Pierlala's side of the story and explaination.

[Pierlala]

I just read the thread "Problems with Tak and Pierlala". I am actually quite upset by the things that are being said there. I know that most of you have a very bad picture of me now. I will try to explaij from my point of view what happened here. I don't think it's going to make much of a difference but I feel it's something I have to do.

As you all know, I have been looking for a Rapunzel for a few months now. One good day Tak approached me with a message that she had found a seller. However, the seller wanted 900 follars for her. I at the time only had 700 to spare as you can read in my thread (which I updated whenever I got more to spend in hopes to obtain a Rapunzel).

Tak said to me that the seller might go a bit lower if she speaks to her. Eventually Tak told me that the seller agreed to 800 dollars. I told Tak that I couldn't afford that either. Because at the time it was still early in the month and I always get my money around the 20th. So I asked Tak if she couod ask the seller if it was possible to wait untill that date. But before I knew it, Tak messaged me saying something along the lines of "It's for certain, I just paid the 800". I was surprised and happy that Tak was actually kind enough and trustful towards me. So I sent Tak the 700 I had first and I had to wait untill my money came to be able to send her the 100 dollar + shipping and ensurance. Tak came with the idea that instead of paying so much shipping, we would do a partial trade instead. She picked out some Ponies from my G3 collection. That was I had only about 24 dollars left to pay her + the 100.

Tak was also kind enough to send Rapunzel to me even before the Paypal transaction was complete (Paypal takes a few days to complete the transaction). So I waited and after about a week I received a letter that Rapunzel was at customs. Ofcourse this was my own fault. Atleast I know that now...that there is a chance that expensive items will be picked out and put custom fees on it. In this case I had to pay 191 euro. I honestly didn't have that as I did not expect that AT ALL! Tak offered once again to send 150 dollar to fill in the gap between me receiving Rapunzel and my money so I could atleast receive her. I ofcourse paid Tak back once I got my money.

Once all of that was settled, I received her and made a pony brag. Cause yes, I was ofcourse really excited that I got her finally. But after uploading pictures on the forums. Some people mentioned that her braid was rather short and her mane as well at some points. This didn't bither me right away because I thought it might not be the case. But after making a thread and receiving some pictures of other members Rapunzels I started to get bothered about it. Because I paid 800 dollars plus all the extra costs for a pony I wasn't satisfied with in the end. My first thought wasn't "Refund!" No...it was not. I didn't know what to do and even contacted a admin about possibly selling her on the forums. Aroubd the same time I had seen another Rapunzel up for sale on Ebay and I was really pondering what to do. Eventually I went against the advice of the admin and put Punzie up for sale on the forum and on Ebay. I discribed all her flaws as honest as possible and hoped to sell her quickly. Because the other Rapunzel had about less then a week left. So I asked Tak if it was possible to ask the seller if she would agree to a refund if I send Rapunzel back. I rven told Tak that I am willing to take it over from here cause I don't want her to feel like a negotiator. Tak said that the person would 't do "business" with me cause the transaction to her was made by Tak. So at this point I was just unaware what was being said. Tak did communicate with me and tried to tell me as good as possible what was being arranged. The first day this all started was the day that Tak approached the seller for a refund. As I said, me sending Rapunzel back and get a refund. The seller said that she needed several days to awnser the questions. I want to make clear that I did not have ANY form of communication with the seller. So I am telling this from what I heard from Tak. I did tell Tak to ask the seller to make up her mind as soon as possible, cause I really wanted to bid on that other Rapunzel on Ebay. But ofcourse at this point I couldn't. But the seller didn't respond fast enough. Time was ticking but after about 2 dats of no response I asked if it was possible to do a refund through Paypal. Tak phoned her creditcard company and told me the process of chargeback has started.

AFTER the chargeback was set in motion, Tak received a message from the seller that she will agree to a refund if I send Punzie back. Which I did today. I did not know how long it would even take for a chargeback to take place. But I did not have the money to bid on Rapunzel on Ebay. Tak would receive that money back once Rapunzel arrived to the seller again. Tak had offered yo bid on the Rapunzel, but in the end she decided to send me 800 dollars upfront so I could get my custom fees back 191 euro. And once Rapunzel had arrived at the seller. She would get the 800 dolar on her account.

