# Beware...



## doublecollar (Oct 27, 2008)

I bought a pontiled medicine on ebay, and paid all the money and then some.  The crudeness and unusual collar sold me on it.  However, when the bottle arrived it had a 1/2 crack on the corner of two embossed panels, which of course was not disclosed by the seller in his descriptions.  Not only was it not disclosed, but I sent him an e-mail questioning if any damage at all was present before I bid, to which I was told there was none.  I informed the seller of the damage and my desire to return it, giving him the benefit of the doubt that it was an oversight.  He insisted I damaged it, that I waited a week before contacting him (I e-mailed him the same day I signed for it at the Post Office, which was the same day it arrived), and other falsehoods, before refusing a refund.  As I don't do paypal, I paid with a bank check, so the long and short of it is that I'm going to have to eat this one.  Nothing more I can do other than to leave him some nasty feedback.  My advice is to steer clear of ebay seller *rjewell* of Plattsburgh, NY.  Highly infuriating.  Some real lowlifes out there trying to rip you off.  I'm pretty well done with ebay.  _May_ do business with 2 or 3 sellers with whom I've established a rapport, but that's about it.


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## carling (Oct 30, 2008)

Surprising given that seller's feedback.  That's too bad, $513 sure is alot of money to have to eat.......


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## GuntherHess (Oct 30, 2008)

He's been on ebay a long tiime. I used to get outbid by him on early labeled perfume bottles all the time.


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## doublecollar (Oct 31, 2008)

Sorry lobeycat, I don't have a digital camera, and at current I don't have access to the internet from home.  Using public computers and friends for now.  I noticed someone else mentioned in his or her ebay feedback about an item this guy sold that it was broken, but left him positive feedback nonetheless.  I know the bottle didn't get broken in transit as it was packed too well, and I know I didn't break it.  I tried calling him literally 5 minutes after I unwrapped it and discovered the damage, but his listed number is invalid.  I then e-mailed him about it later that very same day when I got to a computer, and to have him write that I waited a week really burns me up.  That was the final straw; I concluded that this guy is beyond reason, closed my dispute and left him negative feedback.  Others have apparently had smooth dealings with him, but this is the way mine went.

 The crack is a bruise-type one, not one bold crack.  Not sure how well it would show up in a photo.  I think I can barely make out part of it in one of the seller's images, but I'm not positive.   Seller insisted it would be clearly evident in three of his images, even though only one could have possibly shown it.  Glass issues are often difficult to capture, but lighting, angle, damage severity and so forth all affect the image as I attempted to explain to the seller in vain.


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## Penn Digger (Oct 31, 2008)

Even if the photo did not show the crack, he should have disclosed it in the description given his past bottle history proven here.  I am glad you gave the douche-bag a negative rating.  Sorry about your luck, or should I say trust.

 PD


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## Wilkie (Oct 31, 2008)

What?  No Insurance?   Hmmmmm......

 We should all log onto ebay and go to this guys auctions, and leave him messages letting him know that we all know about the wrong he did to doublecollar. 

 I had the same exact thing happen to me with a Lladro I bought for my wife.  Paid 400 dollars for it, meant to insure it, clicked on the payment button but forgot to add the insurance.  I "immediatly" contacted the seller and said "please do not send without insurance", and then I sent another payment for the amount of the insurance.  A week later the thing arrived and had one arm broken clean off.  When I inquired about it, they got very defensive and said that I must have broken it off taking it out of the box.  The PayPal dispute was a waste of time, took 3 months of emails going back and forth, and PayPal sided with the seller because I did not pay for insurance at the time of the original payment, even though I had the original email telling them to insure it and showing that I had paid separatley for insurance.  I was so mad, I almost swore off eBay and PayPal at that time.  This was 2 years ago.  I'm still pissed when I think about it.


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## NYCFlasks (Nov 2, 2008)

I insure everything I buy which costs more than 10 bucks, no ifs, ands or buts.
 If the sellers invoice does not include insurance, I email them, and request a corrected invoice showing the fee for the insurance.


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## baltbottles (Nov 2, 2008)

As a buyer I always ask for insurance and as a seller I always insist the item is insured by the buyer or I will refuse to send it.

 Chris


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## GuntherHess (Nov 2, 2008)

No offense but its always hard to judge the truth when you only hear one side of the story, and neither party is known. Its always good to hear when there might be problems with sellers. Forum members can decide for themseleves if they want to do business with those sellers.  For me $500 is a lot of money. I couldnt imagine shipping something for that much without insurance.


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## doublecollar (Nov 3, 2008)

The bottle WAS insured according to the seller.  He was so pleased with the price he received he sent an e-mail saying postage and insurance would be on him.  I'd be pretty pleased too if I was getting $513 for maybe a $100 bottle, maybe.  Now, so the bottle was insured by the USPS, so what?  The bottle was wrapped in many layers of bubble wrap and surrounded by more than ample quantity of peanuts, and there was no damage at all to the box.  No way the damage happened during shipping!   Postal insurance covers a shipped item in the event of loss, theft or shipping damage, not in the event of some jerk ripping you off.  If I filed a claim it would be fraudulent.  Is there something I'm missing here?

 Regarding there being two sides to every story, indeed there is.  And each member will have to decide the veracity of my story here for himself.

 Penn Digger, I'd like to know more about the past history of Mr. rjewell on here that you referred to.

