Tell us some of your online sales stories 1 July 2022 at 8:31AM in Ebay, auctions, car boot sales, post & parcels 36 replies 2.4K views

JustAnotherSaver

olgadapolga said:

Sold a 4' x 6' she'd online. Buyer arranged to collect it, all good.

Except buyer arrived at 6am, we were expecting him to turn up a bit later but he just said that he thought we wouldn't mind! Shortly after buyer arrived, so did his son. Both were in estate cars but there was no way the shed's panels were going to fit inside the cars. DH and I are thinking, "What on earth?" and considered that maybe someone else would be along to transport it to its new home.

No. Buyer plus son put shed panels directly onto the roofs of their cars. No roof bars, no roof racks, just straight onto the roofs. Tied on with rope through the rear door windows. Utter madness. They were a bit wobbly as they drove off but that wasn't my problem. DH and I had a good laugh about it, especially as we'd made an exceptional profit on the shed (purchased for £50,sold for £135!).

I had to quote this in its own post...

6am is just a madness. I was annoyed the other week when a skip wagon was on our street at 7am on a Sunday morning beeping away, nevermind 6am hearing folk yapping away.

But your:

Both were in estate cars but there was no way the shed's panels were going to fit inside the cars.

Made me think of the customers I have to deal with at work.

You'll have say an item that measures 600mm-x-600mm.

They have a ticket for it, they have already been to the desk & asked for it & paid for it.

They give you the ticket, you bring the item.

They then say the line that sends chills up my spine .... "I didn't realise it'd be that big".

Well why not? Do you not own a tape measure? How big did you think 600mm-x-600mm would be? Did you think it was a practical joke and when a label says 600x600 and you ask for 600x600 that what you'd be getting would be 200x200?

Honestly, the nonsense that people come out with!

No roof bars, no roof racks, just straight onto the roofs. Tied on with rope through the rear door windows.

Another thing that reminds me of something I've seen at work (yep, I've seen plenty of cowboyish antics)

A sheet of weld mesh on top of a Ford Escort van.

I can't remember the exact length/width of a sheet of weld mesh. I'm going to hazard a guess at 16ft long and 8ft wide but I could be wrong there. It's pretty blooming large though.

Front was bouncing down over the front end of his bonnet, rear was hanging way down.

Totally ridiculous.

But then you get the classic line .... "I'm only going round the corner / up the road". Oh well that makes this stupidity ok then.

BargainJunky

I sold a few items (small jigsaw and card games) to one buyer before Christmas and packaged them up in bubble wrap, a box and finally the outer of a cornflake box.  I checked the tracking and left feedback when delivery showed up on Ebay.

Buyer got in touch to say they had not received the item - I went into panic mode and asked them to check the shop below their flat, neighbours etc.  It was only when the buyer said that the only thing delivered was a cornflake box with things in that the penny dropped.  The buyer was away and her partner had only opened the plastic covering revealing a cornflake box!

Years ago I used to help with the admin on a selling site and one member wanted to buy a bed off another member.  Unfortunately the buyer set off from home only knowing the first part of the post code and with no confirmation from the seller that they would be home or that the bed was still available to buy.  You can imagine what happened next - buyer never got to pick up the bed, spent hours in traffic as there had been a bad accident on the motorway so everything diverted onto side roads and decided it was my fault!  Buyer could not understand that it was a daft idea to attempt to pick something up without getting confirmation first that A it was still for sale, B the seller would be home and C a full address might be a good idea.

red_boots2

Sold a bookcase on Ebay.

Listed it for collection only along with the dimensions I had measured and the dimensions from Oak Furniture Land where it bought it from originally to show that there was a very slight size difference (0.3cm).

Buyer asked me to measure it again, then to double check. He turned up two weeks later to collect, after originally asking if I could drop it in to him. When he eventually arrived, he turned up without any rope and harnesses in his (on the small side) 4x4

He loaded it into the car, drove off the drive with the boot open and it hanging half out; It promptly fell out damaging it. He loaded it back in and off he went... Couple of days later I got a 'SNAD' stating it had more damage to it than I had shown. I asked him if he could show the the damages so I could compare it to the video doorbell footage of it falling out of the car. He closed the case and I never heard from him again, other than him leaving positive feedback!

JustAnotherSaver

red_boots2 said:

Sold a bookcase on Ebay.

