Damaged box- what would you do/say?

[buttonso]

I've bought a lot of stuff on eBay over the years and this is the first time I've ever pulled a  face when I opened the box.

I bought a 1995 Happy Holidays Barbie last week, NRFB, I felt like I paid a pretty good price, the box and doll looked really nice in the auction photos.

It came today, and good lord.. It was not well packed. 

The doll box was crammed into a cardboard box barely bigger than the doll box itself. That box was in turn placed inside a larger box with no padding of any kind. No paper, bubble wrap, nothing.
The exterior box looked like it has been dragged down the street behind a horse and I could hear the interior box rattling inside before I opened it.
The doll box has a huge dent in it, which bums me out majorly. The dent is big enough that it's messed up the back, sides and top.

So obviously I need to say something to the seller, but I'm not entirely sure what to say, or what I wanna do. The doll looks really nice still but the box is a wreck, if I kept her I would probably de-box her and the price I paid is definitely too much for a loose doll.  Do I ask for a certain amount back?  Or do I just message the seller and explain how the doll arrived, express disappointment and see what they offer?  My husband thinks I should just return it but that's such a hassle... I dunno.

Thoughts? Script suggestions? I'm more worried about initiating contact than I should be, I know, I haaaaaaaaate expressing dissatisfaction but, ugh. I was looking forward to getting this doll and it was a letdown.

[northstar3184]

Ringlets gave me an awesome template for contacting a seller with a complaint. See her post in my thread:
http://mlparena.com/index.php/topic,378492.0.html

Post Merge: June 03, 2016, 11:18:33 PM

Ringlets gave me an awesome template for contacting a seller with a complaint. See her post in my thread:
http://mlparena.com/index.php/topic,378492.0.html

Actually to draft something up based upon the advice she gave me:

" Hi, I received my doll today, thank you for sending her so quickly (or some other positive remark about the transaction) but unfortunately her box was damaged in transit. When I look at how she was packed, I see that her box was placed inside a slightly larger box without padding (bubblewrap, etc..) for protection. I understand that mistakes happen in packing and shipping items.  However, I was truly disappointed that the doll's box was so damaged, as it greatly depreciates the item's value. Therefore, I wanted to talk to you about what to do next."
Then let the seller know what you'd like to do. Do you want to keep the doll or return it?

[buttonso]

That's a great template, thanks for the suggestion in where to start! I'm still debating with myself on whether or not I wanna keep it but I'll make up my mind and take photos and send the message this morning. 

[Ringlets]

  thank you for posting  Northstar3184  and for making the template fit the problem that buttonso has too

Hopefully that should help you Buttonso   its always a pain when things like this happen but a tactful message can help a lot when you have to sort it out
Please let us know  how it goes

[buttonso]

The seller was very nice and apologetic and refunded me more than I would have thought to ask for, so, happy ending! 

I feel stupid for all the hand wringing I did about it though. 

I'm gonna de-box the doll, most of my HH Barbies are not in boxes anyway so she will be in good company.

[northstar3184]

Glad it worked out! 

[Ringlets]

Thanks for the update
I'm happy it all worked out so well in the end too - that's awesome