Is it appropriate for a buyer to win an auction and then say they can't collect for three weeks?

Hi there Mate - Just another member like yourself.

Indeed, you buyer is being a dick. If they couldn't collect for 3 weeks, this is something they should have raised with you in the Q&A, and asked if it was ok for them to bid. Not dictate to you after the auction closed.

Yes, your auction should have stated pick-up in 7 days, Trade Me says that trades should be completed in 7 days, but it doesn't hurt to put it into all of your auctions as well, it only takes 3 seconds to type out. But for sure, you did have a reasonable expectation that it would just happen that way.

3 weeks for pick-up is right at the extreme of what is reasonable for me without asking permission first. Its right on the buzzer for me. If you are selling a 12 Kt gold ring set with Sri Lankan Emerald, then fine, its small and easy to store, but if we are talking about a King Bed, then you are being put to real trouble here.

As far as demanding a storage fee, dont. I did have a friend do that a few times (a decade ago now, he is no longer in the second hand game), but to do it, he had to go through the small claims court, I thought it was hilarious he was doing that, but its a level of pettiness I could not do myself, and the trouble he went too, he only did it because he was on long term ACC and was just bored. It was like an adventure for him, but an enormous amount of effort in my view.

The moment you start demanding extra fees you become a bully. T-Me customer support will not back you, if you look like a stand over man, they will drop you like a steaming bag of .... whatever you do, in all of your interactions with your buyer, you need to stay classy. You have the moral high ground here, dont give it up easy.

So what to do now you ask? Personally, I would wait it out and hope they come through and collect when they say they will, you should be pretty safe with someone with a rating like that, even though they should have known better than that by now, to have not created this situation in the first place.

My advice about feedback is dont leave a feedback. No red faces, no blues, because if they retaliate, then you are wasting even more time getting it removed, just leave it blank. If they say something like "Good Trade" then cool, just leave it. If they say something like "WOW Such an awesome and gracious trader! Gave us extra time to pick-up, nothing was to much trouble for this handsome devil" Then I would return the favor and give them a smiley face and say "Good Trade, welcome to trade again" something simple.

Your other option is to email them and say sorry, I cannot do it, I am going to relist. But, if you relist, thats another week, and then your next buyer may take a week to pick-up anyway, and you are no better off, than you were if you just waited.

Ultimately that is my recommendation, just chill, sit tight, and wait for them to come through for you.

Maurice, as this is the community area for members, you might be best to contact Trademe if you are only wanting input from them, as you mention.

Thanks Gary and Simon for your replies. I did try to contact Trademe, but it wasn't obvious, so just tried the automated help option. I won't worry about that again.

Simon - I agree with all of that. He is being a dickhead, and given his positive feedback rating, I wasn't expecting that. We've had an increasing number of people mistake us for a storage facility - some think paying entitles them to that. Others seem to forget the payment, but get there eventually.

I wasn't really serious about charging storage or any other fees. That would just come back to reflect bad on me. And its closer in size to the Sri Lankan emerald, without the value of a bed. Its the principle - sounding my age there.

So I agree with your advice - pour a quiet one and wait it out.

Cheers

Love Simon’s advice.
I’m not sure if you’ve already been paid or not. If so, all well and good. But if not you don’t want to be left in a situation where you wait for three weeks and then the buyer doesn’t actually complete the trade.
I would be inclined to say I’m happy to hold it for you but I will require payment to be made within x number of days. That tends to sort out the committed buyers from those that are likely to waste your time. Often people ask a question on my auctions to this effect and 9 times out of 10 they don’t proceed with the purchase when they realise that they will need to pay prior to pick up.

Kia Ora Maurice,

I am a Member also - Not TradeMe staff,

Under NZ Law it depends on the size of the item as to whether you can claim for storage - You also need to give the Buyer one weeks notice that storage fee's will be accrued.

In the future you are Best to state on you Pick up Listings how long the Buyer has to pick the item up to avoid this situation coming forward.

You have been provided with great advice here from other Members - As Gary-NZStocked has advised, if you would like an Official feedback from TradeMe Staff you will need to contact them direct - Cheers.

Kia Ora Maurice,

Your Comment has just appeared for us to read in this thread - I'm pleased to read you are relaxed about the situation and hope you have picked up the further tips provided to curb Members from dragging the Pick up out by noting the specific timeframe in your Listings & Payment up front first - All the Best - Cheers.😊