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Craigslist Buyer Attempting to Sue Me

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What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? PA

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? PA

I'm going to try and summarize this as quickly as possible.

I sold a computer I wasn't using anymore on Craigslist for $200. In a couple days I found a buyer that was interested. The computer was specified as coming with a copy of Windows 7. This buyer informed me he would prefer Windows XP instead, so I told him I could provide a disc for XP if that's what he prefered.

The day of our transaction, I asked him to meet me in a shopping center near my work at 10 o'clock. All my listing specifically state that I will only meet in a public place, for safety reasons. I gave him the computer and the software, and told him he would have to load XP onto the computer himself as I did not have time to do it (and didn't agree to do that either). I told him if he had any questions he had my number.

A few days later, he contacts me saying he's having a hard time getting the computer to work. He says windows is going into recovery mode. I ask him if he installed XP yet, he says no he's trying to run Windows 7 that's installed on there. I kindly explain to him that he paid for XP instead of 7 via his instructions, and he should not be running 7 as he does not own that software. He also mentions something about the screen being choppy. I tell him the card may have come loose a little because he put it in his trunk and then drove over an hour home with it sliding around in there. I suggest he makes sure the card is properly connected. I also tell him he may want to reconnect some fans I had disconnected to quiet the computer down. I explain to him there is no harm in having them disconnected, it just keeps the computer quieter.

From there I hear nothing about the choppy video anymore, but he mentions it's not booting from the CD. Realizing at this point, that when he told me he could install XP himself... he in fact was not capable of doing it. I tell him you have to go into BIOS by pressing the delete key, and make sure the Boot Order is set for the CD as boot item #1. From there he tells me windows XP will not install, and something about it being invalid. Having mentioned I was giving him an XP Upgrade disc when we met, he did not realize with an Upgrade disc you need a prior version of Windows to verify you own a copy. Feeling partially responsible, I offer to mail him the disc he needs so he can complete the installation.

Here's where the problems start. He refuses my offer, and tells me he will be in the area tonight and that I need to meet up with him and make it work. I kindly explain to him there is absolutely nothing wrong with the computer, and that when he told me he could handle install XP by himself... that wasn't true, as I've had to guide him through every step thus far. I also tell him I cannot meet him tonight, but would be willing to meet him any other night to help get the issue resolved. He refuses and tells me I need to refund him the money for the computer. I tell him I'm not refunding him the money because there's nothing wrong with the computer, and it's his lack of knowledge in installing an operating system that's causing him to be unable to use it.

He tells me he's going to take it somewhere for repair, and I warn him against that telling him they will rip him off and I'm offering to do the whole thing for free. He continues to refuse my offer to fix the computer or send him the Windows 98 CD he needs to authenticate XP.

About a week later, he emails me saying he took it to his Uncle. His Uncle (who supposedly cut him a deal), has charged him $120 to reconnect some fan wires and put a new video card in. At this point I'm becoming very suspicious because this is an office computer... which means the $25 video cards they sell online would be just fine. I flat out refuse to reimburse him knowing I had tested the computer 2 days before I sold it and found it to be in perfect working order. Chances are it probably came loose while sliding around in the trunk, but he let his so called Uncle tell him he needed a new one and over charge him for it.

I write him back and tell him I'm glad the computer is working, but I cannot issue you a refund, because I not only warned you not to take the computer to a repair tech where they would over charge you... but that I had no way of knowing if the video card failure was from his own neglect in the decision to put the computer in his trunk for an hour where it probably slide all over the place.

Now he's threatening to take me to small claims court. My aunt is a lawyer, but I've decided to not do anything until I hear back from him. He claims I'll be hearing from his lawyer soon, but who knows if he's just trying to bluff. Anyway can people on craigslist sue you for this kind of stuff?

It's my belief he's trying to squeeze a little money out of me, because he had a difficult time installing XP (when he told me he could handle it).

