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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think that people are just downright rude sometimes...

75 replies

MaryPoppinsPenguins · 29/02/2016 15:49

I'm moving house so listed my daughters garden playhouse for free if someone picks it up. We've only had it two years, it's in not bad condition with a little bit of sun bleaching.

For Free though, just so we don't have to move it as our new garden is going to be tiny and I'm not sure how much room we'll really have after the trampoline and some other bits, but it seems a shame to throw it away if someone wants it.

So first person messages me within seconds and says they'll take it. I arrange with her that she'll come at the weekend and that's that.

Except Saturday comes and she doesn't show up. I wait about three hours past the time we arranged and inbox her... She doesn't apologise for wasting my morning, she just messages me back as if I haven't said anything to ask if I can deliver. Well, no. I'd rather just put it in the skip, but thought someone might like it. I'm not prepared to deliver for a free product that's huge, no.

She comes back with 'but I have two small children.'

I said 'so do I!'

And she told me she wouldn't be taking it and I should feel bad because her children were very disappointed.

The next person asks me if the children's garden furniture is included. (In the picture I took of it there's a plastic orange table in the house, and two plastic chairs. My bad, I should have taken it out.) I say no, it's just the playhouse.

The person counters, 'if you include the furniture I can collect today'

Um... It's free... Why are you trying to upsell me?

Yesterday I messaged the third person who had commented and said it was theirs if they wanted it. They also ask me if I can deliver and I don't even bother replying.

Today I get an inbox message just saying 'Playhouse. Free?? How valid is this!!!.'

I give up. It's going in the skip. What is wrong with people...I remember giving DD's cotbed away for free and the couple were so happy!

OP posts:

allwornout0 · 29/02/2016 19:33

theycallme I have never heard anybody use that expression where I come from which is why I asked?

Original poster

MaryPoppinsPenguins · 29/02/2016 19:35

It means 'my mistake' or 'my fault'

OP posts:

allwornout0 · 29/02/2016 19:38

Thanks MaryPoppinsPenguins

Iliveinalighthousewiththeghost · 29/02/2016 19:46

Who was doing who the favour. YNBU. Very rude.

JessTitchener · 29/02/2016 19:49

DH tried to sell a guitar on eBay. Quite clearly put collection only on the ad.
Sold it then received an email from the buyer asking if we could deliver to Birmingham.
We are about as far as you can get from Birmingham without being in the outer Hebrides, this was clear on the ad
Relisted it, bought by someone wanting delivery to London!
Gave it to one of DD3's friends for free in the end.

DownstairsMixUp · 29/02/2016 19:53

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at the poster's request.

SistersOfPercy · 29/02/2016 20:10

For big items I want to give away quickly I always do the £1 BIN on eBay and everything has gone and been collected within the afternoon.

For items I'm happy to wait to sell I've had a lot of luck with Shpock. It does take a while, but it's free and I've not been let down in the 6 sales I've made this month, 2 of which were from well over 50 miles away. The only odd experience was the woman who turned up at 10.30pm to pick up a child's toy.

newname12 · 29/02/2016 20:10

In my area we put things outside the house, local code for "help yourself". I once put a bedroom set out, it had been spare room stuff, so cheap, put little used. I was suprised when someone knocked to ask for it! They were well chuffed.

People do get caught out though when theyre new to the area, theres been several occasions when people moving in have left stuff outside when they went to get another load, and its gone when they come back...

Electrical stuff our council charges to take away. I pop in to one of those shops which sell second hand cookers/fridges etc and ask if they want it. They usually have been and picked it up before i get home!

PeteHornberger · 29/02/2016 20:20

Oh god, this kind of thing drives me nuts, puts me off using any selling site/eBay as I always seem to attract the idiots!

Selling something that needed to be picked up on eBay, someone wins it (for £10, so a total bargain) and then asks where they have to collect it from, despite the location being in the ad. When I tell them, they then message to say it's too far. No apology. AAARRGGGHHH!! The auction ran for 7 days, why the bloody fuck wouldn't you think to ask where something was BEFORE you put a bid in, let alone before you won the fucking thing! Surely that is completely obvious to even the most hard of thinking individual? Complete fucking time wasters and no comeback whatsoever, so no way to prevent it happening every single time you try and sell something. So I don't bother anymore, my blood pressure can't take it.

bbcessex · 29/02/2016 20:37

Couldn't agree more... Bloody rude, entitled people. The lower the cost, the more useless the 'collector ' in my experience.

I second the PP who said ebay it. People take things more seriously when real money is involved

bbcessex · 29/02/2016 20:38

Oh.. just read the other ebay PP. .. perhaps not then!

OurBlanche · 29/02/2016 21:40

one of the Admin bods of a local fb selling page has posted
Available again. Yet another time wasting idiot who thinks 'must collect' really means 'I am happy to drop everything, learn to drive, hire a van and bring it to your door'

girlandboy · 29/02/2016 22:23

Another of our ads - Drum Kit for sale (5 drums, stands and 3 cymbals) COLLECTION ONLY.

Response - "can you post it to Poland?"

