topic Re: Pickup not permitted in Buying

Pickup not permitted

colinthius — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 01:12:20 GMT

Just bought a heavy item on eBay from a local person who now refuses to allow me to pick it up; consequently it's going to cost me a fortune in added freight. Normally someone will make a specific comment in the listing if they won't allow pickup, but but apparently it isn't necesary; the pickup suburb listed in this instance was for freight calculation only.

eBay advise that the person is within his rights, so not a lot I can do now, however it would seem a good idea to require that any such provision is made obvious in the listing! The person in question runs a large retail outlet selling similar goods to what I bought; I assume he is trying to dodge warranty and GST obligations by selling "privately" although he is using the business phone number and address (only answers my emails in shop hours).

All seems very shonky to me; I would urge all eBayers to be wary of this trap, and again request eBay to do something about it.

Re: Pickup not permitted

bigbrickshop — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 01:37:32 GMT

Sellers do not have to offer pick up of items and this does not mean the seller is doing anything dodgy. Many sellers store their eBay stock at different locations and ship directly from the warehouse to the buyer.

Buyers should ask if pickup is available prior to purchase.

Re: Pickup not permitted

belindabargainhunter — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 01:41:08 GMT

Hi is it the two Telstra charges. Because on the one u pd more for it says pick up suburb. That would lead me to believe pick up is available.
Now before anyone has a go at me saying pickup is the sellers choice, I agree but not when the listing leads someone to believe they can pick up.
I would contact eBay ask them to look at the listing and allow u to cancel without a non paying strike. U could also contact the seller and ask to cancel.
I guess u need to decide if the product is worth u paying the postage costs.
And on the warranty the ad does say there is no warranty.
Anyways good luck let us know what happens

Re: Pickup not permitted

bigbrickshop — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 02:04:34 GMT

I've just looked at the two listings. They definitely say Pick Up location so as a buyer I would expect to be able to pick them up. I would contact the seller again and try to make suitable arrangements.

Re: Pickup not permitted

*crikey*mate* — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 06:24:21 GMT

I interpret that as the location so that freight companies can calculate costs. For the customer to find their own estimate from a freight company. How could the customer calculate their own freight if that information wasn't given?

The listing does not offer pick up, it clearly states

Postage:

Freight - Read the item description or contact the seller for details | See details

Item location:

Osborne Park, Western Australia, Australia

Posts to:

Australia

Delivery:

Varies for freight postage

For freight costs, send me a message with your post code.
Alternatively for an estimate, use www.interparcel.com.au. The item is 60kg, 58x58x38cm. Pickup post code is 6017 (Osborne Park).

Re: Pickup not permitted

belindabargainhunter — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 06:44:24 GMT

I understand how u see it crikey but I think that it could be misunderstood. I of course understand a seller for whatever reason not wanting someone to come to there home but one would think that the seller could see the op misunderstood and would try and come to a solution even if they met in a supermarket car park.

Re: Pickup not permitted

lyndal1838 — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 07:56:10 GMT

There is no mention at all of pick up being available on the listings. Like all listings on ebay the item location is stated so why does that suddenly mean it is being stated for pick up purposes or for anyone to calculate the costs for a courier. The seller says to contact him for freight costs and also lists the size and weight to do it yourself if you want to get an estimate.

The listings also state that due to the age of the units there is no warranty so how is he trying to dodge any responsibilities or GST or whatever.

Re: Pickup not permitted

belindabargainhunter — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 08:55:42 GMT

Plz read crickeys comments. It shows how in the listing it says pick up suburb.

Re: Pickup not permitted

*crikey*mate* — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 08:58:00 GMT

@belindabargainhunter wrote:
Plz read crickeys comments. It shows how in the listing it says pick up suburb.

it shows in the comment the pick up suburb for the courier!

The customer would not be able to work out the courier quote without that information!

The postage details very cleary state freight numerous times.

Re: Pickup not permitted

thecatspjs — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 10:00:58 GMT

I interpret it as being information relevant if a customer wishes to calculate their own freight cost.

However, I also understand why others including the OP might have understood it differently, as I also think it can easily be interpreted as a stand alone separate sentence.

IMO just demonstrates that sellers need to constantly scrutinise how they word things in their descriptions - to reduce the likihood of misunderstandings, such as the way this listing is worded.

Re: Pickup not permitted

belindabargainhunter — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 13:59:12 GMT

Yes sorry crikey I didn't mean to imply u thought that the seller was saying pick up I was just wanting the person responding to me to see what it was I was talking about.

Re: Pickup not permitted

lyndal1838 — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 15:59:49 GMT

Belinda, it states the pick up suburb, along with the weight and dimensions for people who want to get a quote for courier to pick up. There is no mention of the buyer picking up at all.

Re: Pickup not permitted

springyzone — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 22:35:35 GMT

I have no idea how you others are getting to see what item the buyer bought or the ad.

But going on the info people have mentioned, I think the ad could be clearer.

Maybe it does say freight a number of times, but surely the seller could put a highlighted line in the ad, such as ' Sorry. No personal pick up of items possible.

That's what most other sellers seem to do if there is no pick up allowed.

Re: Pickup not permitted

thecatspjs — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 00:35:16 GMT

Agree Springyzone.

Regardless of how clear descriptions may be seem to some, a misunderstanding has still occurred due to the inclusion of a statement regarding freight pick up location.

In particular for listings where item is bulky and freight costs a bomb IMO it would just be good seller practice if collection by buyer is not available to put something like that in the listing - buyer pick-up is not available.

Re: Pickup not permitted

colinthius — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 01:56:06 GMT

Thanks for all the responses - certainly a mix of views here!

I've contacted the seller and requested delivery to an address closer to him; his response was to issue a sale cancellation notice. For someone who runs a retail business selling this type of gear, it seems odd not to allow pickup, and it's a strange attitude to customer relations. I've had dealings with them previously and generally they've been very helpful; certainly won't go back though!.

I still think eBay should require a seller who won't allow pickups to say so explicitly, not rely on the absence of a pickup option on the postage page.

Re: Pickup not permitted

*crikey*mate* — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 02:09:25 GMT

should they list all of the options that they don't offer?

Re: Pickup not permitted

thecatspjs — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 03:33:08 GMT

@crikey*mate wrote:
should they list all of the options that they don't offer?

Who suggested that ?? Are you suggesting that ??

Pick up availability is often not clear on many sellers listings - the ebay listing process contributes to this, with a number of posters even recently seeking advice on the boards on how to add this option to their listing.

It continues to be an issue also with a number of buyers posting that often make assumptions about pick up availability - and I know before I stopped spending my $$$ on ebay, I frequently had to seek this advice from sellers, with many confirming that pick up was ok, even though it was not listed as an option.

IMO - having a mandatory tick box choice like local pick up offered - local pick up not offered would be much more helpful than ... say ... changing the colors of the shop door icons.

Re: Pickup not permitted

*crikey*mate* — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 04:36:16 GMT

course I'm not suggesting it.

I don't offer express post - should I also make a special point of stating that?

I have no sympathy for people who make assumptions.

ASK questions and be sure.

Re: Pickup not permitted

thecatspjs — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 05:46:57 GMT

So what exactly was the specific purpose of your question ?

Given that you don't like others to make assumptions ...

Re: Pickup not permitted

*crikey*mate* — Tue, 15 Oct 2013 06:17:05 GMT

I was asking Colin if he thought that a seller should list everything that a seller doesn't do, rather than just the terms of trade they are prepared to operate under.