I did sent Rapunzel today. Even gave Tak the tracking code. And I can't stress this enough...I have not had ANY form of contact with the seller. It all went through Tak.

I want to sum up a few things here,

I NEVER asked Tak to pay for anything for me. Never have, not from the beginning. Just never. She was generous enough to lend me money because of the situation. But I ALWAYS paid her back everything. Keep in mind that what I am saying took place in the past 20-25 days. So whatever money she lend me or decided to "surprise lend" me by paying upfront has all been paid back within a couple of days. I don't know why the comments in the "Problems with Tak and Pierlala" thread are so vile. I wish people wouldn't judge without knowing the whole situation and all it's details.
Sure the situation could have been handled better. Sure it was pretty sudden. But today was the first day that I heard that the seller knew NOTHING about me! I hope you can see it from all of our perspectives. I never wanted antone to feel offended or pressured. But I must admit that the comments that have been made such as "Pierlala isn't a friend worth keeping" or "What Pierlala did eas really nasty". What did I do? Receive an item that I wasn't satisfied with and wanted to return it? That is what I did. And ofcourse poor communication vetween me and the seller. But as I said, I was under the impression that the seller wouldn't do business with me. Cause that is what Tak told me. The mistake has been made that the seller didn't know that the Pony was for me. So when Tak received her, the seller thought that that was the end of it. While in fact she had to make the 2 week travel to me incluiding the time she had been in customs. So for a fact Rapunzel had been in my posession for less then a week before I decided that I wasn't happy with how she was. I found out just a little while ago that Tak is not going to accept the refund but instesd will try to sell Rapunzel herself. I apologize to Tak that it went this way. And will do my best to help out financially.

Maybe it was stupid of me to agree to buy Rapunzel without asking proper questions. But I assumed that there was nothing at all wrong with her. On the pictures she lies down, she looked ok to me. And because I did not have any communication with the seller. I couldn't ask her additional information ehich I always do before buying a pony. But I just assumed Rapunzel being more then ok. I was just too happy to finally have a chsnce to get her.

I hope I have been clear enough. I could go on and on and squeeze out even more detail. But I don't think it matters at this point. All I know is that I need to take a break and possibly just leave here for good. It just hurts to see people you thought you were friendly with change in the blink of an eye because of a situation they don't even know half of it from.

And for those who said "Pierlala hasn't even come up to defend herself. Fiest of all it is hard when you have the whole arena against you. Second of all it is pretty hard to get involved into something when you have asked and tried to get into the dicussion but the Facebook group won't accept your request and my messages being removed and ignored.

Collecting Ponies and making friends was all I wanted. Now I just want to be left alone. Feel free to respond to this thread. But I honestly don't think I will read it. Just wanted to get this off my chest.

It is 03:32 over here and I typed this on my phone. Can't sleep because of the sutuation. But I am off now.

Apologies to everyone. Especially the seller and Tak.

PS: I have written this withiut a pause and without re-reading it. So whatever it says, it comes straight from the heart.

[lovesbabysquirmy]

Thanks for taking the time to type all that out - and on your PHONE!  Wow!  Time zones make communication difficult but hopefully everyone can move forward with discussing and helping come to a solution for everyone! 

The fact that you bought that particular Rapunzel through a third-party on Ebay, and are  now having buyer's remorse over (after repeated styling and brushing which invalidates any kind of "condition" statement) has absolutely NO bearing on whether or not your return process and refund should be sped up because "there are other Rapunzel ponies on sale on Ebay and they are ending soon!". They are totally separate situations; buying MLP online is not like walking into your local shop and returning something so they can restock and sell to the next customer.  It takes a fair bit of time - weeks!   

Now, well over $1000 (if you count fees, customs, shipping) is "lost in banking limbo", a pony is in transit and there is a whole lot of stress.  Not that it happened, but can you imagine what would have happened in the community next, had a bidder actually BID on your auction, unknowing that you were reselling to recoup funds to put towards an upgrade?  Then we would have FOUR people in this mess. 

you really have to wait until your transaction (proper return/refund and all) is Completed  before you go out and try to upgrade to a different pony, if your spending funds are tied really closely to that.   And now you know to save your money, and budget for when the Perfect Pony For You happens - and sometimes it takes years to get the price you want at auction!    

