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Original poster

for sale what the heck is going on !!!???!!

35 replies

justwaterformethanks · 27/02/2008 18:11

pootling about on the sales thread , says i have to go to the classified section ,fair enough ,next thing i know it wants credit/debit card details err NO . What is going on ?

OP posts:
beautifuldays · 27/02/2008 18:14

you have to pay a £5 sub to buy and sell on mumsnet now.

bonkerz · 27/02/2008 18:23

You have to pay subs. Trying to stop people using the boards JUST for selling.

Original poster
justwaterformethanks · 27/02/2008 18:24

While i applaud mumsnet towers for trying to tackle scammers ,is this really going to make any difference ? I do not have a debit card ( long story!) or credit card ,so this means i can never buy or sell anything on mumsnet again ,i have bought and sold things without any problems in the past and feel quite put out now , mind you had a bad day anyway . I have oodles of money in paypal ,but cant subscribe with that so im out in the cold now ( brrr its chilly out here !) TBH i dont think a payment of £5 is going to put off any serious scammer do you ?

OP posts:
bonkerz · 27/02/2008 18:50

no i dont think it will but i think the attitude towards sellers is changing. The general consensus is that mumsnet sale boards should not be used as an alternative ebay and therefore i think people will find it hard to sell high price items on mumsnet again. Atleast by taking payment via credit/debit card etc it means MN have a registered proven postal address and can trace a seller if scamming takes place.!!.
You can offer second hand items on the for free seciton on te talk boards and people are prepared to pay cost postage. If not then i suppose ebay is a good place to sell!!

Original poster
justwaterformethanks · 27/02/2008 19:42

well i sell items on ebay too ,but there are times when i think perhaps someone on mumsnet might want this ,then i offer it at a reduced price , because to be honest if i have something i think someone might be able to put to good use then i would offer it here first ( also use freecycle ) . I just think its really sad that people on low incomes are being squueezed out of the loop, after all just because someones income isnt high doesnt mean they are dishonest ( anyone remember the guiness family?)

OP posts:
LynetteScavo · 27/02/2008 19:45

Er... what subs? I've just advertised a steriliser, didn't realise about subs!!

Original poster
justwaterformethanks · 27/02/2008 19:47

also if i paid my subs by paypal there is a address attached to that ? so whats the difference between that and say a credit card ?

OP posts:
Original poster
justwaterformethanks · 27/02/2008 19:50

if you go to the for sale board it wont allow anyone to message you about your item for sale. If you have a C.A.T account already then you are probably ok

OP posts:
WigWamBam · 27/02/2008 19:50

Read this.

It might help.

Then again ...

PortAndLemon · 28/02/2008 10:01

They take cheques if you don't have a card.

This isn't a fee-to-buy-and-sell as such. The £5 (annually) CAT facility has been around for ages as a way for MNetters to contact each other without clogging up the boards (and also raises money that keeps MN going).

One of the concerns about buying and selling threads was that they clogged up the boards and with constant bumping etc. they were difficult to navigate. So buying and selling posters are now expected to contact each other off-board instead.

BigBadMouse · 28/02/2008 10:19

It all seems a bit silly to me. I'm not too pleased as I was about to buy something on here as a last minute present and now can't finish the transaction without paying the money and having CAT etc. I don't want to buy the item on ebay as it is full of scammers.

Would have been nice if MN towers had maybe warned us of when they were going to do this

WigWamBam · 28/02/2008 11:10

There have been several threads over the past few weeks where MN Towers have outlined their plans for reorganising the For Sale boards. Granted, they didn't give a specific day, but the changes weren't exactly unexpected.

It's a fiver for a whole year - not exactly extortionate.

soremummy · 28/02/2008 11:15

No I agree thats its not a lot of money. But some people were in the middle of either selling or buying stuff and I think that its unfair that they cant complete transaction with the people they were dealing with unless they already have an email for them.

moljam · 28/02/2008 11:19

£5 is fine-i wouldnt mind at all if i had a card.i dont just stick to the buying selling boards i use the whole of mn-but now cant.and now you have regulars on mn not able to buy/sell and you have people who only buy/sell who still can.fantastic.

moljam · 28/02/2008 11:20

and now youll probably be getting people buying and selling on other threads.example-nappies,potty training etc-
oh ive got one of those nappies,email me,how much blah blah blah.

TheDevilWearsPrimark · 28/02/2008 11:22

Can you not send mnhq a cheque if you don't have a card?

moljam · 28/02/2008 11:24

i dont have cheque book either! if i did id be more than happy to pay it although agree we should have been more notice-i know we knew it was happening but not when.

MAMAZON · 28/02/2008 11:24

Well i come on mumsnet to chat and discuss various topics. if i want to buy a second hand bath toy/pram/baby clothes etc i would go to ebay.

there are a lot of people who ONLY use the sale boards as they are free. they are too tight to pay for Ebay.

I personally think its a godo idea. at the very least it would discourage teh "huns"

TheDevilWearsPrimark · 28/02/2008 11:27

Indeed there are loads of messages from people on the sale boards who have never posted elsewhere kicking off about having to pay the subs.

WigWamBam · 28/02/2008 11:28

Was going to suggest a cheque as well.

Can you use someone else's debit card and pay them back? If you really want to use the boards, not having a card shouldn't be an insurmountable problem.

And as for those who post their ads elsewhere ... they will have the wrath of MNers everywhere to contend with. Plus the new guidelines state that those who don't comply with the rules will be "hunted down and hounded out without mercy or pause for a second thought".

moljam · 28/02/2008 11:28

but what about those of us that arent huns!!!!!!!!!

IdrisTheDragon · 28/02/2008 11:33

How do people who have paypal not have access to a credit or debit card? When I use paypal then it comes out of the account I have a debit card with.

TheDevilWearsPrimark · 28/02/2008 11:36

You can just use paypal without linking it to a card I think.

RubberDuck · 28/02/2008 11:41

If they accept cheques I'd bet they'd accept a postal order... no cheque book required.

moljam · 28/02/2008 11:42

yep i do paypal without a card-its from my bank account.it does make it slightly harder as like recently they suspected someone had been trying to mess with my account so as they wanted me to confirm card details when i phoned them and said i dont have one and had not opened the account with a card they then had to send a code thing to my adress so they could confirm i am me!(phew geddit?)