Quote:
Originally Posted by marlonmm
It's something like ebay. Once you started submitting your bid, you are already bound by a contract. Similarly, when you make a deal to your fellow softie, you "bind" (quote and quote) yourself with this unwritten contract. It's your obligation to fullfill that deal.
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Difference is with eBay, the User Agreement binds all users (buyers & sellers), and it states that any bid won forms a binding contract under law - which means the seller and buyer are not allowed to renege on the deal. Breach of the contract makes the defaulting party liable for sanctions (negative feedback, possible suspension for repeat offenders).
However under regular forums (and classifieds) the normal law of contract applies. You need elements of offer, acceptance and consideration (which is a specific legal term). If there is no consideration (look it up here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consideration) - then there is no contract. Which means your "sealed deal" is worth jack.
All you have is someone's word which of course depends on their own moral compass of what is and is not ethically acceptable. Cold comfort when somebody else backs out on you on a deal, but dems da breaks.
The cornerstone of all commercial trade is trust. Without a system of trust that one can rely on - dealing on forums and classifieds can be a dodgy affair. My take is, if you would rather deal on a forum which has its advantages of convenience and ease - do the deal as soon as possible and always bear in mind and be prepared that someone will not show up at the last minute or lowball your ass. If that happens just deal with it. It's just par for the course - human nature can be an ugly thing.