1. He complicated the whole situation by insisting on XP instead of 7... which was not installed on the computer.
2. After he claimed the video was choppy, I told him to readjust the card in it's slot and never heard another word about it again.
3. He told me he could handle reconnecting 4 fan wires (a process that literally takes about 30 seconds)
4. He told me I had to meet him the same day he contacted me, to pick up the computer and get the operating system installed. When I told him I could do any other day he insisted on a refund. There was no refund discussed in the listing.
5. I offered to send him the Windows 98 CD he needed multiple times, knowing once he had that he could complete the XP installation no problem. He refused to give me his address or meet me.
6. His so called uncle charged him $75 for a video card that should have cost no more than $25-$20, as well as an addition $45 to connect some fan wires... a process that again takes about 30 seconds.

I think he's trying to scam money out of me, with legal threats. Can he really do this? Will he be able to take me to court? I'm not worried about losing, but I don't want to have to take the day off work, bother my aunt with this nonsense, or just be troubled in general. I don't believe there was anything wrong with the video card, I think whoever this tech was that looked at it was looking to make some money and told him he needed a new video card... when all it needed was to be checked that it was securely plugged in after sliding around in the buyers trunk.

I should also note, my Ebay seller history is 100%, and I have plenty of Craigslist buyers who are all happy with their purchases from me. This is literally the only buyer I've ever had a problem with... in selling probably over 50 items online. I just don't feel like being bullied by this guy, and I feel like I am.
 
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Antigone*

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? PA

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? PA

I'm going to try and summarize this as quickly as possible.

I sold a computer I wasn't using anymore on Craigslist for $200. In a couple days I found a buyer that was interested. The computer was specified as coming with a copy of Windows 7. This buyer informed me he would prefer Windows XP instead, so I told him I could provide a disc for XP if that's what he prefered.

The day of our transaction, I asked him to meet me in a shopping center near my work at 10 o'clock. All my listing specifically state that I will only meet in a public place, for safety reasons. I gave him the computer and the software, and told him he would have to load XP onto the computer himself as I did not have time to do it (and didn't agree to do that either). I told him if he had any questions he had my number.

A few days later, he contacts me saying he's having a hard time getting the computer to work. He says windows is going into recovery mode. I ask him if he installed XP yet, he says no he's trying to run Windows 7 that's installed on there. I kindly explain to him that he paid for XP instead of 7 via his instructions, and he should not be running 7 as he does not own that software. He also mentions something about the screen being choppy. I tell him the card may have come loose a little because he put it in his trunk and then drove over an hour home with it sliding around in there. I suggest he makes sure the card is properly connected. I also tell him he may want to reconnect some fans I had disconnected to quiet the computer down. I explain to him there is no harm in having them disconnected, it just keeps the computer quieter.

From there I hear nothing about the choppy video anymore, but he mentions it's not booting from the CD. Realizing at this point, that when he told me he could install XP himself... he in fact was not capable of doing it. I tell him you have to go into BIOS by pressing the delete key, and make sure the Boot Order is set for the CD as boot item #1. From there he tells me windows XP will not install, and something about it being invalid. Having mentioned I was giving him an XP Upgrade disc when we met, he did not realize with an Upgrade disc you need a prior version of Windows to verify you own a copy. Feeling partially responsible, I offer to mail him the disc he needs so he can complete the installation.

Here's where the problems start. He refuses my offer, and tells me he will be in the area tonight and that I need to meet up with him and make it work. I kindly explain to him there is absolutely nothing wrong with the computer, and that when he told me he could handle install XP by himself... that wasn't true, as I've had to guide him through every step thus far. I also tell him I cannot meet him tonight, but would be willing to meet him any other night to help get the issue resolved. He refuses and tells me I need to refund him the money for the computer. I tell him I'm not refunding him the money because there's nothing wrong with the computer, and it's his lack of knowledge in installing an operating system that's causing him to be unable to use it.

He tells me he's going to take it somewhere for repair, and I warn him against that telling him they will rip him off and I'm offering to do the whole thing for free. He continues to refuse my offer to fix the computer or send him the Windows 98 CD he needs to authenticate XP.

