moral dilemma

general paulus · 06-12-2013 04:05PM #1

Heres the issue: i had a classice car advertised online and a guy in England agreed to buy it.
I had it advertised lower than its actually worth. He contacted me and said he'd buy it - i agreed and on that he paid a deposit and booked a ferry (330GBP).
Sice then i have found out the true value of the car which is actually a few grand sterling more than i had it listed.
i rang him the other night and said the deal was off that i no longer wanted to sell. Not a nice thing to do but i was getting ripped off (my own fault I know, but i coped it before it was too late).
Now he is telling me that i need to pay his ferry cost as i backed out of the deal. Morally i know that this is the right thing to do and i have offered but i would just like more opinions. I guess it was very foolish of me to try sell it when i didnt know the true value. I am going to be out of pocket about 400 euros.
I also assume he could legally get his money back also?

diomed · 06-12-2013 04:06PM

My word is my bond.

131spanner · 06-12-2013 04:08PM

If you stood to be robbed of a few grand by selling the car and are now losing €400 quid by backing out, you could be doing worse in fairness.

Pay him the €400 and let that be that sorted.

06-12-2013 04:08PM

Pay him back his ferry fare for feck sake.

cali_eire · 06-12-2013 04:09PM

I would pay his expenses in these circumstances.

The One Who Knocks · 06-12-2013 04:09PM

general paulus wrote: »

Heres the issue: i had a classice car advertised online and a guy in England agreed to buy it.
I had it advertised lower than its actually worth. He contacted me and said he'd buy it - i agreed and on that he paid a deposit and booked a ferry (330GBP).
Sice then i have found out the true value of the car which is actually a few grand sterling more than i had it listed.
i rang him the other night and said the deal was off that i no longer wanted to sell. Not a nice thing to do but i was getting ripped off (my own fault I know, but i coped it before it was too late).
Now he is telling me that i need to pay his ferry cost as i backed out of the deal. Morally i know that this is the right thing to do and i have offered but i would just like more opinions. I guess it was very foolish of me to try sell it when i didnt know the true value. I am going to be out of pocket about 400 euros.
I also assume he could legally get his money back also?

Morally it's the right thing to do,

However, you could say that you were under the influence of alcohol when you entered into the contract and that would make it invalid. D*ck move though,

highly1111 · 06-12-2013 04:09PM

Pay back the ferry cost. Karma and guilt will rear their ugly heads otherwise b

The Backwards Man · 06-12-2013 04:09PM

Pay his ferry only if he makes the journey across. Morally you're in the clear and doing a bit for the economy too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kNwvIEQsg0

General General · 06-12-2013 04:10PM

All is fair in love, war & international wheeler-dealing.

Y'know... backing out of a deal & hanging the other person out to dry is very much like...

ScumLord · 06-12-2013 04:12PM

Pay him back his ferry costs. You're going to be making more money on the deal in the long run anyway.

He probably could sue, especially if there's an email trail showing you agreed to the sale.

And remember for next time to price it higher than you expect to get, you've left no room for haggling.

MidlandsM · 06-12-2013 04:14PM

I'm a car dealer, and you've broken your end of the deal....it's real annoying in this business.

Pay him back ....and add €400 more to the new price of the car you are going to sell. That'll be you covered, and him payed.

All sorted.

M5 · 06-12-2013 04:15PM

general paulus wrote: »

Heres the issue: i had a classice car advertised online and a guy in England agreed to buy it.
I had it advertised lower than its actually worth. He contacted me and said he'd buy it - i agreed and on that he paid a deposit and booked a ferry (330GBP).
Sice then i have found out the true value of the car which is actually a few grand sterling more than i had it listed.
i rang him the other night and said the deal was off that i no longer wanted to sell. Not a nice thing to do but i was getting ripped off (my own fault I know, but i coped it before it was too late).
Now he is telling me that i need to pay his ferry cost as i backed out of the deal. Morally i know that this is the right thing to do and i have offered but i would just like more opinions. I guess it was very foolish of me to try sell it when i didnt know the true value. I am going to be out of pocket about 400 euros.
I also assume he could legally get his money back also?

You Put a car up for sale at a price
Buyer agrees to the price + the conditions you set (deposit and ferry cost)
You decide you no longer wish to sell at the price
And you actually need to come to AH to decide IF you should pay him back!

general paulus · 06-12-2013 04:18PM

M5 wrote: »

You Put a car up for sale at a price
And you actually need to come to AH to decide IF you should pay him back!

what is AH?

biko · 06-12-2013 04:19PM

There is no dilemma here.
It's the right thing to do and the ****ty thing to do.
Do the right thing.

bbam · 06-12-2013 04:19PM

I 99% agree with the sentiment in the above posts.
However, it's likely that the buyer was well aware that OP was being short changes in the deal. It would appear that his morals were on pause as he was happy to see OP screwed on price. It's. It like he said "I'll throw you a few extra grand as your ring caught in the deal"

General General · 06-12-2013 04:19PM

general paulus wrote: »

what is AH?

Here. &, by the way, you do realize every response to your request for advice is billed @ 40 euros, yeah?

M5 · 06-12-2013 04:19PM

general paulus wrote: »

what is AH?

After hours.... Where you posted

cali_eire · 06-12-2013 04:21PM

general paulus wrote: »

what is AH?

