eBay seller etiquette, what do you think?

I'm currently watching a couch on eBay. It looks very nice, is close to us, what we're looking for etc. It ends late tomorrow afternoon, and so far the highest bid is far less than I'm willing to pay. There's 3 bids on it so far. I emailed the seller asking if could pop over tomorrow and have a look at it. The response I got back was along the lines of "Hi, the auction hasn't ended yet and there are a few bids on it. If it doesn't sell or the winner falls through with payment I'll give you a call." Wtf? :confused: I emailed back making it clear that I'm planning on bidding, and much higher than the current bids, but that I don't buy things like big furniture off the Internet without having a look at it first to make sure it's in good nick. I thought that was reasonable, even normal to want to see before I buy. The response was odd. Waiting to hear back again, but I have a feeling they don't really want people to look at it before buying. Am I overstepping some sort of mark by requesting to look at the couch before I make a financial commitment to it, or is the seller a bit weird basically fobbing me off?

I can see both sides - he could be really private and just not want strangers in his house - but if you're willing to pay a lot more I would expect him to be more accommodating!


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So, it has come to this.

Noooo! We sold a hard cover for our ute and had a guy come to inspect. He won it too! Nothing unreasonable apart from their response...unless they misread??


Vixstar
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk and going x-eyed!

Seller is weird.. They should have no problem letting you look at it..

I wouldn't do that with eBay. I think if it were gumtree that would be different. But that's just me. I would just ask lots of questions. Are the cushions firm, are the under supports saggy etc. but I wouldn't go view an eBay sale before bidding. That would weird me out if someone asked me that too.

It could be that they misread your message, but it's definitely not unreasonable to want to see something before purchasing it.

When I've sold big items on ebay in the past I have offered inspection prior to bidding

Clearly I don't use eBay enough. Heheheh. So in that case it sounds pretty normal. Maybe this person doesn't realise? Or is happy to let the current bidders fight it out without people coming into his home?

We had, I think, two bidders come and inspect a pram we sold last year.

I don't think it weird to request. Especially for a big ticket item.

I think he may have misinterpreted your request. Even if he doesn't want you to come round, there is a polite way to say it.

I would want to see a large item as well before bidding as well as you don't want to waste money.

But maybe they don't want strangers in house so can see both sides.

Sounds to me like she just misunderstood what you were asking.
I have had buyers try and pull all sorts of "word games" to get me to sell before the auction ends. Wait and see what her response is to your clearer message. If she still refuses to let you view it, shrug and move on. I probably wouldn't let randoms from EBay come to my house either... ;)

I've had someone come to look at a pram, and thought it was normal for people to look before buying. I thought maybe I'd worded it a bit oddly and maybe they thought I was trying to get them to end the auction, so hopefully they understand what I mean now. I'll probably bid anyway if i cant see it, but not as high as I was planning to before because I wouldn't mind as much if I lost it.

I think it is odd to not allow people to inspect big ticket items too. DH wanted to inspect something and the seller has said no, because they already had a bid, therefore it was sold and they were just happy it was sold & didn't want people coming to their house. If I wanted to inspect something & they said no, I probably wouldn't bid as I would think they had something to hide. I get the privacy side of it too though.

And remember I come for the tin foil hat brigade. Where I've heard of people casing houses over something like coming to check out a fore sale item lol. Paaaaaranooooid!

I can understand people not wanting their homes invaded by a curious shopper too. Yesterday I didn't open the door to energy door-knockers because I was convinced they were actually checking that I was home alone to come back later and murder me :lol:

I can kind of understand them not wanting people to check before the auction ends, but with stuff like that I put a clause in stating that if the winner doesn't like/buy the item he/she is free to leave it and I will contact the next highest bidder.

They definitely could have worded the email better.

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And remember I come for the tin foil hat brigade. Where I've heard of people casing houses over something like coming to check out a fore sale item lol. Paaaaaranooooid!

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Actually I've heard of sellers letting people come to inspect items and then the buyer tried to pressure them into selling there and then. Which can get a buyer suspended from eBay. (unless they state they have the item listed for sale elsewhere.)

Nothing wrong with wanting to inspect before you bid! I've done it and had people do it with our stuff.

They also ignored all my questions. I said it's fine if you don't want a stranger in your home, could I just know the brand, where the scuffs you mentioned are, how old it is etc etc. No reply. I ended up bidding, got to our limit and even bid a little more. But then I thought nope, I've gone above what I wanted to spend and they can't even be bothered giving a bit of info about it. So good luck to the other person who ended up paying nearly $400 for an unknown item lol. It seemed great but I found the sketchy description coupled with the sellers weird attitude off putting.

I would not allow someone to inspect an item in my home prior to bidding, the only exception being a car or a boat (neither of which I have ever sold on ebay!). I simply wouldn't want random people wandering into my home to inspect a couch or something similar. Not to mention having to arrange a time and then have people not turn up when they're supposed to.

If listing a big ticket item on ebay I include plenty of photos (showing any damage to the item) and I carefully explain the item in my description. If my description is not accurate or I am dishonest about the item, I would expect the person not to pay on coming to collect the item as it is not as it was described. I'm always honest, so I've never had an issue!

Hope you find another couch, PZ!

Nickle that was my plan if I won, because the description was pathetic and they didn't get back to me with any questions I had, I'd just say the item wasn't as described. They seemed pretty lax with mentioning if the current bidder fell through they'd give me a call, so I didn't really have any qualms about that plan. Ho hum, new day, new couch :p

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They also ignored all my questions. I said it's fine if you don't want a stranger in your home, could I just know the brand, where the scuffs you mentioned are, how old it is etc etc. No reply. I ended up bidding, got to our limit and even bid a little more. But then I thought nope, I've gone above what I wanted to spend and they can't even be bothered giving a bit of info about it. So good luck to the other person who ended up paying nearly $400 for an unknown item lol. It seemed great but I found the sketchy description coupled with the sellers weird attitude off putting.

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Whoa yeah! I've generally found those who are ligit and don't want people to come over tend to post very good descriptions and many photos. (actually I tend not to bid on anything that doesn't have at least 3 photos)

Now knowing a bit more sounds like they were trying to get rid of a dodgy item that even the salvos wouldn't take. Good on ya PZ!

Recently there was a thread ooposite to this one - that a buyer wanted to come and look at a pram or something before bidding and the seller at the time was reluctant to let a stranger in their home. So I guess everyone has their own viewpoints.
I would personally like to view a large item like a couch before purchase.

With an item like a pram or a car, you can take it to a nearby area such as a park or carpark so that people can see it without coming into your home.

With a sofa/couch, I would want to see it if I were spending serious money on it if the description wasn't up to much. I know when DH has sold small things some people ask for a photo of a particular aspect or for more details, which are usually supplied promptly.