Buying / selling etiquette question

[Karlavagnen]

Howdy folks. New to this forum and happy to be here! Crowd sourcing opinions here. I bought off the internets an used 1962 sorrento reissue recently that when it arrived had some rough chipping where the bridge sits. The pics I was sent during the negotiation had the bridge cleverly hiding the damage along with an "excellent condition" description. Presumably someone had glued the bridge down, the folks I bought it from pulled it up taking the finish with it, and I now have it sans bridge or finish (it's a shell I intend to work up to a player). The seller is trying to convince me I shouldn't sweat this but I'm worried the surface is too uneven to plop a new bridge down on top of it. I bought this through PayPal and have access to their dispute resolution service. Has anyone used PayPal to send a guitar back or succeeded in getting a full / partial refund? Also, the chipping? Am I being a spaz about this?

 

[soulman969]

Not all that difficult.

If you're unhappy and believe it's condition was misrepresented you can chose to return it under the catch all "not as advertised" option. The seller then refunds you via PayPal.

Or, if it can be repaired get an estimate in writing for the work and ask for a reduction in the selling price to compensate for your cost. The seller can refund you via PayPal for this as well.

If the seller refuses open a case with PayPal and whichever marketplace the sale took place in. There are time limits for some of this and I'm not 100% certain what they are so check the policies for PayPal and the marketplace for that info.

I would first ask the seller for a concession on the price and IMHO "don't sweat it" isn't a concession. If you want to keep the guitar suggest an amount to be refunded that will cover any repairs which may be needed.

If the seller refuses I would suggest returning the guitar for a full refund based on the undisclosed issue and PayPal will almost certainly back you after they've seen your photos vs those included in the listing. Good luck.

 

[Raiyn]

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