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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
 Posted - 11/16/2008 : 23:10:08
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I decided to start this thread in response to interest in the possibility of fellow Bossarea members helping each other obtain goods through Ebay where the shipper will not ship to certain countries. Basically, the premise is that if you win a bid on Ebay that the shipper does not ship to your locale, a pre-arrangement with the seller must be in place so he ships it to a Bossarea sponsor, who then in turn ships it to you. Before embarking on these trials, I believe we should discuss expectations, logistics, costs, & the inherent trusting nature of transactions. I have outlined below a few points by which we can get started.
1. First, I propose a $300(USD) limit. I think thats equitable & quite enough to cover most items without exhorbitant liability. Additonally, I think an extra $5 should be added to the bill to cover time, repackaging, & fuel costs incurred by the sponsoring member taking receipt & subsequently sending items to the purchaser.
2. As an example, I shipped a pedal to Germany & it cost me $15 from Washington state. The matter of financial obligation shall warrant guidelines to which members adhere. I have little experience in shipping out of the country & am not quite sure which monetary vehicle might be best suited. PayPal & money-orders come to mind but compensation for the extra shipping costs to be incurred from member to member will definately be the crux of operations.
3. Participants should hold a pre-determined history & standing at Bossarea to minimize the possiblity of abuse, fraud, theft, etc.
4. Those that wish to extend services for fellow members by acting as their sponsor, should signup on this thread & a list should be circulated amongst the participants outlining their respective shipping & contact information.
5. Transactions & resolutions are to be governed & controlled explicitly between the two parties alone. Bossarea & non-participants in any specific transaction are not to be held accountable or responsible.
6. In the event of dissatisfaction with any item purchased, bear in mind that they buyer will probably hold little recourse with the Ebay seller & the sponsor involved in actually reshipping the item to the buyer shall be held harmless in future tort upon breach of fiduciary duty.
7. Bossarea (founding member) & Bossarea.com does not in any way officially sanction this program & is not responsible for program-related actions by members or sponsors, transactions, or management thereof & further absolves any & all responsiblity by & to parties within said program absolutely.
With these thoughts in mind, there is a certain level of complexity in maintaining a progam such as this. I believe that most issues might be resolved after those interested throw in their $.02. Remember, we need to take a hard look in those "what if" situations. I'll start the list of willing participants in this list which shall be updated:
1. DeFrag - Washington, USA
2. Right Foot Boss - Michigan, USA
3. Laurie - Calgary, Canada
4. gurran1928 - Sweden
5. DasBeef - Scotland
6. zerksies - New Jersey
7. ChristoMephisto - Ottawa, Canada
8. verivorax - Toronto, Canada
Take your time & present your questions, answers, & ideas thouroughly. We need to minimize the chance of failure & have our work cut out for us. Also, you had better be sure you damned well want a particular item badly enough to incur the extra costs involved in obtaining it & even the possiblity of something going wrong without the ability to resolve the problem regarding condition, receipt, or compensation. I think most Bossarea members who have been here for a couple years hold enough trust in each other to make this program work.
The thread is now open for discussion. Go! 
(Moderator: sticky?) |
Edited by - DeFrag on 01/08/2009 05:58:31 |
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verivorax
Platinum Member
Canada
1185 Posts |
Posted - 11/16/2008 : 23:45:53
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I wholeheartedly endorse this! 
BUT I'm concerned that most sellers will balk at the proposition - they're already afraid of red-tape and emailing updates for the slow shipping/customs/exchange complaints (what else are they afraid of?), and this may just add to their worries.
Another way to fulfill a transaction would be to pre-wire an amount of money to the US buyer, who then does the transaction themselves, and ships it off to the int'l heathen. Excess money would be returned.. or saved for the next transaction? There's potential for someone to be a bit of a BOSS exporter here..
There'd have to be a LOT of blind faith in this situation, but I see people here exhibiting a high level of trust AND trustworthiness.
Just my few cents.. hope this thing flies one way or the other! The world needs more of this... |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
Posted - 11/17/2008 : 00:04:28
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Wouldn't it be as easy as paying the seller normally & simply "drop-shipping" it to a sponsor within his stated shipping area?
Furthermore, wouldn't the seller be insulated from they buyer? Granted, if the buyer wasn't happy with the purchase, the buyer would have little recourse to recoup anything from the seller & the buyer would have to resolve it to a write-off. It would complicate the entire process if a dissatisfied buyer tried to explain to the seller the involvement of a "middle-man" in hopes of receiving monies back. The buyer would simply have to take the chance.
As far as paying the sponsor for his role in the costs, easy: the sponsor receives the item, inspects it, repackages it, sends it, & emails the buyer to PayPal him the cost of shipping + $5. Done deal.
