American buyer taking liberties

patgc

Sold an item to an American this week, which was fine, often do. My auctions state Overseas buyers MUST use Paypal. This one sent me an email saying that he was sending an International M O. I wrote back reminding him of my terms but said that if it was absolutely impossible for him I would on this occasion accept a MO as long as it was in GBP Sterling. He has written back tonigh saying that he has sent me $25 in the post which he feels will cover the invoice which was for £12.00 GBP.
Grrrrrrr, who does he think he is. I will have to make a special trip to town to change the dollars. I have no idea of what the buy in rate is for dollars either, so dont know if I am going to lose out on this.

5thElement_2

Post it back to him and tell him to read the conditions of auctions in future lol

$25 is only £13.25 (xe.com/ucc)

Plus you need to consider the fee for changing it etc and your time

Tell him to get lost!

smellybum

5thElement wrote:

Post it back to him and tell him to read the conditions of auctions in future lol

$25 is only £13.25 (xe.com/ucc)

Plus you need to consider the fee for changing it etc and your time

Tell him to get lost!

Completly agree.

However I would not post the money back as this will incur more costs.
I would tell them to up the money as you need to cover the bank fees and refuse to send the item untill all your fees are covered. Say you are accepting the $25 as a non refundable deposit and once the full balance has been paid you will send the item.

You will want to add on the bank charge and travel fees to get you to the bank.

Dan29

ts_aly2000 wrote:

Is this really worth expending as much stress and energy over 12 quid!

I see your point but don't forget this is the Money Saving Expert website

soolin

ts_aly2000, I do see your point of view however..there does seem to be a general disregard by some buyers in certain countries for seller terms. The attitude that I don't care what I'm bidding on and I'll do it my way is an arrogance that I find irritating.

When you sell a lot, and in the past I used a now defunct auction site that sold mainly to the US you begin to see a pattern that is not accidental but is deliberate and I begin to question the motives of people who refuse to accept terms and conditions. I still have at least 2 dollar cheques and a MO or PO (it isn't clear which) from several years ago that people sent because they thought I was wrong not to take them, when In fact the amount in dollars is less than the amount it would cost me to change the things. If I set my terms and conditions to suit myself why should I have to make special arrangements for 1 buyer who is too dim to read an auction.

Going back to the original question, personally if he has sent cash in dollars cash them to sterling before you send item. Do't put yourself out traipsing around to find someone who will change them cheaply, go to your most convenient place and cash them there. If the money you get is not sufficient to cover the auction then advise the buyer you are xxxx short, maybe you could send the item surface mail instead of airmail to meet the shortfall or come to some other arrangement.

I have even wondered whether paying 'short' is a new scam...I'm seeing it mentioned over and over again now and the buyer works on the principle that sellers will let it go for a pound or so..if everyone did that then why bother with auctions, just let them send what they think they want to pay!

Soo

RubyMurray

This is why I get so p****d off with some American buyers, their refusal to accept or comprehend the difference between dollars and pounds. I sometimes wonder too if they are trying it on, I mean surely they can't be that thick, can they?

A while ago I helped a family member with setting up a seller's account and listing her items and her first sale was to an american buyer, payment accepted was international money order or paypal. The item sold for £8 plus about £3 postage so he started off by sending a money order for 8 dollars. After a few 'difficult' emails the money order was sent back, and a couple of weeks later she received a money order for 11 dollars! A few more 'difficult' emails later explaining yet again he needed to send about 20 dollars, the money order was returned and a couple of weeks later she finally received the correct amount. Is that the end of the whole mess? No, the money order was a domestic money order that cannot be cashed outside of the US! More emails and the money order was returned to him, where upon receipt he left her a neg saying 'I recev order' (sic), leaving her with a feedback rating of minus 1. :mad: :wall: I feel terrible about it because I encouraged her to start selling on Ebay and she will have nothing to do with it after that, the mere mention of it makes her break out into a cold sweat. Terrible, terrible luck for a first time seller eh. Yet when you visit the US Ebay discussion boards it's all 'oh don't buy from british sellers, they rip you off!'

I still sell to the US but I often get questions like 'how much is this in dollars'? I feel like replying 'look, you're screwed on the exchange rate so I wouldn't bother if I were you!'

*oops, sorry very long post*

Agutka

soolin wrote:

I have even wondered whether paying 'short' is a new scam...I'm seeing it mentioned over and over again now and the buyer works on the principle that sellers will let it go for a pound or so..if everyone did that then why bother with auctions, just let them send what they think they want to pay!
Soo

Ooooh. You have so got a point. Conspiracy theory or what. It cannot be coincidental... Reminds me of carbooting - I've come across this paying short - 'oh, did I not give you a pound? Ever so sorry' or waiting till you're harassed by the end of the day:
-Hi, how much is this item?
-£1
-Will you take 50p
-Okay, go on then
-Can I take both for 60p, thanks.
They walk off with your stuff and you're stood there with 60p in your hand wondering what just happened.


patgc - treat the american like they treat us. Tell him that you only accept real money. What is this dollar thing - paper out of monopoly?

frivolous_fay

Hah... I sold an old PC on ebay recently for £61... the guy came to collect. he got the £60 out... asked his mate if he had a pound.. neither of them did, so I said don't worry about it... just as he was about to hand the money over, he asked if that was my best price...

Ruddy cheek! What I should have said was 'yes, is that yours?'

patgc

Yes, it is, its my money and as said in other posts, why should they take it for granted that they can ignore instructions and please themselves.!
Have today sent him a message as follows

"Hi,
Thanks for your message. I specifically ask for Paypal so that I dont have
to spend my time and my money going to Banks. I agreed on this occasion to
waive my terms and accept an IMO in STERLING if it was impossible for you to
use PayPal. You now tell me that you have actually sent me USD cash. . Upon
receipt of the dollars I will have to find time in my busy schedule to make
a special trip to town to exchange them for sterling. I very much doubt that
$25 will cover the cost of the item as well as my time and petrol. The cost
of converting a small amount of dollars is very expensive in UK. Once I have
received them and managed to change them, I will let you know what extra
costs are involved.
Can I just ask that you read the terms of any auctions that you wish to bid
on, so that the seller and yourself are not put in this awkward situation."

Will wait and see what he says.

albreda

This reminds me of a line from the movie "Hostel". The American backpacker exclaims somthing like "I'm an American, I've got rights!!"

Best we just do as those American buyers say lest once P.Bush has grown tired of the war on terror he might turn to a war on British ebayers!! EEK!

pulliptears

I used to sell a lot to the USA, in the days before paypal was widely used. My buyers would always send me $$'s in a global priority envelope and I loved it! Why?

Well, if I got dollars, I couldnt spend them. They wouldnt be swallowed up into the bank account like cheques were. I would put them in a jar and keep saving, then eventually cash them up. I could save £300 - £400 with this method