About a week later, he emails me saying he took it to his Uncle. His Uncle (who supposedly cut him a deal), has charged him $120 to reconnect some fan wires and put a new video card in. At this point I'm becoming very suspicious because this is an office computer... which means the $25 video cards they sell online would be just fine. I flat out refuse to reimburse him knowing I had tested the computer 2 days before I sold it and found it to be in perfect working order. Chances are it probably came loose while sliding around in the trunk, but he let his so called Uncle tell him he needed a new one and over charge him for it.

I write him back and tell him I'm glad the computer is working, but I cannot issue you a refund, because I not only warned you not to take the computer to a repair tech where they would over charge you... but that I had no way of knowing if the video card failure was from his own neglect in the decision to put the computer in his trunk for an hour where it probably slide all over the place.

Now he's threatening to take me to small claims court. My aunt is a lawyer, but I've decided to not do anything until I hear back from him. He claims I'll be hearing from his lawyer soon, but who knows if he's just trying to bluff. Anyway can people on craigslist sue you for this kind of stuff?

It's my belief he's trying to squeeze a little money out of me, because he had a difficult time installing XP (when he told me he could handle it).

1. He complicated the whole situation by insisting on XP instead of 7... which was not installed on the computer.
2. After he claimed the video was choppy, I told him to readjust the card in it's slot and never heard another word about it again.
3. He told me he could handle reconnecting 4 fan wires (a process that literally takes about 30 seconds)
4. He told me I had to meet him the same day he contacted me, to pick up the computer and get it working. When I told him I could do any other day he insisted on a refund. There was no refund discussed in the listing.
5. I offered to send him the Windows 98 CD he needed multiple times, knowing once he had that he could complete the XP installation no problem. He refused to give me his address or meet me.
6. His so called uncle charged him $75 for a video card that should have cost no more than $25-$20, as well as an addition $45 to connect some fan wires... a process that again takes about 30 seconds.

I think he's trying to scam money out of me, with legal threats. Can he really do this? Will he be able to take me to court? I'm not worried about losing, but I don't want to have to take the day off work, bother my aunt with this nonsense, or just be troubled in general. I don't believe there was anything wrong with the video card, I think whoever this tech was that repaired it was looking to make some money and told him he needed a new video card... when all it needed was to be checked that it was securely plugged in after sliding around in the buyers trunk.

I should also note, my Ebay seller history is 100%, and I have plenty of Craigslist buyers who are all happy with their purchases from me. This is literally the only buyer I've ever had a problem with... in selling probably over 50 items online. I just don't feel like being bullied by this guy, and I feel like I am.
If he sues you, defend yourself. You really don't have anything to fear.
 

swalsh411

Senior Member
I can't believe I read all that. You sold him some computer parts for a measly $200. You didn't promise to provide tech support. Tell him to piss off and sue you if he thinks he has a case. (which he doesn't).
 
I can't believe I read all that. You sold him some computer parts for a measly $200. You didn't promise to provide tech support. Tell him to piss off and sue you if he thinks he has a case. (which he doesn't).
Hah,
I'm sorry, I was really trying to find a way to sum it up. But there's so much detail to the story... I wanted to include it all.
 

xylene

Senior Member
I read all that and I agree 100% that the buyer has no case, neither for a refund, nor for "repairs"

I DO think you jerked the guy around with the business with the OS licensing and the Upgrade disc. I think you knew that you jerked the guy too.

You left the Windows 7 installed but didn't include that license... :rolleyes:

You only gave a part of what if would take to install the OS that the buyer paid for, conditional on him having a valid license for that OS. :rolleyes:

That puts you down as pretty shifty. :cool:

You were trying to keep your Windows 7 and XP license... when the buyer was clearly paying for a working computer with a valid OS license...)
 
I read all that and I agree 100% that the buyer has no case, neither for a refund, nor for "repairs"

I DO think you jerked the guy around with the business with the OS licensing and the Upgrade disc. I think you knew that you jerked the guy too.

