Advice please

bleugh

bs7 wrote:

"Nice" or not - i'm not buying or selling things to be "nice" - at the end of the day i'm either interested in getting the best price or making the highest profit, and don't see why i should have to consider the other party's interests.

thats exactly the problem here, both parties need to consider both parties interests

all the problems in the world at the moment are often where people refuse to budge on the stance they have

when I sell stuff, i consider the buyers needs all the time, if they ask me to put a nice card in there saying 'happy birthday' on any item i wont charge them, 9 times out of 10 i'll go and buy a cheap card out of my own pocket. and consider it a good thing that i've probably made someone's day, and will get a repeat customer, i don't fully expect to be treated the same way, but i do expect good service, likewise, if a seller pleads that he's made a mistake, as a buyer i'll listen

anyways, we're going round in circles here, we both have clear ideas on how we should treat buyers / be treated as a buyer, it's a free world, we'll have to agree to disagree


oh, as for the pence and pound thing, it was an old vintage computer weighing 20 odd kilograms, 37p was postage (or something like that, should have been 37 quid), i offered the buyer could meet me half way, or just not go through with the sale,
he saw the obvious mistake (as weight was listed in the auction) and said 'fair enough'


he knew the value of the item, and he was getting a fair deal, he had every chance to amicably go away and buy someone elses item, knowing i wouldnt neg or strike him in any way, or, still get his bargain and pay lower postage



ebay states that contracts are legally binding, thats total rubbish in the most part, they allow buyers to not bother paying, so, sellers in my opinion should be able to pull out of a sale should they feel (yeah, thats a whole other can of worms that one, BUT, you're seriously telling me that you won't pull out of a sale where a nigerian has legitimatley won your mobile phone?????, or try pulling out where someone who's newly registered, no feedback and buys your very expensive item by paypal?)

bleugh

jenniferpa wrote:

Bleugh, I think the page you're thinking about is here http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/listing-surcharges.html (expand the "some examples" section). However, I totally disagree with your apparent reading of the specific section! To me, it reads that a reasonable amount can be added for post and packaging after the auction if post and packaging hasn't been agreed in advance, but the latter part is not explicity stated. If an item lists postage and packing upfront this must form part of the terms and conditions of sale, surely?

jenniferpa, you're right, i'm wrong, but, for the above to be correct in the context of this discussion we'd need to see the original auction

it may just be, that the seller only quoted postage as £1.50, but made no mention of packing (yeah, a technicality, i know)

if an invoice was sent by the seller with £1.50 on, (invoices state P & P) and then later changed, thats WRONG (as we're all agreed), but then it goes back to the circular compromise argument, everyone makes mistakes

bs7

bleugh wrote:

thats exactly the problem here, both parties need to consider both parties interests

I'm afraid communism has pretty much failed we live in a free-market economy and so the only reason a seller has for considering the buyer's interests is when it will benefit him (i.e. decent feedback or repeat customers etc).

bleugh wrote:

BUT, you're seriously telling me that you won't pull out of a sale where a nigerian has legitimatley won your mobile phone?????)

Indeed i don't. The last time it happened i played along for a while, sending emails back and forth, making him think i was about to send it. Then having bizarre problems with posting it and requiring various extra details off him (all the time i insisted in using terrible english just to mock him - although he didn't pick up on it). After about a fortnight i emailed him a link to the "tracking page" for the "phone" (which took him one of those pages that flashes up 'you are an idiot'). I didn't hear from him again!

bleugh

bs7 wrote:

I'm afraid communism has pretty much failed we live in a free-market economy and so the only reason a seller has for considering the buyer's interests is when it will benefit him (i.e. decent feedback or repeat customers etc).

yeah, thats true in most cases I suppose, but, i have always liked the personal touch, it does seem to bring in more people and repeat business too!, and if i'm really honest (and maybe a bit 'gay' sounding too ;-), it gives me a good feeling knowing that i've done a good job

there's too much impersonal stuff happening nowadays, and people really do like it when i send a follow up email a few weeks after the auction asking how their purchase is going!, or when I tell them every step of the way from receiving payment and when it'll clear, to clearing , to boxed, to shipped with tracking number and expected delivery date!

sure, it's a lot of work, and i don't have to do most of it, but, i think it's worth it

ankles4242

Just an update on the P&P change situation.

The seller has got back to me and has said:
" I am sorry for the change, I cant remember what it was originally, but I realised I was under charging on a lot of items, and changed them all. It should not cost more than £1.50 - i am unsure what I changed it too- sorry if it was more!
Could you let me know if this will be ok or not, I am happy to keep the postage/change it to £1.50 - I have sent of similar weighing items recently which cost around this first class"

I sent a polite email back saying I an happy to continue with the original P&P,and politely suggested that they should make sure that their P&P costs are worked out before listing.I also pointed out that from a buyer's point of view it was unfair to have P&P changed after the auction had been won and that it's the principle of the whole thing.
If I had been the seller I would never have dreamt of changing P&P after the auction had been won as that would have been cheeky of me and not fair to the buyer who bidded with my P&P costs in mind.

Hopefully this was resolved amicably and I will leave postive feedback,never left a neg yet even when I've had reason too through sellers not sending stuff out after they were paid straight away.

Re the other situation the seller has agreed that the £15.66 refund is reasonable and asked can we call it a flat £15.00.
I have agreed(now who was it that said I was unreasonable :P)and hopefully I will be refunded asap.

Many thanks to all who have posted,it's much appreciated