact. The item does not appear on my Purchase list and I paid for the item by direct bank transfer. I do not know the address of the vendor. Trying to get help from eBay is just going round in circles because the item is not in my Purchase History. The vendor has no feedback and not sold any other items. What is the best way to get a refund of over £1k please?

[**peaseblossom**]

Sorry but ebay can't help with a bank transfer.    Contact your bank and see what they suggest.

[red_magpie]

Trying to get help from eBay is just going round in circles

There is no point in contacting eBay. As you paid by bank transfer it's not covered by eBay in any way.

It's too late to help you now, but other potential buyers can at least learn from your experience: NEVER pay by bank transfer for an item you have not actually received. 

Sellers are not even allowed to ask for payment by bank transfer. You could have paid by any of the methods eBay accepts e.g. paypal, credit or debit card, and been fully covered by eBay's money back guarantee if you didn't receive the item, or it wasn't as described. You could even have agreed with the seller to pay in cash on collection. There would have been no buyer protection, but at least you could have inspected it before paying.

I'm afraid it's very unlikely that your bank will be able to help if the bank transfer has already been completed. 

For £1k plus it must certainly be worth considering at least an online money claim - assuming that you have the seller's address? If you don't, it may be difficult to get it even from eBay or the bank because of confidentially. As I keep pointing out, eBay is a jungle.

You could consult a solicitor, or ask Citizens Advice who have a lot of experience in these situations. Good luck, anyway!

p.s. if you bought the item correctly through eBay's checkout and it is no longer in your purchase history, this suggests that eBay has removed it - probably because of suspected fraud. Not that this be of much help you.