Listed it for collection only along with the dimensions I had measured and the dimensions from Oak Furniture Land where it bought it from originally to show that there was a very slight size difference (0.3cm).

Buyer asked me to measure it again, then to double check. He turned up two weeks later to collect, after originally asking if I could drop it in to him. When he eventually arrived, he turned up without any rope and harnesses in his (on the small side) 4x4

He loaded it into the car, drove off the drive with the boot open and it hanging half out; It promptly fell out damaging it. He loaded it back in and off he went... Couple of days later I got a 'SNAD' stating it had more damage to it than I had shown. I asked him if he could show the the damages so I could compare it to the video doorbell footage of it falling out of the car. He closed the case and I never heard from him again, other than him leaving positive feedback!

What a bleeper! People like that wind me up. Hope that bookcase dropped on his head one day.

EssexGirl

I put a kitchen gadget up for sale on FB marketplace. It had only been used twice then sat in the kitchen gathering dust. 
I tested it, took pictures etc. Person who bought it told me they had bought one a few days before but it didn't work, then they saw mine for sale and decided to buy it. Seemingly lovely older person, didn't barter on price. Turned up when they said they would.  
A couple of days later I get a message saying the machine I had sold them was faulty. I told them I had tested it, it was fine. 
They demanded to return it in not such a polite manner as before. I did ask them to make sure they hadn't got the machines mixed up. They denied it. 
As they know where I live I decided to let them bring it back. I wish I'd marked it in some way before I let it go. I swear it wasn't my machine that came back but I have no proof of it. I've marked all sales in a very subtle way ever since. 

soolin

I’ve had a brilliant one today, started  OK, buyer wanted several bulk but small items (I’m getting rid of some old stock ) , we agreed a price and postage and I sent my PayPal details. Buyer came back and thanked me for being so prompt and then said she would make a payment for the postage element immediately but would pay the item cost on safe receipt of goods. 

We exchanged a few more messages with me basically saying I don’t offer credit terms, and her saying it’s nothing of the sort and it made me look dodgy if I didn’t follow the ‘usual’ procedure for buying on FB and that she was taking all the risks . Incidentally I was using PayPal, I never ask nor expect F and F so buyer would have had full PayPal protection, but apparently I’m dodgy and most other sellers haven’t expected payment up front. 

I ended up thanking her for her interest and telling her I could not meet her terms so I would not continue with the sale. 

She didn’t feel like a scammer , although she was very friendly which is sometimes a bad sign, I really do think that she genuinely believed she could pay later for stock she was hoping to sell at a fair next week. 

IftiBashir

EssexGirl said:

I put a kitchen gadget up for sale on FB marketplace. It had only been used twice then sat in the kitchen gathering dust. 
I tested it, took pictures etc. Person who bought it told me they had bought one a few days before but it didn't work, then they saw mine for sale and decided to buy it. Seemingly lovely older person, didn't barter on price. Turned up when they said they would.  
A couple of days later I get a message saying the machine I had sold them was faulty. I told them I had tested it, it was fine. 
They demanded to return it in not such a polite manner as before. I did ask them to make sure they hadn't got the machines mixed up. They denied it. 
As they know where I live I decided to let them bring it back. I wish I'd marked it in some way before I let it go. I swear it wasn't my machine that came back but I have no proof of it. I've marked all sales in a very subtle way ever since. 

I tend to always take an image of the serial number - trying to get the computer screen in the background with the user details/order information in the same image. 

If its an expensive item, I also send the buyer a message via eBay with the tracking number (even though this is automatically added to the transaction via eBay package labels etc) but use this as an excuse to also inform the buyer of the item serial number too. That way the buyer already knows the serial is recorded before they even receive the item. 

And yes, I have had a buyer pull out of a sale after sending the serial number across....... would rather that then deal with a return of a swapped item, and cover all postage costs etc!

JustAnotherSaver

soolin said:

I’ve had a brilliant one today, started  OK, buyer wanted several bulk but small items (I’m getting rid of some old stock ) , we agreed a price and postage and I sent my PayPal details. Buyer came back and thanked me for being so prompt and then said she would make a payment for the postage element immediately but would pay the item cost on safe receipt of goods. 

We exchanged a few more messages with me basically saying I don’t offer credit terms, and her saying it’s nothing of the sort and it made me look dodgy if I didn’t follow the ‘usual’ procedure for buying on FB and that she was taking all the risks . Incidentally I was using PayPal, I never ask nor expect F and F so buyer would have had full PayPal protection, but apparently I’m dodgy and most other sellers haven’t expected payment up front. 

