Conduct on Audiogon



I am relatively new to Audiogon and have a question about how business is conducted on this site. This morning I made an offer to purchase an interconnect at a certain price and if the seller responded within the day. I received an e-mail from the seller indicating "I'll accept your offer" and notifying me that he would accept paypal or a money order as payment. At this point I have made an offer, he has accepted, and I am thinking we have a deal. 42 minutes later he sends me an e-mail saying he needs me to reconfirm within 10 minutes or he is going to sell to someone else. Of course I am not monitoring e-mail on a minute by minute basis since I have to keep my day job in order to support this expensive habit, and the guy turns around and sells this thing to someone else. In the regular, non-internet, world where I operate this type of conduct would be total b.s. But when I ask this guy how he can agree than simply back out he tells me this happens all the time on Audiogon. Is this really the case? Does this type of conduct merit negative feedback or am I overreacting?
bink

Showing 2 responses by awdeeofyle

For all intents and purposes an e-mail response stating: "YES I will accept your offer" is analogous to a deal closing handshake. …In this sense a cyber-handshake, as it were. The response confirms agreement that a deal has been struck in principle and that details and particulars to be worked out later. …How much later is a good question, but 10 minutes seems ridiculous. I have bought and sold several items and NEVER have I ran into this type of constraint.


In this particular situation it would appear that the seller in question “shook on it”, and then regretted the decision. It then appears that the seller (realizing that he had two good offers, and rather than being honest) created a 10-minute “confirmation time limit”; in order to extricate himself from the first deal. It might also be argued that THIS was also an attempt by the seller to create a bidding-war environment - providing the original buyer responded quickly enough. …Or we could just call it a moving target.


While one is certainly entitled to getting the most $ one can for their gear and selling it to whomever one chooses; it would only seem prudent that these considerations be made prior accepting an offer from a prospective buyer. Not afterward.


It only seems reasonable that this seller (and those members who would act similarly) be held accountable to the Audiogon community. This type of behavior demonstrates a general lack of foresight, patience, good judgment, and questionable ethics. …In the end this member is simply a person who would just as soon waste the time of others as not.


Shoddy dealings such as these are the exact kind of information I want to know about when I reference a member's feedback. …So I can avoid them! …Who knows what else might be awry.


Audiogon:
Assuming that the originator of this thread is giving an accurate representation of the transaction or “non-transaction” as it were, a negative rating for the offender would seem more than justified. While every successful transaction via Audiogon constitutes acts of good faith for the parties involved this particular seller could hardly be described as “acting in good faith.”


The members responding to this post appear find Audiogon’s current stipulations regarding negative feedback lacking. What, if anything will you do to address this apparent concern/desire to post negative feedback under circumstances such as those in this post - in which there appears a consensus that it IS warranted?

Hi again Bink & others. ...Sorry for the verbal diarrhea, I did get carried away in my last post. …My excuse is that Audiogon's response felt SO wrong that I had to vent. Reason being is: While I applaud Audiogon for responding so rapidly I question what message their post sends.


Posting policy and stating their position (that no foul had been committed) appears hasty and callous. And it let the jerk off the hook. It also informed other would be deal-breakers that there are no REAL repercussions for backing out of agreements. While I’m certain this was not the intent it is nonetheless a result.


Well Bink... as others have said, be glad you don't have that guy to deal with and move on - wiser for the experience. Hopefully I can do the same :)
Cheers,
Mike