You left the Windows 7 installed but didn't include that license... :rolleyes:

You only gave a part of what if would take to install the OS that the buyer paid for, conditional on him having a valid license for that OS. :rolleyes:

That puts you down as pretty shifty. :cool:

You were trying to keep your Windows 7 and XP license... when the buyer was clearly paying for a working computer with a valid OS license...)
No, he asked if he could get Windows 7 "instead". I told him he could.

I did not have the time that day to delete it off the partition, so I gave it to him as is and expected him to do the right thing. Meaning delete the current partition and install XP.

Not once did I offer both Windows 7 and XP. I didn't even offer XP in the listing. He specifically asked for XP, and that's what I sold him instead. The computer was priced for 1 operating system, not two.

So how does that make me shifty?

The only thing I did wrong, was not provide him a copy of Windows 98 to validate the XP Disc I gave him. That was an honest mistake, and I offered numerous times to ship him the 98 disc at no cost to him. He continually refused my help.

Xylene, I think you're misunderstanding what took place.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
No, he asked if he could get Windows 7 "instead". I told him he could.

I did not have the time that day to delete it off the partition, so I gave it to him as is and expected him to do the right thing. Meaning delete the current partition and install XP.

Not once did I offer both Windows 7 and XP. I didn't even offer XP in the listing. He specifically asked for XP, and that's what I sold him instead. The computer was priced for 1 operating system, not two.

So how does that make me shifty?

The only thing I did wrong, was not provide him a copy of Windows 98 to validate the XP Disc I gave him. That was an honest mistake, and I offered numerous times to ship him the 98 disc at no cost to him. He continually refused my help.

Xylene, I think you're misunderstanding what took place.
I think Xylene understood it perfectly...
 
I think Xylene understood it perfectly...
Look I'm not trying to make this into a big deal but...

You left the Windows 7 installed but didn't include that license...
The listing was for Windows 7 and the Computer. The buyer contacted me and told me he wanted Windows XP instead. The only reason the computer had Windows 7 on it, was because it was originally to be sold with Windows 7. When he asked for XP I did not have the time to uninstall Windows 7, so I gave him the disc for XP and told him he would have to install it himself.

You only gave a part of what if would take to install the OS that the buyer paid for, conditional on him having a valid license for that OS.
This is correct, I should have included Windows 98 to validate Windows XP... NOT Windows 7. It's important to remember you cannot validate XP with a Windows 7 disc anyway. He needed 98, which I offered to mail him numerous times. Why it's so hard to believe that I couldn't make such a mistake... well that I just don't understand.

You were trying to keep your Windows 7 and XP license... when the buyer was clearly paying for a working computer with a valid OS license...)
Not true at all, I was keeping my Windows 7 license as the listing was priced for (1) operating system, not (2). I did not charge him extra when he asked for XP instead, I told him I would include XP instead. It is impossible to keep a license for XP while at the same time giving the person the box with the serial key and disc... there is no way around it. If there was any question as to who owned the software, Microsoft would ask the owner to cut the serial key off the box and mail it in. How could I do that if I gave it to him?

So no I did NOT try to keep both licenses, or anything of the sort. I merely forgot to include Windows 98 with the copy of XP I already gave him. The version I gave him was an upgrade, which requires you to prove that you own a version prior to XP... for ex: ME, 98, 95, etc.

I'm trying to be as clear as possible, I have no idea where the confusion is coming from.
 
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Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
I'm trying to be as clear as possible, I have no idea where the confusion is coming from.
I understand what you are saying perfectly. You have rationalized it very well. HOWEVER, the reality of it is that Xylene has it nailed.
 
