Problems but you choose to stay silent

[fcgamer | 4,719]

I think we've all been there at some point. You purchase or trade something with a prominent seller or collector, but when it arrives there's a problem.

For example, I received a parcel today from a guy I've bought from and chatted with dozens of times over the years. One of the carts this round has its PCB swapped, I'm quite sure. Although the game is right, the PCB and case design mismatch, thus making the game valueless to me...

What to do, stay silent or speak up? I'll personally stay silent, I doubt the seller is trying to scam me, and even more important, if I speak up, I could potentially find myself on the blacklist, losing this valuable source. On the other hand, it's frustrating at times, feeling that you can't or shouldn't speak up, when there's an issue at hand.

What do you guys do? If it's a random on eBay it's one thing, but a valuable source or respected community member,how to handle it?

[MuNKeY | 241]

I generally ask all the questions that concern me right off the start and if there is something I deem important I will stress that, like buying used consoles first thing I ask is has it been opened for any means being cleaned, modded etc. for games I ask the usual questions and leave it at that once the deal is done and something shows up not quite right usually I stay silent as it could very well been unknown to the person I dealt with or not worth the hassle on either party.  

There was a time I bought 2 CIB nes games and I asked the general questions and they arrived not quite as nice as I would had wanted but price was fair enough I just left it alone as it was on me to not push for more details. Then I had bought a game at a game shop once and found out it has severe corrosion on the board and battery was leaking and I said something and considering I had opened it I was willing to just ask if he could clean it up and repair the damage when I brought it back in (which the guy knew me quite well as we have done years worth of deals over time and pretty sure that one was the only time I ever returned anything and honestly if I had the skills I would had just repaired it myself but it was pretty bad even if it worked) and he done so and in the end didn't charge me for it so it worked out in the end, after some time when I sold off most of my collections whomever it was that bought it I made real sure to let them know it had been repaired etc 

Anyway yeah, for me it depends on the situation if I let it drop or say something.  if it's of concern I see no problem in contacting this person and just ask if they were away the PCB was swapped and see where it goes. 

[coffeewithmrsaturn | 100]

This happened to me earlier this year.  I wasn't asking for anything, just giving a heads up that the issue had occurred, and the condescending unapologetic response was pretty annoying.  I dropped it though because, like you said, I don't want to compromise potential future transactions.

[DoctorEncore | 3,690]

I'd probably let the seller know, but try to be tactful in my message. If he's a good guy, he will want to know he made a mistake so he can try to remedy it. If he gives a sincere apology, let him know you appreciate that and don't push for a refund. That way he knows to pay closer attention to detail, but isn't punished for an honest mistake.

[GPX | 1,369]

I think it depends on the situation. If it’s to do with a respected seller and one I’ve dealt with several times, I would tell them about the fault, because a good seller would try and work out a resolution that’s fair for both parties. Also, it would make me feel more confident of maintaining a relationship with said seller. 

If it’s minor flaws or likely unintended flaws, then I might just let it pass. This is partly expected of our hobby, and unreasonable to expect perfect transactions in all cases. 

[jonebone | 1,307]

Depends on the dollar and magnitude of the situation.  If it's cheap I let it go or if the damage is subtle I generally let it go.  But if it is high dollar and a premium was paid for Mint, then I would voice my concerns if there was unmentioned damage.  

[Scrobins | 1,718]

I’m fortunate that I haven’t had problems with respected sellers here or elsewhere and have had minimal trouble non eBay. The only real problem is ordering from people who don’t ship it at all. I have 3 orders from supposedly reputable people that still haven’t been fulfilled and follow up emails are met with “thank you for your patience, we’re working on it.”

I try to ask any questions needed to allay any concerns or take a close look at pictures to feel good about a purchase. I’ll generally stay silent about how dirty they usually are, a little grime on the outside makes me feel like I’m giving a good home to a stray, though I’m getting annoyed how many “cleaned and tested games” have filthy contacts. I also don’t mind games that clearly have been in a smoke-filled house because I actually like the third hand smoke.

[The Count | 526]

I received a lot of NES carts several years ago on NA without pictures and was disappointed with what arrived. They were dirty and smelled, but since I didn't ask for pictures and was going on the seller's reputation, I chose not to leave feedback in lieu of negative feedback and I never worked with them again. This also happened another time on NA with some Genesis stuff that I eventually upgraded, but it was even more egregious that time. Maybe I'm too nice, but it grinds my gears.

[m308gunner | 352]

More often than not I choose to stay silent, but I've only had pretty small transactions.