QuikDrop International

3151 Airway Avenue, suite M-3

Costa Mesa, CA  92626

Mr. Murry Mead,

I am writing to you because of a recent incident with one of your franchise stores.

On July 9, 2007, I was the successful bidder on item #220127459931 (Disney Classics Collection Fantasia Loves Little Helpers) being auctioned by your store QuikDROP of Massapequa.  According to the item description:

I paid in full on July 10, 2007, I paid a $14.95 shipping charge plus I included optional insurance.  This item is a fragile ceramic sculpture with many little pieces attached.  It is very easy for this item to have broken pieces.

I am providing a link to photos showing how the item was packaged.

http://disneyguys.com/Daniel/quickdrop.htm

As you can see, the original item box measures 10" x 12" x 12" and it was packed into a shipping box measuring 12" x 12" x 12" without any additional packing materials.  You will also note in the photos that there is a very large dent in the Disney box that corresponds directly to a matching dent on the shipping box.  Obviously, the shipping box was damaged during shipment and since there was no protection for the original item box inside, the damage was transferred to the collectible item box.

The real problem was when I opened the item box to find the fragile sculpture simply set into a single layer of original protective foam.  The item is supposed to be (and was originally "straight from Disney") sandwiched between two pieces of foam that were cut out to fit the sculpture.  The second half of the protective foam was not even in the box.  The sculpture was not fitted into the remaining piece of foam, but was instead pushed into the foam against the fitting cut outs.  Frankly, I do not understand how this breakable item survived the delivery even without the obvious exterior damage to the shipping box.  I could easily assume that the item in box looked like it had been removed for photographing and then laid back into the box to await proper repacking at a later time.  Obviously, it was never repacked properly and was just put into a shipping box and sent out of the store.

I did not complain about the damaged collectible box because I was consoled that the item arrived unbroken (although one of the angels on the side is loose but is does not affect the displayabililty of the item).  I was obviously disappointed in the transaction with your franchisee.  Had the item arrived damaged, it is clear the shipper (FedEx) would not have honored the claim once they inspected how the item was packaged.  Therefore, I feel I wasted my money paying the "optional" insurance amount of $1.49.

As a follow-up to this transaction, I felt I was warranted to leave appropriate "neutral" feedback for the seller as this certainly was not a "positive" transaction.  I felt it did not deserve "negative" feedback as the item did arrive unbroken, and I was willing to allow for someone making a mistake.  The neutral feedback I left stated:

I can see that for the last 30 days, I was the 6th person to leave neutral feedback and there are 10 people who left negative feedback.  That is almost 5% of the last month's feedback at the time I left my feedback.  At 11:55 am PT, your franchisee left "negative" feedback for me stating:

I certainly think it was a very rude and vindictive action on the part of your store.  I do not think there could be any cause to call myself or any customer "unethical" or tell other buyers and sellers to avoid me.  I would hope that your company does not accept "high volume" as an excuse for poor and incomplete packaging.  I certainly will not accept being called "unethical" since I am a customer who paid promptly and honored the contract of bidding.  I am a great customer of auction storefronts as can easily been seen by my bidding history.  While I understand your stores being independently managed, the bad service and insulting treatment I received is not acceptable in any situation.

It can been seen clearly in the "feedback left for others" that I was just one of six of your customers for whom this store left "negative" feedback in a span of just 4 minutes.  It would appear there are problems at this store that should be addressed quickly.

While I had been willing to accept the poor packaging and the damaged box since the sculpture inside was intact, I am not willing to accept the rude manner in which I was subsequently treated.  Mr. Mead, I am writing to you, the founder of QuikDrop because I now believe at a minimum I should be refunded all the shipping charges and the insurance charge that was collected.  I believe due to the terrible level of customer service, I should also receive a refund equal to any fees/profits this store collected on the sale of this item for the local customer/seller who walked in the door of your business expecting their merchandise auction to be handled in a professional manner. 

I will await a reply from you regarding this matter.

Thank You Sincerely,

Daniel Bauer

eBay ID "dbbt"

Jack,

It is, of course, difficult to not have emotions when someone unfairly attacks your reputation.  I feel I have been polite and professional in all my communications with your company.

While the fragile item arrived "safe and sound," it did not arrive as described in the auction:

"Like new in box.... condition is so great you would think it just came straight from Disney."

I accepted the loose piece on the sculpture, but there was still original packing materials missing from inside the damaged collectible box.  I admit the box was damaged during shipping, but had the collectible box been properly packaged, it would have been better protected from the damage it received.  This entire situation would have been over if I had not received the spiteful and insulting negative feedback left by your franchisee.

The "deal" or price I pay should not determine the level or quality of service I receive as a customer.

I will not withdraw the feedback I left as it is an accurate and honest assessment of the service I received — not negative but certainly not positive.  I had to pay a shipping charge (and optional insurance fee) that for the price, I assumed would cover reasonable packing and protection for the merchandise.  As seen in the feedback for your franchisee, I am not the only customer to have issues with the manner in which merchandise is packed for shipment.  Most of those customers have also been branded with negative feedback and rude comments.  It is unfortunate that your company does not view feedback ratings as an opportunity to receive not only praise when everything goes right but also constructive criticism when transactions go wrong.  To have vindictive negative feedback and slanderous public comments left against my feedback was certainly uncalled for as I satisfactorily fulfilled my part of the auction contract.  EBay places a lot of value on feedback being the guide for evaluating the reputation of buyers and sellers.

While your franchisee does currently have other Disney items I would have considered bidding on, they are not one-of-a-kind items and they are available from other sellers and your competitors.  It is an acceptable trade-off to pay a higher price, if necessary, to be sure items I purchase will be shipped safely and competently while I receive professional customer service.

I appreciate that you gave your time to respond to my complaint.  I felt I made a reasonable request as a solution to try and make this (now negative) experience a little less damaging to myself and my public reputation.

Sincerely,

Daniel Bauer

eBay ID "dbbt"