Clarky Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 (edited) If you are selling, it literally takes about 5 minutes to google Interparcel (or other provider), input the details of the items (size, weight) you are selling and the time/date you have availability for collection, get a quote and either proceed or shop elsewhere if its unacceptable. If the buyer has to arrange the courier, they then have to find out the size and weight of the package from the seller, get all the address details from the seller, and find out when the seller can make it available for collection - all of which requires the seller having to provide exactly the same information as if they arranged the collection themselves but requiring an intermediate series of messages. The seller still has to do by far the most time consuming thing which is to pack securely and label it. It just seems like unnecessary additional time and effort to insist on the buyer arranging the courier, as far as I am concerned. Literally the only benefit I can see is that the seller doesn't have to pay the delivery cost as part of the overall financial transaction, but this is usually a small proportion of the total value. I just don't get it Edited March 21, 2020 by Clarky 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 I did a thread about this a while back Clarky. The consensus seemed to be it’s up to the seller and you don’t have to buy it. Personally I would bother but I guess some people are happy to assume the risk... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyTravis Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 I only ever do it if it’s to abroad. That way it’s in the buyers hands if it goes awol on the journey. That’s just down to a bad experience with a bass before I joined basschat. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted March 21, 2020 Author Share Posted March 21, 2020 I see, so its the risk it goes astray that prompts this? Maybe I am lucky but this has never happened to me once in the 100s of deals I have done on BC (the latter evidenced by the embarrassingly large number of pages of feedback I have) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyTravis Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Just now, Clarky said: I see, so its the risk it goes astray that prompts this? Maybe I am lucky but this has never happened to me once in the 100s of deals I have done on BC (the latter evidenced by the embarrassingly large number of pages of feedback I have) I’ve had a few issues, but in proportion it’s low. I’ve shipped 100’s of basses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merello Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Bought a cab 9 days ago (thursday) on eBay. The blurb said “Delivery Saturday 14th) The Company arranged a courier...Hermes. Once in the System, they said Wednesday delivery. It still does. Didn’t come Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. I enquired if the buyer...still waiting. I paid by CC, will raise @ dispute and, by the end of the month, should either have the cab or the money back. If I’d arranged the courier I probably wouldn’t get the money back as once it left the store, it’d be my issue. Btw...F#ck Hermes. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicbassman Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Interesting post, Clarky - as a complete newbie to selling a bass on BC (or anywhere else, for that matter) I 've recently advertised a bass on here and I advised that the purchaser would have to arrange a courier. Why did I do this? As stated above, I'm a complete newbie to this. I used to use couriers a lot when I ran a business and I wouldn't trust them as far as I could throw them. I assumed that if the buyer arranged the courier then it would be their problem if/when the bass was damaged or disappeared. I wouldn't know where to start in choosing a courier. If I bought a decent bass I would always collect it in person even if it meant a day trip. Please reassure me that sending a bass by courier is sensible, I have a real job accepting this ! Thanks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Its not a big deal. Sometimes sellers want the buyer to arrange postage , and sometimes sellers arrange postage. If a seller doesnt want to arrange postag and neither does the buyer, then move on and buy something else. There's no obligations here on either side. Whats the fuss 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted March 21, 2020 Author Share Posted March 21, 2020 No fuss, was just trying to understand 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doctor J Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 It has stopped me purchasing quite a few basses here over the years. Like you say, Clarky, it’s unnecessary grief to be a buyer sorting out these details, particularly from abroad, before you and the seller can commit to the purchase, packing and collection and before you can even pay the guy. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kev Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 For me, i only look at it as a seller trying to distance himself from responsibility for anything that may happen during shipping, I think it’s more that than laziness. It simple really; if a seller doesn’t want to ship, he shouldn’t and politely tell the buyer why. If a seller asks a buyer to arrange a courier, that’s fine, but ultimately as the seller you are packing it and ultimately any damage that occurs is on you. It always comes back to the seller and sender, and if you’re not comfortable with that, refuse to ship. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
la bam Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 Some people arent great at using online services and couriers etc. Some people dont want to post due to a number of things - mainly damage, and more so the completely scandal that is courier insurance. So, you've added on the couriers own insurance, you've stated clearly what is being posted, you've paid the extra cost, so are you definitely insured? ......Nope! Youd be amazed at the small print. Even if you cover say a £500 amp for £500, the small print may say you're only covered upto £100 if at all. It's a huge con. Therefore if buyers really really want something posted, a lot of sellers nowadays want nothing to do with it, and will only allow postage if the buyer takes all responsibility to make sure they are fully insured and take responsibility for any damage etc. Having had an expensive cab damaged (even though it was in a case) I can understand this. I nearly lost a lot of money. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ead Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 It's a contractual thing surely and de-risks it for the seller. i.e. if the contract with the courier rests between buyer and courier then any issues have to be resolved with the same two parties. I don't think it's laziness just pragmatism (plus a bit of self interest). I'm with @musicbassman on this in that whether buying or selling I'd rather invest in time to collect/deliver if at all possible. