Safe audiogon transactions; lowering the bar.

All of the above comments re: protection are appropriate, but IMO, there is no substitute for a long track record of impeccable feedback. Also verfied status here, and long record of forum posting means they use this site as an avocation as well as for commercial purposes, and would be unlikely to foul it up for one or even a few transactions. I have made about 30 purchases here over the last 3 years and have always had a satisfactory experience. However, I would also recommend calling and talking just to get the right vibe.

I bought an item on Ebay and needed it in a hurry so I paid "Buy it now" price. The seller didn't ship and wouldn't answer his emails. His phone was disconnected. I contacted Ebay--there is a 30 day period where you can't even file a complaint. I contacted PayPal and received their response 30 days later (today) stating the Seller was at fault but had no money in a PayPal account, so I was out of luck. Fortunately the seller eventually came through after I sent him a half dozen very threatening emails. Moral: PayPal offers nothing to the buyer.

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.

I just want to say this thread has a real currency for me as an admittedly highly suspicious newcomer with a number of marginal buys on eBay.

I just walked away from an ideal audiogon purchase (as it was described, anyway) because something made me nervous. I didn't bid but spoke on the phone with the seller about potential ftf audition arrangements, which he seemed to have later suggested skipping. Since the item in question is now marked as sold, I will watch the seller's feedback for new entries, and possibly post exact details later about what made me shy away.

The predominant theme around here seems to be, "there are many pitfalls, but I've never been totally burned myself." This frankly astonishes me, and I personally wrestle with questions of whether trust or caution/suspicion is the best karmic way to filter the good from the bad - it is clearly at root an act of faith to buy used equipment over the net, despite the shared safeguards covered in this thread....

Driver, I understand your point of view but I cannot agree. The refusal of a seller to accept COD payment is, to me, a much larger red flag than my insistence that it be the means of payment.

COD has some disadvantages and, yes, fraud is possible. But by and large all it does is to level the playing field, which is ordinarily very much tilted in favor of the seller. It assures that money and goods change hands at the same time; that is the most important part. Beyond that:

(1) It gets sellers off their bottoms and down to the shipper with the goods. I have consistently found that COD transactions are shipped faster than prepaid ones.
(2) It assures a quality job of packing and labeling. When I make clear to the seller that I will NOT accept a damaged parcel, the seller understands better his responsibility to pack carefully and securely. I'm sorry, sellers, but pushing the responsibility for safe arrival off on the carrier is a cop-out. We all know how UPS and FedEx handle their parcels and they aren't going to change because MY parcel happens to contain a Levinson amp. So it is incumbent upon the seller to pack defensively. If he knows that failure to do so will result in (a) no money and (b) the return of the goods for HIM to fight with UPS about, the quality of the packaging goes way up. I always make clear that I will pay for quality packaging and I never balk at packing charges that are anything like reasonable.

This is a personal choice. I have had some sellers accuse me of being unreasonable and others tell me to take it or leave it on their terms. I invariably leave it and I've never been sorry to do so.

As always, YMMV!

Will