I understand what you are saying perfectly. You have rationalized it very well. HOWEVER, the reality of it is that Xylene has it nailed.
Well I've explained every assumption she's made about my intentions with reasonable and valid explanations. So I'm not sure why anyone would come to that conclusion. If Xylene truly does understand what I'm saying... then I fail to see how he/she could come to the conclusion they did about what my 'true' intentions were.
 

swalsh411

Senior Member
The seller essentially gave the buyer a choice between Windows 7 and XP. Even though XP is a little long in the tooth it is still a functional OS. The buyer choose XP and was given an upgrade license and CD for XP. The only thing the seller forgot to do was include the Win98 disc to the XP installation could be validated. The seller offered to send the buyer the Win98 disc and the buyer refused. I don't see this as shady at all. The buyer was not deceived at any point in the process.
 
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BL

Senior Member
You were trying to sell a PC with windows 7 but it was going into recovery mode?

Did you the seller show the buyer the PC indeed did work ?

Did the buyer want to see the PC work ,and did so?

Finally just how did you advertise the PC ?

Did you both agree the XP would be an upgrade version ?
 
into recovery mode?

Did you the seller show the buyer the PC indeed did work ?

Did the buyer want to see the PC work ,and did so?

Finally just how did you advertise the PC ?

Did you both agree the XP would be an upgrade version ?
I don't believe he is going to continue with the legal action, I still haven't heard anything from him.

But in an effort to answer your questions...

The computer was 100% bootable with Windows 7, I know this because I checked it 2 days before putting it up on Craigslist. The buyer contacted me and said he would rather have XP, and asked if I could provide that. I told him I had the discs and could give him XP instead if that's what he wanted. Upon meeting him I explained to him that I did not have time to install XP for him (which wasn't agreed in the sale anyway) and that he would have to handle it. He said it was no problem and that he could handle it. 2-3 days later he sent me an e-mail saying Windows 7 was not booting, I kindly explained to him that it was a moot point because I did not sell him 7 I sold him XP, per his instructions. I didn't want to help him figure out why 7 wasn't booting, because I didn't sell him 7... therefore it would be illegal for him to use that OS anyway. Over the next few days, I went step by step through installing XP as he clearly didn't know what he was doing.

In the original auction, I specifically listed that if they wanted to see the computer running we could arrange to do that. He never asked to do this, and I knew the computer was working having tested it 2 days prior... so there was little concern as far as I was concerned. We met in a parking lot and exchanged the cash for the computer, at which point he put the computer in his trunk and drove off.

It was advertised as a computer with Windows 7, a few years old, assembled by me. I included pictures and a description of all the parts and specs. Remember, he insisted on XP instead of 7, so that's the only thing that changed.

The upgrade version was not discussed by me or the seller. I knew it was up on a shelf in my closet, but didn't take the time to go look at it. After remembering it was an upgrade, when he mentioned the problem he was having during install... I offered to immediately ship him a copy of Windows 98 I had laying around, so the software could be successfully installed.

I admit my mistake in giving him XP without the a copy of 98 to verify it during installation, which is why I offered to mail it to him. He refused my offer on more than one occasion and insisted on a refund. Also, I believe the so called "Faulty Video Card" was just an issue of the card coming lose from the AGP slot, after sliding around in his trunk during the Hour and a Half car ride home. After suggesting he reseat the card in it's slot, there was no mention of video issues again until 2 weeks later, when a repair shop told him the video card was bad. This also being after I had warned him not to take it to a repair shop, and let me look at it... which he also refused. Instead he was charged $75 for a new video card that I could have gotten for $25... which means they either gave him a video card he didn't need, or are charging a 300% markup on their video cards.

Still it is my believe there was nothing wrong with the card, but since he did not let me look at it and instead took it to a repair shop... it was out of my hands at that point. I also warned him that if he took it to a repair shop, I would not reimburse him because of the high costs associated with repair shops. He ignored my advise and did it anyway, than tried to get me to reimburse him for the excessive repair costs.

I concluded the final email by saying. I'm truly sorry I forget to include 98 with sale, but I'm glad the computer is working and hope you enjoy the computer. If you would still like me to send you 98, please provide me an address to send it to and I will do that right away.

His only response was, you'll be hearing from me and my lawyer.
 

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