Old-Nail,
go on, give us (more of) a clue.
Maybe Alwoodley, Adel or Moortown if it's got an 'LS' postcode?

ken

Whatever the gut instinct and frustration, it's a fait accompli and should be followed through the proper way. The buyer has rights just like O-N does. And can post a 'negative'...

Although you can't leave a buyer -ve feedback, you can raise the issue with eBay by registering an unpaid item - and I understand this strike will remain logged with him.

This matter will likely pan out in one of two ways; the guy has a legitimate excuse, will pay up and will apologise profusely - and lovingly car for your car for ever more. Or, he is a twit. In which case if you don't follow correct procedure, he'll give you all sorts of problems with eBay, alongside your ex-100% feedback rating.

Patience.




(Ok, 'fessing up time - I'm the phantom bidder; I just didn't want this thread to end... )

I'm doing everything right. I'm giving the guy the seven days even though I believe him to be avoiding me. The other two that won the engine and gearbox were in touch straight away, so the fact that I've heard nowt off this fella doesn't bode well. I'll leave it until weekend before taking any action, can't be fairer than that.

What bothers me is not the fact that he did this, but the negative impression it might give to other buyers. I know when I see a car re-listed I always think the winning bidder must have turned up and refused it, or found fault, or whatever. That's the real legacy of his dicking about. Another thing that annoys me is that he was outbid by a proper 2cv enthusiast, and he bid it back off him again!

In times like these there is always the suspicion (or am I just paranoid?) that people bid up their own cars. This means they often end up with them and have to relist. That's why I'll be supplying full name address and phone number for this bloke, so he can field the replies. If you were a business in west Yorks, would you trust your accounts to a man who acted in this way?

Earlier this week I was discussing the theme of this book I've been working on. Because of the work I've done I think the expectation is that it will be a book all about the Manchester scene, drugs, nightclubs and so on. True there will be an element of that, but my central theme is one of widespread 'sham respectability'. There are Charlatans in every level of society, from the very top down, and I've met the lot. Each of them cloak themselves in respectability and yet they are often worse than the bad lads I knew.

Sure they drive a Mercedes and wear nice suits, play golf and so on, but at every level I have encountered corruption, hypocrisy, and downright criminality that would make you shudder. The lines are blurred. For example one night my boss Frank and I were standing at the front door of a particularly rough venue in Bolton where we worked. It was around the time the BMW X5 first came out, and a black one kept driving past slowly. First this way then that.

We both clocked it, as back then only Manchester drug dealers had them. We thought there might be trouble coming our way. After two nights of this thing driving up and down it stopped outside the club. Frank walked toward it and spoke to the driver through the window. The car drove off and Frank looked at me with a glint in his eye. I asked "what's up?" and he told me the bloke was a smartly dressed, well spoken man - so not a gangster. He had been driving up and down trying to pluck up the courage to ask a favour of us he said.


Frank.

He must have chosen us because Frank looked like Ben Grimm out of the fantastic four, I've never seen a better likeness! Anyway the chap said his sister was having trouble with his brother in law, and so he wanted him beating up a little. For this he would pay us £5000 in cash, plus pay for the two return tickets to Spain, because that's where the bloke lived. Frank had agreed to us doing it, and the bloke was to pay half up front and half when we came back and the job was done.

Sure enough the following night the fella turned up in his BMW X5 and gave frank £2500 in cash. He said he hadn't got the plane tickets yet but would drop those off with the name and details of who we were to visit. Remember this was a posh bloke, probably a solicitor, a judge or an accountant, a 'respectable' man who would ordinarily tut-tut at the antics of the likes of us. We took his money, but then again he offered it. We were both looking forward to a short business holiday Frank and I - but you know what?

The bloke was never seen again. Didn't come with the tickets, nor for his money back. Guilt, fear, or whatever must have got the better of him, and he bottled it. So Frank and I made £2500 for standing there minding our own business. That's just one example of the many stories I could tell you about 'respectable' people. So having a big house and accountancy firm don't always make me want to give you the benefit of the doubt see, but on this occasion I will, we'll wait and see.