Yeah sure - let me get a couple of boxes and some parcel tape

TheGreatSnafu · 02/03/2016 16:49

it's free, why are you trying to upsell me? some of these are so funny.

I did ok there 12 years ago or so giving things away on Freecycle but in recent years it all has gone downhill.

I did give a nice stereo/DVD player to a lovely person. I accidentally left some CDs in it and she even brought them back to me with a huge bouquet of roses! I was so embarrassed.

And once I advertised a sofa and the young couple arrived on foot. They were determined to carry the sofa to their home about 2 miles away. I felt so sad for them, they were really gutted when they realised they couldn't carry it home!

DerelictDaughter · 02/03/2016 17:00

It's just a fact of economics that if you put a price on something, the amount of time-wasting crap you have to deal with goes right down.

That's why you have to pay registration fees/entrance fees etc. If you're not going to pay it, then you're not the customer. When something's free, everyone's the customer and most of them are shits

Songofsixpence · 02/03/2016 17:21

I tried to get rid of a playhouse for free last year and had much the same rigmarole.

I took photos, included measurements in the listing, threw in the table and chairs, play kitchen, etc and advertised it as collection only. First 6 responses were along the lines of 'I'll have it if you can deliver' which I ignored on the grounds of them being rude and stupid. Replied to the 7th as they were at least polite and said they could collect only to get loads of shit from the first 6 as 'they were first'

A week and loads of messing about later, someone actually turns up to collect - in the smallest car ever then got shirty because I didn't specify in the ad they'd need a van, or at least a large estate car. Er.......

I gave up in the end. Our local primary school advertised they were looking for free/cheap outdoor toys as they'd been vandalised during the holidays so I offered it to them. They bit my hand off and collected it like a shot

muffinmonster · 02/03/2016 18:20

I agree that Freecycle/Freegle has gone downhill; been using it for years and the number of rude emails and no-shows has gone up. Also, people expect a lot; when I started out I was able to give away stuff like ends of paint tins - no-one would bother with that now.

I don't think it's cheeky for people to take stuff and sell it on, though. If I can't be bothered to sell on eBay (too complicated to package, unlikely to get a reasonable price for my trouble) then I have no problem with it if someone else does. I've never done a boot sale.

I started out with the idea that I was doing people a great favour by giving them my old stuff, but I come more and more round to the view that they are doing me a favour by taking it away.

m0therofdragons · 02/03/2016 18:25

I saw a conversation where my good friend was giving away a load of clothes. A woman was demanding in the thread that she deliver it to her in the next town as she's got a baby. I ended up stepping in and pointing out the lady giving the stuff away free had 3 toddlers (triplets) and that the mum of one was totally out of line. I was so cross on her behalf.
I have delivered in the past but twice the people forgot and weren't in. Not doing it again even if they're paying!

Ktay · 02/03/2016 18:36

Hope you managed to get shot of it OP. If not and you would like me to try my local FB selling page (not massively close to you but it's a very active page and I'm sure some might drive for it) then feel free to PM me

YoJesse · 02/03/2016 18:56

I've always had a nightmare buying and selling on local pages. I gave away a brand new Halloween baby grow to someone asking for this specifically on a local fb site and when she finally arrived two hours late she told me she'd walked past our high rise block of flats but thought no one could possibly be giving new clothes away there and that she must have the wrong address cheeky cow!

Uphillanddowndale12 · 02/03/2016 19:05

I once caught my mum and dad, then in the their 70s struggling up the road carrying a 3 seater settee to give to someone for free who was half their age and complained that he couldn't collect it as he had a bad back. He also had 3 strapping sons but still expected my mum n dad to deliver while they sat around with their fags and cans of lager.

PegsPigs · 02/03/2016 19:52

My experience is that making someone pay even a bit of money and they'll mess you around a lot less than for free (not foolproof of course as long as fools live among us!)

travellinghopefully12 · 02/03/2016 20:04

Isn't there a Simpsons episode like this, involving a trampoline? In the end they have to chair it to a fence to get someone to steal it - it's a joke but also a valid exploration of the idea of stuff acquiring value if you act like it's valuable, if you see what I mean?

Sorry people are being so shitty. We were turned down for a free fish tank recently as there were too many takers.

frankie001 · 02/03/2016 20:06

My sister left some books outside her house with a sign saying 'roll up, roll up, lovely books for sale'. Cue lots of teenagers knocking on the door asking for rollies and tobacco.

thecatsarecrazy · 03/03/2016 12:41

I've had more trouble giving things away for free than if I sold it i think. I had a car seat once was fine I was just fussy and wanted 2 the same colour. Woman said she would be there at 10 the next morning to pick it up, then someone else said if still available they would like it, first person replies um no its mine? Next day I waited until 12 no sign so I messaged them asking if they still wanted it. She comes up with some story about her baby didn't sleep well last night but she will be there at 2 . She still didn't come and then wanted me to take it to the nursery school at 3 a 20 minute walk away. I messaged other lady and she collected it in 10 minutes. I had some plates and bowels before Christmas to get rid off too because I had bought some new ones, a woman said "yes I will have them" no please so I ignored her she then sent two private messages saying the same. Gave them to a very polite lady who was grateful for them.

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