When did it become so hard to give things away ?

[BethJ62]

Having a clear out including lots of baby stuff that DGC have outgrown and DD doesn’t want . Moses basket , clothes , toys.
As money is tight for many people I decided to give it away using a local Facebook site .
Simple ? No.
Despite me asking people to collect , every person who has shown interest has asked me to deliver . A couple of people have become a bit stroppy when I said collect only . Reminder - this is good quality free stuff.
Yesterday I waited in all day for someone who didn’t appear . Today someone who said she was desperate said she would be here at 10. I told her we are going out at 12 so she has to be here before then . 10 minutes ago she messaged and said she would be here at 2 !!! I reminded her the arrangement and she said she thinks I could be a bit more understanding!
Has anyone else experienced similar ? I don’t think I am unreasonable but maybe I am ??

People are inconsiderate.

Also, we are awash in things as a society in general. The older I get, the more “things” just feel like a burden. Even charity shops don’t always want your stuff.

This is more extreme but we had a piano I bought second hand when the dc were little with the hope they would learn to play. Ten years later, nobody ever wanted to. I couldn’t get rid of that piano for anything. The best option I had was to pay a recycling company hundreds of pounds to take it and recycle it. I tried for years to give that piano away.

i think the lesson overall is for society to buy fewer things so that they have more value for us. I learned my lesson with that piano and now I think about what the final outcome will be for something I buy. ( I’m just generalising, not a criticism of you OP. I know we do need some things obviously.)

In todays world when loads of us are so awash in stuff we don't need that you can buy a bestselling book about how to get rid of it versus the many people in desperate need, this should be easier.

I often think if I won the lottery and could pack my job in, I'd find some formula to join these dots up. One issue is that you can't give away anything that might be unsafe, and standards are so stringent now.

I couldn't give away a decent three piece suite once because it didn't have the current fire standard flag on it. Fair enough I guess.

DH put a TV on Facebook for free, only people who wanted it also wanted it delivered! Gave it to a friend’s teen son in the end.

Yip my mum tried to get rid of a piano once, took months of effort. Golf clubs are the same, charity shops won't take them.

Ask local charity shop if they will collect.

In Scotland there's a charity called NewStart. If someone homeless acquires a new home, New Start will fully furnish and equip it from scratch with donated stuff. They employ people in need and teach them work skills such as upcycling old furniture.

newstarthighland.org/

After way too much of this, our unwanted shite goes directly to landfill.

It's always been like this to an extent. But IME it's much worse since covid.

To get around it you can always ask for a small token amount like £5 - you can even just say don't worry about it when they arrive. People seem to treat it more seriously when there is money involved.

I really struggled to get rid of the Moses basket, ended up binning it in the end.

I either sell on ebay or give to charity shops

Yes it's the same for me, I'd rather something goes to landfill than deal with the timewasters the OP faces. The way I look at it is my contribution to the amount of waste that goes to landfill is tiny in comparison to everyone else's therefore it's not really a problem.

Have you got a Baby Bank or Home Bank near you? They operate in the same way as a food bank but for baby things and household items respectively.

I love this idea. It could make someone's day to be gifted it when they were expecting to buy it

I've had good results with Olio. There are food and non-food categories and both seem equally popular.

It's easy to use, cuts down on time-wasters and users receive an instant app notification when stuff is listed (unless they've disabled settings) so plenty of eyes on your listing immediately.

I’ve found olio much more easy and the people more charming than Facebook.

i second ‘leave it outside’ as then it doesn’t matter to you one bit when they come x

I had a clearout the other week and had some nice quality games and toys. I am sure they could be sold for £3-5 per item but it's such hard work on my local sites - people are unreliable whether it's cheap or free. Last 2 things I sold, I ended up delivering one and the other sat in my porch for 3 days before it was collected - I should add this is my neighbour who lives 3 doors down!!!

Luckily we have plenty of charity shops accepting donations so I take most things there.

But I agree about overbuying - I have definitely been guilty of that, and then it is a burden getting rid of it. I never take things in good condition to the skip, but it is an effort even giving it away.

The reason I think is that there is more and more stuff being given away.
We have people now even giving stuff y nd leaving it at their front doors to anyone that wants it. You don't even need to say a time just come and collect.

The bottom line is that we all have too much stuff now. Tomorrow we will have more makes you think.
Does anyone need load more stuff tomorrow.

I’d leave in a plastic bag on your Porch

and if no collection I’d take to either dump for recyling , or charity shop

it’s a total pain !

Do none of you have any charity shops where you live? Stick it all in the car and drop it off in one trip.

Same problem here, charity shops full, charity recycle clothes and shoes bins full. Notes up saying if you leave a bag beside them they will trace you and fine you.

Do you have any local WhatsApp groups for buying/selling? We have a village one and I’m part of a large local NCT one.

It’s ALWAYS the same suspects who bag the free stuff first but it is an efficient way of getting rid of things.

Wouldn’t t you worry about putting your home address on Facebook?

For those saying just drop them at a charity shop, my nearest big town has had lots of closures, post office is gone, bank is gone, several supermarkets gone, M&S gone, Top Shop gone. Lots of empty retail spaces, then it’s all vape stores, coffee shops, pound shops and a million charity stores (all full).

Yanbu. People are the worst when it comes to free stuff.

I agree with olio, I've given a fair bit away on there and people have all been grateful

One of the rules is that you can't ask for it to be delivered, so that deals with that straight away

You set the times it can be collected, and some people leave it outside at an agreed time so they don't have to be in

Take it to a charity shop. I use the Salvation Army near me, mainly because they have parking but also because their system is to put things in big containers near the door to be sorted out rather than be pored over and sniffed at (Oxfam shop). They also take electricals.