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Buyer beware

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    #32
    Insect Overlord
    Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 30,859 Mod ✭✭✭✭Insect Overlord


    The Greenhills carpark is full this afternoon anyway!


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    #33
    celticcrash
    Registered Users Posts: 849 ✭✭✭celticcrash


    skyguy19 wrote: »
    how did you get on in Henry st

    Spoke to the sargent down there. His view was, these guys get the permits,
    And that these guys are spot checked. but he personally wouldnt buy something there himself.

    Reply from revenue :
    I have received your email and have forwarded it to the appropriate section for processing. A reply will issue in due course.


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    #34
    hightower1
    Registered Users Posts: 3,207 ✭✭✭hightower1


    celticcrash wrote: »
    Spoke to the sargent down there. His view was, these guys get the permits,
    And that these guys are spot checked. but he personally wouldnt buy something there himself..

    So in other words ... they dont give a flying one.
    How typical. I mean realistically its the middle of the day I am sure there is one garda in the city free to be dispathced to be out there. Even to sit in a car in the car park just so the clowns running this know they are being watched closely. The car could be dispatched to the surrounding areas even if needed so its not like they are down a man in an emergency.

    Sorry, I guess that would have been too pro active for the guards. :rolleyes:


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    #35
    skyguy19
    Closed Accounts Posts: 113 ✭✭skyguy19


    I didnt relise scam artists needed a permit these days, were can i get one lol, typical guards none around when you need them


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    #36
    ABEasy
    Registered Users Posts: 566 ✭✭✭ABEasy


    In fairness I don't think this is a matter for the Garda. I can't see how it is a criminal matter. You go to auction, you buy something, your not happy with it (faulty or whatever), you take a civil action against the seller. As the title says buyer beware.


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    #37
    v3ttel
    Registered Users Posts: 5,320 ✭✭✭v3ttel


    ABEasy wrote: »
    In fairness I don't think this is a matter for the Garda. I can't see how it is a criminal matter. You go to auction, you buy something, your not happy with it (faulty or whatever), you take a civil action against the seller. As the title says buyer beware.

    Fraud isn't a matter for the Gardai these days? :confused:


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    #38
    daveob007
    Registered Users Posts: 982 ✭✭✭daveob007


    went out around 8 last night with the intent of getting some video or pics but was refused entry because it was just closing,,supposed to be closed at 9,by the looks of it they were probably sold out of stock judging by the huge crowds filling car boots with stuff,i hope my christmas pressie was not bought there bud sadly loads of parents did the santa shop seen loads of gaming stuff for xbox and ps3 being carried out.
    we probably saved some people the heartache by posting here and facebook but with the numbers of flyers they send out it was impossible tp get the message accross to many many people.


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    #39
    Delphi91
    Registered Users Posts: 1,501 ✭✭✭Delphi91


    Rooney10 wrote: »
    Fraud isn't a matter for the Gardai these days? :confused:

    OK, please don't shoot the messenger here - I haven't seen the flyers nor have I been to the auction - I'm just curious about the whole thing. I've seen this type of operation in London on Oxford Street (no less) about 20 years ago where it was perfumes on sale. Everything was handed out in black refuse sacks and there were a few gorilla's minding the door in case anyone got a bit narked over the contents of the plastic bag.

    Based on the flyers alone, can anyone explicitly state that there is fraud going on? If a flyer says that items will be sold FROM €x that doesn't mean that they will be sold AT €x. It's entirely possible that while they are chosing their words carefully.


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    #40
    daveob007
    Registered Users Posts: 982 ✭✭✭daveob007


    i have been to a few and all i can say is that the goods are usually faulty returns from high street stores,many tv fly on the wall shows have proven the same thing,just look at youtube for evidence its very clear.


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    #41
    ABEasy
    Registered Users Posts: 566 ✭✭✭ABEasy


    Rooney10 wrote: »
    ABEasy wrote: »
    In fairness I don't think this is a matter for the Garda. I can't see how it is a criminal matter. You go to auction, you buy something, your not happy with it (faulty or whatever), you take a civil action against the seller. As the title says buyer beware.

