Freecycle (Merged Thread)

Cardew

The curse of Freecycle* is people who grab everything to resell on Ebay or car boot sales.

I suspect some people take everything they can and put back on Freecycle the items that won't sell. Could this be the reason?

It would be very easy for these people to be traced. However it has been suggested in this forum suggested that in some groups the people running the group itself are involved with others in 'creaming off' the attractive items.

If that is the case they would not wish to trace the culprits.

My group does not ban organisations as such, we frequently have requests for charitable concerns.

*
Some people state that they don't mind people taking goods for resale! I, and others, strongly object.

Reselling is against the rules of many groups and I believe all groups require that you declare if you intend to resell.

However nobody ever declares that intention, just use deceipt!

robnye

as a moderator for my local freecycle group...... i can 100% confirm that we do not cream off the best items, we dont cream off any items at all.

personally, i wait until the itme has shown on the website before emailing the person offering, in the same way that normal members do.

our local freecycle group has a simple feedback system (admittedly only been in use a little while), but over time it will become apparent , who the gooduns /baduns are

emmy05

freecycling to me is getting rid of something that i dont need and quickly, sometimes i could resell things i guess, but im in the same boat as many others, one persons rubbish is another persons treasure.
ive never known the moderators to be taking things for themselves either, theyve also offered things they dont want in the ones im in.
personally i see some ppl say they took the first one that emailed, but tbh my preference is someone who can pick up items quickly. i like freecycling and tend to have a nose in my groups 4 or 5 times a day lol
as for organisations, i know of 2 that are in one of my groups ........

lil_me

Co-owner on a site and can guarantee on our site noone creams anything off. Until the item shows on the site I wouldn't ask for it. Exactly the same as normal members do. To be honest the staff of the site probably get the least from it.

We try allow requests from organisations such as charities because we try to keep to the 'no strings' gifting. We don't want members to feel pressured donating because it's for a charity. If there is a charity mentioned the charity number must be quoted and we will check to ensure the person requesting is from that charity.

Same applies for 'sob story' requests, we don't need a reason, if someone needs and item and someone is willing to offer it then fine, but wouldn't like someone to feel pressured into gifting something, which many nice people will do.

There are many online centres who would likely open doors to someone from a local community group coming in showing people how to use the internet to access the likes of freecycle. I know several who do it now.

I have given items away for others before, mainly responding to wanted ads.

Ken68

I did read on here somewhere of a Freecycle group where membership was 'by invitation only'.
That is an interesting development, sort of keeping it in the family.

Cardew

I am sure that the majority of Freecycle owners run their groups without thought of personal gain and indeed devote a great deal of their time to a worthwhile scheme.

However because those posting above are in that category, it does not preclude other owners from using Freecycle for their personal gain.

Without question, Freecycle is a happy hunting ground for the Ebay/Car Boot dealers who NEVER declare their motive.

Ken68

Assuming there will always be takers, tis a wonder that Freecycle ever got off the ground.
Maybe there is an overriding Christain need in givers to provide.
More than likely is that the item is in the way, NEEDS to be got rid of, can't be sold, or too expensive to get shut of via council or skip.

emmy05

tbh i find the council annoying regarding picking items up, i very often have to have an item hanging around for over a week before im allowed to put it out for collection, i much prefer having someone collecting it as soon as its ready for pick up

daleigha

im sure there are some dodgy freecyclers out there, just wanting stuff to sell on, but i also think there are more genuine people who have no need for the stuff and are just happy that someone else will get use out of it!!

it does annoy me when i see someone asking for laptops etc, but then again, if i ever had a laptop to give away i would just post the offer and give it whoever i saw fit - most likely not the person who posted a wanted post for it once a month!! :rolleyes:

stilernin - i dont see why you couldnt do that on behalf of others - but i think each group has different rules so best to check them out first!!

on my freecycle group there are plenty of charity groups asking for stuff!!

stilernin

Thanks to everyone for their comments. As I mentioned in my original post, I have no hidden agenda with this.

I just thought that acting like some who post for friends who don't have internet access, I could keep items out of landfill. The only benefit to me and the organisation would be keeping the community active in a useful and friendly way.

Interesting how some freecycle groups have different rules etc though. Can anyone explain freecycle's history to me how it works (it seems a bit like a franchise) and how 'mods' become 'mods'. Being of an age when mods rode scooters with a dozen chrome headlamps and wore parkas, it is all a bit of a mystery to me.