Saturday, Mitchell 26th July.
Stall number one; One lucky buyer inspected 2 pairs of home-made Laura Ashley curtains yesterday with the seller who had pointed out that she had paid nearly £1000.00 when new. They were in immaculate condition with a BARGAIN price of £12.00 which the buyer excitedly bought without any haggling. Louise saw them and was stunned at the good quality advising that if they were to be sold on eBay they could fetch in excess of £200.00 but the buyer was so delighted they were the exact sizes she wanted for her new home and couldn’t wait to get home to show her bargains to her husband.

Stall number two; Today’s email;
Debbie (Debbie ()
Sent: 26 July 2015 13:14:38
To:
Hi just a quick note I am a great carbooter, I sell and buy many a time, I went to Mitchell yesterday bought some curtains from a nice lady (so I thought) got home they have been on a boil wash and to my horror they are so mouldy all they are fit for is the bin .Very disappointed, lesson learnt always inspect, and never go by face value, and not everyone is as honest as you so £8 down the drain.

Debbie,
What a shame you did not check them at the stall, you should never accept buying any items from a Car Boot Sale without inspecting the goods before paying for them. I assume the sellers assured you they were in good condition but the onus is entirely upon the buyer to check every detail of their purchases. If the seller absolutely assured you ‘they were in good condition’ I would suggest you try to speak with the seller if you see her at any of our sales and ask for a refund and I will support you in endeavouring to get a ‘goodwill refund’ but your chances are slim.

Two weeks ago a man bought a model boat for £20.00 and the seller advised it was ‘complete’ in every way however there were parts missing after the buyer had checked the box and it’s contents and asked for a refund which was refused. The buyer advised “I will go to see Geoff” and I accompanied the buyer to the sellers stall where the seller gave a ‘no holds’ immediate refund and put the item back on sale with a promise to tell any other potential buyer that the boxed model boat was ‘as seen and incomplete’ If a new buyer had bought it he would have a very limited chance of a refund once the seller had stated ‘it was incomplete’

Similarly, if you sell electrical items and claim that they work and they do not Trading Standards would be on the side of the buyer for a refund. One seller who had a load of electrical items on his stall not only assured buyers the ‘items were in working order’ but he gave buyers a business card with his name, address and mobile number in case there was a problem. Brilliant idea!
As a precaution you can always take the car registration number of sellers but in any event if you are not sure then ‘do not buy it’ or you will be unhappy like Debbie who probably ‘bought in haste and repented in leisure’