    Fraud isn't a matter for the Gardai these days? :confused:

    Not trying to defend these guys, I wouldn't go near them with a barge pole. But what makes what they are doing a fraud?

    They are selling goods at an auction, it's buyer beware. Surely anybody going to one of these auctions should show extra care when buying!


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    #42
    bazz26
    Registered Users Posts: 51,147 ✭✭✭✭bazz26


    Rooney10 wrote: »
    Fraud isn't a matter for the Gardai these days? :confused:

    The Gardai can only work within the boundries of the law. It's the law that needs to be changed along with more stringent measures by the authorities who issue these permits in order to make it harder for these scammers to operate.

    The general public also need to play a part, be more vigilent and have a bit more common sense. Obviously yesterday they didn't and that is how these scammers have plenty of business. Alot of people are simply dupped by cheap prices and have no cop on to ask why?


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    #43
    hightower1
    Registered Users Posts: 3,207 ✭✭✭hightower1


    The gardai would have certainly been within their right to be there should anyone of the "bouncers" try to stop anyone complaining about goods they purchased. Every person is entitle to a refund repair or replace, entitle to complain about what they bought to a seller and THATS what they gardai should have been there for as it IS illegal for anyone to physically stop a consumer from returning to a place of purchase.


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    #44
    ABEasy
    Registered Users Posts: 566 ✭✭✭ABEasy


    hightower1 wrote: »
    The gardai would have certainly been within their right to be there shouldanyone of the "bouncers" try to stop anyone complaining about goods they purchased. Every person is entitle to a refund repair or replace, entitle to complain about what they bought to a seller and THATS what they gardai should have been there for as it IS illegal for anyone to physically stop a consumer from returning to a place of purchase.


    Think your wrong here, the seller has a right to refuse admission (e.g. bouncers in a nightclub/pub) Gardai would be more likely to arrest the purchaser for breach of the peace if they insist on making a scene. The right to a refund, repair and replacement is a civil matter, if this is refused by the seller the only comeback is a civil case. Finally there are alot of 'what if's' there, Gardai are busy enough in Limerick without worrying about 'what if's'.


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    #45
    guns4fun
    Closed Accounts Posts: 94 ✭✭guns4fun


    ABEasy wrote: »
    Not trying to defend these guys, I wouldn't go near them with a barge pole. But what makes what they are doing a fraud?

    They are selling goods at an auction, it's buyer beware. Surely anybody going to one of these auctions should show extra care when buying!
    but where the fraud comes in is when you are offered goods and not told that they are mostly faulty returns from the shops,these goods are sold as overstocking,surely this only applies to old stock that cannot be sold at sale prices,many of the goods at that sale were new products to the market and with christmas coming no shop would overstock these. xbox 360/ps3/platstation move to name but a few,and i also noticed that most of the boxes had been opened and not sealed like new items,,this stinks of scam surely,people cannot see beyond the cheap prices when things are tight and thats how these sales operate by duping the public into thinking that we are getting bargain of the century.


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    #46
    Builderfromhell
    Registered Users Posts: 1,569 ✭✭✭Builderfromhell


    As yet no one has come on here admitting to being scammed or to know of anyone who has been scammed so the whole thing is conjecture.


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    #47
    Delphi91
    Registered Users Posts: 1,501 ✭✭✭Delphi91


    guns4fun wrote: »
    but where the fraud comes in is when you are offered goods and not told that they are mostly faulty returns from the shops...

    And you know that they are mostly faulty returns from the shops, how?


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    #48
    guns4fun
    Closed Accounts Posts: 94 ✭✭guns4fun


    Delphi91 wrote: »
    And you know that they are mostly faulty returns from the shops, how?
    everyone who posted the warnings here either have expierienced directly or indirectly or have some sort of educated knowledege of how these things work,otherwise we would not have posted our comments.
    if you can prove otherwise please do so and stop questioning our comments.
    are you somehow involved in the trade? or what.


