For Sale Feedback - Warning

[Q.G.]

Just wanted to let you know that if APUG-subscriber PHOTOMEM (the pseudonym of Tom Wilson) turns up again, it would be advisable to exercise caution, should he offer things for sale again.

I have been waiting for a Polaroid camera he sold me since late april. Still am.
Asked about it, of course, but got no reply. I asked about it last on June 2nd, and that happened to be the last day he logged in to APUG (some time after i sent him a PM, so he will have read it).

I also know that i'm not the only APUGer he took money from without sending the goods.

What i don't know is whether he is still with us, under a newly assumed APUG-identity.


If this is a not-done post, i apologize and ask the moderators to delete it.
But i thought it important to let you all know.

 

🛡️ Classifieds Safety Reminder: Please stay safe when buying and selling. Scams via hacked accounts are on the rise globally.

Best Practices: Always use a verified payment method with buyer protection (avoid "PayPal Friends & Family"). Services like Escrow.com are highly secure. Be suspicious of random unsolicited contact via Private Message. If you see suspicious behavior, please use the Report link on the post immediately.

[altair]

Thanks for the info Q.G, very helpful. I think I've very nearly bought an item from him before, luckily it didn't go through. Thanks again for the heads up.

 

[J Rollinger]

There should be a feedback option in the classifieds.

 

[altair]

J. Rollinger: I second that.

 

[Rick A]

He and I struck a deal a few months ago, and he failed to follow through on his end. Fortunatly, I waited for his part to materialize before I sent the items to him. I dont understand why he fell off the face of the earth, he seemed to be a decent sort. I guess you cant judge folks by how they act on the net. Maybe we should find another way of contacting him, perchance he fell prey to some misfortune.

 

[M.A.Longmore]

I am sure that we are all decent APUG'ers.
Especially the asparagus eaters amongst us
But, the Feedback system would definitely level the Sales Floor.


Ron

 

[ntenny]

I bought some film from him a while ago with no problem---quick communication and all that. I wonder if something didn't happen to disrupt his responsiveness, especially since he went from a prolific poster to invisible quite quickly. I'll drop him a line by email.

-NT

 

[altair]

Just took a quick look thru my inbox here, and yup I almost bought some film from him about 2 months back. Reading his PM's to me, what struck me was how genuinely nice and responsive he was. Maybe it's true then, u cant judge someone by their net behaviour.

But then again, in his last PM to me, he did mention he's gearing up for a trip to Mexico, so maybe something unfortunate did happen to him. Who knows.

 

[JRJacobs]

I bought some film from him a while ago with no problem---quick communication and all that. I wonder if something didn't happen to disrupt his responsiveness, especially since he went from a prolific poster to invisible quite quickly. I'll drop him a line by email.

-NT

+1

I had a good experience with him as well. I hope he is OK.

 

[Shadowtracker]

I bought something from him a while back - there had been a post office problem and the item he sent me had been returned to his house. He resent the item after verifying my address and it arrived shortly after that, no problem at all. He does seem to have had a few problems with his post office but I had no problems with him at all to speak of. Just my two cents.

 

[du a gwyn]

Q.G,thanks for letting us know,dont feel quilty about letting us know,at least you stop somebody else geting there fingers burnt!!

 

[Mike Kennedy]

I'm in the same boat as Q.G.In fact we have been communicating about our mutual problem.
I know that Tommy arrived home safely from Mexico and was going to ship out our goods.Then............nada.One sincerely hopes that nothing has happened to the chap.Who knows?

J.M.Kennedy

 

[Fotoguy20d]

I had an okay purchase with him late last year. Received the camera from him and he was very communicative but it turned out to be full plate instead of 8x10 - I didn't make a big deal out of it though since I decided I wanted it anyway.

Here's the contact info I have for him from Paypal:

Business Name:
Memphis Photoworks
Email:
twilson5 @ memphis.edu
Business Contact Information
Customer Service Email: twilson5 @ memphis.edu
Customer Service Phone: 901-596-5140

 

[Ian Grant]

He was active on another forum 4 days ago, and here 3 weeks ago even if he hasn't posted.

Ian

 

[Rick A]

When did Memphis get hit with floods, was that about the time he disappeared? I dunno, I would prefer to think the best of people, and I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation for his actions(or lack thereof). I sent him a PM yesterday, maybe he will reply, I hope so.

