Information for Violin Buyers

At Sell My Violin, we try to make buying and selling used musical instruments and printed music as simple as possible. We monitor all advertisements to check that every item offered for sale appears to be genuine and believable.

Unfortunately, there are unscrupulous people in all walks of life and the internet attracts more than its fair share. The site is open to the public to post their advertisements, so we encourage you to be on your guard.

Item descriptions and photos

To try to ensure that advertisements placed on TAF Music are fair and accurate, the original ads will be available for viewing for at least 6 months following a sale.

An advertiser cannot make changes to the text or images on their advertisement, or raise the selling price after it has been on the site for more than 24 hours. Once an item is marked as sold, it will continue to be available to view for up to six months.

These policies have been implemented to protect both the advertiser and buyer by giving a fixed point of reference should a dispute arise.

Communication with the advertiser / seller

Sell My Violin offers a "Contact Seller" messaging system. This is the only way that you can initially contact an advertiser. Once you have made contact with the advertiser, they may give you a direct email or phone number to use. All messages sent through the Sell My Violin website are archived for at least six months.

Thinking of buying

When buying, if it is possible, try to see and try the item before handing over any money. A genuine seller will be happy for you to do this.

Always take someone with you when you go to view or pay for an instrument.

If you are not able to see the item before a purchase, ask the seller questions to help you fully understand the instrument offered. You may ask for more photographs of the item or for further details. Asking for an instrument serial number or a photo taken from a particular angle will help confirm the item's authenticity.

A genuine seller will be willing and able to give you more information to help you decide if the instrument is what you need.

Take care when paying

Do not send cash or non-traceable payments through the post or internet (Western Union and Bid Pay tend to be used by many fraudsters).

If an advertiser offers PayPal payment, you will possibly be protected by a PayPal protection policy. PayPal is one of the safest payment systems available on the internet at the present time. You do not need a PayPal account to make a payment through PayPal and PayPal does not give the seller your bank or credit card details.

If you pay by cheque, the seller will probably want to wait until the cheque has cleared before they release the instrument.

The simplest way is cash on collection - but don't carry large amounts of cash to an unknown location. If you try the instrument and decide to buy it, you can always leave a deposit and arrange payment with the seller before you take possession of the instrument.

If you pay for an instrument with cash or a cheque, always ask for a written receipt that states how much you have paid, the make, model and serial number (where appropriate) and any other distinguishing features of the instrument. (You could use a printout of the Sell My Violin page and ask the seller to sign that as a receipt)

If the instrument doesn't arrive

If you have paid for an item and it hasn't arrived, firstly contact the seller to see if anything has gone wrong.

Give the seller the benefit of the doubt - it might have been delayed in transit or got lost in the post. If it has got lost, the seller might have insured the delivery in which case you / they might be able to get your money back from the Post Office or courier.

If you still do not receive the item and it looks as if you have become a victim of a scam, contact the police or your local Citizen's Advice Bureau for advice. We cannot get involved in these transactions but would appreciate being informed of problems so that we can track and block such users in the future.

If you want to return the instrument

If you buy from a business seller and the instrument is delivered to you without you seeing it first, they are legally required under the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 to let you return any item purchased within 7 days for a full refund (purchase price plus shipping / postage to you). You do not need a reason to return the item within 7 days but you are required to take reasonable care of the item. The business seller must also refund your return postage costs unless they state that returns are at your expense on the item page.

If you buy the instrument in person or in person from a shop, you do not automatically have a right to return the instrument. Over the counter sale returns of this type are offered completely at the discretion of the individual shop.

If you buy from a private individual, you do not have the automatic right to return the item. Check the instrument advertisement page to see if the seller will accepts returns.

Disclaimer

Sell My Violin does not offer any buyer protection or payment protection programmes and purely provides a medium for the seller to advertise their items and for buyers to locate the items. Sell My Violin is not a party to any contract or agreement entered into between a seller and buyer or potential buyer.