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Thaigemstore bribe to remove negative feedback

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smitcompton

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Hi All,

I think I told you all that I bought 5 gemstones from Thaigemstore over a month ago. I sent them back right away with an email to let him know the package was coming. I heard nothing for more than a month and was getting worried so i e-mailed him again. He said he just received it and would post my refund in 2 days. No refund was made. Another e-mail with stronger language which did result in my $487,00 refund.

I waited until I got my new bill on my credit card to be sure I got the refund and then posted negative feedback for all 5 stones. Oh my goodness. I have had two calls from Thailand from Ponpoj (I admit I call him Pol Pot) in less than 12 hrs. He wrote a email where he says I am stopping all his business. He told my son, big misunderstanding and he will give me $50.00. He wants to make it right. He will call back. The stones were terrible.

I go shopping and my son goes on line to something on ebay and sees Mr Ponpoj has deposited $50.00 in my paypal account. When I get home there is email from ebay thats a form to say he wants a review of the feedback.

I sent him another e-mail telling him that I want him to make it right by not lying anymore and not to misrepresent the stones he is selling. Just for discussion-- Would you have taken the $50.00? I admit I don''t need it. I want to leave the feedback. What say all of you?

I want to give him back his 50.00. I like being a martyr.

Thanks
Annette
 

tigerhearted

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Wow, no way. The truth is more important than $50. And $50 almost seems like an insult to compromise your integrity over such a costly transaction! $1k would be more tempting, but I'd still turn it down...I've never sold out for anything in my life (and there have been opportunities), and I wouldn't start for the sake of some sleazy gemstone seller.

In fact I might go so far as to file a report with ebay...I don't know if bribing people to leave positive ratings is technically against their TOS, but it's worth bringing to their attention.
 

LD

Super_Ideal_Rock
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That's exactly what happened to me - minus the phone calls. I've posted about this on here before.

I bought (and returned) some shoddy stones. I then got an email saying if I left positive feedback they would send me $x (I can't remember how much). I forwarded the email to Ebay and promptly left negative feedback.

This is why I would NEVER buy from them or recommend them to others. They're completely unethical and the way they doctor their photos and videos is grossly misleading.

Send the email to Ebay, explain they are trying to bribe you to leave good feedback and that you have never said you would accept the $50 and ask what you should do about the money. There's no reason why you can't keep the money and leave negative feedback. That would serve them right.
 

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Smitcompton,
Thank you for being an honest ebayer and not falling for his lies/bribery. It's people like you that help weed out the garbage sellers, and help ebay try to be a better place for reputable sellers. I would not take the $50.
 

jewelz617

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Nov 6, 2009
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1,547
Oh wow. When I first read your post I was like $487,000 on EBAY??!?!?!?!?!

Whew.

You should file a report with ebay and send that money right on back. I for one really appreciate honest feedback. I don''t enjoy flushing money down the toilet on a bad seller.
 

RockHugger

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HAHA @ keep the money and still leave the feedback. Thats totally what I would do!!
 

FrekeChild

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SHADY.
 

Indylady

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38.gif


I still haven''t received my item
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.
 

Arkteia

Ideal_Rock
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I''d return the money and leave negative feedback. Because there will be other people buying from him and while you are a discerning customer, I am new and may fall for stones that are not worthy of it. Seeing a 100% positive feedback I''d assume he is an honest vendor. I would return the money minus postage. (Unless you can return it via Paypal?).
 

PumpkinPie

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shameful.. I would definitely still give the negative feedback and either return the money or donate to charity
 

LD

Super_Ideal_Rock
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SC - Did he charge you a re-stocking fee by any chance?
 

diane5006

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652
Interesting...

I had an e-mail from Ebay today about them...I had not left feedback...but I did buy something from them...Ebay wanted me to answer a few question about them...and i had to tell them the the item I had gotten was not like the picture...not enough money to file a claim on an ship back...

You should report them to ebay...it look like they may have had their selling priviledges restricted and are trying to get them back...that is why ebay is investigating

Unless the $50 is a refund and they are letting you keep the stuff you should return it...just refund/return in paypal...

Also...great ebay resource is the answer center

http://pages.ebay.com/community/answercenter/index.html

Helpful people there...they can help you find who to report them too

diane
 

RockHugger

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Date: 4/2/2010 7:25:55 PM
Author: diane5006
Interesting...

