The dealers are moving in.

[Solly]

At one time most of the modelling items for sale were genuine private sales. I've noticed that the number of dealers is increasing, - people with many sales to their credit and past items that have nothing to do with modelling. Typically they will present, for instance, an engine which "has been found in their grandfather's shed", and which "looks as if it hasn't been used". I'm beginning to wonder just exactly where these goods come from.

[John Privett]

I don't think the recent/imminent "simplification" of private sellers' fees is going to help the situation either...

 

[Wiltshire Flyer]

I hear the tax man is going to be hunting sellers that sell alot of goods on there regardless of them advertising as a business or not..

[Jeff-C]

The tax man can have a look, but in reality if the items have already had the tax paid when originally bought, and have been used for private use and not as an investment then there is no tax / capital gains to be paid, especially if the item is sold for the same if not less then originally purchased.

 

I do like the new simplification though of the Ebay fees......basically more expensive!

[Pete B]

I take it this is a perfect example, Solly!

Pete

[Tim Mackey]

What a joke - I have "asked a question" !

Worth about a fiver IMO.

[Pete B]

1/4 Scale -

Tricycle controls (???) -

 

It has been nearly completed, although could do with some touching up/finishing off....

....rods in place for flight controls, but needs actuators,

 

They'd be better off sticking to the car auctions, I think........

 

Pete

 

 

 

[Alan Cantwell]

dealers have been in there since day 1, but guys like this, with an old Robbe Progo, need to do their homework, and get the techy terms right, its worth 30quid, tops,

[John Privett]

Quarter scale, indeed... So the full-scale example has a wingspan of just over 20 feet? That's less than 2/3 the size of a Cessna 152.

 

And if the markings on the model D-EMIL are meant to be representative of the full-size, then I think they have a wing missing, not to mention a 50% excess in the undercarriage-department!

[Wiltshire Flyer]

Posted by Jeffrey Croot on 28/06/2011 20:30:31:

The tax man can have a look, but in reality if the items have already had the tax paid when originally bought, and have been used for private use and not as an investment then there is no tax / capital gains to be paid, especially if the item is sold for the same if not less then originally purchased.

I think the angle the taxman is taking is that if someone is selling regularly, then they are making money, profit or not he wants a cut apparently!

[John Privett]

Posted by Dorset flyer on 29/06/2011 00:26:01:

 

I think the angle the taxman is taking is that if someone is selling regularly, then they are making money, profit or not he wants a cut apparently!

 

Yep - that's about it, though it's people making a profit as dealers rather than people selling the odd used item that they're after...

 

And it's nothing new, although the story appears to have re-surfaced again recently, here's the opening text from an article by the "Money" pages of the Daily Mail back in August 2005;

 

THE TAXMAN is planning to clamp down on traders who make a living through auction websites such as eBay but fail to pay tax on their earnings.

HM Revenue and Customs is targeting consumers with a large number of 'feedbacks' to see how much money they make from the site.

Independent tax consultancy Chiltern said traders often don't register with the taxman due to ignorance rather than attempting to avoid paying tax.

[Steve W-O]

Ebay is becoming less and less attractive as a place to shop.

 

More people taking chances with "shed/attic finds", high prices, and dodgy sellers.

 

One model shop uses the first screen full of text to explain in detail what they mean by RTF ARTF etc, then a one or two line description of the item, which often is their returned faulty stock. But they still put RTF in the title? I asked them to clarify, and got a snotty reply to read the auction. It was because I read the auction I needed the clarification!!!!!! Needless to say I pass them by no matter how interesting the item appears.

 

Chinese sellers are filling pages of listings with auctions for motors and ESCs, often it is the same drop-shipper, with different people selling for them. They are all more expensive than HK.

 

And plans, pages and pages of plans at inflated prices.

 

All these multiple pages of listings destroy it for the genuine private seller, as their auction might easily get lost amongst the listings, who is going to read through 5 pages of plan auctions in case there is something of interest buried amongst them?

 

 

There are now about 6 sellers who are simply buying from HK, then selling the stuff on Ebay in the UK, at huge mark-ups for the privilege of buying it from the UK.

 

I asked the one if a camera was any better than the one HK sold (it was three times the price), his reply was in fact very well worded, saying that I obviously knew my market!

 

I use ebay as a reference, to see what products are available, then search on the net for a better price, which can nearly always be found.

[Kozmyk]

It's nothing new.

A mate of mine got jumped on for tax from eBay trading 10 years ago.

[NigelH]

Posted by Steve W-O on 29/06/2011 05:45:41:

 

 

There are now about 6 sellers who are simply buying from HK, then selling the stuff on Ebay in the UK, at huge mark-ups for the privilege of buying it from the UK.

 

 

 

It's worse than that Steve. What they do is buy large quantities of some items, which then sell out quickly. For example, the Plush 60A has been unavailble for weeks but there were plenty on ebay. If they didn't buy so many to sell on at those inflated prices for, in my opinion, no advantage to the buyer, we'd be able to go direct to Hobby King for them. It will be amusing to see what happens when the UK warehouse opens

 

[Kozmyk]

It's even worse than that again.

HobbyKing sells B grade and C grade to these sellers at knock down prices who then pass it off as A grade.

Anthony Hand admitted as much himself in one of the blog videos.