Would you sell to a Zero rater?

Maccattack · 21-03-2006 2:38pm #1

I have an expensive item on ebay at the moment. The highest bidder has a ZERO rating and has only been a member for about 2 weeks.

I dont feel veruy comfortable about it. Do i have to sell it to him if he wins?

Is there anything i can do?

Lambsbread · 21-03-2006 2:39pm

I think you can cancel offers during the auction. Failing that you could wait until you receive payment from them before you post the item.

Orion · 21-03-2006 2:41pm

Yes you do. And yes I would. Standard practice is that you don't ship the product until you get paid for it - that includes waiting for a personal cheque to clear.

I'd be much more wary of buying from a zero-rater for the same reason.

BuffyBot · 21-03-2006 3:01pm

Yeah, I'd be much more cautious about buying from a zero-rather than selling. Wait for all payment to be done before dispatching anything.

Maccattack · 21-03-2006 3:07pm

true. it still makes me nervous though. his payment could be dodgy. i could have it cleared and then the bank come looking for it back.

Orion · 21-03-2006 3:54pm

Once the bank clears it they have no right to take it back. That's the reason for the 5 or 10 day clearance period. If they screw up - then it's their loss.

rubadub · 21-03-2006 6:31pm

Wheres the seller from?
is it paypal?
Any dodgy communication?

show us the ebay item to see

A Dub in Glasgo · 21-03-2006 6:40pm

Nothing wrong with selling something to someone who has no feedback (rather than a 0 with positive cancelling out negative). You can check to see what they have bid on during the last 30 days. You can ask them how they are planning to pay

Maccattack · 22-03-2006 9:28am

rubadub wrote:

Wheres the seller from?
is it paypal?
Any dodgy communication?

show us the ebay item to see

Looks like he's from the states. no further info

its this item here

rubadub · 22-03-2006 9:31am

Maccattack wrote:

Looks like he's from the states. no further info

its this item here

There is one simple way to get rid of him. Quote him a ridiculous shipping price. It is going to cost an absolute fortune anyway. Your £132 is to the UK only, not worldwide.
Did he ask you the shipping already? if not he is a fool, and I would be worried dealing with anybody that foolish.

seems to be looking for drums, I would say he is legit but be sure he knows about the postage or he will pull out, ruining your auction leaving you with second chance offers which can be a lot lower since people drop out.
http://cgi6.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewBidItems&userid=novasport73&completed=0&all=1&rows=25&sort=3

Maccattack · 22-03-2006 9:35am

No he hasnt asked. I mailed him asking a few questions like does he have a paypal account. he hasnt replied.

someone else in the usa asked for a shipping price and i added that to the page so he would have an idea of shipping.

rubadub · 22-03-2006 4:46pm

Nothing to stop you adding a comment that you will only sell to people with 10+ feedbacks. This is a common thing I see.

parsi · 25-03-2006 11:22pm

Well he has to get lose his ebay virginity somehow.

But seriously what you could do is the add (in large print) to your posting that you are in Ireland. If he's new he mightn't be spotting that you are in Ireland (and he wouldnt necessarily think to ask about postage - after all plenty experienced people here still forget..).

But at the end of the day a guy with large but manufactured feedback could fleece you just as easily.

D-2-D-G · 26-03-2006 10:02am

sell to him.....

Eoin · 31-03-2006 3:00pm

Macros42 wrote:

Once the bank clears it they have no right to take it back. That's the reason for the 5 or 10 day clearance period. If they screw up - then it's their loss.

The problem is that a bank draft can temporarily be cleared by your bank, but then get cancelled. It doesn't appear to be the bank's problem. This is how countless people get scammed.

parsi wrote:

Well he has to get lose his ebay virginity somehow.

Exactly, how would anyone ever buy something for the first time otherwise!

Maccattack · 31-03-2006 3:09pm

any idea how long one should wait aftera draft has 'cleared' then?

vector · 07-04-2006 10:41pm

selling to a zero-user if fine, because you don't post until you have his payment, be sure to use registered post or get a free "certificate of posting" from the post office, because he still could stil say you never sent the item

however

buying from a zero-user is dodgy, you might be throwing your money away

Creamy Goodness · 09-04-2006 12:07am

simple. wait til the payment goes through, take the money out of your paypal/bank have the money in your hands, then ship the product.

JJ · 09-04-2006 4:27pm

If you're unsure about a bidder, you can email them to ask if they are serious. If you don't hear back from them, cancel their bid and block them from all your auctions. Doing that is a much better idea than having a possible scammer win your auction. There's more info on managing bidders at this page:

http://pages.ebay.ie/help/sell/manage_bidders_ov.html

Would you sell to a Zero rater?

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