In article <851087039.17685@dejanews.com>, johnchap@erols.com says...
[.....]
>My point was not to bitch, but to encourage everyone to adhere to a level
>of business practice that is fully on the up-and-up -- a level that is
>clearly not being currently achieved.
[most deleted...]

In my all-too-often-occuring purchases from posts placed on r.p.m,
I have been amazed by the generally high level of interaction and
honesty that I have encountered - most people that I have encountered
have made it a pleasure to purchase items here. In the few instances
where this was not true, it mostly arose from a lack of understanding
of commonly accepted trading practices, which prompted me to post an
earlier version of the following (which is not perfect, or complete
in every detail [comments welcome!], but it may serve as
a good guide...):


1) The first person to meet the stated conditions of the seller
should be accepted as the purchaser. The conditions of the sale
should be as accurately and thoroughly described as possible in
the original post and/or in subsequent verbal exchanges between
the buyer and seller. It is reasonable for the seller to set a
time limit within which the agreed transaction can take place.

2) The seller should describe what is being sold accurately.
All known inherent faults should be noted. Return should be
accepted for complete refund (cost + shipping) during the period
agreed upon for inspection if the item sold was not accurately
described, or it has a fault which was not noted in the buyer-seller
agreement (for whatever reason), unless other arrangements have
been made. Return for "whim" is permitted, if enabled by a
"satisfaction" return agreement, but all shipping costs are then
the responsibility of the buyer, unless otherwise arranged.

3) The seller should provide for safe, insured, reasonably fast
shipment - and do it at reasonable cost (an unexpectedly high
shipping charge tacked onto a COD shipment is not acceptable,
though "institutional" [but perhaps unexpected] costs, such as
customs, carrier international fees, etc., are the responsibility
of the purchaser, unless other agreement has been made).

4) If a return agreement exists, only the conditions involved in
that agreement are relevant (the original price, how the seller
handles other offers that occur during the sale process, fault
discovered after the agreed inspection period, etc., are not
relevant). If portions of the return agreement are not specified
(as in who covers shipping under what conditions when there
is a return), the rules stated in "2)" above should be followed.

5) If the buyer and seller cannot agree on who is responsible
for shipping on a returned item, a reasonable compromise is
an agreement to split the cost.

6) If an item is returned for reason of defect or inaccurate
description, that item should not be offered for resale without
an accurate description of its condition, regardless of price.

7) The buyer and seller should follow the terms of the agreement
made between them, and try calmly, honestly and earnestly to work
out differences between them before making the dispute public.

Hope This Helps