Have I misled the buyer? - what should I do?

jap200

Having listed an old book (rare first edition), I was thrilled to watch it end at £41 to an American buyer. However, as I was getting ready to pack it, I noticed that it has a book plate from a previous owner inside the front cover as well as a pencil inscription - neither of these were mentioned in my description.

I am worried that the buyer will think that I intentionally misled them, wereas the truth is I simply did not notice them.

This is the description I gave of the condition:

"This book is 124 years old, and for its age this inside of this book is in great condition. However, as would be expected, there is slight foxing to some pages although this does not seem to affect the pages of illustrations, which are in exceptionally good condition.

The cloth-bound cover is somewhat faded and rubbed, particularly on the spine, but is almost entirely intact (please see additional photos below)."

Should I contact the buyer and explain that I had overlooked these details, or should I just send the book and hope for the best?

Advice from any experienced buyers and sellers out there would be very much appreciated.

frivolous_fay

I would suggest contacting the buyer. The last thing you want is a neg... he may appreciate the warning.

If it's really valuable he might still want it... perhaps at a slightly discounted price?

You might want to consider sending a photo of the bookplate to him in case he thinks you're trying to get out of the sale.

mrsb_5

Yep I would contact them asap, tell them it is a genuine mistake and ask them what they would like to do, say you are willing to give a full refund and re list the book with bookplate in the description etc, I'm sure they won't mind to be honest, a bookplate just adds to its history etc

jap200

Thanks for the advice - I have just sent an email explaining the mistake and offering either a full refund or discount. I have photographed the bookplate and inscription and have offered to send the photo by email too.

I agree that theses items add to the history of the book - but have always made a point of mentioning such things in the description before.

Serves me right for listing in a hurry!

I will wait for the response from the buyer.

hjb123

You have done the best thing and been honest with them - if you hadnt told them you would almost certainly guarantee that they would find it and not be happy with it - chances are that the buyer will still want it but with a discount.

rose_sparky

hjb123 wrote:

You have done the best thing and been honest with them - if you hadnt told them you would almost certainly guarantee that they would find it and not be happy with it - chances are that the buyer will still want it but with a discount.

I agree and there's some unscrupulous buyers who look at items with a magnifying glass to find a fault so they can have a discount.

Your honesty should impress them.

FloFlo

I would ask to email a photo of the bookplate and wait to see what they say.

jap200

Honesty has paid off in the end. The buyer was impressed with my offer of a discount, but said that he was still interested at the full price! At least I can stop worrying about it now! I just have to wait for the feedback to be sure though.

Thanks for all the advice everyone.

FloFlo

Well done, glad it all worked out.