I agree that the wanted ads were very useful & helpful. I once found a buyer via the wanted ads, & other sellers have found me as well, saving me untold $. Literally I once saved >$1000 from a single ad contact. So of course I really appreciated this useful feature! Occasionally when scanning through, I've seen "items wanted" that are posted up for sale & in that case I've sent the buyer email alerting them that their wanted item is available, including a referral link. Other members have done the same for me as well, a really nice touch.
If $ is an issue (?) they'd still be worth having even at a nominal cost. But apparently there has recently been some kind of a serious problem?
I can't even imagine a 'safety' issue? If anyone has been taken advantage of because of their wanted ad, while that's indeed regrettable I don't see how this is any different than being taken via a for-sale ad. Liability-wise it's a non-issue for Audiogon, they seem clever enough to even have disclaimers for their disclaimers. The same precautions apply whether you're selling or buying.
Remember though, that you can still place a wanted ad & pay for it. Some buyers have done this previously; it's not that unusual, but having all the wanted's within a single searchable listing was a much better methodology.