I hope the mods can give some advice that is fair and balanced because I understand how this easily becomes a heated topic! 

[kitkatvintage]

It's probably best if this thread is merged with the other rather than having 2 different threads about the same issue.

It seems like the biggest problem in the entire situation is communication and lack of patience.

A return needs to be worked out with a seller no matter what the circumstances. If the return via Paypal came about because Tak called her credit card company & made a charge-back claim, that's a serious problem. A charge-back claim is to be used for fraud, not simply wanting to return an item. If that is the case, the swiftness of Paypal's response makes a lot more sense now.

[Taxel]

After altering a pony (multiple hair washes/styling) you don't get to file a chargeback to get a refund. That's not how it works. You okayed a pony, you bought a pony, you deal with the pony. If you're not satisfied, and the seller did nothing wrong/nothing happened in transit, its on you to sell or trade the pony. Your buyer's remorse is not the fault or responsibility of the seller, ever.

It is YOUR responsibility as the buyer to do research. You should never, ever buy an $800 pony (or anything else for that matter) if you don't know how they should look. If you had questions, you should have told them to Tak and had her ask the seller. When buying and selling online, you need to communicate and have a lot of patience, especially if you're buying/selling with people in other countries.


I really hope DrEsmeRose's Paypal account isn't affected by having a false chargeback issued against them since they never did anything wrong. That's really worrying. $800 is no small sum and a chargeback is very, very serious.

[Pierlala]

Even though things are a little bit more clear now for everyone, I have decided to not come back to the Arena. I know things could have been handled better. But I don't think I can forget what was being said yesterday. I've been told that the Facebook thread was even worse. And actually I'm glad I didn't have to read all that. Some people said I was on my way to becoming a bad trader and likely will get banned in the future. Well, I can tell you that this was the first time ever for me that I have returned a Pony to it's seller. But with that new view that people have of me, and me likely not being able to trade with anyone else because of what happened here. And all the thoughts people will have about me. What am I here for then? Exactly, nothing.

I have never told anyone much about my personal life, but this has just become too much for me. I have a young son to take care of by my myself and I don't need people who've I've never met say things about me and pre-judge me without even knowing me or have never typed/spoken a word to me. I have excelent Ebay reputation and will continue to collect Ponies on my own. I am not saying this to feel sorry for myself or ask pity from anyone. I just type what I feel and wanted this out. I will not be logging in anymore.

Still want to thank people for the good time I had here and I surely will miss it.

Goodbye everyone.

[FantasticFirefly]

Even though things are a little bit more clear now for everyone, I have decided to not come back to the Arena. I know things could have been handled better. But I don't think I can forget what was being said yesterday. I've been told that the Facebook thread was even worse. And actually I'm glad I didn't have to read all that. Some people said I was on my way to becoming a bad trader and likely will get banned in the future.

Yes, there is a huge thread on facebook. We saw posts of a happy owner, then a questioning owner, and finally an owner who now wanted a Rapunzel with a longer mane and braid. Now, you wanted an upgrade. Which is fine. The way it was handled, as you see caused a stir up.

We questioned the original seller as to what her original sale photographs looked like. To see if they clearly showed the hair length. They did show the actual state of her hair very clearly. If they were seen by you, it was in essence agreeable to you on purchase. And, based on this quote between you and tak, you wanted that pony, but needed more time to gather the last of the funds to pay.

"Tak told me that the seller agreed to 800 dollars. I told Tak that I couldn't afford that either. Because at the time it was still early in the month and I always get my money around the 20th. So I asked Tak if she could ask the seller if it was possible to wait untill that date."

Now obviously there are multiple reasons the entire situtation turned into this big of a mess. for the most part though, until a return happened it went smoother then expected for a multiple party, some in the dark, convoluted pony dealing.


Now, for the future collecting online (be it ebay or wherever), I hope I can clarify some pony etiquette. and assist in avoiding purchases that are later regretted.


