Gave refund?

[Thewifefury]

We recently have offloaded / sold loads of old baby stuff as having a clear out. Much has been stored in our loft for 10 years. My husband sold our baby playpen on fb marketplace which comes in its own carry case for £20. We tested putting it up and showed the buyer the item on the doorstep. All happy. Today it's been returned as it "smells musty" and makes the room they had it in smell. I was mortified and immediately gave the guy his money back. Husband has got home and hit the roof that I gave them a refund. He says it's sold as seen and I should have refused. AIBU to 1 - give them an immediate refund 2. Be mighty pissed off with DH for being so completely lacking in human decency?

Human decency??

I can imagine it would smell fairly musty having sat in a loft for 10 years! If have given the money back too, I couldn't be bothered to argue over it.

YANBU. It’s the decent thing to do imo.
10 years in a loft and smelling musty means it might not be safe for their little one to sit in.

Did you not realise what it smelled like when you got it out of the loft?

Maybe the buyer just wanted it for the weekend for visiting guests? Do you notice a smell yourself?!

If it was £200 yes yabu...£20 no. But cavit emper still applied (legal term buyer beware).

I can't believe the buyer would ask for a refund. They should clean any second hand item before use, especially for a baby/toddler.

I wouldn't have refund it but can understand why you did.

That was my first thought. I doubt very much if it smelt that bad you and they wouldn't notice it immediately and the fact they waited until the weekend was over suggests the actual issue was it was no longer required.

Your husband is absolutely correct it was sold as seen and I wouldn't have refunded.

It is twenty quid and you’ll get another buyer. It’s not worth any negative emotions.

Refund is the right thing to do. You sold it in good faith but the item had an issue that was unnoticed and,if you had noticed, meant it probably should've just been binned anyway. In the end it's not worth getting worked up about a stinky 10yo playpen.

You have to think about purpose. Yes, your husband is right that old things might be a little musty, but 1) sold as seen, isn't sold as smelt! 2) Things which aren't "fit for purpose" shouldn't be sold full stop.

Something musty might be fine to sell as it might be totally fit for purpose if

• it was a rug or something that only feet go on
• if it was something that would go through a hot wash in the machine and then no-longer smell.

However something that smells musty that is

• going near a baby's face
• will be hard to fully wash

Is totally NOT fit for purpose and you should not have sold it. You were right to give them a refund.

I would definitely refused the refund. If the buyer didn’t want it, he could have resold it.

I would have refunded. If you had known it smelt then you wouldn’t have sold it.

Yes, we had no idea it was musty smelling as we first u packed it at a boot sale and then put it up for them on our front garden - both times in fresh air. It isn't noticeable in an outside space. Of course we wouldn't have sold it if we thought it was stinky! Well I wouldn't - maybe husband would have! lol. Thanks all.