Subwoofer damaged thanks to UPS and lazy seller

[Gremal]

After upgrading my N802 pair to 802D and immediately identifying the advantages of the Rohacell/Kevlar cone over the paper/Kevlar in the bass response, I decided to sell my ASW800 and buy an ASW825. I found one for sale listed in excellent condition and quickly made a deal with the seller. I pleaded with him to double box but he assured me it would be fine in the original box.

On Tuesday, the box arrived looking like it had been used in free-fall experiments off the top of the empire state building. The box had gashes and creases. I would not have signed for the box had I been in my office when UPS delivered it, but I was at lunch and the receptionist signed.

Unboxing the sub was like a bad dream. The top was protected somewhat by B&W's packing material, but even that was not in its original condition. No original packing was used on the bottom. The seller just threw a couple small squares of styrofoam from a different box and a folded-over piece of cardboard. To add further insult, the sub was double-bagged in black trashbags!

After removing the trashbags, the first thing I noticed was that the grille had been jarred with enough force that the grille fittings had broken off into the four holes in each corner of the front of the cabinet. Second thing I noticed was the fins on the heatsink were badly bent. On closer inspection the bottom corners on the back were damaged and there were a couple minor dings to the cabinet and the B&W badge on the wood (not on the grille) had been stripped off.

The good news is that the sub functions flawlessly--sounds significantly better than my old sub (which I carefully DOUBLE-BOXED in ample packing and shipped to the buyer). Amazingly, unless you look closely or see the heatsink on the rear panel, you wouldn't notice anything wrong. I even fished the grille fittings out of the holes and glued them back on the grille so it can be placed over the front and the B&W badge appears normally. I will want to replace the grille and heatsink and get a little compensation for the other dings, but otherwise I'm happy with the purchase. It's just a shame the seller couldn't have taken an extra 15 minutes to double box the sub and use appropriate packing. There is no reason this beautiful speaker should have been dinged up.

[Dadds]

that sucks but at least everything is okay. My new sub (Polk Audio PSW303) comes Monday from ups. I ordered mine from crutchfield.

[GreenMotion]

I would have sent that puppy back!

[Horhay]

that sucks, I would have talked to the seller to see about some kind of compensation. I recently purchased an MTX sub and that baby is awesome!!

[Amon37]

I would have taken pics of the damage and then requested someonthing. But the seller qould just blame on UPS and you won't get anything from UPS.

[Thanos417]

Few questions:

1. Did you pay for insurance, or was it even offered?

2. Did you pay via paypal, or another way.

3. Was this a completed ebay transaction, or did you make the deal outside ebay?

If you paid for insurance, then your covered.

If the seller didn't offer insurance, then it's on him it was damaged.

If you refused to pay for insurance, it's mostly on you but there are still ways around it.The seller is responsible to get the item to you in the promised condition.

If you paid via Paypal, then you're completely covered, they favor the buyer in every way, and you'll get all of your money back.

If this was an ebay transaction, they'll be on your side too, just like above, it is the sellers responsibilty to get the item to you in one piece.

If you did this outside ebay, with no paypal and no insurance, then you're screwed.

Hope this helps you in some way.

[Gremal]

Originally Posted by Thanos417

Few questions:

1. Did you pay for insurance, or was it even offered?

The seller insured the shipment, but my understanding is that UPS will not accept liability if less than 4" of packing was used, which was the case here.

2. Did you pay via paypal, or another way.

Yep, I'm currently working to resolve this via paypal's resolution center. I'm asking for enough of a refund to get a new grille and heatsink from B&W, and an additional $200 to compensate me for having a sub in fair condition instead of one in excellent condition.

3. Was this a completed ebay transaction, or did you make the deal outside ebay?

It was an audiogon transaction.

If you paid for insurance, then your covered.

That's what the seller is telling me, but I'll believe it when I see it.

If the seller didn't offer insurance, then it's on him it was damaged.

I think it's on him anyway, because UPS will not accept liability for the damage. At least I'd be very surprised if they do.

If you refused to pay for insurance, it's mostly on you but there are still ways around it.The seller is responsible to get the item to you in the promised condition.

I pleaded with the seller to double-box the unit and paid him more than $100 to ship it. It cost me only $70 to ship a product of greater weight the same distance with FedEx, so something is clearly wrong.

If you paid via Paypal, then you're completely covered, they favor the buyer in every way, and you'll get all of your money back.

Well, yes, I am covered up to $2000, but paypal has screwed me before, allowing a seller to keep my money and the product I bought. Luckily that item was not nearly as expensive.

I am confident I will get some type of compensation, but even if I don't, I can't really complain. I got a $2500 sub for almost $1000 off. It works perfectly, sounds incredible and you can't notice any problem unless you start inspecting it very closely or look at the heatsink in the rear.

[Texitura]

I discovered as an Ebay seller that UPS package handling is notoriously brutal. I've been told (not by UPS of course) that items must be packed to survive being dropped from a height of five feet onto pavement. I don't know if that's indicative of their normal handling practices but I suspect it is. UPS "insurance" is a racket. Their attitude is that if an item is properly packed, it will not be damaged. Therefore, if it's damaged, it was improperly packed. Heads you lose, tails they win. You'll likely never get a dime out of them. Best of luck in dealing with the seller.

[Aaron]

Originally Posted by horhay2313

that sucks, I would have talked to the seller to see about some kind of compensation. I recently purchased an MTX sub and that baby is awesome!!

MTX? Isn't that a DJ/Stadium audio company? I don't care much for them.

[Footloose301]

Originally Posted by Amon37

I would have taken pics of the damage and then requested someonthing. But the seller qould just blame on UPS and you won't get anything from UPS.

Actually you definetly should. My boss recently purchased a $2200 R/C boat from ebay, all custom motor and air brushed paint job, easily worth $4000. UPS must have dropped it and broke the gel coat in the paint and UPS came over and looked at it and took pictures and UPS is giving my boss a full refund, the thing is the UPS then seizes the boat to sell at their auction since they pretty much bought it from you.