Sales Suggestion : Name and date on a piece of paper

[AirsoftTed]

Hey guys,

Its rare that I like anything that happens over on Z1, but I think they might be on to something with writing your username, and the date on a piece of paper and placing it in one or more pictures with the goods your selling.

It's not fool proof, but is another precaution that could make it harder for people to just nick pictures from other sales threads, like happened recently where the guy just cropped the bit of paper out.

I'm not saying it's a perfect solution but the more things we can do to protect buyers the better?

 

[Spatch]

The system does actually work over on Z1 which is one of the few things that does, what it stops is people using threads and pictures stolen from other sites which happened here the other day, anything seen without the name and date should be reported to the mods who remove it immediately, no questions, no editing, simple

 

[Del Monty]

I like the idea, it does sound like it would help reduce thread thefts and control the spammers somewhat too.

 

[Carrel]

What you really want to consider for a better way of doing these sales is using a system of having username, date and a unique code for each month, (anyone can write a user name and if they wanted a future date to just do multiple sales of the same item.) Paypal kind of protects that though. But this then works both ways. By having a sale code for each month where the buyer and seller can check that the person has the item that month, it can stop people doing multiple sales and the buyer claiming the package hasn't arrived when it has. To a degree. It just adds a bit more security, which can't be a bad thing.

Also I've seen people taking some really fuzzy shots, sometimes its difficult to be able to make out the text on the paper. I suggest making it strict. Full A5 paper piece with user name and date in Black pen on White paper. With clear focus. If its questionable then the seller should be forced to upload another.

 

[Finius]

As a group of mods, we've discussed this before when we were renovating the classifieds and the appropriate rules. The idea is excellent in principle, however we're already very stringent with our rules and we felt that this would just be an extra thing we needed to moderate regularly and would possibly put new-sellers off using the forum due to the already lengthy requirements we are asking for.

We have previously decided that it is up to the buyer to satisfy themselves that they trust the seller, just as it is up to the seller to satisfy themselves that the buyer can legally buy their goods. If you want a photo of an item next to a name to prove legitimacy, request it of the seller. If they will not provide upon request, don't buy from them. It's already in the rules as a recommended precaution under 'Transaction Advice'

And I quote:

Transaction Advice

- When buying or trading, we recommend that you take down the following details of the other party: full name, address, telephone number, email, alternate telephone number (work or mobile). It is wise to check the address is legitimate and that the telephone number is answered by the person you are dealing with. We also recommend that you request a photo of the items with a piece of paper next to it with the sellers username and contact details written on.

- We recommend PayPal for online transactions due to their excellent buyer and seller protection. Bear in mind that methods such as cheque, postal order, bank transfer or other may not be protected and as a result of using them you may not be able to retrieve your losses should anything go wrong.

- If you are paying for goods via PayPal, please make sure your payment is labelled for goods/services. Sellers may ask you to label your payment as a gift to avoid PayPal fees. However, this will prevent you from being able to access any of the PayPal buyer protection services (i.e. if something goes wrong, your money cannot be refunded). Should sellers ask you to do this, it may be better to offer to pay the fees out of your own pocket instead.

We've also got a pointer in our legal disclaimer about this sort of thing:

Legal Disclaimer

- Whilst we do moderate the forums, it is not down to us to verify whether someone is legitimate or not, and whilst we will make every endeavour to ensure all our users are keeping within the law, you use these forums at your own risk and we accept no responsibility for any loss or other damages that should transpire as a direct or indirect result of your continued use of our forums.

- By participating in our Classifieds section in any way shape or form, you accept that you are doing so at your own risk and hereby indemnify http://www.airsoft-forums.co.uk (also known as Airsoft Forums UK/AF-UK/AFUK), its moderators, admin and any and all associated parties from any and all responsibility or liability that may transpire due to your continued use of these forums, to the full extent of your right to do so by law.

I won't bore everyone with the details of why we have to have this disclaimer in this sort of detail, pertaining to these specific things, but, the long and short of it, is that if we start doing things that imply that everyone who follows X/Y/Z rules is legit, we become legally responsible (in part) if they're not, and since we're all volunteers, we don't want to get sued.

If this however garners enough attention, I will happily put it on the staff agenda for re-discussion when the rules are next reviewed.