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    #49
    mgbgt1978
    Registered Users Posts: 4,230 ✭✭✭mgbgt1978


    The main reason these events are advertised as an "Auction" rather than a Sale is that the Laws regarding auctions are a lot more lax than a proper retail sale.
    You have very little (if any) comeback with an auction. Unless you are expressly told that an item is faulty, and what the fault is, then there is absolutely no onus on the "Auctioneer" to replace the item or refund you.

    If anybody really thinks that they can buy a PS3 or 42" plasma TV for €30 or so then they are one of the following;
    (a) mentally unsound:confused:
    (b) buying a faulty item:p
    (c) buying a stolen item;)


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    #50
    dr.fuzzenstein
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 16,635 ✭✭✭✭dr.fuzzenstein


    I went to one such "auction", but it was way back in '98 or '99 (not sure now).
    It was in the hotel that for a short period of time was the Hilton (don't know what it was back then, must be getting old).
    I bought a widescreen LG TV with built in satellite tuner for a couple of hundred bucks, the price wasn't too bad in fairness.
    After I brought it home, it turned out it had a fault, the volume would turn itself down to zero every now and then, had to crank it back up, 10 minutes later, back down to zero.
    Since I knew those guys where long gone, I opened it myself and found a chip that wasn't inserted all the way, pushed down on it and it worked.
    I was very lucky it was such a small fault and I was able to fix it myself.
    That telly actually worked for 10 years without a fault, until the cat got sick on the back of it, it ran inside and fried it.
    All in all, I got lucky, but I'd say be very wary.
    I remember one thing about that auction, the English guy said "Pro Logic" about 25 times in a sentence.
    I should have seen it, but I was young and naive.


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    #51
    ABEasy
    Registered Users Posts: 566 ✭✭✭ABEasy


    It was jury's hotel, went to one back around then aswell.


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    #52
    Delphi91
    Registered Users Posts: 1,501 ✭✭✭Delphi91


    guns4fun wrote: »
    everyone who posted the warnings here either have expierienced directly or indirectly or have some sort of educated knowledege of how these things work,otherwise we would not have posted our comments.
    if you can prove otherwise please do so and stop questioning our comments.
    are you somehow involved in the trade? or what.

    Woah, calm down!!!

    If you check back to my first posting on this thread, you will see that I just said that I was curious about the whole thing. I do not work in, nor have I any dealings with, the trade. The only dealing I have ever had with this type of thing, as I already stated, was to walk into one being held in Oxford Street in London back in the late 80's. I still remember it, it was a perfume auction. Once I saw the items being handed out in black, pre-packed and knotted, refuse sacks from under the counter, it was obvious it was a scam of some sort.

    I never at any stage claimed that anyone was wrong in their comments, I just asked how they came to be in a position to make the comments. And with all due respect, this is a public forum where a comment made by another poster can be questioned.

    I raised the questions that I did because I was wondering if the flyer (and again let me preface this by saying that I have not seen the flyer) had made any false claims? If you see a sign in a fast food restaurant claiming that their burgers are "100% Irish Beef" do you expect to get a burger that is 100% full of Irish beef? If only 1% of the burger is actual beef and that beef is Irish then their claim that their burgers are "100% Irish Beef" is perfectly correct. The point I'm making is that by running the event as an auction, and possibly by careful use of words in their advertising, they may be keeping within the law despite what they sell. It appears from a post by mgbgt1978 above, that in fact by running an auction, those involved are succeeding in "selling" substandard items. And I would further echo the rest of his post, that anyone who goes to one of those auctions expecting items for virtually nothing needs their head examined! As the saying goes "If it looks too good to be true, it is"!


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    #53
    krudler
    Registered Users Posts: 34,788 ✭✭✭✭krudler


    hightower1 wrote: »
    So in other words ... they dont give a flying one.
    How typical. I mean realistically its the middle of the day I am sure there is one garda in the city free to be dispathced to be out there. Even to sit in a car in the car park just so the clowns running this know they are being watched closely. The car could be dispatched to the surrounding areas even if needed so its not like they are down a man in an emergency.

