a cautionary tale

[mikethetile]

I dont get caught very often but when I do I dont do it by halves

this also highlights how difficult the law on sales of goods can be and why we shouldnt give any legal advice on this forum

bought a van off ebay, asked lots of questions and was happy with the answers, vendor insisted that I pay through paypal before collecting the vehicle

wasnt happy but chelle paid on her card through paypal as this would mean we could get our money back .............wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!

no protection if you pay by paypal, all paypal does is keep your back details secret , they are not regulated in any way and you have no protection even if paying by card

collected the vehicle from spalding , within 30 miles it overheated and the engine seized. phoned him and told him to collect his van and give me my money back, he refused as its an auction

I have been through every avenue today and its down to small claims

hes a trader masquerading as a private seller but im going to have trouble proving it , trading standards are investigating

I wont let this go , ive been buying motors for too long and I will get my money back through the courts but because its an internet auction im not covered by any of the sales of goods acts, so ive rolled my sleeves up and im going in on the attack

but I thought I would warn others of the pitfalls of paying through paypal, you have less protection than if you pay by cash on collection

 

[user123]

Ouch... not a nice story, Mike... I always thought paypal gives you buyers protection up to £500, but no more?

 

[mikethetile]

thats what we thought G which is why I posted this warning

also if you use your card to pay through paypal you lose your cards protection too as your issue is not with paypal but with a third party

paypal is owned by e bay and is only there to protect your bank details , no more

they do conflict resolution but that doesnt cover any goods collected , it only covers mailed out items, these are covered by the distance selling act anyway so trading standards will deal with that for you

I cant even use unfit for purpose as that doesnt cover ebay sales unless they are registered as a trader or e tailer

im gutted as had I done my usual and gone with a wad of cash , I wouldnt have paid or it but I had already paid for it and they refused to return the money as it was a runner with 11 months mot so I was obliged by law to take it as it was as described, I knew it wasnt right but couldnt pinpoint the fault

 

[user123]

Bit of a minefield then, will look into it, thanks Mike, and good luck with it all!! Good job you're not smoking anymore then you can use the extra oxgen at your disposal to fuel your gemini brainpower to win this thing!

 

[Olz]

Thats terrible mate, did you go and check it out before you bid or anything? I take it its like a normal private vehilce sale then, ie sold as seen which is why he isnt giving you a refund?

 

[paulyoung666]

its not known as scampal for nothing , having said that i hope you get your money back

 

[mikethetile]

no i didnt Oli, I was sent photos and I was happy with the answers to my questions

we are talking a few hundred quid here so even if I had to rebuild the engine I would have been happy but if I had been made aware of a few of the problems I wouldnt have bought it, it wasnt in the auction , it was in the buy it now

ive returned the van to them, if I have to lose the money I wont lose any sleep over it, my mistake was that I bought it unseen through paypal as I believed I had protection and thats what im warning about

the only protection paypal gives you is that it protects your personal details from the vendor

im going back to the fist full of dollars approach, I know where I am when im putting £20 notes on the bonnet and they can take my offer or leave it

 

[Olz]

All ebay and paypal seem to do is charge you fee's over and over again without giving you anything in return.

Ebay charge you to list your item, then they charge you a bit more when you sell it.

Then Paypal (and ebay company) charge you to get the money.

 

[mikethetile]

ive bought loads of motors of ebay and you know that the truth will be stretched or just ommited but ive always considered it worth the gamble as I usually end up ahead even if I get it home and have to spend on it

but this time the gamble went against me and it is paying through paypal up front that has caught me out, and as you say its all fees

 

[kilty55]

go back and batter him mike

 

[kilty55]

pretend hes a modeliing balloon and turn him into a mince pie supper mike

 

[mikethetile]

you know I was going to go back to his house kilty

but hes had a stroke, all down his left side, he can walk but he shuffles and he has trouble moving his left arm. the way he was going on at me I might of lost it with him

It was the way I was driving it , the a1 is a very fast rd you know,

well im sorry but no one told me I had to stick to b roads and drive at walking pace,

there was nothing wrong with it when it left here . you broke it by driving it wrong

well ive been driving for over 25 years and I havent broken a car yet by driving it wrong

its best I stayed away from the donkey. I do hope he gives that drivel in his defence for court

 

[hillhead]

Good luck Mike,
i seen my lad buy a car from a so called private trader last year,engine blew after 9 days.
We finished up getting cash plus an engine from him.

 

[user123]

you know I was going to go back to his house kilty

but hes had a stroke, all down his left side, he can walk but he shuffles and he has trouble moving his left arm. the way he was going on at me I might of lost it with him

It was the way I was driving it , the a1 is a very fast rd you know,

well im sorry but no one told me I had to stick to b roads and drive at walking pace,

there was nothing wrong with it when it left here . you broke it by driving it wrong

well ive been driving for over 25 years and I havent broken a car yet by driving it wrong

its best I stayed away from the donkey. I do hope he gives that drivel in his defence for court

Now put that nail gun away, Mike.... :lol: :lol:

 

[mikethetile]

ive mellowed since them days G Lol