The most the sponsor will be out is $15 to $30 & if he gets screwed, he'll probably never deal with that buyer again or drop out of the program. But I'm confident that the upper 1/3 of Bossarea members are trustworthy. |
Edited by - DeFrag on 11/17/2008 00:07:00 |
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gurran1928
Gold Member
Sweden
650 Posts |
Posted - 11/17/2008 : 08:51:35
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that is a great idea..  |
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Laurie
Double Platinum Member
Canada
4854 Posts |
Posted - 11/17/2008 : 08:56:40
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I support the concept 100%... of course, I'd be a consumer of the service here in the heathen north country
Need to think about how it would work.. the pre-wire option seems to be the optimal at girst glance. |
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Right Foot Boss
Gold Member
USA
881 Posts |
Posted - 11/17/2008 : 13:22:06
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Glad to see this idea coming to fruit.
Count me in as a willing participant.
Right Foot - Michigan, USA |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
Posted - 11/17/2008 : 16:44:20
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quote:
Originally posted by Laurie
I support the concept 100%... of course, I'd be a consumer of the service here in the heathen north country
Need to think about how it would work.. the pre-wire option seems to be the optimal at girst glance.
Pre-wired monies would almost always necessitate a refund, thus requiring 2 financial transaction. I think after the sponsor ships it to the buyer, a quick email would indicate the exact amount which requires only one transaction & simplifying the deal. $$ = shipping cost + $5, no? |
Edited by - DeFrag on 11/17/2008 16:44:59 |
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pawnshop_trash
Gold Member
USA
603 Posts |
Posted - 11/17/2008 : 22:30:57
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regarding trust, I think the bigger question is not whether we trust each other, but whether we trust the postal systems/customs offices in our respective countries. and with all due respect to our Italian friends, I don't trust their postal service/customs office at all (from experiences as a seller and as a bidder on feepay).
it is my understanding (YMMV) that anything can be shipped within the EU without involving customs, and that may be the better way to ship items from the usa to Italy, or vice versa (e.g., involve an EU middleman). just something to consider.... |
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tony
Bronze Member
United Kingdom
142 Posts |
Posted - 11/18/2008 : 01:18:51
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quote:
Originally posted by pawnshop_trash
regarding trust, I think the bigger question is not whether we trust each other, but whether we trust the postal systems/customs offices in our respective countries. and with all due respect to our Italian friends, I don't trust their postal service/customs office at all (from experiences as a seller and as a bidder on feepay).
it is my understanding (YMMV) that anything can be shipped within the EU without involving customs, and that may be the better way to ship items from the usa to Italy, or vice versa (e.g., involve an EU middleman). just something to consider....
Yes, this is true.
Having lived in Italy, I can confirm the postal system is insane there. I was sent a package from the UK which disappeared. After I had returned home (about three months after it had been sent) it was returned to the sender's address in the UK (my parents) with a huge shiny yellow sticker describing how incredible the Italian postal service is COVERING THE ADDRESS!
The reason given for non delivery? Incomplete address.
For Italy, always use DHL if possible for anything important.
Oh and I think this is a nice idea in principle. |
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zerksies
Double Platinum Member
USA
3406 Posts |
Posted - 11/18/2008 : 02:12:04
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| I am up for that, i will gladly ship anything to help you out, put me on the list. |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
Posted - 11/18/2008 : 05:19:49
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quote:
Originally posted by zerksies
I am up for that, i will gladly ship anything to help you out, put me on the list.
Gladly, from what state do you hail? |
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DasBeef
Gold Member
United Kingdom
704 Posts |
Posted - 11/18/2008 : 06:34:38
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| I'd be willing to use and provide this service. I'm in Scotland. |
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gurran1928
Gold Member
Sweden
650 Posts |
Posted - 11/18/2008 : 13:06:38
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I just want to see if I understood it right.
If anyone find a pedal they want from a seller in Sweden, which will not send the pedal outside sweden, the seller sends the pedal to me, and then I send it to someone outside sweden.
Is that right? |
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Right Foot Boss
Gold Member
USA
881 Posts |
Posted - 11/18/2008 : 13:30:14
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While I was at work last night I thought of another potential use for this system, Craigslist. Providing the 'sponsor' is willing. But there may need to be a little bit of a 'fuel tax' added to make up for any extra driving that might have to be done.
I came across a RC-20XL with box and manual for $150 on my local craigslist a few days ago. Sadly I'm a bit strapped for cash and could not spring for it. |
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DeFrag
Moderator
USA
3409 Posts |
Posted - 11/18/2008 : 15:19:26
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quote:
Originally posted by gurran1928
I just want to see if I understood it right.
If anyone find a pedal they want from a seller in Sweden, which will not send the pedal outside sweden, the seller sends the pedal to me, and then I send it to someone outside sweden.
Is that right?
You got it! |
Edited by - DeFrag on 11/18/2008 15:19:45 |
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gurran1928
Gold Member
Sweden
650 Posts |
Posted - 11/18/2008 : 17:36:03
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| Of course I'm on, but it aint that often people from sweden use ebay. Right? Is'nt it so, Goran and SA.. |
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Topic |
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International shipping through Bossarea members
