Profiteering Prevention
UPDATE - Only report ads posted after Oct 21, 2012.
Update 10-25-2012 -Percentage increased to 20%
Update 12-11-2012 - The rule about unnecessary comments still applies. It is not the member's responsibility to post in member's threads that there is a new price gouging rule and make other comments regarding the price. If you feel it's too much either submit a report with the link below or send the member a private message with a link to this thread. Otherwise you may be faced with a rule reminder or infraction for making unnecessary comments.
Update 7-28-2013 - Retail defined.
Update 9-7-2014 - Changed from percentage based to set dollar amount ($10), other minor edits.
For months, actually much longer, we have been concerned over members who choose to purchase hard to get items with the intention of reselling the item at a price much higher price than the retail cost. Actually whether it's to intentionally resell for profit or not, it's wrong for someone to overcharge fellow members due to lack of availability. We have a trial solution we wish to launch in an attempt to prevent these type ads from being posted in the Classified section. As I stated, this is a trial run with hopes that this works out to be a permanent solution. If the extra load proves to be much more than staff can handle, the solution may be withdrawn, so please do not abuse the process.
Definition of retail in this ruling - Total of all cost to receive item to you door (item cost, shipping, and any fees). Keep in mind that items that are shipped from international locations may carry heavy fees and the member is allowed to recoup this cost in their asking price.
These are the guidelines posted in the form, please read these and understand them before using the form.
Rule - No item can be listed in the ECF Classifieds for more than $10 over retail value.
This $10 is meant to account for fluctuations in market prices over time. Retail price will include cost of item and all other expense incurred to receive the item, like shipping or any fees. Items bought used will also adhere to the retail+$10 rule. If the item is overpriced on ECF, please use the report to notify staff for review. Saying "Well I paid $##.## here on the forum, so I should be able to sell it for the same" will not be accepted. You may be asked for proof of purchase if found to be more than retail+$10, so it would be good to keep your receipts. Cost of shipping from you to buyer is a separate charge and is not included in the asking price. This should be listed separately in your ad in the field on the submission form asking for shipping cost, unless shipping is free.
There has been some confusion over this rule, so I'll explain further. This rule is not telling you to charge $10 extra over retail, this rule is stating you cannot ask for more than retail+$10. It's reasonable for something brand new and never used to be sold for retail but ideally something used should not be sold for retail. In basic economics it's normal that the value of something goes down over time and use. We also understand that some buyers may be willing to pay retail for used items, so we do not go so far to say used items must be discounted but we will not allow items to be over retail. The whole idea behind this rule is to prevent members from profiting from sells in the Classifieds.
Guidelines
Reportable instance will include:
Non-reportable instances will include:
https://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/forms/classifieds-profiteer-report.46/respond
NOTES-----
Reprecussions-----
Members found to be profiteering will receive a rule reminder for first offense, an infraction for second offense, and third offense will result in member having their Verified Member status revoked.
Members found to be abusing the report process will lose access to the form, abuse will be determined by staff members. This may sound vague but will be clarified more so in the future.
Classified Complaint Form
In the past members would PM their complaints concerning bad transactions in the Classified section. These PM's normally resulted in numerous back and forth PMs to get the information required to handle the complaint. To help streamline this process, I now have a form members should use to report these complaints to me.
Complaint Form
Thanks to everyone being patient while we worked out the details on this. So hopefully together we can make the ECF Classifieds a better place to shop!
UPDATE - Only report ads posted after Oct 21, 2012.
Update 10-25-2012 -
Update 12-11-2012 - The rule about unnecessary comments still applies. It is not the member's responsibility to post in member's threads that there is a new price gouging rule and make other comments regarding the price. If you feel it's too much either submit a report with the link below or send the member a private message with a link to this thread. Otherwise you may be faced with a rule reminder or infraction for making unnecessary comments.
Update 7-28-2013 - Retail defined.
Update 9-7-2014 - Changed from percentage based to set dollar amount ($10), other minor edits.
