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Safe audiogon transactions; lowering the bar.

It appears to me that a large number of people send bank
checks / money orders to pay for used equipment sight
unseen. Most private sellers insist upon this form of
payment. The culture appears to require buyers to take
significant risk in order to benefit from lower prices.

Although this is not surprising in itself, it seems to me
that Audiogon could preserve the long term health of this
website, and its priviledges with more proactive policies.

e.g. providing guidelines on how to conduct a proper
transaction; a list of important questions to ask,
what the seller / buyer should have in writing before
a transaction should proceed, and perhaps provide a
summary of the most common problems which develop between
sellers and buyers.

There are nagging questions: Who owns the equipment once
it has been shipped? Who should be insured?

Perhaps some experienced sellers and buyers would share
their own approach to transactions on this site and how
they get people to put their best foot forward despite
themselves.
hindemith

Showing 2 responses by driver

driver's avatar
driver
750 posts
 
Swampwalker nailed it.

About COD-I never use it & if the other party insisted on it that would be a red flag to me. The transaction should be a compromise & communication is the key. Phone calls are good. One of the tools you should use with these net audio deals is your gut feeling. I've made some deals based on it & walked away from others. So far so good.

One more thing. The transfer of money. Registered mail is the most secure way to send something through the mail. I use various electronic money transfers just because it's easy. Again, so far so good.

OK, one more thing. I picked up an SF2 amp at the main UPS center. I asked the clerk if she minded if I checked it out on the spot because if there was damage I wanted it documented. She said they couldn't process damages there but I explained to her what it was, how much it cost, etc. & all I wanted was documentation IF there was a problem. Once I talked to her for awhile she understood what I was after & was accommodating. I know sometimes it's hard to make a trip to the center but it beats the horror stories I've read of amps being rolled out of the truck & other stuff left out in the rain. You can request they hold the item for you at the center. You get to check the package out on the spot & the item is saved a trip in the back of the truck.
driver's avatar
driver
750 posts
 
Good points Will. I never thought of COD as a vehicle to provide quicker shipping & better packing. I'm always open to another way to approach something, be it use COD or switch from the SS camp to tubes. Open to but not ready to jump ship, I might add.

I read your post & thought it had valid points. I put myself in the seller's shoes to you & asked myself if I would have a problem doing a COD deal. First I would check your feedback-there is none. That in itself is not a problem as you've been posting for awhile. I would then look through your posts, which I did, to see what kind of person I was dealing with. From that I would not have a problem dealing with you & I did enjoy reading the "fishing" post the other day. The iconoclastic position intrigues me as I long ago read Thomas Szazz but that is a topic for another time. I would then follow up with a phone call to get a feel for how you conduct business and that would give you a chance to also make a decision.

Bottom line is every transaction needs to be dealt with on a case by case basis & there are several methods to ensure a safe & positive outcome for both parties. COD has been abused & is therefore suspect in a lot of peoples minds. Used properly I can see the benefits but that can be said of any number of so called "programs".
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