I bought and paid for a 5D MkII in January from ebay.co.uk for a bit over 2000 pounds. While the price was good, it wasn't suspiciously low. The company which sold it had good feedback on recent big-ticket items, has a legit-looking website, and continues to sell cameras. Within a month it was clear that they didn't have the camera in stock although they claimed so in their listing. I requested a refund.
They had delays at their end due to various reasons. They sent me a cheque (haven't seen one in over ten years!), which bounced. They claimed this was due to their bank not being setup for international transfers. Now they have claim to be trying to set international transfers at their bank, but that has been going on for 3+ weeks.
Three months after the sale eBay Resolution Center automatically closes, so eBay refuses to help me. I paid via wire transfer (big mistake!), so I can't dispute a credit card charge or file a case through PayPal. I have extensive email exchange with them on record.
So I'm running out of ideas. They seem to be genuinely trying to help me get the refund, but five months of delays is outrageous. On the other hand, if they were trying to scam me, why would they still be talking to me? This is the first time in over fifteen years of online shopping something like this has happened to me.
Is there anything I can do other than name and shame (which I'd rather not)? A complication is that I live in the Netherlands. I suspect the police won't do anything other than nod with such a small amount of money and cross-border nature of the transaction - which is huge for me. Is there some kind of trade association in the UK I can turn to? Anything else?
The company continues to sell camera equipment, but has the occasional bad feedback. I suspect it's a two-person outfit. I have real names of two persons, a phone number, and two physical addresses attached to it.
Any help greatly appreciated!