Oh cripes... put something on ebay, sold it, then took it out and looked at it...

[bananabump]

Just sold a mattress on ebay for £10. That was the BuyItNow price, the starting price was £1. It is a funny sized one, a "junior double" 6" smaller widthways than a standard double.

I tried to get rid of the mattress on freecycle, had no interest, need it gone as we have absolutely no space in our tiny house as it is, so I put it on ebay. As I said, it sold for £10, and she is sending a courier tomorrow for it.

Anyway I've just got dp to bring it downstairs and it has a long thin section that is totally threadbare along the bottom (about 15" x 3") that I had no idea was there because we only used it temporarily.

(We only acquired it through a so-called friends sneakiness when she offered us her old "double" mattress as she was getting a new kingsize bed) She obviously couldn't get rid of it either!

So now I'm not sure what to do. I mean, it was a tenner, and other than that it's in fairly good nick. I described it on the ad as being in "good used condition"

What do you think? Would you be angry or take issue with it? Or would you think "it's only a tenner, sod it"? I'm not trying to fleece this lady, I had no idea the worn patch was there. Should I tell her before the courier gets here? Advice please!

DO you have good eBay feedback? IF so, it's not worth risking - e-mail her what you've written here and offer to refund her, or give it to her for £5 or for free?!

Yeah, my feedback is 100% positive, I always try to be fair.

She hasn't paid yet (despite courier due in the morning) but I have already sent the invoice for it for a tenner. Can I change it if necessary or will I have to refund her somehow?

Oh what a load of bloody faff! This mattress has been a pita from the start!

I think she can alter the total amount by adding in a discount or something?

COntact her. I contacted someone last week as a CD I sold in an "as new" condition actually had a cracked case inside (and having been through a disaster on Amazon for something similar (a CD case I;d described as scratched was cracked) and having suffered complete grief and having to pay a partial refund I wasn;t about to go thorugh that again! I think the guy thought I was a nutter, he said he was interested in the music and not the case and we exhanged some bantering emails.

hmmm. Yeah, I will let her know and hope she doesn't moan about it. She still hasn't paid yet... leaving it a bit late!? If the courier comes before the money, this could get embarassing.

What happened in the end Banana? (Always like to know the outcome of these thinsg!)

Would like to know what happened too! I'd be inclined to think if the courier came before the money then just let 'em take it if you want rid so badly. No diffferent to freecycling it really.

Hoho, was a big stupid farce.

Ok, so I decided not to email her. I am a bad person.

I was working on the principle that it's easier to get forgiveness than permission, and there really is NOTHING else wrong with the damn thing. Naughty, I know, but I thought "she needs a mattress, I need it gone, if she complains, I'll refund her"

Anyway, she paid at 9am, which was fine. The courier turned up at about 11am, the smallest weediest bloke in christendom, (Think the guy off the Mr Muscle cleaning product ad, well he was BUFF compared to this guy) and stared (up) at the mattress propped against the wall.

I said "erm, have you got someone to help you carry it?" he shook his head. I said "I'm 8 months pregnant, I shouldn't really be carrying anything heavy" and he just looked at me blankly. Great start. I said "I'll get my shoes on..."

Then he announced that he couldn't take it with no address on. I pointed out that he must have the womans address as she ordered the courier service, not me. He said he didn't, just knew she was in Birmingham. Great. I wasn't even sure if I had her address on my ebay emails, and had nothing with which to attach the address to the mattress, not even duct tape or anything.

Then he added that I would have to "wrap it in something" Like what? "Clingfilm?" he suggested. I only use foil or sandwich bags, didn't even have a dustsheet or some binbags or anything that would work to wrap such a big thing in.

He started getting a bit impatient, said he couldn't take it, and no, he couldn't come back later. If he came back later she'd have to pay for the courier a second time. I didn't have her phone number to call her and ask what she wanted to do, so he left.

Nightmare! So I had to send her an email apologising but saying that I had no idea it would need wrapping, and this was why I'd said Local Pickup Only on the advert. Plus as my dp pointed out, she hadn't paid for packaging, so how was I to know?

In conclusion, I refunded her the money obviously, and I am still the owned of one oddly sized slightly threadbare but otherwise good mattress, taking up space in our livingroom.

I can't take it to the tip, it seems such a waste! I'm sure there's a shelter or organisation somewhere that could use it...

ah this is why I do local pickup only on big items and ignore everyone who contacts me to say "I'll get a courier" (I tend to list a cheap buy it now price for my local pickups). Sympathies- I had to return something to a company once who had sent me the wrong item. "the courier will collect the old one" they said "use the same packagine" except the thing I was sending back was twice the size of the thing they were sending, so I was there with the courier ripping up boxes, trying to find sellotape. It was a farce.

Bananabump - was there a second highest bidder you could make a second chance offer to?

No, she was the only bidder, she bought it in less than a day. I've stuck it back on freecycle, but if it doesn't get any interest then I might try to fold it up and shove it in the shed (I've have to put all the shed contents on freecycle)

ay ay ay!

Bananbump - take your sharpest kitchen knife to the mattress and enjoy the catharthis before you summarily dump it on the nearest builder's skip.

lol, knowing my luck as soon as I do, some poor sod on freecycle will email me saying "Have you still got the mattress? I'm desperate!"

Tempting though!