I am negotiating a deal to sell and ship my bike to someone across the country. The buyer seems legit, but I am somewhat naive to the process and would appreciate any advice regarding payment method, terms and shipping methodology.
I am looking for some advice to avoid:
a) being ripped off
b) damaged equipment
c) being gouged for shipment costs
Thanks in advance.
I buy and sell bikes, wheels and stuff on a fairly regular basis; typically through the slowtwitch classifieds.
Typically, the seller doesn’t ship the product until they’ve received payment. I personally use PayPal because it’s immediate and makes it easy to pay for stuff and receive payments. I always know when my money has come in, etc. The fees are kind of a bummer if you’re the seller but the ease of use still wins for me when considering the option of waiting for a check, hoping it clears, etc.
You’re selling so there is no way to be gouged on shipping unless you let it happen. Ask the buyer where they live and price out the shipping in advance. I just measure the box and estimate the costs online or if I’m unsure, I go down to Going Postal (or similar) who will price it our for all the major shippers. Get the seller to agree on the shipping cost and include that in their payment. I don’t get too crazy about this and typically try to give a good deal on shipping and have had several sellers do things like split the shipping costs to grease the skids.
Rip offs and scams can happen but if you’re selling, it’s probably not as likely. I’ve done lots of transactions and never had a really bad one. I try to only buy from known entities. If on ebay, go to people with high feedback ratings. On slowtwitch, I try to only buy from people that have been on the forum a long time and whose name is familiar. That’s not foolproof but seems to work well. I always feel better when I can physically talk to people as opposed to doing 100% virtual transactions. If something feels funny or you’re in doubt, don’t do it.
If you’re selling, be honest about your item, pack it well and ship it quickly.
First off I would suggest paypal for payment. Its so fast and offers protection for the buyer as well as the seller. For shipping most LBS will box and ship the bike for a fee. Something like $50-75 usually and if the buyer was not real keen on paying for something before receiving it you could always have him call the shop and verify that the bike is what you said it was. If you dont feel like paying the LBS to box the bike you can still go to pretty much any bike store and ask for a box and the left over packing material. Most shops build several bikes a week and will have lots of cardboard in the trash or taking up space until pickup day and are happy to get rid of it.
hope that helps a bit.
Though I am a frequent PayPal user, I still hesitate on “large” items as I’ve read one too many PayPal horror stories where the seller ends up without the item AND without his $. It’s rare, but it has happened. Unless you’re both in a hurry, I would take PayPal out of the equation (fees suck) and request a US Postal MO, which you should cash at the PO. To prevent a claim for damage, be sure and pack the bike appropriately or even have it done by a bike shop AND insure it via the shipping carrier. Never send product without payment in hand and use the shipping calculators on FedEx or UPS website to better estimate what you should charge for shipping. Good luck.