TradeMe woes...

[Cammsport 390]

Hey team, thought this would be a good place to ask a question, as I'm sure there are a couple trademe pros on here. 

If I were to win an auction on a vehicle (reserve met, all kosher) but the owner decides they want to sell it to someone else, do I have a leg to stand on? 

Normally I wouldn't care and I'd just carry on the hunt for another car, but... This one ticks all the boxs and I've been looking for a year!

Any comments/opinions/facts appreciated. 

[Gabe79 410]

If it was an auction, you have a dispute with trademe and you might win. They might then take punitive action against the seller.

It is very unlikely the seller will sell to you regardless though, so it's up to you...

If it was a classified ad, you have nothing I expect.

[Cammsport 390]

Cheers for that Gabe. Definitely an auction. So basically I probably won't see the car again . 

I guess it's not a biggie but as you know, the feeling of winning an auction for a good price + the car you want is a good feeling. Then to be told "too late" is a tad frustrating. 

[Daniel 36]

If I were you, I'd definitely complain to Trademe, or consult Citizens Advice Bureau.

I believe that if yours is the highest bid in an auction (where the reserve has been met) the current owner is legally obliged to sell to you for the price of that bid.

As far as I'm aware you definitely have a leg to stand on, although I'd be unsure what specific recourse is available to you.

Just my 2 cents

 

[qube 3570]

I can tell you that trademe wont be much help, they have generic replies like "talk to the seller" etc but they dont have any means to enforce a seller's decision nor do they care. 

my suggestion is try and strike a deal with the seller (maybe offer more than the bidding price to match or better the other buyer) but otherwise there isnt a whole lot you can do. 

[gjm 3258]

A complaint to TradeMe is in order. There's no legal redress that I'm aware of, but the seller will receive a stern ticking off from TradeMe. And you can, of course leave negative feedback. Nothing that'll make any difference of course, and the seller probably won't care.

Look at it this way. If the seller is that much of an arse that they'll stiff you on a perfectly good sale, what have they done (or not done) to the car? You could have had a very lucky escape.

[qube 3570]

39 minutes ago, gjm said:

but the seller will receive a stern ticking off from TradeMe. 

^ really? is this an assumption or do you recently get a job from trademe? cuz last time I checked tm really dont give a sh*t about anything except collecting their success fees and banning accounts that are owing money. 

[Gabe79 410]

10 minutes ago, qube said:

^ really? is this an assumption or do you recently get a job from trademe? cuz last time I checked tm really dont give a sh*t about anything except collecting their success fees and banning accounts that are owing money. 

In my experience, this is correct. When we've had occasion to bring a complaint to trademe, they did act on it to our satisfaction.

[gjm 3258]

7 minutes ago, qube said:

^ really? is this an assumption or do you recently get a job from trademe? cuz last time I checked tm really dont give a sh*t about anything except collecting their success fees and banning accounts that are owing money. 

It's based on what I was told a couple of years ago - I've not tested it! (I'm too nice.  )

I was told that not completing a deal once the auction was over had to be down to the parties involved. The seller might still be required to pay a success fee, but if either side unilaterally backed out of the deal they could have their account closed.
Not much in the grand scheme of things, I guess.

[Daniel 36]

I've heard a couple of similar stories where Trademe has gone to the party who defaulted and informed them they can't be doing that, or something similar.

The more stories like this we hear, the less we trust their auction systems.. which they want to avoid so they can preserve their integrity and customer base

[Gabe79 410]

I realize my post above was poorly worded. I mean to say that when we were wronged during a trademe transaction, trademe has gone out of their way to help us rectify things and in one instance, closed the account of the offending party. They certainly can't force someone to sell you something that someone doesn't want to sell to you, and yes, at the end of the day, the worse they can do is close someone's account, but that is no different than any online auction system really and they certainly have an interest in having their site be trustworthy, which in my experience, at least, they succeed at doing.

[NZ00Z3 187]

Under the Trademe terms and conditions you have a legally binding contract. Find it and read it. If Trademe is not going to try and enforce it, you can.

• Communicate clearly to the seller that you have a binding contract and want to complete it.  Do it in writing and keep all correspondence.
• Take the person to the Disputes Tribunal if the matter is up to $15,000. Doesn't cost much. No lawyers needed. https://www.disputestribunal.govt.nz/
• If its not a Disputes Tribunal matter, Lay a complaint with the Police.

[Cammsport 390]

Awesome cheers for all the advice. I have a little more confidence now after reading your post NZ00Z3 but my main concern now is the fact that the car has been collected by the private buyer. I don't think I have a leg to stand on if someone apparently now has the car. Gutted but I'll follow through with the above advice. 

BTW NZ00Z3, going by your user name do you happen to be AF? think I might have seen your blue z3 this morning. Tidy number. 

[Olaf 3317]

if you lie down in the road, you get steamrollered.  If you stand up and fight it, sure you may not get the car, but at least you can bring the guy a bit of an organisational or legal spanking.  

agree also with Graham's point, you may have made a lucky escape.  dealing with folks lacking integrity is a chore.

Purchasing from people on TradeMe with more than 500 positive feedbacks is worthwhile as they have more to lose, and are less likely to put their hard-won feedback at risk.  

"TradeMe:  where we match irrational buyers with willing sellers (or vice-versa)".

[NZ00Z3 187]

1 hour ago, Cammsport said:

BTW NZ00Z3, going by your user name do you happen to be AF? think I might have seen your blue z3 this morning. Tidy number. 

Don't have a blue Z3 (yet). I'm in Timaru and my daily drive Z3 is Mora Red (think purple)

 

 

1 hour ago, Cammsport said:

main concern now is the fact that the car has been collected by the private buyer. I don't think I have a leg to stand on

You don't know until you try.

At the least put in a complaint with the Police.  The person will not like having the Police knocking on their door and asking questions.  That alone would likely stop them thinking of doing it again.

[Young Thrash Driver 1020]

^questions BMW guys get asked- number 247: Why do you have two of the same car?

[treone 648]

BMW guys answer number 247  - cos. Just cos

[Olaf 3317]

Alternate answer: "it's not unusual (to be loved by anyone)..." [in your best Tom Jones, of course!]

 

or: "what, you mean you don't?"

or: "it's like New York, New York.  They had to name it twice; these are so good I needed two of em!"

Edited May 11, 2017 by Olaf

[Gabe79 410]

"My BMW made me do it!"

[Olaf 3317]

"it wasn't fair just to have one; when I take the bus he was lonely, hoping for a playmate.  much better in pairs"

[gjm 3258]

Two's company.
Three's allowed.

 

[NZ00Z3 187]

Sorry, getting off topic here.

Thanks guys for showing me the love over owning two of the same model car.

How many of you would like to be able to say that you own two (2) 1 of  1 cars in N.Z. of your favourite BMW model?  

Edited May 11, 2017 by NZ00Z3

[Dn540 67]

Trademe is a bit of a joke, they are not interested in solving anything nor can they really do anything. I think they just have the legal jargon in there in the hope it will keep people in line.

I've bought wheels before and had the seller say he sold them to someone else and refunded my money (much to my protest), I've had things like gearboxes never turn up and the response is the same each time. The police didn't really have time for it either, even though I had TM auction details/screenshots, bank transfer receipt, txt messages his bank details, address and car rego.

 

Trademe like other sales methods (facebook etc) rely on the person actually being decent and honest, seems to a be a dying thing as there's a lot of sh*t heads out there.