I had an e-mail from Ebay today about them...I had not left feedback...but I did buy something from them...Ebay wanted me to answer a few question about them...and i had to tell them the the item I had gotten was not like the picture...not enough money to file a claim on an ship back...

You should report them to ebay...it look like they may have had their selling priviledges restricted and are trying to get them back...that is why ebay is investigating

Unless the $50 is a refund and they are letting you keep the stuff you should return it...just refund/return in paypal...

Also...great ebay resource is the answer center

http://pages.ebay.com/community/answercenter/index.html

Helpful people there...they can help you find who to report them too

diane
I bought something from them recently too (a Kunzite that I am happy with) and also had to fill out a survey. So I guess ebay is investigating them!
 

chictomato

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Wow that's certainly unethical. I will not even bother to see their auction again! (since its not the real stuff anyway!)

eta: thanks for sharing
36.gif
 

Arcadian

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I''ve never purchased from them because all of their stuff looks so photoshopped. sad to even think that they would bribe you.


Here''s what I would do:
tell ebay, and still leave bad feedback. I''d donate the money to haiti or red cross if possible.


If sending that money to charity makes you feel terrible, then by all means, send it back.


-A
 

klewis

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I see it this way. If I viewed the $50 as a bribe in exchange for better reviews then I''d have to either accept the bribe and change the review, or return the bribe. I wouldn''t keep the bribe and not keep my side of the "bargain". That''s if you see it as a bribe. Perhaps it''s more a compensation?
 

CharmyPoo

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Do you have photos comparing what the stones looked like versus their ad? I am curious to see. The expensive demantoid you bought sure looks good in the video.

I have purchased from them long time ago and I seem to recall the stones were ok - then again, I was purchasing them for 10 to 50 bucks and wasn''t expecting much.
 

platinumrock

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You bought the stones with the assumption that it will match the description in the listing. They did not. So you returned them to get your money back. All they had to do was refund your money as soon as they received the stones. But nooooooo, you had to wait a month. And you had to initiate all contact to finally get them to respond. If you hadn''t contacted them, would you have even gotten your money back?
38.gif


The bottom line is, if they had the the right thing from the beginning, there would be no need for you to leave negative feedback. And there would be no need to "bribe" you either.
2.gif
 

smitcompton

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Hi All,

First he didn''t send an email about the $50.00. He just told my son about it on the phone. So there is no email to send to ebay.

Second, I sent him an email telling him what I wanted him to change in the future. Of course, to be honest with his customers.

He replied by telling me he would find me a good demantoid garnet, with accurate pictures and description and with no window. He would take this job on himself. He would give me a very very good deal.

I have repled that I wanted a green, not olive, brown or such, and would not promise to buy such , but would look at them. Im afraid I might succomb.

LD It cost my near $13.00 to send it back. In talking to my son he mentioned he did not charge me a restocking fee.

There is something in me that is beginning to feel sorry for the guy, although good con men are usually persons who are likable. My son says "Oh he''s so nice. Bad Mother"

Just keeping you updated.--didn''t think neg feedback would cause such a stir. It caught me off guard.

Yes, on the phone he did say the money is for my trouble. Just compensation. I call it a bribe

Thanks,
Annette
 

RockHugger

Ideal_Rock
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I cant help but defend thaigemstore because I have recieved quite a few pieces from them and loved them (many I posted on here). Myabe I am just lucky but they ALWAYS look like the picture for me!

If he says its just for your trouble, take it as he says. I would also take a peek at his 'super good deal demantoid'. Its never too late to turn a bad transaction into a good one.
 

klewis

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
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It''s great your feedback has hit the mark. I think there are many large and small businesses that would compensate or bribe their customers with a gift voucher or something similar when they complain about receiving unacceptable service, so I don''t think his $50 payment to you is an unusual business practice. I hope he finds you a stone at a good price and I''d love to know what goodies he comes up with. Keep us posted.
 

Indylady

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Date: 4/3/2010 5:35:38 PM
Author: klewis
It''s great your feedback has hit the mark. I think there are many large and small businesses that would compensate or bribe their customers with a gift voucher or something similar when they complain about receiving unacceptable service, so I don''t think his $50 payment to you is an unusual business practice. I hope he finds you a stone at a good price and I''d love to know what goodies he comes up with. Keep us posted.

