sold old van and listed problem, now buyer not happy!

[miarosemum]

my partner sold a van on ebay which is worth £1500 with no problems, but the problem is that it smokes from the exhaust when you start it and gets slightly better the more the engine is run. we did list this very honestly in the advert as this obviousy is a problem that needs rectifying. we started the bidding at £10 and it sold for £700. the buyer came from 200 miles away to collect it and drove it back. i was slightly concerned about this with the smoking but he knew he was taking a risk and what do you know he broke down 150 miles into the journey home. he is now being an utter a**e talking about solicitors and just wanting a cheap van but the point is we listed the van with this very problem so he knew he would have to fix it! any advice please, i have 100% feedback and don't want to mess this up but at the end of the day, he should not have bid on it if he wanted a perfect van.

i would offer that he can return it and you will refund him, minus your fees

you could also open a case with ebay, which means nothing can be done until it is closed, that will stop him leaving negative feedback yet. if he doesn't agree to return it, or accept that you listed the fault then ebay will eventually make a decision regarding it, which i suspect would be in your favour

the seller can't open a case with ebay - and the buyer can leave feedback.

all you can do is offer refund on return - not minus the fees though, that is not allowed.

oh sorry, i thought you could :(

that really sucks then. it really is a buyers market on ebay atm isn't it

yes but why refund him, we have listed it as a van with a problem that needs rectifying!

well if the buyer paid cash and you say it is as described then you could refuse a refund. But the buyer could take you to small claims court for a refund, I really don't know if they would win to be honest. Keep a copy of all communication with the buyer and a copy of the auction.

I would phone consumer direct for advice, they were brilliant with us, free advice and over the phone so quick and easy.

We bought a car which was not as described, and spent a lot on repairs after seller refused a refund or suitable repair(he was a business though). Anyway long story, but we did eventually win and got full refund of all repair costs and expenses. But that seller was deceiving us and was a business seller, so buyers have more protection from a dealer.

Unless the Van was significantly not as listed (print listing off!) then it really is buyer beware with cars/vans - unless you are a buisness seller - He would get nowhere with a court case. Also useful to print off a quote of the going rate undamaged.

Do not refund he can still neg you - just take the neg on the chin.

cos it's a nice thing to do?

eek do you want to let us see your listing?

i think the buyer is being an arse if you were honest

also wouldn't worry about a neg

No it would be a stupid thing to do - the van has been driven 150 miles and is an obviously worse condition than when it was sold and now probably worth a lot less than the £700 it was sold for.

A nice thing to do is to make the buyer a cup of tea and let him usze the loo when he picked up the van.

If the van had been sold under false pretenses it would have sold for a lot closer to the ''perfect' price - the buyer knew there were problems and should have brought a mechanic with him or had an AA test.