Heads-up: PRS McCarty £999 on Gumtree

sunshinewelly

the proof of postage is there for the sellers protection. if he doesnt send proof of postage then he has no come back if buyer complains to paypal.

When i pay for something i make sure its not paypal gift and i send a message with the payment linking it to the exact guitar and advert i have bought.

if there is any issues then you can claim through paypal. as a buyer its no difference than buying through ebay.

thomasross20

This clears a lot of things up - I suspect that like me, many didn't know about all of this so tend to stick to ebay because it's "safe"!

Rigsby

Gumtree is owned by eBay

bignorm

I wouldn’t buy anything of high value off Gumtree without meeting up.
the amount of times I’ve started a dialogue with a seller who suddenly weren’t interested when I said I’ll come over and check it out. 
Excuses inc I’m out of the country, I don’t want to have a large amount of cash right through to could I pay by PayPal gift before meeting up. 
Alarm bells ring loud and clear... move on there’s plenty of genuine sellers out there 

Gerz6558

I've bought a fair few guitars from gumtree. Made sure to use PayPal non gift and it's always worked out well. Just make sure they detail what it is you're buying in the invoice and you should be ok. I always factor in the 3.4% fee or whatever it is that the seller will incur when done this way, it's worth it to me.

Generally I think you can tell when you strike up a conversation with someone whether there's something not right/fishy. Appreciate there must be some scammers out there that are convincing though.

thetomsk

Second this @Gerz6558. Anyone who won't meet or insists on PPG is a big swerve for me. On here as well, loads will expect the buyer to just accept that, nae chance lance.

I always add the fee as well.

I've passed on many a guitar I've really really wanted due to the buyer refusing goods and services PayPal.

I'm over a barrel to some extent as I'm in Scotland, not a great deal of nice gear on used market up here.

Gonna check out the McCarty...

pete624000

Your'e about five years too late.

mikeyrob73

thetomsk said:

Second this @Gerz6558. Anyone who won't meet or insists on PPG is a big swerve for me. On here as well, loads will expect the buyer to just accept that, nae chance lance.

I always add the fee as well.

I've passed on many a guitar I've really really wanted due to the buyer refusing goods and services PayPal.

I'm over a barrel to some extent as I'm in Scotland, not a great deal of nice gear on used market up here.

Gonna check out the McCarty...

If you check the date on the original post, I’m prett sure the McCarty is long gone by now 

jeztone2

Erm, do none of you.guys use cars? Trains?
I've had some great guitars off Gumtree. Part of the adventure is getting in the car, or train and going somewhere. The majority of people I've dealt with have been absolutely fine. 

thetomsk

mikeyrob73 said:

thetomsk said:

Second this @Gerz6558. Anyone who won't meet or insists on PPG is a big swerve for me. On here as well, loads will expect the buyer to just accept that, nae chance lance.

I always add the fee as well.

I've passed on many a guitar I've really really wanted due to the buyer refusing goods and services PayPal.

I'm over a barrel to some extent as I'm in Scotland, not a great deal of nice gear on used market up here.

Gonna check out the McCarty...

If you check the date on the original post, I’m prett sure the McCarty is long gone by now 

Yep...only saw that after I'd posted...

Taxi for Tommy

finest1

I've bought loads of guitars, pickups, pedals and amps from gumtree. I find that us guitarists have a manner about us, and you can tell if the seller is genuine. to kick off the conversation I ask questions about the condition, history of the guitar. if you get a decent response, you can tell the seller is genuine. you can then proceed to a telephone conversation and take it from there. I've only had a very few sellers get annoyed with the questions which tell me they just want someone to just come buy the instrument, which no one will do.  I tend to stick to the M25 area personally as its easier for travel and pickup.  I have, and never will send money over. again depends how bad you want it.  as I buy often, I'm quite good at making contact and rapport.
hope that helps

Roysterdoyster

Im pretty cynical by nature, but have done plenty of purchases of gumtree/ebay etc with no issues. If I have any doubts about a seller I always check the following. Are they on Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn/Ebay? I would then message them through those platforms to make sure it really is them. Id also ask them to email me from a "work" type email if possible, not a gmail/hotmail job. Also are they on other forums? Lastly as a final final check,if its a high value item, I ask them to send me £0.01 via paypal "goods & services" as then I get to see their address. You can have a wee nosey at it on google street view. A bit over the top maybe, but if someone is genuine, they shouldn't have a problem with that. If they say no to these things, Id walk away. Im sure despite all these checks,its still possible to get stitched up,so there is always going to be a leap of faith to a degree, but you can certainly minimise the risks.

Get 'er bought!!