I constantly upgrade my ponies. I love the "fresh out of package" look. Not every pony will be good enough for that.
Now, if a seller hides the flaws from a photo on purpose, and tells me the pony is perfect when it is not, obviously that warrants a return for "not as described". and if you ever get anything you feel isn't as nice as the auction said, never brush the hair or wash the pony, or apply any products. if it is returned, it needs to be in the same condition and state it was sent to you in.

Most of the time though especially on ebay they will not be called perfect, and will not BE perfect. Most people selling pony items on ebay have limited knowledge of G1 MLP so they don't really understand what is important to us, and can miss flaws. So sellers like this- always always- buy and bid with caution, even after asking questions. keep bids on the lower end!!! so, if they are less then you hoped- they are EASY to resell to recoup all of your money (price, conversion, shipping, customs-duty fees).  Even with collectors, not all collectors are experts. I would say a smaller percentage of  G1 my little pony collectors overall have a very in-depth knowledge of the hobby. Even fewer see enough examples of very rare or sought after ponies come through their personal possession to know exactly what is mint and perfect for that character. most do not. as a buyer save and study photographs of the expensive and rare ponies you plan on buying. and have what you consider "the perfect example" to reference against a seller's photographs.

Anything less then a pony being called 100% perfect or mint with plenty of photographs, to match being sold by an expert in the hobby (Spoosh*, Silverdawn, ebelieve etc) can have issues. (even the pros make mistakes sometimes.... it's rare though).

Study photographs carefully, ask questions prior, plus ensure the seller knows how to package them for shipping (never freshly washed/bathed, no newspaper, not loose in a box or flimsy envelope or taped together in a rubbish bag with a label slapped on)

My personal reason for wishing not to sell to you, is what I feel is the risk of receiving my pony, but finding a better condition one, or a better deal not much later and then sending me a return, and not seeing the issue doing this after the pony was restyled (modified).
Technically returns are deemed acceptable by Paypal, sellers do agree to be open to returns for "I changed my mind" reasons for 180 days, but it is a big no no to do in collecting circles and lands one on many collectors and re-sellers blocked buying lists.

Upgrade/Pickiest of collectors sell their downgrades to other collectors as they go. It has been pretty typical for me that a pony I wait and wait for, when it finally pops up and I buy it, a better one shows up in short order. Often at a better price too. If I buy the second, I sell on the first one myself. This can take time. More then a few days, especially anything of a higher price point.

There are a number of ponies I refuse to buy until they come across my path in the condition I want. Collecting isn't a sprint, it's a journey. It takes time. Some ponies take a few years to find in the right shape, for the right price. There's not a whole lot instant about this hobby.

[Lady Starflower]

Well said Fantastic Firefly.

Pierlala you don't have to leave (unless the mods decide that's best of course) but you need to realize people are going to be wary of dealing with you and it'll take time to rebuild your reputation. But if that's something you are committed to do you can. However be prepared to send first for trades and maybe stick to the common/cheaper ponies.

After carefully reading both threads I believe it boils down to 2 points, inexperience on both Tak's and Pierlala's side. And impatience. As Fantastic Firefly pointed out collecting is a journey and it can take a very long time to find a grail pony in the condition you desire. For example I've been searching for a Greek blue Medley for over a year now. I did miss one due to seeing the post too slow which was a downer but I'm still searching. These things take time.

And also as Fantastic Firefly said unless the seller intentionally hid flaws you can't just return a pony because you found another. That's a good way to get in trouble and get your reputation ruined.

Live and learn. If you really want to stay and make things right then that shows good character. Yes it'll be awhile before sellers will want to deal with you but if you're patient and honest you can over come this. Fantastic Firefly gave you some very good advice I suggest you take it to heart.

If that is something you decide to do I wish you luck

[Cassie85]

I'm sorry, but you cannot play the victim card in this situation, its only making you sound worse. You were not scammed by a seller. Any flaws were shown clearly on the photos. You received the pony at a discount, you praised said pony, and then you even styled the hair. Once you styled the hair that pony is yours. I think thats where people are having an issue. You styled it and then decided it wasnt perfecr enough, you saw a better one on ebay, and rather than being patient and doing the RIGHT thing and waiting for a responce from the seller, you filed a false chargeback. So you have no right to be playing victim and calling comments on the other thread file. You brought this on yourself by being a bad buyer.