True; yet, since he asked Smit to change her feedback, I''m far less inclined to sympathize with him. I think that crossed the line between good customer service and bribery. If she had been pleased with the vendor''s service and wanted to change the feedback herself, it would have been a different story.
 

klewis

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
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Date: 4/3/2010 8:54:38 PM
Author: IndyLady
Date: 4/3/2010 5:35:38 PM

Author: klewis

It''s great your feedback has hit the mark. I think there are many large and small businesses that would compensate or bribe their customers with a gift voucher or something similar when they complain about receiving unacceptable service, so I don''t think his $50 payment to you is an unusual business practice. I hope he finds you a stone at a good price and I''d love to know what goodies he comes up with. Keep us posted.


True; yet, since he asked Smit to change her feedback, I''m far less inclined to sympathize with him. I think that crossed the line between good customer service and bribery. If she had been pleased with the vendor''s service and wanted to change the feedback herself, it would have been a different story.

Yes, I see your point IndyLady and like you I don''t sympathise with him. It would be great if he was able to get Smit the stone she had hoped for and then she would be able to give him the review he wants.
 

Indylady

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I agree. I hope that that happens!
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m00sie

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I have just returned a demantoid garnet I purchased from them.

Only posted it yesterday, but he did say he would refund me fully with no restocking fee.

Hopefully he is true to his word.

It would be tempting to lodge a ''item significantly not as described'' claim as the demantoid looked nothing like it did in the picture, but shall see how I get on.
 

delayedreaction

Shiny_Rock
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Jan 2, 2010
Messages
101
Cash always looks like a bribe. A $50 gift card/store credit would be a great deal better for the way it''s perceived, but outright asking you to change the feedback makes everything a bit shady.
 

LD

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Before feeling too sorry for him consider this ............... how many people have received stones that look nothing like his adverts? You only have to look at this thread to see that a large proportion who have bought from him have returned their stones.

So, even if you get a stone from him, how can you say with 100% certainty that you are getting what you paid for? Could they be treated without disclosure? If a Vendor lies and doctors his adverts that much, why would you believe anything he says?

That to me makes him a fraud. He keeps your money, earning interest on it. You have to go to the expense of sending gems back - so the consumer is ALWAYS out of pocket. He''s not.

Ask yourself also why Ebay may be investigating him? The more people who are honest and report him the better. It will either make him sell truthfully or go out of business.
 

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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24,801
Smit,
There's no guarantee he'll find you that large and beautiful demantoid that you want. It could be, excuse the term, "BS," to keep you at bay, or a stall tactic, in the hopes you'll forget the transactions after you change your feedback. In any case, the feedback system is pretty useless if people like him are allowed to get away with this nonsense. I'm sorry about my terminology, but his behavior really upsets me since I am an avid ebayer, and I do take feedback seriously.
 

platinumrock

Ideal_Rock
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Mar 13, 2005
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2,262
I agree, before I make a purchase on Ebay, I look at the seller''s feedback history first. Ideally, it needs to be 100%. It''s much harder to keep all customers happy, especially the ones that didn''t do their research first and just purchased on a whim. I also look at the feedback themselves, and if the item matched the description, and if customers are happy with the service. If find that the more honest the seller is, and the more they list an item "as is", without any enhancement or embellishment, the more it meets the buyer''s expectations.

If they have less than 100%, I look at the feedback within the last 12 months. Were they any negatives? If so, how did the seller handle it? Were they revised?

Aside from feedback history, the most important thing that I do is research. I ask questions first, check if previous listings match the description, compare vendors, methods of payment and how fast they ship. Is the price realistic of the item or is it too good to be true? If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. You get what you pay for. Why would someone sell something so valuable for so cheap? And I also make sure that there''s a refund option. And how were refunds handled?

One more thing, I also try to see if there''s a video of the stone and if the lighting isn''t enhanced in any way. A video gives you a three-dimensional representation of the stone''s color and personality. And it gives you a better real-life perspective. They are also close-ups of the stone, so you can pretty much see all the flaws, if they exist. A lot of vendors provide 1 or 2 photos. That''s just one snapshot in one angle and lighting background. I prefer sellers with 100% feedback if they only provide photos.

So in a nutshell, feedback is very important. It tells you a lot about the seller''s reputation.
 
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