I am falling out of love with Vinted

[Paq]

Six months ago I was convinced I would never have to buy new clothes again. Now I'm having more misses than hits. I'm finding it impossible to guess whether something will fit as dress sizes are so variable across brands and items. A few times the seller has gotten the size wrong.

Also, too many sellers are taking terrible photos. Like, from the other side of the room in the dark or at weird angles.

I resell the "misses" and have a strict spending limit per item so I'm not much out of pocket but I just want clothes I can wear!

Any top tips to improve my success rate? Also, what are good solid brands for a nearly 50 year old who wants to look less of a frump?

I'm still riding high of a clearly hardly ever worn navy M&S autograph leather midi skirt for £20. The problem is. I'll never top that...

I peaked

That’s my bugbear as well. Things you’ve worn, even once, are not New Without Tags.

I’ve had mostly hits but I’m very careful. My only real miss so far was the Sweaty Betty jumper in “very good condition” that turned up stinking of BO with food stains down the front.

I've got a couple of nice things off vinted but it needs a redesign. The sizing options are weird, and I hate the fact that there isn't a selector for material, so you depend on the seller telling you in the description/pics etc. I want to avoid synthetics - I bought a "linen" t-shirt and it was half polyester, grrrr.

But, if you're looking for a specific item, it's good to be able to check multiple sites because it's usually somewhere.

I tried to sell some nail stuff on there (others had) but was told it broke community standards (but not what ones) and that I had to send photos of the original boxes. They didn't come with boxes! I sent copies of the email receipts but that wasn't acceptable so I was banned from the site! 🤣

I've had to get a lot fussier too. After two piece of knitwear that were listed as 'very good' but already bobbled (couldn't face arguing with the seller during a stressful time), I only buy NWT or NWOT and I only buy when I can see the size on the label and from brands where I'm already confident about my size - I learnt to my cost that a French Connection 8 is not at all the same as a Boden 8!

At least saved searches now show when there's a new listing that fits from the search bar drop down. It would be easier if I got an email like eBay does, but at least it's only two clicks to check them all at once, you used to have to run each search every time to check by eye for new results.

Like others, I stick to brands I know well where I am comfortable with the quality, and I only look for items I have identified that I need. (Well, 'need'.) I also stick to low prices, so that a mistake won't cost more than a takeaway/ a few coffees.

I think it's really good for non-everyday items, as they are likely to be less worn - I've had a couple of Whistles dresses (one for a black tie event) for £10 apiece. Conversely, I've also had good results with t-shirts and sweatshirts, but stick to the 'new' categories for those. I've also got a duffle coat from AllSaints which isn't a perfect fit but which I've worn a lot as it's warm and practical, thus saving my smarter coat some wear.

Trousers and jeans are more of a crapshoot, I have found. That said, I'm currently wearing a great denim jumpsuit I bought last week for £5 plus postage. I am very lacking in curves, which generally seems to make online shopping easier as there are fewer variables fit-wise.

My only (sort of) miss so far was a DVF dress that was labelled as a 14 but actually a 12. Thankfully it still fits but it’s now a bit more cleavagey than I was hoping so it’s for evening rather than day (although it was still a new DVF dress for £15…).

I tend to buy brands that I already know and only select new/new with tags (and am always surprised at how many people post pictures of them wearing the item they’re claiming is brand new!). I also wouldn’t spend more than £20 unless it’s something I know will definitely work for me. I’m hoping to get my whole summer holiday wardrobe from there and have just had a couple of lovely linen jumpsuits.

The issue I seem to have at the moment is sellers not posting things. I had one this week where I got refunded because it hadn't been sent and the seller re uploaded the item that day 🤯

I sell on vinted. I cannot be fucked spending ages on photos to make £3. People still buy from me. Even sold a job lot of kids clothes and the photo was of the clothes in the bag. No individual shots.

I just want to make a bit of money back rather than give to charity. Every little helps these days.

I've had many, many hits and only 2 misses.

I don't spend over a tenner in case it goes wrong as Vinted support is zero, despite the nonsense buyer protection fee (learnt from first fail item).

What also annoys me is that if you get a refund, you can't leave a review (learnt from second fail item). So someone keeps a great overall score despite being happy to send out stained items described as immaculate.

