Getting around the collection/Paypal problem?

Juzza12

Hey folks, trying to sell an iPhone 4s and not having any luck with Gumtree, Preloved etc, being offered stupid money.

I know that it will sell well on Ebay and even with fees will leave me with an amount i'm happy with. I want to list as collection only, obviously I can't refuse Paypal though and would be open to INR or chargebacks if someone paid by that method. If someone refused to pay cash on collection and I just refunded i'd be left with £40 of fees still.

I've seen people say to put a stupid amount of postage and point out that should someone insist on paying by Paypal I need to send it tracked to get seller protection. Is this a good idea? My worry is that people will see the postage cost and not bother looking at the listing to see that collection is free.

Any advice would be appreciated

ess0two

Just offer cash on collection and thats it,f some pays with paypal refund them.

All this [EMAIL="!!!!"]!!!![/EMAIL] about accepting paypal,forget it if offering collection only.

Juzza12

ess0two wrote: »

Just offer cash on collection and thats it,f some pays with paypal refund them.

All this !!!! about accepting paypal,forget it if offering collection only.

But if I refund, and they then won't pay cash on collection instead, i'm stuck with £40 in fees if they won't cancel the transaction either.

alfiesmum

When you take into account the ebay and Paypal fees for a higher priced phone, would you be so much worse of if you tried one of the companies that buy phones. Envirophone, that kind of thing? I've never used any of them, so ask around first, but it might be worth it, as you're worried about using eBay.

soolin

ess0two wrote: »

Just offer cash on collection and thats it,f some pays with paypal refund them.

All this [EMAIL="!!!!"]!!!![/EMAIL] about accepting paypal,forget it if offering collection only.

Terrible advice and an easy way to end up poorer and with no eBay account.

Juzza12 wrote: »

Hey folks, trying to sell an iPhone 4s and not having any luck with Gumtree, Preloved etc, being offered stupid money.

I know that it will sell well on Ebay and even with fees will leave me with an amount i'm happy with. I want to list as collection only, obviously I can't refuse Paypal though and would be open to INR or chargebacks if someone paid by that method. If someone refused to pay cash on collection and I just refunded i'd be left with £40 of fees still.

I've seen people say to put a stupid amount of postage and point out that should someone insist on paying by Paypal I need to send it tracked to get seller protection. Is this a good idea? My worry is that people will see the postage cost and not bother looking at the listing to see that collection is free.

Any advice would be appreciated

By limiting your sale to collection only your potential pool of buyers will be less. It might actually make you more money to list as a standard auction, quote for normal special delivery post with the correct insurance and ship the phone.

Obviously_the_best

Listing an iPhone collection only, you'll get a far lower price than posting it, even uk only with special delivery

queenxkat

Have you tried the For Sale/Classifieds sections on HUKD or AV Forums? I have sold an iPhone and iPad via those forums to people local to me. Just state that you definately won't post, esp on HUKD otherwise people will ask you to post first. You won't get as much as you will on eBay but probably the same after fees, just look at how much others are selling for and price accordingly.

Juzza12

queenxkat wrote: »

Have you tried the For Sale/Classifieds sections on HUKD or AV Forums? I have sold an iPhone and iPad via those forums to people local to me. Just state that you definately won't post, esp on HUKD otherwise people will ask you to post first. You won't get as much as you will on eBay but probably the same after fees, just look at how much others are selling for and price accordingly.

No haven't been on those site but will try there, thanks.

Just worried about the potential of someone breaking the phone and saying SNAD, hacked accounts, chargebacks etc. Just being paranoid I know

Norfolk_Jim

Juzza12 wrote: »

No haven't been on those site but will try there, thanks.

Just worried about the potential of someone breaking the phone and saying SNAD, hacked accounts, chargebacks etc. Just being paranoid I know

I understand the paranoia, and reading through this forum will only make it worse, but it's not a true reflection of how it usually goes considering people dont post up here saying they didnt have a problem.
I've sold odd stuff through Ebay (and before that QXL) for so long I can't remember and I've never been cheated yet. I've had the odd pirate DVD sent to me and I had one buyer complain a phone I sent had stopped working - it was an old phone so I just refunded him.

But for high value items like an iphone I think I would not use Ebay for fear of being switched and returned. 99/100 it probably wouldn't happen but if you cant afford to lose that kind of money I'd be very careful.
I suggest sticking with face to face transactions - maybe small ads in supermarkets.
Of course theres a risk in everything we do - its not beyond the realms of possibility to sell face to face to the buyer from hell who comes back and causes endless grief.
When I read some of the stories on here I feel quite sorry for the traders dealing with the odd crazy. Thats the gamble you take but very rarely does it all end in tears.

Good luck

Crowqueen

You have to remember also that buyers have rights too - if I paid for an iPhone on eBay and it stopped working within the time allowed for a dispute I'd be unhappy and you can't insure yourself completely against that risk. It's not fair on the buyer, and you need it to be fair on the buyer for the system to work properly. I would probably trade it in with a mobile phone buyer site rather than risk someone paying top price and then it genuinely breaking down.

eBay is not "stick it up for loads of money and hope the buyer isn't a fraud and get to keep the dosh". You have to have some sort of option for buyers to have comeback and the hassle of dealing with selling anything electronic that has been used quite a bit and may be a week or two from breaking completely for me is not worth the risk of either selling or buying such a thing on eBay. If you want the good price for it, you have to take the risk that is incumbent with eBay.

Juzza12

Just had someone through a forum ask if I would send if they paid by Paypal gift and asked if I had feedback elsewhere which i do through Ebay and another forum. I know they couldn't open an INR or SNAD case but could they do a chargeback on a gift payment?

Norfolk_Jim, I read the discussion boards on Ebay far too much also!