That's like the Sopranos, but in Bolton.

Maybe your mystery winning bidder is in the midst of an apocalyptic three day argument with his mrs. "You bought what!?!"

Maybe your mystery buyer thinks that since he's already made a downpayment of £2500 so there isn't as great a hurry.

x 2.

That 'respectable' business man in the X5 was just doing what I'm sure most of us would like to be able to do at times, even if only in our heads. How many times have we had dealings with a complete a**ehole and fantasised "I wish..." The only difference is, X5 guy had the financial means to act on it. Does money itself 'corrupt', or just make it affordable?

I know what you mean by the bidding up your own item thing, O-N. I've seen countless numbers of these 'relisted due to time waster' adverts, so the first thing I'd do is check the feedback they've given the buyer (this is before the days eBay stopped sellers giving -ve). Sure enough, no mention on there. I know that leaving stinking feedback would be the first thing I'd have done in that situation, so it always left me thinking that there was more to it than the seller claims. More rarely, the seller does give the eBay name of the miscreant non-buyer at the start of his relisted ad - along with an 'avoid like the plague' recommendation - and that goes a long way to make the relisting seem legit.

You may need to be a bit careful about how give the person's details, however; I wouldn't be surprised if there were some legalities involved - and if the guy complains to eBay, they would probably - at the very least - remove your ad. I'd imagine that only giving the guy's eBay username in the actual ad would be ok, along with a suggestion that 'further details are always available on request...'!

Yep. That's the way I'll do it. After all, he might be Ken's accountant.


I've heard the Soprano's is a good show I must watch it. What most people (and politicians) don't understand is what Neitzche called 'The morality of custom'. This means that what you or I may consider immoral, or illegal, is considered completely ordinary in some cultures.

For example an Eskimo would offer you his wife for the evening as a gesture of friendship. We think that immoral, but he would be offended if you refused. There are many examples, from different cultures. Polygamy, the age of consent being under 12, even circumcision. All strange customs that seem natural to those that subscribe to them.

And that's my point. Criminality is a culture. It may be a sub-culture, but it has its own set of rules and laws. What you might consider 'criminal' they consider to be 'business'. There's absolutely no shame or guilt attached. They just see things differently. But one of the things that is universally known amongst them is that 'respectable' people - aren't. They just hide their dirty washing. Which is why I show no deference to those types, they're often more devious than the criminals.

I might add that the above comment in no way reflects on my feelings for this buyer who may indeed be genuine. It simply means that a big house and bank account don't mean a person isn't devious, as that's often how they got that house and bank account in the first place.

Be very careful about trying to pursue a non-payer.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12622318

On a smaller scale: mate of mine used to own a pine furniture business. He got conned by a guy who ordered two bespoke beds from him. While the beds were being hand made (waiting time: couple of weeks), the guy requested (for "goodwill") that my mate let him have two showroom beds to use, in his new home. Mate provided beds. Bloke then cancelled order. Mate was very disappointed, and out of pocket for the materials and work done on these beds. Bloke then refused to hand back showroom beds, denying all knowledge. Mate went round to see bloke. Bloke said he couldn't see him, for some reason. Few days later mate went round again, to issue notice of proceedings to recover loss via small claims court. Bloke called police and pressed charge of harassment!! Mate ended up in court, and deal was struck whereby both claims were dropped, with costs against my mate. Charming. (On the day of the court appearance, as they were waiting to go into the court, the bloke walked up to my mate, cocked his hand like a pretend gun, pressed his imaginary shooter against my mate's head, and made the sound of a gun firing. My mate was so shocked! But there were no witnesses so he could do nothing!

Moral: some people are $h!t... but above all: know the law, and know your rights. Oh, and make sure you have witnesses.

....anyone know any Eskimo friends ?

In fact it might solve a few problems if I became one myself...