Hi all! I’ll try make this as concise as possible! A friend of mine sold an item (an old instrument) on gumtree valued at £3000. A buyer came forward asking various questions about the instrument all of which were answered honestly and to the best of her and my own knowledge. None of the information contained within the article was misleading or mis-informative. After answering all the questions the buyer said he would need to come and view the item prior to purchase to which he was explicitly told no problem come whenever you like. Then he sent another message later that evening saying he would like to make an offer of 2750 which was fine and my friend accepted. He then said he would like the item dropped off at his father in laws work which was also done straight away. After he eventually got the item (3 weeks has now passed) he has come saying he’d like a refund as he believes the instrument was over priced for what it is and he isn’t happy with it claiming some parts of it have been replaced or refurbished. As a professional musician I tried the instrument prior to selling and it was in full working order. As the instrument was very old and neither myself or my friend were the original owner we did not make comment on the originality of the pieces or their history as it is often impossible to tell. All we did was provide a surplus of photographs as part of the ad and answer all questions honestly without misrepresenting any information about the item. The buyer has repeatedly messaged threatening involvement from his solicitors should I be worried? He was given the right to come and view the item but he chose not to and I have proof of this in text messages. None of the information was false and no details of the instrument were misrepresented. My friend has since spent the money on a trip to go travelling hence the reason for me writing this message, the buyer only has my contact details. The buyer also messaged claiming he had the instrument valued at £2250 would I be willing to refund the difference, something I’m also not keen on doing as I’m starting to believe he only bought the item to sell on for a larger profit and thus the question of originality is the source of his frustration. Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated should I entertain a refund or the threat of legal action? Cheers Concernedseller

I purchased a PC off a private seller via Gumtree on the 7th August 2016, the machine was custom built by the seller and I was advised that the machine was brand new and that parts had a warranty which could be checked online. Yesterday (11th Sept 2016) the PC stopped working other than a suspicious red light which came on when the PC was switched on. Contracted the seller to ask for any warranty details and explained there was a fault however my request was ignored. I went to local PC world today and spoke to their onsite tech team who looked the machine and proceeded to take out all parts out in order to try and identify the possibly problem the machine. After checking everything it because apparent that the problem was with either the power supply unit or the motherboard. All other parts were fine. After checking the power supply it appears it was actually a problem with the motherboard however the machine suddenly caught fire in the store. The "expert" quickly switched the machine off and commented on how the machine was very poorly assembled and cable managements was poor. The seller was contacted again to ask what their advice was and they dismissed my issue completely, they now say that contrary to what they initially said - they didn’t build the machine - someone else did but no indication of who. This seller clearly doesn’t want to know or help me so I am left with no alternative but to seek external help. I would like a refund of this machine as I don’t believe it was fit for purpose - the seller said they have built it but now claim to not have nor does the machine have any form of warranty which again I was led to believe before the sale took place. The total cost was £475 paid via bank transfer directly into the seller’s bank account whilst collecting the machine in his home. is there anything that I can do ?

Evening all, I just wondered if I could pick peoples brains. I purchased a tiffany bracelet from someone on Gumtree who had advertised it as genuine. She had advised it was tarnished and would need polishing and that she had taken it to a jewellers who said it would cost £15. I went to have a look, and the woman wouldn't obviously let me in the house. she brought it to the doorstep and I had a look. it was dark, it was raining and i couldn't see it properly, but could see it was tarnished. Now I am no jeweller so I couldn't tell properly. I paid £105. I put the bracelet in the glovebox of the car, and took it to a local jeweller the next day regarding the polishing. the local jeweller looked at it and told me it was not genuine. it was rhodium plated copper. I contacted the seller, who told it it was tough, she thought it was genuine i bought it in good faith, she sold it in good faith and she will not give me my money back. where do I stand on this? I have tried to be reasonable, there have been no threats or demands, just told her it wasnt genuine and therefore i would like my money back. she is point blank refusing. am convinced she knew it was fake, but of course I cannot prove it. I also have a photo of the advert showing it advertised as genuine. do I have any recourse with this? thanks a lot. and yes i know its my fault, i should have looked closer but at that time I didn't really have the time.

