• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

Sold item on craigslist

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

KG_from_CAF

Junior Member
I recently sold a guitar on craigslist and now the guy wants a refunds because he said it's not what I decribed it to be. What I don't understand is he came to my apartment to check out the guitar, played with it for 15 mins and gave me the cash. Later on that day he sends me an email saying that he opened up the guitar and the parts are not from the real guitar manufacture and the guitar is a cheap copy. I told him I would offer him $200 back but he declined and wanted his full $420 refund, then told me he doesn't like to get f***. I sent him another email telling him that I did not want to take the guitar back and give him the full refund because he had messed around with guitar and he will get no refund. He sends me another email saying that I better give him the money or else he will make a small claim. I wrote back to him and told him that I will not because I have no idea what he could have done to the guitar when he opened it up and that he could have switched the parts and put cheaper parts in the guitar. Anyway I told him that the deal is done, I told him that he came here and had a look at it and that it's his fault because he didn't check the guitar good and he told me that there was no way to know if it was and authentic guitar without opening the interior of the guitar and he took my word for it. Honestly I was shock to here is was not a real one and a copy, I was told by a professional that is was real. Anyway he came in my appartment, checked it out and made his decission and paid the cash. Done deal, now he wants to make a small claim if I don't comply. What do I need to do if he does make a claim??
 


Proserpina

Senior Member
I recently sold a guitar on craigslist and now the guy wants a refunds because he said it's not what I decribed it to be. What I don't understand is he came to my apartment to check out the guitar, played with it for 15 mins and gave me the cash. Later on that day he sends me an email saying that he opened up the guitar and the parts are not from the real guitar manufacture and the guitar is a cheap copy. I told him I would offer him $200 back but he declined and wanted his full $420 refund, then told me he doesn't like to get f***. I sent him another email telling him that I did not want to take the guitar back and give him the full refund because he had messed around with guitar and he will get no refund. He sends me another email saying that I better give him the money or else he will make a small claim. I wrote back to him and told him that I will not because I have no idea what he could have done to the guitar when he opened it up and that he could have switched the parts and put cheaper parts in the guitar. Anyway I told him that the deal is done, I told him that he came here and had a look at it and that it's his fault because he didn't check the guitar good and he told me that there was no way to know if it was and authentic guitar without opening the interior of the guitar and he took my word for it. Honestly I was shock to here is was not a real one and a copy, I was told by a professional that is was real. Anyway he came in my appartment, checked it out and made his decission and paid the cash. Done deal, now he wants to make a small claim if I don't comply. What do I need to do if he does make a claim??


Did you sell it as a Gibson for example when it wasn't?
 

KG_from_CAF

Junior Member
I wrote in the ad that the guitar is a Fender but the arm was not. The guy came here to check it out and paid the money. He even shoke hands, then 5 hours later he sends me a email saying he took the guitar apart and that nothing on it is a fending. He said it was a Strat copy and that the only way he could known if it was a real Fender was to open the guitar up and examine the part. He told me he cleaned up the guitar and changed the strings on it. Anyway the add has been taken down because the guitar was sold to him, he said he told are word for it when he came to look at it.
 

KG_from_CAF

Junior Member
If you are sued, ask the professional to testify that the guitar you sold was authentic.
The guitar was checked a long time ago and I don't think the guy at the guitar shop wants to get involved.

Anyway who know what he done to the guitar or changed in it?..

All I know is I was told it was a Fender and that the arm is not, I even put that the arm is not original in the ad. The guy took are word for it and paid the cash for it. There is no reciept for how much he paid for it and he even bargained the guitar down to $420 from $500. The only evidence he has is the emails and I only stated that arm was not original.

edited for spelling
 

KG_from_CAF

Junior Member
Basically the guy is acusing me of selling him a different item than what I decribed it to be after he came here and had a look at it and bought it.. C'mon
 
Last edited:

KG_from_CAF

Junior Member
Did you sell it as a Gibson for example when it wasn't?
Even if I did the guy came here and saw it with his own eyes before he decided to make the transaction in cash. Honestly it was a shock when he told me it was not a fender because I was told it was. I do not want to give him a full refund because he hacked up the guitar.. Like I said who knows what he could have done with it when it left out of my hands..
 

OHRoadwarrior

Senior Member
Bottom line is that he looked at it and bought it. He was satisfied enough to pay for it. Once it left your view, you can no longer prove what the guts were at that point, neither can he.
 

KG_from_CAF

Junior Member
Anyway I spoke to a very good friend of mind and seems to know what he is talking about.. Here is what he had to say and he is a legitment business man, he runs his own store..



Hello Rocco:

If you didn't misrepresent anything, don't worry about it- he can attempt to take you to small claims court all he likes- he still has to prove something- i.e. what you stated about the guitar was not true and this could not be determined by inspecting prior to purchasing it.

Just be reasonable if he does file a claim- i.e. did the guitar have what you said it had? Would disassembly have been required to determine that whatever you claimed was not true (i.e. if disassembly was not required to determine anything- why did the guy take it apart?- the court would likely view his conduct as suspicious and dismiss the claim at that point). If it were to go to court- the unit was bought "as is, where is" and the buyer came to look it over before he bought it, correct? If you had it shipped that might be a bit different, but if the guy came to your door- he had plenty of opportunity to look it over and walk away. You are not some sort of licensed dealer with some odd legal requirements- your only obligation is to represent what you are selling accurately.

Bottom line there is always somebody looking for something for nothing- what did he do to the guitar in the process of taking it apart- break something? Swap parts out?

If (and that's a big "if") the guy does file a claim, in your initial response to the court, you claim damages and time lost on the issue as a result of the guy having not just "buyers remorse" but also disassembling the unit- which, if he's not a qualified guitar technician, a reasonable person could only assume he effed something up in the process.

If the guy has any brains at all- he wouldn't be talking about small claims court at all- it takes months to get there, the paperwork costs money, and the most he could hope to gain is what he paid for the guitar- I suspect this is all just idle threats aimed at trying to motivate you to let him have his way. Mention to the guy he can do what he likes, but that he had full opportunity to check it out before buying, you did not mis-represent anything, and if you end up in court, your counter-claim for damages and time are going to have him paying out just as much, if not more, than he could reasonably expect to gain by suing you- i.e. he's already lost if he bothers to think about it for 5 minutes.

Good luck,



Eric
 
Last edited:

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top