what would you do in this situation?

[SilverRaichu]

Buyer send deposit for an animal for sale, and then sends a payment a few weeks later then after another few weeks tells me they are no longer able to buy and wants to back out of the sale?

 

[bcr229]

What does your Terms of Service say happens when a buyer cancels?

 

[SilverRaichu]

Although I did make it clear that deposits are non refundable, I don't have a specific statement regarding backing out of a sale

 

[WebSlave]

Well, what was the purpose of the deposit?

 

[bcr229]

Although I did make it clear that deposits are non refundable, I don't have a specific statement regarding backing out of a sale

Well, the two are rather related, there's no concern about a deposit being refundable or not if the buyer follows through.

So, send back the remainder of the payments and post the critter up for sale again.

 

[SilverRaichu]

Well, the two are rather related, there's no concern about a deposit being refundable or not if the buyer follows through.

So, send back the remainder of the payments and post the critter up for sale again.

This is what I did, I wanted to make sure I did the right thing. Thank you

 

[Lucille]

If you read the BOI, a nonrefundable deposit followed by a back out is not unheard of. A TOS is a good thing to have, but if you look at those BOIs, many times opinion is swayed by the reason the buyer backed out.

If the buyer just decided they liked another animal from another vendor better, that is one thing; keep the deposit and don't give it another thought;
on the other hand, if the buyer suddenly became unemployed, or his work vehicle broke down, or his house burned down, readers sometimes are in favor of a refund simply because of need, and sometimes will mention that doing so makes a friend who may well buy again once the disaster has been dealt with.

 

[JButera]

Kudos for returning the money. Keeping a backed-out buyer's deposit is a sure fire way to make enemies in this business no matter what your TOS says. However, I'm a firm believer in a 10% restocking fee though.

 

[Pasodama]

If you read the BOI, a nonrefundable deposit followed by a back out is not unheard of. A TOS is a good thing to have, but if you look at those BOIs, many times opinion is swayed by the reason the buyer backed out.

If the buyer just decided they liked another animal from another vendor better, that is one thing; keep the deposit and don't give it another thought;
on the other hand, if the buyer suddenly became unemployed, or his work vehicle broke down, or his house burned down, readers sometimes are in favor of a refund simply because of need, and sometimes will mention that doing so makes a friend who may well buy again once the disaster has been dealt with.

Kudos for returning the money. Keeping a backed-out buyer's deposit is a sure fire way to make enemies in this business no matter what your TOS says. However, I'm a firm believer in a 10% restocking fee though.

There are certain situations where it is fine (justifiable) to keep a non-refundable deposit and there are certain situations where a non-refundable deposit should be returned no matter what one's TOS states (see Lucille's post).

Your 10% idea is not a bad one. I do believe there should be a reasonable "penalty fee" for buyers who back out.
However, calling it a "restocking fee" is ridiculous when there is nothing to restock if the animal never left the seller's home/facility.

....

 

[JButera]

How about "Breach of Contract fee", that less ridiculous? I still like restocking fee better, sounds less punishing.

 

[WebSlave]

If you read the BOI, a nonrefundable deposit followed by a back out is not unheard of. A TOS is a good thing to have, but if you look at those BOIs, many times opinion is swayed by the reason the buyer backed out.

If the buyer just decided they liked another animal from another vendor better, that is one thing; keep the deposit and don't give it another thought;
on the other hand, if the buyer suddenly became unemployed, or his work vehicle broke down, or his house burned down, readers sometimes are in favor of a refund simply because of need, and sometimes will mention that doing so makes a friend who may well buy again once the disaster has been dealt with.

Heck, I remember an incident a long while back where someone placed a deposit on some animals from me and then later on someone claiming to be his brother contacted me and wanted a refund. Claimed that the original purchaser (his brother) had been severely injured and needed the money for medical bills. So of course I refunded the money to him. A few days later I saw the original purchaser posting on a website about the different types of animals he had just purchased from someone else. The internet was a much smaller world back then.

Yeah, giving back a refund for humanitarian and plausible reasons all sounds good in theory, but the fact of the matter is that apparently many people will tell you any lie they think you will believe in order for them to get what they want from you. It surprises me not in the least that some people will get hard nosed about their terms of service after a few incidents such as I mentioned above, and stick to the letter of that implied contract. For good reason, in my opinion. Being in business is tough. Getting taken advantage of in business makes it even tougher.

 

[Pasodama]

How about "Breach of Contract fee", that less ridiculous? I still like restocking fee better, sounds less punishing.

I am sure there are other terms, that can be used, that do not sound "punishing".

....

 

[Pasodama]

Yeah, giving back a refund for humanitarian and plausible reasons all sounds good in theory, but the fact of the matter is that apparently many people will tell you any lie they think you will believe in order for them to get what they want from you. It surprises me not in the least that some people will get hard nosed about their terms of service after a few incidents such as I mentioned above, and stick to the letter of that implied contract. For good reason, in my opinion. Being in business is tough. Getting taken advantage of in business makes it even tougher.

This is very true and understandable.

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