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Life members with one post?
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Oct 16, 2013 at 7:58 am #1308794
Should I pursue a item for sale from a Life BPL member with only the one post? Pricey item too boot. Hmmm?
DuaneOct 16, 2013 at 8:04 am #2034576Good question.
The fact that he would pay $100 to post an item for sale helps some.
Your question to him helps to see if he actually has the item, but see if he will at least post some photos of it.
But the risk factor is higher.
Hmmmm…..
Oct 16, 2013 at 8:15 am #2034579Maybe the item is overpriced to help him cover the cost of his Life membership lol.
Seriously though, if he's willing to shell out $100 then I'd assume he's good to go.
Maybe he needed to sell something, came across this site in a Google search, thought it was the bees knees, bought a Life membership and threw the item up for sale with full intention of participating.
If you're worried about his reputation as a seller, you could always ask for his eBay user name and check his feedback. Otherwise, I'd just rely on gut instinct.
Oct 16, 2013 at 8:17 am #2034580He could just be a lurker, I read somewhere that only 5% of BPL members actively pst.
Oct 16, 2013 at 8:24 am #2034586Have him send some sort of recommendation from another member?
Oct 16, 2013 at 8:28 am #2034587I have more than one post, but do not post a whole lot. I find that I can find the answers I am looking for by doing a search, and often I have nothing further to add, although I will contribute from time to time, I would think is he spends the $100 you should be alright. Not everyone out there likes to post.
Oct 16, 2013 at 8:29 am #2034588The vast majority of this community is constituted from passive readers (me being one of them.. oops..)
Oct 16, 2013 at 9:12 am #2034602The fact that so many people see a life membership as a reason he's ok makes me think there's a chance he got the life membership to make himself seem believable so he could swindle someone.
Just playing devil's advocate, no offense meant to anyone. But be careful.
Oct 16, 2013 at 9:33 am #2034612I concur with the general sentiment that if he dropped $100 on a lifetime membership, you should be good to do business with them. But there were also good suggestions such as getting their ebay username and using general caution.
Oct 16, 2013 at 9:39 am #2034616The norm for buying your child back from a kidnapper is first getting a photo of them with a recent newspaper headline. Pity to spend all that money if they're, er, already dead. Maybe a similar approach could be used for nervous gear buyers?
Oct 16, 2013 at 10:00 am #2034635The rule for food is, "If in doubt, throw it out"… ;~)
But seriously, if you're uncomfortable, don't do it. I believe we often have the right "gut feelings". Another item will always come along, or you could post a WTB to help get the process going.
I'm a big believer in feedback, but — that said — someone on here had to take a chance with me when I sold my first item…and I'm glad Ed did!
Oct 16, 2013 at 10:57 am #2034657He's got a photo of himself in his avatar. He's got PMs set up.
I'd buy, if I was interested, without a second thought.
Oct 16, 2013 at 11:05 am #2034660And just as an aside- post count doesn't make someone trustworthy either. Another forum I was on had a guy that put months into building up a post count and also sold some things honestly and he even went to one get-together and met people in person. Then he completely changed tactics and made a bunch of fraudulent sales (never sent the goods) and then faked his death. Had his "daughter" create an account and post up that he'd had a heart attack. Only he hadn't and his "daughter" was him. I kid you not. Turns out he had done that on multiple forums and had quite the reputation. He had a long con in operation.
So I guess my basic point is that every sale/purchase is a risk. I've had nothing but good experiences so far, personally.
Oct 16, 2013 at 11:13 am #2034662"every sale/purchase is a risk"
If you send your money to someone, you should mentally write it off
If you never get any product back then it's a life lesson
Stuff bought from individuals should be cheaper to make up for this
Or, maybe you figure it's good to help other people financially. There are PIF gear threads for example.
Oct 16, 2013 at 11:17 am #2034667I guess you could call Ron and see if he sold a tent to the guy.
Oct 16, 2013 at 11:47 am #2034683Forgot to mention that as long as you go through PayPal and pay through Goods and Services, and not Personal/Gift, then you are at least covered under PayPal's buyer protection. I know a lot of us use Personal/Gift (myself included in that list) since I think we are all generally good people, but if you're worried, you can't be too safe.