Hello, I sold a 4 month old hamster last night including full enclosure and all accessories (water bottle, food dish, wheel, toys etc.) privately on Gumtree. The buyer came around to my house and I briefed her on everything there was to know on how best to look after her (the hamster) and she paid the £10 and took her away. Today I got a less than convincing story via text saying she can't look after the hamster anymore because someone has fallen ill in a different country. I said if need be, I will take the hamster back in so the buyer is dropping her off back to mine tonight. Am I under any obligation to give her the £10 back? This has caused me considerable hassle having to wait at home (yesterday and tonight) for her to come around etc. To my understanding, as I am not a business, there is no Distance Selling Regulation or anything like that and the buyer's change of mind has no legal substance to warrant a refund?

Hiya all, Was wondering if someone could help me construct a email to inform a buyer I will be refunding within 7 days via postal order. I am happy to refund as the buyer paid for the item to be posted but Myhermes have lost the parcel - they have confirmed this to me today Is this okay for it? Dear Sirs, I am writing to you regarding your purchase of ........ via my Gumtree Auction for which you have not yet received the item concerned. I am afraid to tell you that Myhermes have confirmed to me today that the parcel is lost in transit. I will therefore be emailing you in full via postal order to the address given for delivery, please can you allow 7 working days for this. i am very sorry for the inconvenience this has caused you Was just wondering if I needed to add anything else or if that is okay? I will send recorded to make sure I cover myself on it

Having a nightmare with Gumtree in trying to post ads in their car section. Despite several attempts I can't get the ads in the correct place. To make matters worse you are only allowed 2 free ads per year, irrespective of if you cancel an ad when it is discovered to be incorrectly posted. Their live chat seldom works and their email cust. service is a joke- --but I'm not laughing. Anyone else having problems with this new website set up??

Hi I bought a cooker off a seller on gumtree yesterday. I met the seller halfway from his starting point and my home at another buyers address to pick up the cooker. When I arrived they bundled the cooker into my van, it was wrapped in plastic wrap, I had a quick look and handed over the money. I was in the van having a look and never noticed them leaving as my partner was on the phone at the time. I noticed through the plastic wrap that the enamel was damaged but this wasn't a problem as I was willing to fix it. But I then realised that the cooker wasn't a double oven as the seller had described in his ad. His ad stated that it was a double oven which is what I wanted. I phoned him straight away and he told me he was 20 miles away but to text him my address and he would pick it up at 6.30pm. But he never showed. I text him and he said he didn't see the problem so I explained about the double oven to which he replied a double oven in stand alone cookers means a seperate grill and oven. I explained about a double oven being a top oven integrated in the grill and a main oven. And now he isn't answering any texts. I can't afford to just throw away £95 and I have even offered to return the cooker to him so he wasn't wasting more money on fuel. Is there anything I can do? Thanks Sharon

Last week I visited and then bought a dog on Gumtree which was advertised as "recently vet checked and in excellent health". However, when I got him home I noticed that he kept shaking his head and upon looking saw that he had an extremely serious ear infection....his poor ear was a complete mess Next day I took him to my own vet who couldn't even inspect it properly because it was so sore but started him on antibiotics. I tried to get hold of previous owner but she was not returning my calls or texts. i tracked down her vet who confimred she has taken him in 10 days previous for his ear problem and again it was so sore it could not be properly inspected. they started him on antibiotics and was due to take him back 3 days later but never did ...that is obviously when she put him up for sale. As she advertised him as recently vet checked and in "excellent health" do I have a case against her of false advertising and fraud? thanks you

I sold my MacBook on Gumtree for £200, after already reducing it £50 to the man I sold it too. I told and showed him there was a problem when tilting the screen it sometimes goes black, in which you just tilt it back to a different position and it's fine. I also told him the MacBook sometimes gets a grey screen and fails to load up, I've always just taken the battery out and put it back in and it's fine and works normally. He said that was fine and bought the MacBook I showed it working and everything, and he was happy. A few hours later he rings me saying he can't get the MacBook to load, and I explained already it does this and I just take out the battery. He was not satisfied as he claims it doesn't work and is saying he wants a refund. I said no, as I sold you it as seen working fine. He then started saying if not he wants money for repairs. I said no as I explained the problems the MacBook had and was completely honest. He said this is now a civil matter and is gonna take action. I am wondering what to do now, can anyone help me? Thanks.