Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

[sickwilly]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

Yes. I bought my boat off eBay. I went and saw it first. I tried to buy it there and then. He did not accept my best offer. I went home and got better than my best in person offer by buying it through the auction. I felt bad for a minute or two, then celebrated.

 

[fishingdan]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

I have purchased two boats on ebay. Ask the right questions, ask for more photos and check it out carefully when you pick it up.

 

[bamafutbal]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

i did and i still feel like i got a great bargain

 

[bretthughes1970]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

I bought my boat off Ebay five years ago. The seller described the boat perfectly. He offered to bring it to a nearby lake for me to test drive. If he would not have offered that I believe I would have passed on the boat. I also asked if I could take it to a marina to have it checked out. He had no problem. The only things that showed up during the inspection were a missing oil cap (which must have been left off when he filed the reservoir before our test drive) and two dead batteries. He offerred to take less money but I declined saying that what I wanted was a functional boat besides I have two new trolling motor batteries at home. He also dropped the price of the boat $1500.00 because he needed to sell. All in all it depends on the seller agreeing to allowing you to test drive or agree to an inspection.

 

[sundowner205]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

I found a boat on ebay that I was interested in, and was only about 15 minutes away from here. The ad stated that the boat had winterized and not run since August of last year, was clean, and "in turn-key" condition.

The photos were of poor quality/resolution and did not reveal much. Many emails from the owner's nephew repeatedly stated that the boat was ready to go.

Upon arrival and inspection of the vessel, I found a boat that had been seriously neglected - having been sitting outside, uncovered for not one year, but upon questioning the real owner, it had been out of the water for three years! The inside looked like a septic tank, literally. There was animal crap and spiderwebs everywhere in the cabin - it was a complete POS.

The trailer was rusted and 2 of the 4 tires were flat. I asked why they would ever advertise the boat in good condition and ready to go and they responded with "you don't think it is?" At that point I just looked at them and walked away.

The moral is is that there are always going to be people out there who are willing to grossly misrepresent something in order to make a buck.

Do your research, find the current fair market value for the boat you are interested in, compare prices for similar boats, and always go and check it out yourself. If you are not sure what to look for when buying a boat, bring someone that does, or take it to a marina to be looked over. If the seller objects to your request to have a marina go through it, or for a sea-trial - walk away - it proves that there is definitely an issue with the boat that the seller is aware of, and that he is not willing to disclose.

Happy boating.

-Mark

 

[country_bumpkin]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

if it's a deal you can't lose on, sure, otherwise if you can inspect the boat, you know what you're buying, and finaly as others have mentioned: what is the selller's feedback

 

[Godfirst]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

That depends, if I could see it inspect it and preferably take it on the lake I would consider, just beware if no sight inspection.
Happy boating

 

[Godfirst]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

Another thing if the seller only has a 99% feedback.

 

[turborich]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

I've been screwed twice on Ebay. I would only make a small purchace on Ebay. It's just too risky if you ask me. There are honest people & there are thiefs!

 

[wajajaja02]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

Bought all three of mine on eBay, all were great, I deposited, and paid for them o pick up via pay-pal using the sellers pc after inspection of the boat. test ride was always a option. Solid pictures,description a must, and a good selling description is important, look for a informed seller, not a neighbor who is doing a favor for someone and doesn't know what he s talking about, or one listing such as hull number " nj 01234" that's a registration number, u know he didn't winterize properly. look at the pictures of the canvas , if its good, it tells about care.

 

[mrainey889]

Re: Would you buy a boat off of ebay?

the boat in my avatar i drove to Pensacola Fla. to pick-up, gave the deposit on my AMEX so it could be retracted if need be (MarineMaxx dealer) spoke to sales guy 6 times..drove there inspected it...it was exactly as described...paid in full,away we went..have bought 3 outboards and tons of misc. stuff,i have over 120 buy & sold's on e-bay...never had a problem.

closely examine the sellers Feedback,and unless they have over 30 good sales..dont bother with them.

You mentioned using your AMEX card so you could retract the deposit...have you actually successfully had this happen on a bad deal? I went with a friend to buy a car he had won on eBay, which he had placed a $300 deposit on with his Visa card when he won the bid, as listed as required in the auction.

Once we got to see the car...it was not as advertised. The only correct items in the ad were the make, model, and color. The vehicle was severly scratched all over the paint (no idea what could have caused that, looked like it had been driven through a bunch of bushes), had four bald tires, each of a different brand...no joke here. Loud clunking noises from the rear end (rear wheel drive car), etc... Many, many issues that were completely to the contrary of the ad's claim of excellent condition. The pictures in the ad were taken from sufficient distance to not show the paint problems.

So...my friend walked away from the deal. On the way home, he called his Visa card company and told them what happened, expecting the deposit to be retracted. Visa informed him there was nothing they could do. Since the description of the vehicle is subject to personal point of view, they considered the deposit to not be fraud.

Eventually, PayPal helped him out by agreeing with his dispute of the auction and pulling some of the funds from the seller's PayPal account, however that was only $80. They claim if they ever get more they will give it to him up to the $300 of the original claim, but he was also told not to get his hopes up.

Long story short, my friend paid $220 to test drive a car that was not as advertised at all. That same car was relisted several times on eBay...each after someone won the bid, and apparently backed out of the deal. I wonder just how many people were screwed out of their deposit in that little scam.

My personal advice would be to contact the seller immediately after winning an auction, assure them you are serious, exchange contact info, but refuse to send a deposit. If that is a deal breaker for the seller, I would walk away...fast.

Just my two cents,
Mike