she bought my buggy but nearly a month later she still hasnt collected it!

[EntWife]

Could do with some advice from experienced ebayers.
i sold my old tandem buggy. She bought it for the buy it now price, paid straight away but didn't pay the courier costs i quoted. I messaged her and asked her to tell me when she wanted to collect. No response for nearly a week then she finally got in touch and asked if i could courier it after all. No problem i say, just settle the courier costs and i will run it up to the depot on Saturday morning. she never settled the costs so i didn't take it to the depot (i did however spend bloody ages boxing the damn thing up though!). Radio silence again for another week. Then she calls me to say she is getting a lift from a friend (she lives 90 min away from me) and will be around on Tuesday and promises to ring me Tuesday morning to confirm she is enroute. She never called. I called her number numerous times but it just rings off, no voicemail.

I have tried emailing through ebay but get no response. Meanwhile i have £400 in my paypal account which i could really do with frankly but i am afraid to touch it until she actually picks the bastarding buggy up.

I dont know what to do. Should i cancel the sale, refund the money and try again or hang on? I am a bit reluctant to cancel it as the price she paid was a good one for me and i dont want to risk not getting it again iyswim.

[LavenderGreen14]

refund her money, cancel the sale and relist. And add her to your blocked bidder list too.

And never ever take paypal for a collected item - cash only. Be grateful she didn't collect it after paying by paypal.

[BaileysOnRocks]

I'd hang on a bit. She doesn't seem very bothered.

Lavender - why not use paypal for collection only?

[LavenderGreen14]

because they claim not received and get their money back and keep your item. Whatever happens you need to refund her paypal, and if she can't collect with cash then you have to cancel the sale - or you will get £40 ebay fees to pay on the item too.

[BrianTheMole]

How much to courier it? Mine cost £15. Maybe you should cut your loses, courier the dam thing anyway, and then at least you have £385 to spend. Is that still a good price?

[BaileysOnRocks]

But can't you take the money out of pay pal and put it into your account before they collect?

Sorry to hijack- just asking as I'm selling a sofa which is collection only!

Could you just courier it to her and foot the bill, then keep your money?

[LavenderGreen14]

no you can't because paypal will just go into the red and then pursue you for the money they have refunded.

[LokiDokey]

Echoing Lavender, do not let this buyer collect at all. As per usual Lavender is the eBay sage and her advice is spot on, refund and relist.

Paypal are rather good at chasing debts, closing your account and burying your head in the sand doesn't make it go away unfortunately.

The golden rule is

NEVER accept Paypal for collection items!

[specialsubject]

and especially not for buggies! For some reason this kit attracts a lot of scammers and non-payers/collectors.

[EntWife]

Thanks for the advice guys. As it happens her husband turned up this evening and collected it. I wasn't home. He called the house and spoke to my husband to arrange it.

I really hope we haven't been scammed. I have transferred the money out of paypal just in case. I realise they can chase for it but at least if the cash isn't there i fee like i have some arguing room.

[LavenderGreen14]

you have no arguing room at all - I really hope they don't do a chargeback otherwise you have definitely lost your money and your pram. You should have refunded the paypal yesterday and asked for cash.

[LavenderGreen14]

erm what? What a dreadful thing to say. I don't make the rules.

[nauticant]

It's a reference to King Cnut and the way you're trying to hold back the tide of posters who want to accept Paypal in collection-in-person transactions.

[LokiDokey]

Nauticant so you'd advocate Lavender giving bad advice? Because Lavender is spot on.

Not sure if you know how Paypal works or have read Paypals T&C's but in there it states in basic terms that in order to fulfil your end of the transaction you have to prove the item you sold has been delivered. That can only be by a Paypal recognised means such as a recognised courier tracking or Royal Mail tracking. Anything other than this is not accept. No exceptions.

You can go through all the usual scenarios of trying to make your buyer sign something, even taking a photo. These are not acceptable to Paypal at all and you will lose a claim.

Scammer buys something, pays £500 via Paypal, collects the item then files a complaint with Paypal that they haven't had that item. They will win, without a shadow of a doubt. Most of the time when this happens it's a hijacked paypal account but the outcome is always the same. Buyer is out money and item.

Closing your Paypal account, transferring the money etc, again all wont work because paypal then put your account into the negative. If you don't pay the money back in they send the debt collectors.

So if you want to be the voice for the 'tide of posters who want to accept paypal' please carry on banging that drum. But before you get too vocal sit yourself down, google Paypal cash on collection scam and familiarise yourself with paypal's T&C's.

[nauticant]

No, I don't think that because LavenderGreen14 gives good advice.

She often gives good advice in the face of posters wanting to do things that are a bad idea. This means we see her in the ebay section of mumsnet standing before a tide of posters boldly saying "please, turn back, this is a bad idea" and many of them carry on regardless.

By the way, I already know the stuff in your long post. But thanks for posting it anyway.

[Viviennemary]

I think you should refund her money and cancel the sale. She sounds such a time waster. I wouldn't be surprised if she tries to get a refund through Paypal. She sounds like a scammer to me.

[LavenderGreen14]

Quietbat - that is fraud, you can't do that.

[Viviennemary]

Sorry. Didn't read updates.

[Buckteethjeff]

no way can't that happen!

What utter arse holes!

nauticant what's your point?

[badgerknowsbest]

Lavender and Loki thanks for posting that, I will never pay with paypal when collecting an item the things you learn on mumsnet eh?

[LavenderGreen14]

sending something else is not proof of delivery of the item though is it - lowering yourself to the buyers' level and lying is hardly the decent thing to do is it?

[LokiDokey]

The other issue is weight, your buyer could prove from the cost of postage of the receipt that out was substantially different than the weight if the item.