Curious as to why.....

rustysocket

rustysocket

Craftsman / Penmaker
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Not sure if this is the right place to post this but it looked as good as any so here it goes...

I am relatively new to BladeForums and in particular the Exchange, I have lurked for a long time and recently found lots of knives that I would like to own.

Having been very active on many forums over the years I have bought and sold tens of thousands of dollars worth of items and out of hundreds of transactions have only had one deal go bad. I consider myself lucky in that aspect, but to some degree most of the forums I have belonged to are of an enthusiast nature and I typically have met many of the members at get togethers IRL so the anonymity of the internet isn't there for me.

What bothers me about the exchange here is what appears to be the common practice of requesting buyers to use the "gift" option with paypal or adding some stipulation such as "+fees if not gift"

Maybe it's just me... but I have a problem doing business with someone who shows a lack of integrity by admitting they prefer to skirt paypals rules and avoid paying them for their service. As I peruse through the exchange this seems to be the norm and I am curious as to how that practice became so common here on this particular forum. I realize there must be lots of good sellers doing this.... but the trend just seems wrong to me.

Personally, I sell items priced shipped to your door and I make offers based on the same. While I tend to be very trusting... and honestly a couple of hundred bucks isn't going to break me.. I'm also not about to gift money to people when goods are exchanged.


Anyway, I'm not trying to create any waves, nor make a statement about anybody in particular. I'm just curious how this became so common here and wonder what others thoughts are?

Thanks for reading

rs
 
Not just you - I raised the same question shortly after I registered. Like you, I won't send payment as a gift or add the fees (you'll notice that some people are even padding the fees, trying to charge 3.5-5%).
 
The person receiving the money generally doesn't have to pay fees through gift transactions.
Some use this to get what they are asking for it, without the fees taking away a percentage. Some buyers even request to do this to save on money, when it comes to the extra they pay to cover the fee.
Unfortunately, just about anywhere you go, there will be SOMEBODY who decides to take advantage of this. If you send money as a gift to pay for an item, and the item never shows up or you never hear from them again, it's nobody's fault but your own that you are left without any sort of financial protection.

Some sellers say 'Paypal gift or +4%' and are willing to take either.
Honestly, if you see a seller looking for payment in the form of a PayPal gift, they should have no problems with you going the normal route and covering their fees.

Of course, there are also sellers here that include the fees in the price to begin with, as well as sellers that refuse to do the transaction any way other than through a purchase of goods or services through PayPal.

The majority of the people on the forum are very honest and nice, though there will always be somebody that isn't. If you aren't comfortable sending payment as a gift, I can't see anybody blaming you... If they don't allow you to pay normally even if you cover the fees, then you may want to look for a different seller.
 
I always "eat" the fees and even insure about 100% percent of what I sell. To me that is a good four ounces of prevention.
 
I never ask for payment by gift, or ever pay by gift. It is bad for both parties, as well as a ripoff to paypal, who in my opinin, provides an excelent way to exchange money safely online yet charges very little in fees. Pay the fees, have the security, enjoy the knife.
 
As the seller the fees are your problem, passing them on to the buyer is shady but as you mention it's just the done thing now. I personally just stopped buying on the exchange here and that is one of the reasons. It would seem there are many people here that will support the making of money no matter what the method and that is one method to squeeze those few extra bucks that matter so much out of a deal.
Anyone that uses gift to pay for an item from a stranger on the internet is a fool and frankly by now deserves any grief they get from it as it has long been pounded out that you should not gift anyone money unless the money is a gift. It can be said a million times and more but people will still do it......
 
Thanks for the responses. I'm not on some moral podium passing judgment on anybody. I just wonder how it became the norm here rather than the exception. Maybe it's just the ads I am looking at currently.

Obviously, due to how quickly things move, the system must work and the prices asked must be competitive and fair for the market to bear. I am going to have to quit worrying about it and get up earlier, I guess.
 
Don't quit worrying about it - just close the ad and move on. Part of the reason the practice grows is that people go along with it. If more buyers refused, people would start to get the message.
 
This troubles me too, and I'll admit I am guilty of this in the past- before I really thought about it. It used to be every now and then, now it seems to be standard to see "Paypal gift or + 4%" or "Prices are net to me." Not only is it foolish to gift money for a purchase and lose all the buyer protection that Paypal offers, but it being against their rules is a good way to get your account frozen/terminated if they find out about it. I beliwve it may also be against their rules to charge the buyer extra to cover the fees. Not sure on that point though. I've gotten to where I won't deal with people who ask me to cover their fees, because they are their fees. If I see something I like I might send them an offer shipped to me. If they accept fine, if not, they can wait for the next sucker.
 
I wont ever send money as "gift" if im purchasing goods. Doesn't make sense to me either as to why it happens so much around here. It would be easy to just ask for a few dollars more to cover the selling fees.

In these threads I don't ever see anyone explaining why they ask for gift or +3-5%. Do those folks just avoid these threads?
 
I don't know but I avoid buying from those who ask for gift or extra fees. Really just add your amount for the fees into your price is it that difficult to do? When I sell something I come up with the price I can stand to sell for including shipping and fees.
 
What Haze said, really there is no debate.

I do however think it always needs repeating as long as there are people who need educating. Don't use paypal gift for goods. Sellers who offer the option are not being a good customer to PayPal that they agreed to be.. Its just not justifiable. If you don't like the rules. Then don't use PayPal. I pay my fees, It took reading a thread like this that made me simply decide to say no. I am not going to be a part of the problem. If you don't care , I am forewarned.
 
When selling here I pick up paypal fees, insurance, and shipping. My only exception is if selling internationally where I ask the buyer to pick up any additional cost beyond what I'd be paying for CONUS shipping. Understand that paypal gift allows you no recourse should you have a discrepancy with the seller, and insurance covers the seller, not the buyer, so refuse this also.
When looking to buy a knife here and I see these warning signs, I skip to the next posting. Caveat emptor.
 
In several years and a ton of transactions I have never once asked for "gift" or paid anyone as such. As a matter of fact I avoid any "net to me" threads as well. You want $150 for your damn knife then charge
$160.30 to cover the fees and postage.
 
I will say that I appreciate the ones that post it right in the add - it saves me a lot of time. Nothing more frustrating than getting all the details worked out THEN having that dealbuster dropped on me. I haven't done it here; but I've been known to report people to PayPal, as well. I know of a few people that got their accounts suspended over the gift thing.
 
I dont engage in transactions where the seller asks me to cover their fees, that prevents me from utilizing any protection provided by PayPal (should I need it). When exchanging services I never ask my customers to cover my fees....I see the small surcharge as the cost of having such a wonderful payment system provided to me (Paypal) and am glad to support them.
 
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