On 25 Oct 2000, at 10:22, Frank van Lindert wrote:
> My point was, that many people, especially foreigners who may face
> import duties, do prefer private sales because those are less prone to
> being taxed.
While it may be true that parcels from a company shout "tax me" it
doesn't necessarily follow that parcels from private individuals don't get
taxed. I just got taxed on a parcel from a list member where the
customs declaration was clearly marked "gift." Not sure if that's the
usual practice, or I got ripped off by Canada Post.
Btw, I've been told (third hand) that Canada Post won't tax a parcel if the
customs declaration says it's a repair. Not sure if that's true or not,
either, but I'm going to try it some day and see what happens.
> Another issue is quality. The first transaction with a private seller
> is more risky than with a camera dealer, I am the first to admit that. But
> once I know a particular seller and have good experience with the equipment
> bought from him, I will try to deal with him again.
Your assuming that the "private seller" is dealing in equipment then,
right? I think the original "assumption" (I could be wrong) was referring
to sellers who are doing it as a favor to a relative, selling rare "finds" at
garage sales, etc. Using that assumption, it's not likely the seller is
going to have lotsa gear up for grabs.
> It is likely that all equipment owned by a private seller has been
> treated with the same care.
This reminds me of the recent e-Bay ad of a guy selling a camera. He
described a dent in the pentaprism and said he didn't know how it got
there but the camera still worked. Then, at the end of his ad, he says
he's looking for a tripod because he ran over his!
That's an extreme example, but my point is that some people abuse
their camera equipment.
> It is also easier to get useful information on the item, because a private
> seller will know more about his own property than a dealer on his traded-in
> items.
That depends on whether the dealer regularly deals with cameras, or is
dealing in fishing gear and happens across a camera. In the first case,
my bet is the dealer will be very knowledgeable. In the latter case, you
might be talking to someone who hasn't a clue.
> A camera dealer selling used items may not be able to tell me (because
> he doesn't know himself) how careful the original owner treated his
> gear.
And the private owner may "gloss over" how it was treated in order to
sell it.
> He may perhaps give a warranty, but for overseas buyers this is not much
> help because it is so expensive to return the item with a second risk of
> having duties imposed.
That's true whether the sale is private or not. Many private sellers
(myself included) accept returns at the buyer's expense. I've even
absorbed some of the shipping costs on a return in order to have a
satisfied customer.
The bottom line with all e-Bay transactions is caveat emptor. I agree
that international buyers need to be especially diligent.
> Concluding I must repeat that a private seller, in particular one I
> know and have good experience with, is my preferred source of used
> equipment - both for economical reasons (taxes/duties) and for reasons of
> quality.
I'm not disagreeing with your personal preference or your experience.
I'm just offering a different opinion. I do agree, though, that it's better to
deal with someone (private or company) that you've dealt with before.
I'm just not sure the private/dealer differentiation holds true.
Regards,
Chris
---
I'm *not* a Zuikoholic.... I'm a Zuikohobbiest!
Chris O'Neill (coneill@xxxxxxxxxxx)
http://www.nucleus.com/~coneill
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