After Hours

General General · 06-12-2013 04:22PM

bbam wrote: »

I 99% agree with the sentiment in the above posts.
However, it's likely that the buyer was well aware that OP was being short changes in the deal. It would appear that his morals were on pause as he was happy to see OP screwed on price. It's. It like he said "I'll throw you a few extra grand as your ring caught in the deal"

Good point. I doubt that he didn't think the OP was a dimwit bog-trotting potato-gobbler.

biko · 06-12-2013 04:23PM

bbam wrote: »

I 99% agree with the sentiment in the above posts.
However, it's likely that the buyer was well aware that OP was being short changes in the deal. It would appear that his morals were on pause as he was happy to see OP screwed on price. It's. It like he said "I'll throw you a few extra grand as your ring caught in the deal"

It's possible but also maybe not the case.
But I suppose it would help to think that way to try to alleviate the guilt of backpedaling on an agreed deal.

M5 · 06-12-2013 04:23PM

Dont see this being a "moral dilemma"

Sounds like your trying to see if you can wrangle your way out of paying this unfortunate lad back!

There is only one moral and likely only one legal outcome.

Pay him back and appologise profusely for shafting him and wasting his time!

general paulus · 06-12-2013 04:24PM

i know its the right thing to do and i did offer, just been thinkin about it and as previously mentioned he would have been happy enough to leave me short changed in the first place. ah doesnt matter thats a different story i will pay him back the ferry...cheers to anybody who commented

M5 · 06-12-2013 04:26PM

general paulus wrote: »

i know its the right thing to do and i did offer, just been thinkin about it and as previously mentioned he would have been happy enough to leave me short changed in the first place. ah doesnt matter thats a different story i will pay him back the ferry...cheers to anybody who commented

He agreed to pay YOUR BLOODY ASKING PRICE!!!!!!

YOU SET THE PRICE!

its ALL on YOU!

General General · 06-12-2013 04:27PM

general paulus wrote: »

i know its the right thing to do and i did offer, just been thinkin about it and as previously mentioned he would have been happy enough to leave me short changed in the first place. ah doesnt matter thats a different story i will pay him back the ferry...cheers to anybody who commented

Grand stuff. Do you want to settle up for the advice now..? or will we all bill you? It's just that I don't think anyone here is sure we can altogether trust that we will see our cheques before Christmas from you.. y'know?

general paulus · 06-12-2013 04:27PM

M5 wrote: »

Dont see this being a "moral dilemma"

Pay him back and appologise profusely for shafting him and wasting his time!

i dont think i really shafted him, he wont have lost a penny. but hey if there is any winners here it is the ferry company.

theblaqueguy · 06-12-2013 04:28PM

general paulus wrote: »

i know its the right thing to do and i did offer, just been thinkin about it and as previously mentioned he would have been happy enough to leave me short changed in the first place. ah doesnt matter thats a different story i will pay him back the ferry...cheers to anybody who commented

No don't do it keep your money and tell him hes not getting anything back off you

ScumLord · 06-12-2013 04:28PM

M5 wrote: »

After hours.... Where you posted

That's a lie, it means Anal Hemorrhoids.

general paulus wrote: »

i know its the right thing to do and i did offer, just been thinkin about it and as previously mentioned he would have been happy enough to leave me short changed in the first place. ah doesnt matter thats a different story i will pay him back the ferry...cheers to anybody who commented

There's nothing to say he thought he was doing a number on you. Maybe he figured there was going to be something wrong with the car. The buyers job is to find the product they want for as cheap as possible. It's your job to get as much as you can for it. You failed your side of the bargain (mistakenly, but still).

If you can just get away with just paying your mans ferry charges and end up getting much more for the car, it's a win, win, this time around with some valuable lessons thrown in for good measure.

cali_eire · 06-12-2013 04:29PM

bbam wrote: »

I 99% agree with the sentiment in the above posts.
However, it's likely that the buyer was well aware that OP was being short changes in the deal. It would appear that his morals were on pause as he was happy to see OP screwed on price. It's. It like he said "I'll throw you a few extra grand as your ring caught in the deal"

It's irrelevant what the would be buyer thought about the deal (and it's speculation to assume anything). What we do know is the buyer and seller had an agreement and the seller broke this agreement. The moral onus is on the seller - either sell him the car at the agreed price or pay his expenses.

general paulus · 06-12-2013 04:29PM

M5 wrote: »

He agreed to pay YOUR BLOODY ASKING PRICE!!!!!!

YOU SET THE PRICE!

its ALL on YOU!

relax!!

M5 · 06-12-2013 04:29PM

general paulus wrote: »

i dont think i really shafted him, he wont have lost a penny. but hey if there is any winners here it is the ferry company.

You agreed to sell the car ON THE CONDITION HE SPENT 300 ON FERRY TICKETS

he obliged, spent 300 of his own money on it, then you pull out.

That is a right royal shafting!

Cop yourself on!

MurdyWurdy · 06-12-2013 04:31PM

general paulus wrote: »

i dont think i really shafted him, he wont have lost a penny. but hey if there is any winners here it is the ferry company.

He will have lost a penny. He's paid money for a ferry trip that he now won't be taking because of your decision and can't get it back (unless he booked a flexi ticket and who does that?). It's a waste of money for him.

moral dilemma

Comments