Oh honestly, no! Goodness, I don’t think VC could be bothered to get up and do anything so much like hard work! I came on here to try to help out! Did I not post that I think VC is far from perfect? Look back over all my posts, you’ll see where I’m coming from. I think we all, buyers and sellers (most of us are both) have an interest in the existence of a useful platform, so it’s worth working out what works and what doesn’t.
I mean I sell my unused items on Vestiaire (at a big loss - hate their pricing) so I find it useful — thank goodness I think I’ve sold about everything that I want to now, and am slowing down the buying of both new and pre-owned, so I doubt I’ll be using it much more now. But I have bought quite a bit — actually really good things, I’ve been careful and lucky — and have picked up a lot about what people can do to protect themselves. I so often see people here fed up with the experience and feeling they can’t do a thing about it, but there’s a lot they can do.
Honestly, people quite often come on here really upset, and I’m sitting here thinking they needn’t be so worried because there are straightforward ways to sort it out. I freely acknowledge VC is very much less than perfect. These problems ought never to happen, without doubt, and I’m just saying we all take risks when we buy preowned. I’ve read this forum a lot and I can’t find anyone saying that any platform is without problems.
I’ve posted lots of tips on how I stay safe on VC and I thought they would be helpful. Such as asking for extra photos of details, especially with such a high-price item as a Kelly, checking out the seller, their sold items, etc., communicating with the seller before buying to get a feel for them etc. There are loads of posts here on how to do that, from me and from other people. There’s no solid gold protection against a shifty seller (or buyer, actually), a bad day in quality control, and French customer service always putting the company first before eventually doing the right thing (mostly, not always) but there’s quite a lot we CAN do to protect ourselves from poor purchases before we push the button, and ways to get our money back after it if the item is not as described.
Lots of people seem to misunderstand what VC is, and what the terms and conditions are.
I was interested in how this Kelly was sold because if it was sold as ‘Very Good condition’ (they don’t actually have a category ‘excellent’) then it’s clear that it was not as described and the lady who bought it will be able to get her money back.
Just looked at a similar one on their site and it is quite clear that if the bag was sold as ‘Very good condition’ and the damaged corners were not pictured or described, then it should have been rejected at quality control on the specific basis that it had damaged corners, which are listed as a reason for rejection of the item if described as ‘Very Good’ condition. Therefore the buyer can open a dispute: if VC doesn’t get its act together to refund, then the buyer can sort it out through CC provider or PayPal which some people find quicker. They are masters of the delay, so sometimes people have had to decide whether to give them any more time or go straight to CC/PayPal before the deadline for disputes. Once it’s a CC or PayPal dispute it’s quite likely they will stop communicating but if there’s something that’s not been covered by the dispute payout, then people might want to keep pushing. She will get her money back one way or the other, hopefully including any additional shipping fees or taxes/duties but that might be complicated.
Also I wanted to point out that if it was described as ‘Very good condition’ then it would not be acceptable for VC to refurbish it and send it back to the buyer — even if it was done by Hermès — because repair is also a criterion which VC cites as a reason for rejection of any item in the ‘Very Good’ category.
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However if it was only sold as ‘Good condition’ these factors wouldn’t apply because they don’t appear in the criteria for ‘Good condition’.
I posted lots of stuff here with the exact purpose of helping people protect themselves before buying, because VC doesn’t make a lot of it very clear. Also a lot of people don’t read through what is explained by VC before they buy, unfortunately. I tried to address the questions I had myself before I ever used them and was deeply suspicious as I had never bought or sold pre-owned before. Thought it would be useful.
I’ve quite often heard people say that VC takes commission if you resell, and that is not true, as long as you re-list in the stated timeframe, that’s all. It worries people. I thought it myself to begin with.
I aim to dispel negative AND positive myths, they both cause trouble for buyers and sellers. It’s much better for us all if we share experiences and get the facts, otherwise why would we be here?
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