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeFRC Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 @Clarky the odd thing is that if I am arranging postage and the courier is going to loose it then it’s easier I think if I’m the seller. - i will have packaged the item and can vouch for it. And take photos before it’s picked up. - I will have selected the courier, usually ups via inter parcel.... I’ve chosen to avoid Hermes - I will have chosen the insurance- that means I can vouch to the seller that they Will either get their item or 100% of their money back. - I can sort pick up myself, sometimes using that shop drop off option. All at my convenience - I can decide risks of sending it to certain countries, and fill out any custom declarations that are my duty anyway. Generally I am happy posting in EU countries, outside the EU I need convincing on. But it’s so much simpler and easier to do all of this for myself and if anything goes wrong I can fix it simply as I’ve got all the details. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted March 22, 2020 Author Share Posted March 22, 2020 ^^^ that's exactly my way of looking at it. I certainly do not, as a seller, think its all on the buyer if they arrange collection since it will have been me packing the item. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ambient Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 I’d much rather someone collects an instrument, it gives me peace of mind. If the buyer arranges the courier, it’s their choice of courier, their choice of service, and they choose whether to pay the; sometimes expensive, insurance or not. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoubleOhStephan Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 13 minutes ago, ambient said: I’d much rather someone collects an instrument, it gives me peace of mind. If the buyer arranges the courier, it’s their choice of courier, their choice of service, and they choose whether to pay the; sometimes expensive, insurance or not. Exactly this for me too 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ped Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 As long as you send it insured and 100% insist on this as a seller then it’s a lot easier to send it yourself and makes it much easier to sell your stuff. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoubleOhStephan Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 (edited) 41 minutes ago, ped said: As long as you send it insured and 100% insist on this as a seller then it’s a lot easier to send it yourself and makes it much easier to sell your stuff. I do understand, however I'd much prefer collection in person and do state that in my ad. I think, as I've been buying from ebay for a lot longer than anywhere else, I'm completely used to seeing a "collection only" item outside my own collection range (between 60-100miles) and contacting the seller to see if they will pack if I arrange collection. Many say no, that's fine, not everyone has packing materials or just want to aggro, but some say yes. I can then choose my preferred courier and get the item I'd like which is too far to collect. I totally accept that some don't want to arrange their own collection and that's fine too. But I don't think it's particularly fair to accuse the seller of laziness if the buyer themselves aren't willing to do the exact same thing. Its nothing to do with laziness, it's all to do with risk. Edited March 22, 2020 by DoubleOhStephan 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicbassman Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 As a newbie to bass dispatch by courier (see my earlier post) can someone tell me what additional packaging you need if the bass is already in a decent hard case ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted March 22, 2020 Author Share Posted March 22, 2020 50 minutes ago, musicbassman said: As a newbie to bass dispatch by courier (see my earlier post) can someone tell me what additional packaging you need if the bass is already in a decent hard case ? I normally put the hard case inside a cardboard box and pad it out with bubble wrap. The case itself is worth money and can get damaged in transit 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeFRC Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 2 hours ago, ambient said: I’d much rather someone collects an instrument, it gives me peace of mind. If the buyer arranges the courier, it’s their choice of courier, their choice of service, and they choose whether to pay the; sometimes expensive, insurance or not. Yeah but if you do it as the seller you just pass that cost onto the buyer anyway. “How much will it cost to send to France” means you get a price and it’s up to the buyer if they want to pay or not. I would much rather say “the bass is £x postage is £y” and know it’s going to get there fully insured than have someone try and save £10-20 and end up disappointed- esp as the first thing the courier company will do is try and blame the sellers packaging! obviously meeting up is far better (maybe not at the moment) - one sale I did I ended up driving 100miles plus round trip to meet a fella at a service station, he could see the bass, have a go and confirm to himself he wanted it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 What is needed is to hear what happened in cases when things went wrong - the bass was lost or damaged - both cases where seller arranged courier and where buyer arranged courier - and where it was covered by insurance and the insurance company actually paid out and where it was insured but insurers refused the claim and where there was no insurance 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krispn Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 (edited) It’s all about perspective though could just as easily be laziness 😀 As a seller wanting the other party to arrange shipping means they are giving the responsibility over the buyer for their new gear. Once they have paid some folks consider it to be the property of the new owner and their responsibility. Other folk see that responsibility with them as the seller to ensure the goods get to the buyer in one piece and pride themselves on seeing ‘completion of the transaction’ once the item is safely delivered to the new owner. It just is what it is. Edited March 22, 2020 by krispn 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 (edited) My take on it is that if you arrange the courier based on someone else packing it for you, sooner or later you will get bitten. As has been said, couriers don’t look after parcels and even a hard case is no guarantee the bass will arrive unscathed. The best packaging I ever had was a hard case in a box probably 3-4 inches bigger in all dimensions, completely (and I mean completely) filled with polystyrene wotsits. It took me 20 minutes to get them all back in the box after removing the case! The box was battered but the case and bass were perfect. Of course, at the point of purchasing I had no idea as to quality of packaging - but I knew that the seller had paid for the shipping (and I’d paid via PayPal) so I was reasonably safe. If you slide a hard case into a thin double-walled box with no packaging it will get some damage in transit unless you’re lucky. Of course it’s a personal decision - if they want ship and it’s too far for me to collect, I’ll pass. Edited March 22, 2020 by FDC484950 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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