About a week and a half ago I bought a sewing machine from Craigslist. I am brand new to sewing so I didn't want to pay a lot of money for a sewing machine. I just wanted something basic and inexpensive, since my projects are very basic as well. (Note: I know that Craigslist is notorious for scammers; I'm not wanting to be told to NOT use Craigslist, I am just wanting to know what to do about this situation.) I emailed the poster one night, and the poster replied that they still had the machine, it is in great working order and to call them the next day to make arrangements. I should add that the email was sent from what appeared to be a business name, "Thrifty Village." I called her the next day, and we actually played phone tag to find a good time to pick it up. One of the times I tried to call her, she must have accidentally answered unknowingly, and I kept saying, "Hello?" When I finally heard her talking, I listened- only to find out that she wasn't talking to me. What I heard her say was, "No, I don't think they'll notice" amongst other background noise. I thought that sounded fishy, but I chose to believe that she wasn't talking about us and the machine.
So I go to her house, and she shows me the machine. I tell her I want to make sure it's working, so she gets it out of the box and plugs it in. I press on the pedal and see that the needle moves up and down. Looks good to me! So I give her $85 and go home with the machine.
Fast forward a little over a week later, and I take the sewing machine to a 1 on 1 sewing lesson at a local sewing business. The lady shows me multiple things, then comes time for the needle to dip down and grab the thread from the bobbin. (Before that lesson, I didn't even know that a needle was supposed to do that.) When she tries this maneuver, the needle won't grab the bobbin thread. She tries multiple times, then has the machine mechanic look at it. He opened it all up and said that the timing is off. He said that once the timing is off, the machine isn't able to do any sewing functions. He said he could fix it for me for $89. Seeing that I only paid $85 for the machine, I declined his offer.
Later that day, my daughter had a dr. appt in the area of the seller. I debated calling or emailing the seller beforehand, but decided to just go. My husband and I went, but there was no answer at her door. We tried again later in the day, and her son answered saying she was at dinner. We had to get home to put the baby to bed, so we never got to talk in person with her. I tried to call her when we got home, and left a message, but didn't hear back. I sent her an email after that VERY kindly explaining the situation, saying I didn't want trouble, just wanted my money back since the item claimed to be working, but it was not working PROPERLY. She replied that the machine worked when she sold it to me, as seen by the stitch in the fabric that was left in the box (though I don't know what she was talking about; there was no fabric). She said all items sold on Craigslist are "as is" and no refund should be expected. She quoted the Craigslist website.
I know that there's nothing through Craigslist that would get me my money back. I'm wondering what else I can do since she claimed the product was in great condition, and it clearly wasn't. Is there anything I could do with her business, since she contacted me through business email? Should I take her to small claims court? Would it even be worth it? $85 is kind of a lot of money for a young family with a baby. Advice please? Thank you!
So I go to her house, and she shows me the machine. I tell her I want to make sure it's working, so she gets it out of the box and plugs it in. I press on the pedal and see that the needle moves up and down. Looks good to me! So I give her $85 and go home with the machine.
Fast forward a little over a week later, and I take the sewing machine to a 1 on 1 sewing lesson at a local sewing business. The lady shows me multiple things, then comes time for the needle to dip down and grab the thread from the bobbin. (Before that lesson, I didn't even know that a needle was supposed to do that.) When she tries this maneuver, the needle won't grab the bobbin thread. She tries multiple times, then has the machine mechanic look at it. He opened it all up and said that the timing is off. He said that once the timing is off, the machine isn't able to do any sewing functions. He said he could fix it for me for $89. Seeing that I only paid $85 for the machine, I declined his offer.
Later that day, my daughter had a dr. appt in the area of the seller. I debated calling or emailing the seller beforehand, but decided to just go. My husband and I went, but there was no answer at her door. We tried again later in the day, and her son answered saying she was at dinner. We had to get home to put the baby to bed, so we never got to talk in person with her. I tried to call her when we got home, and left a message, but didn't hear back. I sent her an email after that VERY kindly explaining the situation, saying I didn't want trouble, just wanted my money back since the item claimed to be working, but it was not working PROPERLY. She replied that the machine worked when she sold it to me, as seen by the stitch in the fabric that was left in the box (though I don't know what she was talking about; there was no fabric). She said all items sold on Craigslist are "as is" and no refund should be expected. She quoted the Craigslist website.
I know that there's nothing through Craigslist that would get me my money back. I'm wondering what else I can do since she claimed the product was in great condition, and it clearly wasn't. Is there anything I could do with her business, since she contacted me through business email? Should I take her to small claims court? Would it even be worth it? $85 is kind of a lot of money for a young family with a baby. Advice please? Thank you!