For months, actually much longer, we have been concerned over members who choose to purchase hard to get items with the intention of reselling the item at a price much higher price than the retail cost. Actually whether it's to intentionally resell for profit or not, it's wrong for someone to overcharge fellow members due to lack of availability. We have a trial solution we wish to launch in an attempt to prevent these type ads from being posted in the Classified section. As I stated, this is a trial run with hopes that this works out to be a permanent solution. If the extra load proves to be much more than staff can handle, the solution may be withdrawn, so please do not abuse the process.
Definition of retail in this ruling - Total of all cost to receive item to you door (item cost, shipping, and any fees). Keep in mind that items that are shipped from international locations may carry heavy fees and the member is allowed to recoup this cost in their asking price.
These are the guidelines posted in the form, please read these and understand them before using the form.
Rule - No item can be listed in the ECF Classifieds for more than $10 over retail value.
This $10 is meant to account for fluctuations in market prices over time. Retail price will include cost of item and all other expense incurred to receive the item, like shipping or any fees. Items bought used will also adhere to the retail+$10 rule. If the item is overpriced on ECF, please use the report to notify staff for review. Saying "Well I paid $##.## here on the forum, so I should be able to sell it for the same" will not be accepted. You may be asked for proof of purchase if found to be more than retail+$10, so it would be good to keep your receipts. Cost of shipping from you to buyer is a separate charge and is not included in the asking price. This should be listed separately in your ad in the field on the submission form asking for shipping cost, unless shipping is free.
There has been some confusion over this rule, so I'll explain further. This rule is not telling you to charge $10 extra over retail, this rule is stating you cannot ask for more than retail+$10. It's reasonable for something brand new and never used to be sold for retail but ideally something used should not be sold for retail. In basic economics it's normal that the value of something goes down over time and use. We also understand that some buyers may be willing to pay retail for used items, so we do not go so far to say used items must be discounted but we will not allow items to be over retail. The whole idea behind this rule is to prevent members from profiting from sells in the Classifieds.
Guidelines
- First and foremost, abuse of this report form will not be tolerated.
- Provide all the information requested accurately or the report will be deleted without notice.
- Product links must be to a retail location and if applicable, an authorized retailer of said product.
- If you suspect the member to be a supplier (retailer, high quantity seller) please use the report button below the ad to report and not this form.
- If the ad includes multiple items not normally included with the product, be sure to include these in your calculation. Additional fields for links to the additional items included. (if applicable)
- Items which are located outside the US can be substantially more expensive due to cost to obtain, so take this into consideration before reporting.
- If the item is a known CO-OP item where the member has purchased a larger than normal quantity please include the requested information in the CO-OP section (this section is optional if not CO-OP related)
- Reported threads will be reviewed and possibly locked if the ad is in question. The seller will then be contacted by staff.
Reportable instance will include:
- Products that are currently produced.(Doesn't matter if in stock or not)
- The asking price is more that $10 above the retail price.
Non-reportable instances will include:
- Products that are no longer produced.(Doesn't include items that are produced but not in stock)
- One-of-a-kind items.(This would be either self made mods which are allowed within reason or custom made from a supplier)
https://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/forms/classifieds-profiteer-report.46/respond
NOTES-----
- If the item listed is no longer a produced item, it should not be reported. This doesn't refer to items that are back ordered, only items that production has ceased.
- You most likely will not receive a response from your report, please report the item and allow us time to look and process the report.
Reprecussions-----
Members found to be profiteering will receive a rule reminder for first offense, an infraction for second offense, and third offense will result in member having their Verified Member status revoked.
Members found to be abusing the report process will lose access to the form, abuse will be determined by staff members. This may sound vague but will be clarified more so in the future.
Classified Complaint Form
In the past members would PM their complaints concerning bad transactions in the Classified section. These PM's normally resulted in numerous back and forth PMs to get the information required to handle the complaint. To help streamline this process, I now have a form members should use to report these complaints to me.
Complaint Form
Thanks to everyone being patient while we worked out the details on this. So hopefully together we can make the ECF Classifieds a better place to shop!
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