Also, if you're really worried then ask that he send you a PayPal invoice and you'll have even further evidence in the issue of a dispute.
Also, although I do post, somewhat regularly, I don't post as often as I could. I learned long ago that the Search button is my friend. I'll usually only post a new thread if I honestly haven't found the answer after a significant effort.
Oct 16, 2013 at 11:48 am #2034684I always use Paypal (commercial, not personal) using my credit card. That gives me at least some protection through both Paypal and the credit card company. It also means the seller doesn't have my credit card number.
Paypal personal provides no protection for the buyer. IMHO, the fee is worth it.
Oct 16, 2013 at 1:09 pm #2034716Sorry I did not reply an hour or more back, my lunch was about over. Thank you all for your thoughts. This is a $500 item, not something I need this winter now, it can wait until Spring. I have the money, my vintage stove acquisition/newer pickup fund. :) You are right about being protected by both Paypal and my credit card.
DuaneOct 16, 2013 at 5:03 pm #2034790Then there's -F Troop.
Oct 16, 2013 at 7:06 pm #2034815Item has sold, that was close. The seller did respond to posts to the topic quickly. Now on to a small foot print shelter to replace my new shelter I bought last Spring.
When does that stove auction end? :)
DuaneOct 16, 2013 at 10:45 pm #2034867While we're on the topic (at least sort of), has anyone had any experience actually having to use this somewhat mysterious "PayPal buyer protection." Was the process easy? Did PayPal give you a hard time?
I still can't decide whether it's worth it to use this service or not (i.e. pay the 2.9% for a commercial PayPal transaction while selling an item). I've had buyers pay me both ways, and I obviously prefer a personal payment with no added cost to me but the buyer certainly has to take me at my word.
Basically, I'm just wondering how much protection PayPal actually gives you that you don't have to fight tooth and claw for. If it's a huge hassle then I doubt it would be worth it.
Oct 16, 2013 at 10:48 pm #2034868Here is how it works, in most cases. You set up a claim and paypal asks the seller to provide proof of shipment. If the seller has no proof of shipment, then the buyer gets his money back. If the seller can prove that the item was shipped (tracking number) then the case is closed.
This is why you should always get tracking when you ship an item.
I have no idea how this would work through a private forum transaction. I always assumed it was an ebay or online store only option. There is no information attached to the transaction, it's just a money transfer. Would they look at the forum post or something?Oct 17, 2013 at 2:26 am #2034895> has anyone had any experience actually having to use this somewhat mysterious "PayPal buyer protection.
Yes, twice. It worked. One vendor reshipped the order and another vendor refunded.
Cheers
Oct 17, 2013 at 6:43 am #2034922You are actually required by PayPal to use a commercial payment when selling an item. Accepting 'gift' payment for an item you are selling is in violation of your user agreement with PayPal.
Oct 17, 2013 at 9:39 am #2034967One time I ordered an item online, and the $400 transaction went via PayPal. I heard nothing from the vendor, so I started checking up and found that it was located in China, and the item was a U.S. item that was not eligible for shipment outside the U.S.
I contacted the vendor and started asking questions about my order. It turns out that they didn't even know what the item was. It was only advertising stuff that it had seen advertised online elsewhere, just as marketing research! The customer service staff had never seen the item, couldn't answer any questions about it, but could not tell me any status of my order. Naturally, I filed a complaint with PayPal, but PayPal claimed that it couldn't do anything for a long time. PayPal contacted the vendor as well, and when the customer service staff was so stupid that no questions could be answered, PayPal took the necessary action and reversed the transaction. That finished about a month after the original order was placed.
My point is that it is better to ask questions up front than to have to chase a vendor around and around to get the right thing done.
The ordered item was a piece of software. As it turned out, the vendor did not have the software in stock, nor did they have any way of legally getting stock. The plan was that if they had a live order to deal with, they would purchase the software somewhere, clone a copy or otherwise break the law, and ship the copy to the purchaser. Then they would return the purchased software to get their own money back. At least that was the plan. The software publisher has methods in place that would have prevented the software from being activated. It's a mess out there!
–B.G.–
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