I've had to give up it. Sold some items but had an issue logging on and there is zero customer service so I can't get help.

So the buyers must be very frustrated with me but I can't even contact them to explain

And in order to raise an issue you have to login. And my issue is I can't login. Pathetic waste of time.

I sell on Vinted and have noticed recently more and more dodgy buyers (not saying any of you ladies are them!!). I take care to take good photos, take photos of label to prove size and wash instructions and will measure garments if asked

BUT I've been stung loads in the last few months with buyers easing false complaints. One claimed the item didn't have tags (it bloody did when I sent it!!), one claimed all baby clothes were stained with sick (photo looks like she's chucked a small cup of milk over the lot), one claimed the item was missing several buttons. All of these people got full refunds and left bad feedback. I countered it but as a seller it really affects how quickly items sell

I've also had money go missing when transferring from my wallet to my bank account and Vinted just claim I need to raise it with my bank

I've stopped using it now but it's a shame as for a while it worked really well!

I have had loads of stuff not sent and got bad feedback for it. Trouble is the notifications have issues. So for a couple, the first I'd learnt is sold anything was when a refund was being issued then got snotty messages

I raised this with non existent customer service and they just said they were looking into issues some users were having with notifications, then closed the chat. Not very helpful!

I now message the seller and ask what the size is on the label. I bought a Boden top on Vinted that was listed as XL/14. I assumed it was a Boden size 14 but when it arrived it was labelled XL and was more like a size 16-18. When I sell items I always post a photo of the label so buyers can make an informed choice.

I've also asked for extra photos when the photos are bad. I bought a jacket once that hadn't shown a photo of the zips on the sides of the jacket. I've also had more misses than hits lately. I'm trying to be less impulsive.

I lost a lovely item that I had sold due to the In Post fiasco in September. Was refunded but I would have liked the item to be returned.
I did however have some success when I noticed that despite a buyer being refunded for a “lost” item , the tracking showed it had been picked up. I messaged and asked if she had the lost item, she said yes, so I asked her to return it and she did! I could not however convince Vinted that this practice was going on!

I'm okay with buying something NWOT that someone has worn once so long as they say that. I accept that the item is probably like new if only worn once. It would be easier if there was a category for that though.

I am VERY over it. Got sent the wrong size boots and I was supposed to pay to return them? No thanks.

The whole process is fiddly and time-consuming.

Tbh as a seller I'm getting a bit sick of Vinted (and don't doubt it is also increasingly infuriating for buyers). I've recently had

• Someone messaging me saying she didn't believe a jacket I was selling was brown ('it looks black in the photos, send more photos' - it looked brown (because it was!), followed by '???' a couple of hours later
• Endless sob stories - oh pleaaaaase, I love this brand, I just can't afford £5 more
• People making ridiculous offers for decent, sometimes designer brands, barely worn, when they're selling Lipsy and Boohoo crap themselves for more than they're offering me
• Buying it then constant messages saying 'have you posted?' - if you need it that urgently, tell me before you buy so I can check to see if I can send it in time
• Asking for endless measurements, beyond what I already post (which I would guess are sufficient for 99% of buyers) - I wouldn't mind so much except they never go on to buy it!

Tbh i've also had really good buyers and I know that Evri etc can be a nightmare. And I know you can just ignore the rude people. But it just increasingly seems like a lot of effort (I take decent photos, write detailed listings, and don't sell tat) for very little return.

DS loves Vinted but I cba. Prefer charity shops and am having a really good run wt charity shops in posh London neighbourhoods.

Our charity shops have suddenly gotten better after years of being stuffed with George and Tu.

I've only had good experiences with buyers and sellers have all been great, it's just the sizing for me.

I don't know in what universe XL = 14

I'd have said 14 is equivalent to an L max

I still love it! But I only buy brands and styles that I can be guaranteed to fit and suit me.

My latest purchase, last night. I can't WAIT to wear it.

I had similar, wrong size boots sent- annoying, but genuine error on behalf of seller. I was not happy at having to pay the return postage though

Back to ebay for me

I have had some real bargains, but I only buy if they have good reviews, clear and plentiful pictures and I know the brand.