Alright, I've given my opinions on plenty of your deals so now it's time for a little turn-about. This will take a while so please stick w/ me.
Did a show Saturday. Shortly after the show opened a young couple inquired about a baby Brazilian Rainbow boa I had for sale. Asked me to tell them about the snake. I replied that I had the snake on consignment, I had just picked it up the day before, and I doubted it had eaten yet. I also informed them that when I picked up the snake it was being housed improperly. It was being kept on sand. So I was not exactly extolled the virtures of this particular animal.
The women said she was familiar w/ juvenile snakes and had done scenting and "braining" before. She made it sound like she knew a lot about young snakes and their care. Me, desperately wanting to find this snake a better home, offered her the animal for $150, $25 off my original asking price, and what I believed at the time to be $20 more than what I had to pay for the animal. I told them exactly what I was making on the animal and why I was selling it so cheap. They handled the snake for about 15 to 20 minutes and finally decided to purchase it. They left a $100 deposit and went to the ATM for the rest.
About 30-45 minutes later (plenty of time to consider this purchase w/o the animal in hand) the man returned, cash in hand and asked for the snake and one of my cards, "in case we have any problems." I immediately froze, looked him directly in the eye and said, "no problem, but you understand there is NO guarantee on this animal." I told him I would more than happy to answer any questions they had, but the animal was sold "as is." He said ok and handed me the remaining $50, took his snake and left.
This morning, Monday, around 11<img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':0'>0 a.m., I get a call from the woman stating that the snake died on their way home about 5 hours after they left the show, and that she wanted her money back. I thought to myself oh boy here we go! One of my first questions was, well if it died Saturday afternoon, why are just now calling me? Her reply, I don't have a cell phone and it was raining so I wasn't getting out of the car. Nothing was said about the entire day of Sunday. I believe the snake is dead, she offered to return it today, but I'm not sure I buy the died on the way home story. She had both my cell, and home phone numbers, as well as, my email. First contact this morning.
I told her I was sorry, about the snake and offered her the $20 I had actually made on the sale (it was really $25, but I was unaware of that during our conversation). I also offered to try and find her another one and sell it to her at cost. She of course wanted all her money back and nothing else.
I asked her, did she not understand what NO GUARANTEE meant when she bought the snake? Dead silence. I asked her, was I not honest w/ you about how the snake was being kept and the fact that it was young and had probably not fed. Her reply yes, but you should still replace it. She of course threatened to follow me around the state and tell everyone about my business practices. I told her, ma'am, I told YOU about my business practices before you bought the snake and you still couldn't wait to get your hands on it. I tell everyone, everything they want to know about, (and a lot they don't) my stuff, before they buy an animal from me. In fact, I don't think I've ever done a show w/o talking at least one customer out of a purchase.
I know it's absolutley horrible that this couple is out this money. It's horrible the snake is dead. But what do the words, "NO GUARANTEE" mean. <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='???'>
Did a show Saturday. Shortly after the show opened a young couple inquired about a baby Brazilian Rainbow boa I had for sale. Asked me to tell them about the snake. I replied that I had the snake on consignment, I had just picked it up the day before, and I doubted it had eaten yet. I also informed them that when I picked up the snake it was being housed improperly. It was being kept on sand. So I was not exactly extolled the virtures of this particular animal.
The women said she was familiar w/ juvenile snakes and had done scenting and "braining" before. She made it sound like she knew a lot about young snakes and their care. Me, desperately wanting to find this snake a better home, offered her the animal for $150, $25 off my original asking price, and what I believed at the time to be $20 more than what I had to pay for the animal. I told them exactly what I was making on the animal and why I was selling it so cheap. They handled the snake for about 15 to 20 minutes and finally decided to purchase it. They left a $100 deposit and went to the ATM for the rest.
About 30-45 minutes later (plenty of time to consider this purchase w/o the animal in hand) the man returned, cash in hand and asked for the snake and one of my cards, "in case we have any problems." I immediately froze, looked him directly in the eye and said, "no problem, but you understand there is NO guarantee on this animal." I told him I would more than happy to answer any questions they had, but the animal was sold "as is." He said ok and handed me the remaining $50, took his snake and left.
This morning, Monday, around 11<img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':0'>0 a.m., I get a call from the woman stating that the snake died on their way home about 5 hours after they left the show, and that she wanted her money back. I thought to myself oh boy here we go! One of my first questions was, well if it died Saturday afternoon, why are just now calling me? Her reply, I don't have a cell phone and it was raining so I wasn't getting out of the car. Nothing was said about the entire day of Sunday. I believe the snake is dead, she offered to return it today, but I'm not sure I buy the died on the way home story. She had both my cell, and home phone numbers, as well as, my email. First contact this morning.
I told her I was sorry, about the snake and offered her the $20 I had actually made on the sale (it was really $25, but I was unaware of that during our conversation). I also offered to try and find her another one and sell it to her at cost. She of course wanted all her money back and nothing else.
I asked her, did she not understand what NO GUARANTEE meant when she bought the snake? Dead silence. I asked her, was I not honest w/ you about how the snake was being kept and the fact that it was young and had probably not fed. Her reply yes, but you should still replace it. She of course threatened to follow me around the state and tell everyone about my business practices. I told her, ma'am, I told YOU about my business practices before you bought the snake and you still couldn't wait to get your hands on it. I tell everyone, everything they want to know about, (and a lot they don't) my stuff, before they buy an animal from me. In fact, I don't think I've ever done a show w/o talking at least one customer out of a purchase.
I know it's absolutley horrible that this couple is out this money. It's horrible the snake is dead. But what do the words, "NO GUARANTEE" mean. <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='???'>
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