Who pays for return postage if the item sold was misrepresented?

[Chong]

Hi guys,
A bit of a tricky one, and perhaps I missed the rule on this somewhere, but I can't find the Rules atm.
If someone sells you something, but when you get it, it's not in the condition that was stated in the post, who pays for the return shipping?
I know its a bit relative, but let me give a logical extreme to make it more clear: You purchase a bit of kit, like some lenses, and the post say 'brilliant condition' but when you get them, they are pretty scratched up and nearly unusable or not near 'brilliant'. So you ask the seller to refund you, which they hopefully do. Should the seller pay for the return shipping since he (or she) made the mistake of misrepresenting the item and buyer bought the item on false pretenses? Or is that just the risk we take from buying from a stranger? I would hope that these forums would have a higher standard and be a more trustworthy, but I guess that's hard to govern.
I know the condition of an item is relative, what is 'brilliant' for one, may not be for another, that's why I gave an extreme. But to create a trustworthy environment that we can have confidence buying and selling in, I figured this was a good question.
I guess another related question is, what should the general condition of kit be when it's sold, aside from what is stated in the thread. I've been disappointed when I've gotten things that were unwashed and full of paint and dirt and I wasn't warned that the kit was coming straight off the field or covered in filth. I try to clean my gear up before I sell it, just so the buyer doesn't get annoyed, but I just thought that was the right thing to do. Is there a rule about that? I know some guys who won't buy from here bc they have no confidence in what they might be getting. That's not good for business
Sorry for the long monologue. Thanks!

 

[Dusty]

This is the risk you run when you buy anything second hand, to the letter of the law you have ZERO comeback.

There are no rules on the state or condition of kit which is sold, all we can do is make the seller provide some kind of proof of ownership, after that you are buying at your own risk.

Out of courtesy the seller should pay return postage but it is by no means a rule, and of course all kit should be shipped in a clean and presentable fashion.

Keep in mind the classifieds here are merely a service, the forum would exist perfectly well without them. P8ntballer is in no way responsible for the goods or transactions as we don't take a fee for selling, we don't handle the goods, all Robbo does is provides the webspace for it to happen.

If you want, a few of the mods I'm sure would be happy to act as middlemen on any transaction (for a small fee) which could be very handy with high value items such as markers and save any hassle on both sides.

EDIT: I know you paid for your watermarked avatar photo right?

 

[Robbo]

I think the principle of your point is maybe easy enough to grasp Chong ..... and principle indeed is at the nub of this, the practicalities however, are a little blurred.
Whilst in principle, the return postage is bound to be paid by the person misrepresenting; this of course is, based upon the fact he is actually misrepresenting.

Either way, if it were me, the practicalities are, I'd tend to write off the return money and put it down to experience as you will end up stressing out over pennies, and the trade off just ain't worth it, it really isn't.

Well, I would tend to let it go unless he lived within walking distance in which case I'd go round and advise him the most expedient course of action might be to pay me........

 

[Chong]

To be fair, in my particular situation, the seller did pay for return shipping and it's all good. This issue has come up more than once, though, and I was curious what the general opinion on it is. So thanks for your support.
I realize that it comes down to a question of honor and goodwill on the sellers part and I think that most people are pretty trustworthy here. I just wanted a place to point if things go south and people need a bit of a compass on how to proceed.
You're right, Robbo, for me, it's less of a question of pennies, as a matter of principle. But then, I guess that makes my principles worth pennies If I'm mad or frustrated that the item I bought was the wrong thing (or knackered beyond use), then I'd hope, at least, I'd not have to pay for return-shipping on top of the overall annoyance.

EDIT: I know you paid for your watermarked avatar photo right?

Hm. The team supposedly paid for all the team pics of this event en-masse, and this was one of them. But I never asked for them since I could see them online. So I took this directly from the website (hence the watermark), but I'll double check that it's been paid for. Thanks for keeping me honest

 

[Dusty]

Hm. The team supposedly paid for all the team pics of this event en-masse, and this was one of them. But I never asked for them since I could see them online. So I took this directly from the website (hence the watermark), but I'll double check that it's been paid for. Thanks for keeping me honest

It's not a dig at you, but you don't want people to get the idea you are a photo thief either.

A quick email to the photographer will soon rectify things for you