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Buying from a private individual may get you a good deal or allow you to purchase an item not otherwise available. However, it is important to note that private sales are not covered by consumer protection laws concerning fair marketing.
You will want to be extra careful to ensure that you are getting a reasonable deal. Extra caution is also needed when buying from private individuals through sites like Craigslist or Kijiji. If the site offers user ratings of sellers, read them carefully and question their legitimacy.
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If you are not familiar with the type of item, you can take someone along who is. Have that person examine the goods thoroughly. Compare the item to how the manufacturer lists it online. You can also ask to take the item to have it looked at by a professional. People buying used vehicles will often take it to a mechanic to get it looked it before buying.
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Be wary of similar ads that keep appearing with the same phone number. Watch out for a seller advertising an item who says that the item is no longer available, but that they or a friend has another item you may be interested in. These may be schemes for unscrupulous dealers to disguise themselves as private individuals. Be careful if a seller asks for a deposit. Examine the listing carefully to see if anything seems off.
Private sales are still contracts between a buyer and seller. This means that the parties are agreeing to a specified outcome. If the outcome was not what was agreed to, you can try to resolve it with the other party. If you cannot resolve it, you can consider suing them.
It is important to remember, however, that there can be a difference between what you agreed to and what you expected or hoped for. If the agreement was as simple as “here is the item, buy it or leave it”, you may not have much recourse unless there was some sort of deception involved.
Our page on Property Condition Disclosure discusses the principle of “buyer beware”. While that page deals with real estate, the same considerations apply to any kind of private sale.
If a sale ended up being a scam, you can report the matter to the police. Fraud is a crime. It happens when someone uses deceit to get someone else’s money or property. One example may be rolling back the odometer on a vehicle to make it look less used. Another may be someone taking a deposit when they were never actually going to sell you the item. Unfortunately, it can sometimes be difficult to catch this type of criminal. Your best protection is to take steps to protect yourself before you buy.
PLEA offers free online training on preventing and addressing workplace harassment.