How Much Do I Charge?

[mrs.chappie]

Please can anyone help with this.

I've advertised something for sale on a local selling site but someone has answered from out of town and asked if I will post it to him.

The price for posting it is £6.29. The item itself is £40. Buyer has asked me to send a Paypal invoice, including fees, and he will pay all the costs.

Could anyone tell me how much I would have to invoice him for, in order to end up with £46.29 into my Paypal account (I know Paypal will take a fee).

I've suggested a bank transfer but he has discounted this, said he's had a bad experience in the past and would rather pay the extra fees.

I hope this makes sense. Thanks for any replies, peeps.

[Old_Geezer]

I have no selling experience but feel sure I've read somewhere of scams which get PayPal to refund the costs, but I do not recall the details. Do beware of buyers dictating what they will agree to. Hopefully I have recalled this incorrectly and someone else can confirm all is above board.

[mrs.chappie]

That's a bit of a worry, OG. I don't really know how I could check him out.

[maggiebee]

Sorry Mrs C but I think this is a scam. I read of something similar on Facebook so please be very sure before you post anything out.

[EDDIE51]

If the buyer uses the 'Send money to friends and family' option there are no pay pal fees. But the PayPal 'cash back' guarantee will not apply if something goes wrong. The PayPal guarantee applies to anything bought via PayPal not just eBay sales, but the price is the fees charged. I think you need to ask for about £50 to get £46.29 after fees.

[mrs.chappie]

Thanks Maggie. I really don't know what to do now.

Could he still scam me if I got a signature for the parcel, do you think? I was going to send it by Collect Plus, where he has to go to a named collection point (such as a garage or newsagents or similar) and pick it up from there, signing for it before they'll let him take it.

[mrs.chappie]

Thanks Eddie, please can I ask what you would do in this position?

[mrs.chappie]

PS, promise I won't blame you if it goes belly up. :o)

[sherrardk]

Can't you just say you'd rather not use PayPal and then wait till someone local wants it?

[mrs.chappie]

I've had it for sale for about three weeks and unfortunately there's been no interest in it. I paid £100 and it's new, so IMO it's a bargain, but it would seem no-one else thinks so. :o(

[EDDIE51]

CollectPlus will deliver to the home address and get a name and signature from the recipient before handover . I think it costs £1 extra.
Even if you use the deliver to shop option they will hand the parcel over to anyone who can tell them the correct tracking code and is willing to sign for it.

[hc4361]

Put it on eBay and if he's genuine he'll be prepared to buy it that way

[mrs.chappie]

I dropped the price to £25 in the local newspaper, and still no takers.

So the idea of getting £40 for it was quite nice. :o(

[Tuvok]

As a frequent ebay buyer I would rather pay by Paypal.

The only thing I've ever done bank transfers are dealing with a specific company.

Definately send it recorded delivery - check with the Post Office as to how much cover you get, keep the original receipt - its up to you to reclaim fromthe Post Office if the parcel doesn't arrive.

[hc4361]

What is it? We need to know :D

[Tuvok]

As hc4361 says put it on ebay - its been a while since I've sold on ebay, but thye may still do private listings - I've bought like that before.

[mrs.chappie]

HC, I already have it on eBay. Not sure that he does eBay though, and when it didn't go at £40, I relisted it at £25. Still no interest whatsoever.

[mrs.chappie]

Thanks Tuvok, I've already tried eBay (see previous post).

[hc4361]

For PayPal seller protection (either through eBay or outside eBay) the item MUST be posted to the buyer's registered PayPal address, so sending to a collection point is no good even if the buyer has to sign for it

[hc4361]

mrs.c, you are the seller and you are in charge of the sale. Tell your buyer it is on eBay, send him a link and then it's up to him.

[EDDIE51]

I would use paypal with the guarantee fees and send to the home address using 'signature on delivery' collectplus or Royal Mail special delivery.
Do not use Royal Mail 'signed for' as you can only claim £20 back if there are problems.