POLL: If a dealer (or collector) owes you, how long will you wait?
Barry
Posts: 10,100 ✭✭✭
I've been amazed how some folks are so patient with dealers or collectors that string them along with promises of payment (or mechandise paid for) but never deliver. For example, the recent Darin thread.
How long would you wait if you were in such a situation?
How long would you wait if you were in such a situation?
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All The Way - And Then Some
I collect Modern Commemoratives
and anything Franklin.
For a fairly significant purchase, I'd start asking questions after about two weeks, escalate the situation after about a month and looking at legal or other actions after maybe 2-3 months.
For lesser amounts, I might not bother with the legal stuff (most likely, unless they were being a total jerk) but I would make sure people knew this wasn't a trustworthy trading partner.
If you tell me today that you are, for example, at a show until a week from Friday and that I will receive the check as soon as you are back in town, I'd say OK.
I can't imagine too many circumstances where a customer should legitimately have to wait more than 2 weeks unless there has been some kind of serious extenuating circumstance.
If he owes me a coin, 2 months.
If he owes me a book, 3 years or until another publisher buys him out, whichever comes first.
<< <i>If he owes me a book, 3 years or until another publisher buys him out, whichever comes first. >>
as far as coins go have never been in that position so don't know how I would react but would probably say 4 - 6 weeks
myCCset
Part of it would depend on if they are having life issues, but I don't consider overloading oneself with more selling then one can handle a life issue... this particular seller in question continued to list 2006-w PCGS slabbed eagles in dutch auctions weeks after my having not received mine from a previous auction. I don't consider this acceptable practice.
TorinoCobra71
I was thinking MAX.
Each transaction has it's own merits.
Is it an eBay, or other transaction where I paid money & am waiting for the item? Then less than 3 months.
Is it an item where the other party is buying from me, has kept communications ongoing, but has run into a financial bind & needs some time, then 3 months is not too long IMO.
60 years into this hobby and I'm still working on my Lincoln set!
No Bucks, No Buck Rogers.
I can get almost ANYTHING physically delivered to my office doorstep from ANYWHERE in the World with in a week.
Especially if paid for, first.
If I sent 'money' (coins) to the dealer, the dealer can do exactly what I did, in the same amount of time.
I am astonished reading through the reasons people allow for delay.
There is absolutley no excuse for a check NOT to be issued the next day and sent off for payment when the coins are in hand!.
Mitch at Wondercoin.
Nothing short of the way Mitch does a business exchange is excusable, for anyone.
I once had a guy on ebay that was jerking me around on a 300.00 refund. This was way back when I first joined ebay or not long after. I finally emailed him to let him know that (of course) I had his address and that I got 2 days off each and every week. Two days off and that he didn't know which 2 days those were and that I wasn't against driving to see him to collect my refund. I had it 3 days later.
I had a customer once who bought a lower grade proof double eagle and asked me to finance it for 3 months. I wrote and he agreed to, specific payment arrangements which were written on the invoice. Deposit came no problem. First and I think second payment came in, also no problem. Then he disappeared. I called and a Woman who answered the phone said "he doesn't live here anymore". And that was that. It was best of my recollection a 15K coin and the market was FALLING. ( yes gang, they go the opposite way too )
A YEAR later I get a letter from him stating he wants his money back. I sent a reply that the coin had lost almost 5K in value and that's on him. That had he at least communicated with me we probably could have worked something out but now that I was essentially stuck, then he was stuck too. He hung up on me ( ! ) A few weeks later I received a letter from a very well known lawyer in NYC and that prompted me to call one myself.
Long and the short of it, it went a year and I think I bent over backwards. But in that case the fellow lost his deposits. I was still out if I remember about a thousand bucks plus all that time.
Had another customer ( a Doctor ) who stretched me out for a year on a pair of Double Eagle Patterns . Was supposed to pay me in 90 days as well. Glad he's doing business with someone else now.
Some of us are very flexible . Just communicate what you would like to do, if it's agreed to, do the best you can and if something unexpected comes up as it often does in life, just give a call and try and work it out. In MOST cases it will be worked out.
Coin's for sale/trade.
Tom Pilitowski
US Rare Coin Investments
800-624-1870
But, since I do indeed know what it's like I would be patient with someone that went through something similar. Now nothing to do with what I just mentioned, but in no way would I give as much slack to board members that many on here do. I hold them to even a higher degree to make things right QUICK. I believe many more folks out there have probably been burned by board members but are afraid to speak up. I just don't get it, but if they like to lose money and are afraid to speak up because they might not have friends on here...... they are NUTS IMO of course.
sales to him and he always came through eventually so I cut him a lot of slack over the fact that it took so long.
- Marcus Tullius Cicero, 106-43 BC
I agree that the answer to the question can be situational, but on the whole, one month is where my tolerance for a runaround would completely evaporate if it hadn't done so by then.