 

[SuzanneR]

For the most part our classifieds have run smoothly, but occasionally folks have something happen, and they don't follow through in a timely manner. Try sending him an e-mail (post #13) to see if something's up, and let us know if you hear from him this week.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I'll second Suzanne's recommendation. Even without a feedback system, there is the Subscriber threshold to advertise in the Classifieds, and general reputation on the forum to maintain (obviously those who subscribe to advertise without participating otherwise on APUG have less credibility and will be less successful in selling on APUG), and that seems to keep people honest. We've had a few problems, but they've usually been the result of some legitimate reason like sudden illness, or in some cases it's just been ineptitude, but not so much malice or fraud.

While the Terms of Service state that transactions through the Classifieds are private arrangements between buyers and sellers, we'll usually try to help people sort things out when we can, particularly if we have access to contact information that isn't public and can serve as an intermediary.

 

[ntenny]

I haven't heard anything back in response to my email over the weekend, so I'm guessing that he's out of net contact for some reason. Hope everything is all right.

-NT

 

[removed account4]

i hope he's OK.

 

[Q.G.]

For the most part our classifieds have run smoothly, but occasionally folks have something happen, and they don't follow through in a timely manner. Try sending him an e-mail (post #13) to see if something's up, and let us know if you hear from him this week.

I have.
And timely too.

I sure hope you don't assume i post complaints first and then try to figure out whether there is something to complain about...

What perhaps has not been done timely, was alert APUG that something is not quite right in the Classifieds.

There is no 'official' way of doing so. We need a "Caveat emptor" section in the classifieds!


Oh, and thank you all: yes, i'm o.k. too.
Out of a few bucks. But still o.k.

 

[Q.G.]

He was active on another forum 4 days ago, and here 3 weeks ago even if he hasn't posted.

Thanks!

So there's no reason why he couldn't have replied.


I must say that i am getting a bit dissapointed with APUG, that even though such clear info is available, the speculations about the 'poor guy' perhaps not being able to do what he should have done one and a half months ago continue...

 

[tkamiya]

I hesitated to post in this thread, but I think I will.

I always disliked when someone doesn't wait long enough for sellers to follow through and start posting angry messages. A lot of things can happen to delay otherwise well meaning person to do what he/she should have done quickly.

I think; though, this particular case is little different. O.G. has been very patient, tried to communicate with the seller in various means and in goof faith, and waited some more. At least, we should stop assuming O.G. hasn't done his part to resolve this issue.

I hope the seller will respond soon either personally or to O.G. and others in personal mail and try to resolve the issue.

Idunno... this is just sad. I always had implicit trust in APUG transactions. All except for one, they all came through with exceptional integrity. I received and provided many stuff for free just to help someone out. Some transaction took longer than should have, but oh well. Not sending a paid item and not even communicating to let the buyer know why just isn't right.

 

[Ian Grant]

We take a risk when we buy or sell on APUG, but it's worth asking that a moderator look at the situation, I'd guess it's that time in your case.

I had a similar issue 2 or 3 years ago with an item that was never shipped after placing a wanted advert, like you someone else had a similar problem with the same person, and it turned out so did a moderator. In our case the name was never made public and we all got our money back. That particular person was asked not to use the Classifieds here or on the LFPI forum and he hasn't since.

There's an outside chance that the item has gone missing in the post, I've had that happen once where a tracked item was disappeared at O'Hare airport which is the USPS main International mail depot.

Ian

 

[fotch]

.....
There's an outside chance that the item has gone missing in the post, I've had that happen once where a tracked item was disappeared at O'Hare airport which is the USPS main International mail depot.

Ian

Yes, also missing is the seller communicating that it was mailed. My experience is that usually means it never was mailed.

 

[Ian Grant]

Yes, also missing is the seller communicating that it was mailed. My experience is that usually means it never was mailed.

True, I had a meter disappear for a few months in the post, because of excellent communications with the seller I never had any doubt it hadn't been sent.

After about 3 months it arrived back in the US with a Turkish sticker saying uncollected, despite numerous visits to the local post office here. 2nd attempt it arrived very quickly this time to the UK.

So yes good communication is critical.

Ian