I ended up thanking her for her interest and telling her I could not meet her terms so I would not continue with the sale. 

She didn’t feel like a scammer , although she was very friendly which is sometimes a bad sign, I really do think that she genuinely believed she could pay later for stock she was hoping to sell at a fair next week. 

I never can fathom that outlook.

Though some people don't understand PayPal protection. Maybe she was one? Thinking you're going to do a runner with her cash?

I mean, fair enough if you were requesting she send payment as a gift or something.

I always like when I sell something (obviously) but then I'm alway on edge for a while. Between now & next Tuesday my buyers SHOULD be getting their goods.

Then I have to rely on them not being idiots & saying something wasn't as described because it has a fresh spec of dust on it that the listing didn't highlight.

When they come through with the positive feedback I relax a little. It's those who just don't bother giving feedback.

One of my buyers appears to be someone who barely ever leaves feedback (which is fine) but only  seems to bother when they have something to grumble about.

soolin

One of my buyers appears to be someone who barely ever leaves feedback (which is fine) but only  seems to bother when they have something to grumble about.

@JustAnotherSaver certainly quite a few of them about , I always think it makes them look bad. On the very rare occasion I have ever had to left anything other than a positive I've always hurried to leave lots of positives for all my successful purchases so that potential sellers know I am not vindictive and give only poor feedback when it is needed. 

As a seller though I rarely worry once I've sent stuff, perhaps it's the amount I send (and nowadays I don't do really large volumes anymore), I post it and forget it, if there's a problem I'm sure they will let me know. I even used to stop selling a few days before I went on holiday to give time for any problems to materialise before I left, but now I sell to the very minute I leave- often going to the mail centre on the way to the airport or on the start of a long car journey.

JustAnotherSaver

soolin said:

One of my buyers appears to be someone who barely ever leaves feedback (which is fine) but only  seems to bother when they have something to grumble about.

@JustAnotherSaver certainly quite a few of them about , I always think it makes them look bad. On the very rare occasion I have ever had to left anything other than a positive I've always hurried to leave lots of positives for all my successful purchases so that potential sellers know I am not vindictive and give only poor feedback when it is needed. 

As a seller though I rarely worry once I've sent stuff, perhaps it's the amount I send (and nowadays I don't do really large volumes anymore), I post it and forget it, if there's a problem I'm sure they will let me know. I even used to stop selling a few days before I went on holiday to give time for any problems to materialise before I left, but now I sell to the very minute I leave- often going to the mail centre on the way to the airport or on the start of a long car journey.

I guess it depends on the individuals outlook & perhaps that also ties in with the volume they/you sell. Maybe you get more hardened to bumps in the road than someone who sells less. I'm not saying these bumps are less annoying but I'm sure you understand me.

I'm a bit of a tightwad I'll admit.

Also, if something isn't right then it isn't right. By that I mean - I know a lot of people will just take the hit on a 'low price' item. £5 say. £10 to some people. Our 'low prices' will be different. They wont be bothered to go through the 'effort' of contacting a seller to say this isn't right so they take the hit.

Me - I've bought £2 items that were faulty. I contacted the seller to say so. Why should I just give my money out whether it's £2 or 2p or whatever? I also don't care if the seller thinks "it's only £2".

I don't contact them because it's £2, I contact them because it's not right, regardless of the items value.

Likewise as a seller myself, I don't try to pull the wool over anyones eyes. I'm totally up front but I dread coming across a dishonest buyer or just a moaner for the sake of it & finding myself out of pocket. 

This week I sold some used shoes. I didn't try and talk them up. I said they'd been used a fair bit. I showed photos of the wear on the soles.

They sold. I do what I normally do & gave them a final once over to see if I'd missed anything. I had - one shoe had a slight crack in the sole & the other was a couple cm of where the glue had started to go where shoe meets sole.

Technically the shoes still fell in line with my listing - they were used so had signs of wear.

But I still contacted the buyer to say hey I've just given it a final check over & noticed this. Are you wanting me to go ahead with posting? I just don't want you to be disappointed on receiving.

Their reply was along the lines of - "hmm (yes hmm was put in there), ok then. I suppose it's fair for the price".

This buyer was the one who likes to leave funny feedback for folk. Fingers crossed mine goes well.