-
I sold a guitar on Reverb almost 2 weeks ago. After the sale the buyer asks me to hold it for about a week or so because he was on vacation. I tell him they say I am supposed to ship in 24 hours so he says that's okay, his neighbor can pick it up. I insured the guitar so the delivery required a signature. Delivery was attempted and failed 3 times then shipped back to the original UPS store. Buyer paid to have it re-shipped to him and 2 more deliveries were attempted. I spoke to him and he says he told me he would pick it up this coming Monday but checking the status it is clear that no request to leave it at the UPS location was made, and the guitar is back out for delivery again, which of course he will ignore again. Does anyone know if this is some kind of scam that is going on? Should I go to the UPS store and try to get the guitar back? I am getting the feeling that I will never see this guitar or the money again.
-
07-24-2021 09:50 AM
-
It's not a scam I'm familiar with but you should really talk to Reverb about the matter.
How was payment made? Do Reverb act as an escrow service?
Probably best you get the guitar redirected home and refund the buyer. Peace of mind.
-
Yes, Reverb is holding the money and it will not come to me until the guitar is delivered (my first time selling on Reverb). Any idea how to contact an actual person on Reverb?
Originally Posted by Amberville
-
No Idea.
I would strongly advise you to start a dialogue with Reverb, detailing events so far and expressing your concerns. Hopefully the buyer is just a bit of a flake and everything works out.
-
Reverb goes to great length to prevent contact with an actual person.
-
In general I really dislike Reverb and try to do as less business as possible via the platform. To me it doesn't sound like a scam as he can't pickup the guitar without you getting your money. After a certain time of ignorance parcel will be returned to sender so the guitar will probably be shipped back to you. Once he'll decide to do the pickup you'll get your money back. Some day dreamers are just not on top of stuff like that I guess...
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
-
But what other options are there? You can use eBay but their scams are legendary. I guess since they started forcing PayPal on buyers things got better. The local sales options like Craigslist, Facebook or LetItGo means the buyer has to be local or willing to drive long distance and you always run the risk of having to deal directly with a nut.
Originally Posted by Shay
-
From a buyer's perspective, I think it depends on the seller. My most recently purchased guitar was found on reverb, but I ended up buying it straight from the shop (a small regional bricks n mortar). It wasn't difficult to find their phone number & we cut a deal on the guitar over the telephone. It worked great with a shop, probably not so much with an individual seller.
Originally Posted by Cunamara
Regarding the OP's dilemna, perhaps I am a pollyanna, but one might hope that the buyer is having trouble on his end with delivery. Sometimes signature with delivery is difficult to coordinate with personal schedule. May or may not be a scam, might just be some bad luck shipping story.
-
Yeah, I am starting to think it was just not understanding the way shipping works. He says he will pick it up from the shipper on Monday. If it comes back to where I shipped it from I will just cancel the purchase and call it a day.
Originally Posted by Longways to Go
-
I would get the git back. Hopefully it has no damage.
Last edited by GNAPPI; 07-25-2021 at 02:17 PM.
-
*** Update ***
Guitar was "delivered" to what appears to be the local UPS store yesterday, I was notified that the money was transferred to my bank today. I still don't know what happened but I got my money so not my problem, I hope.
-
man i read that so fast, i thought it said "Am I being scammed by Reverb", why yes, yes you are.
-
Yeah, I sold 2 guitars and just saw the actual fees. Yes, I was scammed.
Originally Posted by jazzgtrl4
-
Hence why I will sell on Craigslist and this forum, not on Reverb or eBay. Not perfect solutions, I grant, but much better than the greed of Reverb and the Bay.
-
I don’t quite see the "greed of Reverb and ebay"
If you can sell locally or through some kind of forum, great, but these are businesses run to make money just like any other.
I think their fees are about 10% which is 1/2 the price most dealers charge.
-
Reverb’s total standard fees are about 8% and eBay’s are about 6%. It’s simply the cost of the exposure they give.
Originally Posted by wintermoon
-
Right, dont forget sales tax for your state as well. That was the bummer for me..I get it, Reverb and Ebay are in business to make money. But when the Govt, not Verb or eBay decided to start collecting tax on "USED" items that taxes were already payed for once, maybe twice..Thats what sucks when you have to pay sales tax ON top of the reverb fee, shipping fee etc..for small new items, who cares...but when buying a 4k guitar..!!?? taxes are unreal here in CA.
-
Their fees are quite good compared to traditional methods of sale (consignments or print classifieds),but their lack of customer service and the exposure one has with scammers when using those platforms, makes them a last resort for me.
Originally Posted by wintermoon
Their fees used to be lower, but they have followed the Internet business model, to wit, start out offering your product or service at a loss, then once people are addicted to what you do, raise prices to levels of extreme profitability. Of course, that is the same business model used by schoolyard drug pushers.



Reply With Quote

Recommandations for Hollowbodies for $600 and under?
Today, 05:20 AM in Guitar, Amps & Gizmos