 As for Wilkie, I am sorry for your experience.  If it is any consulation, even the most cautious collectors and dealers have been taken.


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## glass man (Nov 3, 2008)

How many have gotten insurance on a bottle here and has had something happen to it . Is it hard to get the post office ,whoever,to pay up? I read an article in the "ANTIQUE BOTTLE AND GLASS COLLECTORS MAGAZINE" a few years ago and the person said they had to go to court to get the money out of the post office and it cost more then the insurance would have paid! I plan to send a bottle out soon and of course will get insurance,but would like to know some one who has had experience with getting the insurance money for a damaged bottle. What is the safest way to ship and get the money if the bottle gets damaged? THANK YOU!! JAMIE


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## GuntherHess (Nov 3, 2008)

Not sure I understand whether you are saying it was or wasnt insured? If it was insured there should be no question , there will be an insurance tag on the box.
 If it was insured, Lobey is correct, the seller could file for insurance if they are possitive it wasnt damaged before shipping. Its up to the shipper to file for compensation not the receiver. You can get compensation from the post office but it is really slow (many months).  It sounds like a tough case though since the package arrived and was suffiently packed. And the seller doesnt appear ready to work in your favor.
 From everything you have said it appears to be a totally unscroupulous seller which leaves you will little recourse unless you paid by credit card, paypal , or some other recallable payment method.  You did about all you can do, leave bad feedback (a joke with the current ebay system) and tell others about the dealer.
 I suppose this story gives credence to ebay's current plan to eliminate check and money order payments. I think these bad deals are few in number(at least for bottle sales) and the sellers and buyers should still be able to make thier own decisions about payment forms.


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## baltbottles (Nov 3, 2008)

Doublecollar,

  It is possible that the bottle was subject to a temperature or pressure change during shipping that caused it to crack. Quite often poorly annealed glass will contain a large amount of internal stress and it doesn't take a drastic change in temperature or pressure to cause a crack to form or even in some cases for the bottle to completely shatter. I would file a postal claim.     

 Chris


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## phil44 (Nov 4, 2008)

Robert Jewell has been in the hobby a long time. I've purchased a couple things from him,  it's been over 7 years.  They were nice items that I still have in my collection. Seemed like a reputable guy back then.


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## doublecollar (Nov 24, 2008)

I have given a lot of thought about whether or not to file a claim, and decided I would present the facts to the local post office, and see what their position was.  So I took the bottle, packaging with the insurance sticker, e-mail correspondence from the seller where he claims it was undamaged when he sent it, and a copy of the check with which I paid for it out to the post office today.  I explained the situation to the clerk at the counter, and that mid-nineteenth century glass is susceptible to cracking due to rapid temperature and pressure changes.  He looked at me incredulously and declared, "The postal service can't control the weather."  He also said that I would have to have the bottle appraised if I insisted on filing a claim.  I then asked to speak to the Postmaster, and the local insurance specialist came out instead.  He said nothing about an appraisal, but did say I needed to have the original insurance receipt or it was a 95% chance the claim would be rejected in St Louis, which is where all such postal claims are dispositioned.  I told him the seller was unreasonable and uncooperative, and that I would have nothing more to do with him.  He advised me to write a letter explaining the circumstances for inclusion with the claim.  Probably just a waste of time, but I have little to lose in filing the claim and letting them decide it.


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## doublecollar (Jan 15, 2009)

Well, here's the final chapter in this tale for those who may find themselves in a similar situation.  The claim was paid by the USPS within the past week!  The seller didn't insure it for quite all of the purchase price, $500 versus $513, but I am happy and surprised.  I did not have the original sales receipt as stated, and I didn't have an appraisal that I was told I would have to have at the local post office, yet it was approved.  The lady who I filed the claim with at the next closest post office was much more agreeable.  She stated she has seen claims that definitely should have been approved be rejected, and vice versa.  As for the bottle, it is on its way to Atlanta to be sold and recoup as much as possible for the USPS.


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## GuntherHess (Jan 15, 2009)

wow, you must have found the kindest post office in the country. 
 good job being persistant.


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## tigue710 (Jan 15, 2009)

I've had that happen a few times...  I am sure one of them was a seller trying to make a faulty claim on a damaged bottle they sold to me as undamaged.  I guess they thought I would go for it.  The bottle arrived in  box that looked like it had been opened and then re taped, and slightly damaged in the process.  The seller exclaimed on my inquiry that they had only used one type of tape and it midst have been tampered with!  thing is after further investigation I found their mistake, they had put the shipping label right over both types of tape!

 Never got a dime out of that one...


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## druggistnut (Jan 15, 2009)

I've bought bottles from Robert Jewell, too, without any trouble.

 I think all the bogus crap going on with unscrupulous "people" on eBay has soured some folks. Maybe Bob has gotten burned by some of the very "schemes" alluded to in these posts. I too, have had a couple of incidents over the years but I have learned from them and know what/what not to do, buying and selling.

 Thinking back, I believe I have had three damaged bottles arrive here. Two were in boxes that went through a cement mixer, or it would appear. The third box appeared unscathed, but had a shattered bottle it in. Things can occur (like a straw through a telephone pole, during a tornado) that defy explanation.

 THAT is why folks, a persons reputation is the bottom line. It sounds like this was episode 1268, of the Twilight Zone, and your bottle entered that other dimension.

 Glad it worked out, and me thinks you should probably let Robert Jewell know, too.
 Bill


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