OK Gang, I'm gonna give you an update before I crawl back into my Mancave to poke & prod my BL chod...
We need to clarify WHO was involved here.
The account holder for the eBay seller account
koimanhans is a chap called Steve Schaffer. Steve is the uncle of Richard Schaffer - AKA
UNTRUSTWORTHY raidon (banned) / Demonic / Chucksta. Steve had allowed his nephew to use his account, including the placing of the listing and all correspondence with me, and was understandably upset to have his feedback record spoiled as he had not been in the loop on any of this.
I offered to speak directly to Steve, and he had the good courtesy to call me on three occasions and we discussed at length the issues here in a mature and reasonable way. Steve contacted his nephew to try and work it out. At first this was refused, but I subsequently received an offer of a part refund from Richard. However this was not acceptable to me as it was (a) far too risky - given that I have absolutely no trust in Richard Schaffer. I think the responses in this thread and his inablity to answer a straight question show his true colours. I certainly was not going to alter feedback first on the offchance of them paying me back. - and (b) An unacceptably low offer - All or nothing, thanks (I'm still out of pocket to the tune of £25 cancellation on the insurance policy I took out, but I am prepared to accept that).
I spoke again with Steve yesterday, and he agreed that he would change his passwords etc so that Richard could no longer access and use his account. Steve kindly offered to refund all monies himself and that he would take personal responsibility in reclaiming the money from his family members.
All monies have now been returned to me and as agreed with Steve a revision to feedback / arrangement over his eBay costs has been completed.
So time for some 'lessons learned' then children!
As an eBay trader* Never 'lend' your account to anyone, even family members. Keep your passwords secure!
As a Seller* Ensure that ALL documentation is present and correct BEFORE placing a vehicle for sale. If there are irregularities in the documentation this must be clearly stated.
* IF you operate as a Motor Trader, i.e. you derive a profit / living / income from the trade of cars etc, this should be made clear to any potential buyer. It is not up to the buyer to check this [In this case both Richard Schaffer, and his father Jonathan who was also present on Sunday, denied (or at least refused to confirm) being in the motor trade - however Steve confirmed to me that their business is trading in cars - a look at
This Facebook Group supports that.
* Be aware of your responsibilities as a Motor Trader, especially with regards to distance selling (via eBay or website) - this is now covered under
The Consumer Contracts regulations 2013As a buyer* Never send money as part or full payment via bank transfer. As you have 'authorised' this payment it is difficult to reclaim should something go wrong. Use Paypal or Credit Card wher you have at least a chance of a chargeback and a clear resolution process. If the vendor won't accept this, then walk away.
* Know what documents the seller should provide you - Advice can be found at
www.gov.uk/checks-when-buying-a-used-car* If things go astray, and you end up dealing with a rogue trader, there are still mechanisms for getting recompence. If a
fraud has been committed, this should be reported to
Action Fraud - you fill out a form online and if your responses fit the criteria, a crime reference number will be generated and the incident will be followed up. If it is not necessarily a fraud offence, but you didn't receive what you were expecting in terms of either monies or goods, you can make a claim against the seller through
the Money Claim online service, run by HM courts and tribunals service. It's a very simple process once you have registered (if you are already registered with government gateway services, use these credentials). Costs are small and you can apply interest and fees.
As a community* In the old days, when you bought cars from the Autotrader, trade sellers were obliged to denote their status on the advert. I would suggest that a similar policy be introduced on RR - All it takes is a [T] in the headline/thread title and the word TRADE included in the text. Any trader found to be posing as a private seller should expect to be taken to task.
* Look out for each other. There's been some great detective work in this thread, but it would have been better if Moderators had been alerted in advance.
So that draws a line under this whole sorry debacle for me (Though sadly it probably also spells the end of the road for this old car, which although a bit grotty definately had potential).
I'm happy to have my money back, and that a rogue trader has been removed from RR. Steve Schaffer is happy in that he's got his eBay straightened out.
If anyone has outstanding issues or claims to make against Richard or Jonathan Schaffer, feel free to get in touch, as I now have pretty much all the details you'll need.
Cheers & stay lucky, punks.
pOG
Yet Raidon claimed there was a valid old style logbook, not a new style one?
