shipping furniture?

[ReginaBlitz]

I paint and sell furniture as a hobby not a business, I listed a couple of things on eBay (normally use fb gumtree for furniture). On one of my listings I didn't take the postage option off, so instead of free collection in person, it was free Royal Mail second class! So a buyer with no feedback bought and paid for the item expecting it to be shipped to somewhere 3 hours away. My question is is this do Able? Has anyone ever shipped furniture and how much was it? To give a rough idea think tv cabinet type thing measuring 30 inches by 26 inches high at a guess it is 15/20 kgs. It's my fault they have bought it so want to try and get it there.

I've also read the criteria for being a business seller on eBay and I don't fit it. I havnt even sold clothes on there for about a year.

Also if I wanted a bunch of high horse Heros I'd join back the bitch fest on Aibu. Clearly I am bu to expect an answer without the bullshit on a bloody ebay board!

well nobody is going to want to help you now are they - did you mean to be so rude?

Shipleys will do it fairly cheaply; the buyer will surely not be expecting a piece of furniture to be delivered for the price of a 2nd class stamp?

I run a business so i do know whats classed as a business and what isnt.

If the furniture you are selling is furniture you have used in your home and then decided to replace it then you are not a business.

If you are buying furniture with the intention of refurbishing it and making money on it then you ARE a business.

It seems from your posts that over time you have stored furniture which you have used for some time in your home and then replaced. Therefore you are not a business as you havent bought the furniture with the intention of selling it the word go.

Regarding sending it through a courier, i was going to suggest myhermes but they only take parcels up to 15kg which would of cost you approx £12 if the max weight was £15.

Im guessing with other couriers it may be around £20ish as i know myhermes is alot cheaper than other couriers.

at this thread. The OPs rage is very telling.

yanbu @ OP

Spendspendspend...... The OP states "90%" of the stuff she has sold has come from her home (so not ALL of it) , and that she has "regular customers",that she has taken custom orders from in the past. This makes her a business.

That is a good point lottie, i missed that bit about 90% of it was the ops own used furniture not 100% of it.

OP, it's a bit of a grey area and SpendSpendSpend is correct with the post above. If you are selling your own personal goods and chattels then you are not a business.

Unfortunately, the minute you make a change to that item in order to sell, it makes you a business. It's rubbish, it really is, but that is how HMRC will see it. Doesn't matter whether tax is due or not, you still need to inform HMRC that you're selling.

If you're only selling items sporadically and through different mediums (so ebay, fb, word of mouth etc) then you are likely to go unnoticed. It's just something to be aware of, that's all.

To answer your original question, I'd refund the buyer with an massive apology for the mistake with the postage but allow the buyer to arrange a courier to collect if they choose, at which point you can re-send an invoice for a new transaction (obv not including the courier unless you choose to organise this yourself, but that's a bit dangerous as they can claim not as described which leaves you in a muddle). I've always allowed courier collection (man with van type) as long as they arrange cash on collection. You will need to state that you can only do man with van as wrapping furniture for courier delivery is almost impossible to ensure no damage in transit. I've learnt that lesson!!