PSA - buying online.

[Daddy Dom]

A recent transaction on the bay has not gone according to plan and I would hate anybody else to have a similar experience.

I know others have successfully used this seller and many probably will in the future but my post is a reminder - as with every seller - to be 100% sure you keep records of your communication and be extremely clear around any subsequent offers made.

There is a seller in Rome with quite a horde of MM parts, some useful. He lists under the name patevelo-6. When I asked for further photos of a used headlight, he did that but also offered me in the message a new one at a good price. I agreed I would buy that.

What happened next is something of a blur, and that's on me. He then sent me two offers, one incorrectly priced and one correct. I accepted the latter but on delivery (to a 3rd party) he had sent the used unit.

When I asked about the new unit he said I had ordered the used one. He was at least open in the following conversation suggesting I look through the history but played just a little dumb for my liking. When I saw the offer for the new unit it was under another trader-name and price.

I obviously didn't notice everything going on with laser-guided precision and assumed the best of him - but don't you make the same mistake. He also sent me over 200 unsolicited photos of MM parts for sale at some 'alternative' prices, ie: €5 for a £2 gasket at Mdina.

I can still fit the used part but caveat emptor, indeed.
DD