[NoelVS]

Maybe I should not comment, but I'm very sorry for all the person involved in the deal, as any of them seems to be happy with it, but I want to say I've read what Firefly posted and as a newbie I appreciate that lesson, so interesting and useful for me.

Best luck for all of you

[DazzleKitty]

I am going to have to agree with Cassie85. I know it's harsh, but you should have worked something out with Tak and the seller before doing the chargeback. I mean, it's gotta be a pretty unpleasant surprise to wake up one day and see a chargeback for $800 on your Paypal account. It would ruin my day. I'd probably have a panic attack.

I know some of the comments may hurt, but what you did was also pretty hurtful to the parties involved. There were other ways to go about this.

[kitkatvintage]

I am going to have to agree with Cassie85. I know it's harsh, but you should have worked something out with Tak and the seller before doing the chargeback. I mean, it's gotta be a pretty unpleasant surprise to wake up one day and see a chargeback for $800 on your Paypal account. It would ruin my day. I'd probably have a panic attack.

I know some of the comments may hurt, but what you did was also pretty hurtful to the parties involved. There were other ways to go about this.

The way I read it, Tak initiated the charge back against the seller not Pierlala.

[Skeen]

I am going to have to agree with Cassie85. I know it's harsh, but you should have worked something out with Tak and the seller before doing the chargeback. I mean, it's gotta be a pretty unpleasant surprise to wake up one day and see a chargeback for $800 on your Paypal account. It would ruin my day. I'd probably have a panic attack.

I know some of the comments may hurt, but what you did was also pretty hurtful to the parties involved. There were other ways to go about this.

The way I read it, Tak initiated the charge back against the seller not Pierlala.

At Pierlala's request, because it would get the money back faster so Pierlala could use it to buy another Rapunzel that was on ebay at the time. 

[kitkatvintage]

I am going to have to agree with Cassie85. I know it's harsh, but you should have worked something out with Tak and the seller before doing the chargeback. I mean, it's gotta be a pretty unpleasant surprise to wake up one day and see a chargeback for $800 on your Paypal account. It would ruin my day. I'd probably have a panic attack.

I know some of the comments may hurt, but what you did was also pretty hurtful to the parties involved. There were other ways to go about this.

The way I read it, Tak initiated the charge back against the seller not Pierlala.

At Pierlala's request, because it would get the money back faster so Pierlala could use it to buy another Rapunzel that was on ebay at the time. 

I read it as Pierlala asked Tak to start a refund through PayPal, but Tak called & found out she could get the money quicker by doing a chargeback, and then set that in motion. I'm assuming that neither one knew that a chargeback is only to be used for a fraudulent use of a credit card. It was discovered that the money could be hot quicker that way & Tak decided to do that without thinking of the consequence for the seller.

Both parties are in the wrong for their lack of patience & lack of understanding of how the system works. I just think that Tak should not be made out as the victim when both of them played a part in creating this mess.

[LadyMoondancer]

Tak said in the other thread that she got info about doing a chargeback, but in the end did not do a chargeback.  I think she opened a Paypal case "normally."

I agree that both Tak and Pierlala made mistakes, which resulted in justified frustration from the seller.  One of the mistakes being, do not buy a $800 pony for someone as a surprise unless it's a true gift, i.e. you aren't asking for payment for it.  Another being do not style the hair on a pony a bunch of times and then decide you don't want it.

One point I would like to emphasize is that a refund / refund negotiacions should not be hurried along or skipped because "there's something on eBay I want to buy".  Each transaction is complete within itself;  outside factors like "there's another Rapunzel on eBay" shouldn't be a factor.  (Besides which Rapunzel shows up on eBay all the time, it's not like there will never be one on eBay again.)

[Taxel]

Tak has mentioned a few times in the other thread that she did not actually file a chargeback but her CC company or bank, whoever she called, told her its fine to file a chargeback when an item is "not as described" which I've never ever heard before. That's what normal cases and refunds are for.