    Sorry, I guess that would have been too pro active for the guards. :rolleyes:

    tell them you spotted an out of date tax disc on a car in the carpark, they'l have the ERU out in minutes.


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    #54
    flutered
    Registered Users Posts: 6,670 ✭✭✭flutered


    i attended one a long time ago in the company of an impulsive guy, he bought a telly for a princely sum, he opened the box it did not contain what he thought he bought, he approached one of the organisers who gave him the option of going home quickly or visiting the casualty dept of a hospital.


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    #55
    diol07
    Registered Users Posts: 55 ✭✭diol07


    I was at one of these a few years ago in the South Court. It was a complete sham, all faulty goods. There WERE Gardaí at it, two plain clothes officers from Roxboro, but they said or did nothing. There was blue murder at the end because people who had bought stuff earlier waited outside after realising the stuff didn't work but they were just herded away aggressively. I have never seen a crowd to pack up so quickly and go. Two wrongs don't make a right but <snip> :P


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    #56
    mikemac
    Closed Accounts Posts: 19,986 ✭✭✭✭mikemac


    ABEasy wrote: »
    It was jury's hotel, went to one back around then aswell.
    dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »
    I went to one such "auction", but it was way back in '98 or '99 (not sure now).

    I was there myself
    Bought a TV which conked out about two weeks later. Various attempts were made to fix it, it worked for a while and eventually failed.
    Label at the bottom showed it was factory refurbished, I sure don't remember the auctioneer announce that....

    I did buy a set of steak knives for five punts. Yeah not superb quality but I was happy with them, I still have them


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    #57
    daveob007
    Registered Users Posts: 982 ✭✭✭daveob007


    mate of mine got stung the other day,,bought a 19" flat screen tv for around 50 quid and guess what??? it's faulty sound but no picture,,i told him so but the bargain won out in the end and not in a good way.


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    #58
    dr.fuzzenstein
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 16,635 ✭✭✭✭dr.fuzzenstein


    What I don't get is that people still go there.
    Ten years ago or longer, there was very little in terms of bargains to be had, the few grandad style electric shops that did exist charged outrageous prices.
    Nowadays it's so easy to get a bargain from any of the dozen or so electrical retailers, there's always something reduced. And it has a warranty. And you can bring it back in most cases.
    And there's E-bay.
    Why would you nowadays buy dodgy sh*t of dodgy cowboys?


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    #59
    daveob007
    Registered Users Posts: 982 ✭✭✭daveob007


    dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »
    What I don't get is that people still go there.
    Ten years ago or longer, there was very little in terms of bargains to be had, the few grandad style electric shops that did exist charged outrageous prices.
    Nowadays it's so easy to get a bargain from any of the dozen or so electrical retailers, there's always something reduced. And it has a warranty. And you can bring it back in most cases.
    And there's E-bay.
    Why would you nowadays buy dodgy sh*t of dodgy cowboys?
    simply because these sales people are masters at getting people into a buying frenzy. and like any parasite they prey on the vunerable for who times are hard and are looking for cheap goods,i'm sure we will hear more such stories of woe...


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    #60
    ABEasy
    Registered Users Posts: 566 ✭✭✭ABEasy


    daveob007 wrote: »
    dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »
    What I don't get is that people still go there.
    Ten years ago or longer, there was very little in terms of bargains to be had, the few grandad style electric shops that did exist charged outrageous prices.
    Nowadays it's so easy to get a bargain from any of the dozen or so electrical retailers, there's always something reduced. And it has a warranty. And you can bring it back in most cases.
    And there's E-bay.
    Why would you nowadays buy dodgy sh*t of dodgy cowboys?
    simply because these sales people are masters at getting people into a buying frenzy. and like any parasite they prey on the vunerable for who times are hard and are looking for cheap goods,i'm sure we will hear more such stories of woe...

    In fairness what did he expect for 50 quid? As they say it takes 2 to tango, scammers and fools willing to part with their money. Buyer beware!!!


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    #61
    fryup
    Registered Users Posts: 18,069 ✭✭✭✭fryup


    dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »
    What I don't get is that people still go there.

    sad people killing a day i suppose


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