In his speeches on AI, the master of the rolls has frequently mentioned eBay as an example of small level disputes being considered and decided by a machine without any human interference.
Spotlight on. Enter Obiter, stage left.
A short while ago Obiter ordered a Shrek suit for a fancy-dress party (obviously). The parcel estimated arrival date came and went and as Obiter was sending a querying message to the seller, the whole order changed from ‘expected delivery date’ to ‘delivered’. That was strange because the package had not arrived and after speaking to Evri and DPD (the delivery company was changed halfway through it being apparently delivered) it was clear neither company had ever received it either. Obiter’s amateur detective skills led us back to the seller who refused to engage.
Obiter turned to eBay, or eBay’s robot who told us the case was closed as the seller provided tracking information. All well and good but clearly a lie. But there is an appeal function which Obiter promptly used. Being the amateur detective that one is, we had correspondence from Evri and DPD that they had not received the parcel, as well as correspondence with the seller either evading or ignoring questions as to where the package was. Obiter considered sending a photo of the empty doorstep were the parcel had not been left, but deemed it overkill.
‘Shivam’ from eBay was tasked with reviewing the case. She acknowledged no fault, but repeated that from eBay’s (incorrect) records the parcel was delivered. She also understood our disappointment and as a courtesy refunded the full amount. Obiter had no admittance of liability, but a win is a win.
The real loss however is that despite Obiter being able to pull together a costume at the eleventh hour, the winner of the fancy dress competition was someone dressed as a dragon. A robbery.
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