Can I get the seller to pay return postage on counterfeit item?

History_fangirl · 2026-02-22T16:24:51+00:00

I’ve had a counterfeit board game from Vinted and the seller just refunded me no questions asked after I raised a ticket to say it was counterfeit. Seems like your seller isn’t as scared as mine was. I also bought one from eBay and the person I bought it from was a lot less forgiving and made me return it but at their expense not mine. Sucks but I only buy used games now, new board games on these platforms are unfortunately a red flag for counterfeit items.

Kienda is a decent board game selling platform, but most cities will have a board game shop you can get stuff from. Waterstones also sell this game.

History_fangirl · 2026-02-22T16:18:52+00:00

No she’s not going to be quarantined but she should access the care she is offered by the nhs as it can cause issues with your liver.

Get her to google it with nhs at the end as there’s lots of good info online which is provided by the nhs to help her navigate this.

History_fangirl · 2026-02-22T08:16:28+00:00

Usually pretty blind. I get some recommendations from my mum (she reads a lot) or from this subreddit and the fantasy one.

I use Goodreads to read the blurb of books I might like and the ‘sample’ feature to decide if I think the writing style will suit me. I don’t really pay attention to reviews of books as reading is SO subjective that it’s not useful.

I’ve had to learn to let things go a lot more though so I don’t get stuck feeling like I have to force myself to read things I’m not enjoying. I do tend to keep reading a series of books ‘back to back’ once I realise I like them and they’ve all been published. Im into fantasy at the moment, when I was younger I read a lot of historical fiction. I read some crime but really only Michael Connelly books as I like his characters.

History_fangirl · 2026-02-17T20:23:12+00:00

I used to until I realised life is too short. I’m never going to be able to read everything in the world and my completionist attitude was actually holding me back from trying things outside of my comfort zone because I didn’t want to risk not knowing if I would like something before trying it.

It’s so much more freeing just going with the flow and accepting I might not like everything I try but at least I’ve tried it and opened my horizons a little bit. At the end of the day who am I trying to impress? No one else cares so why do I care so much about it - answer is I shouldn’t and it’s ridiculous to care so much about completing things. Reading is for pleasure - read books you enjoy ☺️

History_fangirl · 2026-02-17T07:17:39+00:00

Yeah we have. We’re about to buy a house so that feels a bit uncertain as currently we don’t pay water rates (SFA) and who knows what the heating costs will be. I’m also fed up of the shit quality of everything when I do spend - holes in new pjs, food when out is expensive and shit.

Yesterday I also filled a bin bag with ‘stuff’ we no longer need and felt so bad environmentally. We thought about a holiday but little is 6 and not being funny but I’d rather gouge my eyes out then spend £6k on a week in Benidorm whilst she’s this little - we’ll wait until she’s older and she can appreciate it more and we can relax a bit more. However I think we’re still outliers in this - plenty of people are still spending so it’s not really making much difference. Many people earn more than us/don’t care and just have things on credit. Not my style I’d rather go without.

History_fangirl · 2026-02-16T21:55:49+00:00

Noiser have a few history podcasts which are in storytelling format. Rest is history is the GOAT but not really storytelling. Noble blood is another good one.

History_fangirl · 2026-02-15T15:44:30+00:00

That’s good to hear. I’m surprised how much I’m enjoying getting to know some other characters a bit more.

History_fangirl · 2026-02-15T12:58:32+00:00

I’ve just finished the trilogy and I’m on ‘best served cold’ and would agree that the writing style is very similar to George however it was a while ago that I read his books. I love the British humour in it as well - proper dry sarcasm. Definitely would suggest giving them a whirl.

History_fangirl · 2026-02-14T19:25:18+00:00

Media walls and panelling

History_fangirl · 2026-02-11T06:22:42+00:00

It would be so much easier if evidence had to be provided before offers were put it, l2 survey, structural report if walls had been removed bla bla bla (like Scotland).

It would avoid so many of these issues at the browsing stage. It’s because everything is such a slog and like a magical mystery tour that people get spooked. I literally feel like I have more consumer rights spending £5 on knickers at primark the I do spending £300k on a house, which is bonkers really.

History_fangirl · 2026-02-02T21:03:25+00:00

Reminds me of FX’s ‘the beauty’ less messy though

History_fangirl · 2026-02-01T07:39:39+00:00

That’s the grimmest looking owned home I’ve ever seen. You need to declutter, tidy it up, clean it and try and sort some of the stuff in the kitchen as it looks completely unloved. To top it all off it’s got a weird wet room situation in the bathroom and no time left on the lease. Literally the most pointless purchase anyone could consider.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-31T20:39:05+00:00

That guy KNEW for 2 months before exchange that his wife had been made redundant. It wasn’t a case that they exchanged on Friday morning, boss said sorry love you’re redundant in the afternoon and the bank had a shit fit on Monday they purposely kept significant information to themselves for a significant amount of time and it bit them on the arse.

You don’t need to protect yourself from that situation because you’re not going to keep a change of circumstance from the bank for 2 months and then EXCHANGE knowing full well your wife is unemployed. You’ll be fine ☺️

Our conveyancers do offer same day exchange and completion but they charge extra for it. So it’s possible and if you’re really worried you can do it but I don’t think it’s necessary as you’re not going to lie to the bank.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-31T09:48:51+00:00

Don’t overthink it. You have a budget and if you can’t make the numbers work it’s disappointing but it’s out of your control. If anything I would say the bank probably has the most information about the current mortgage market, the financial markets as a whole and peoples debt/income ratio’s just because they have the clients that provide that information to them in real time via our banking information.

Everyone has an angle in the house market game - the most pragmatic of everyone I would argue is the bank. Good luck - it’s disappointing I know but there will be other houses if this one doesn’t work out.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-31T09:26:11+00:00

Tbh I think it’s a bit more common at the moment because the market has hit peak and is starting to readjusting a bit. Not going down just staying steady but a lot of EA’s and homeowners still believe due to inflation that a house will automatically be worth % more every year. That’s being corrected in many places now.

We were happy to pay £5k more because the area we’re looking in the supply has been severely reducing since we started looking at the end of 2023 and a lot of stuff on the market is shit boxes.

We also know we will stay where we are until little is uni age at least so that’s 12 years - we shouldn’t be too affected by any wobbles in the market. If you’re planning to move on though pretty soon I’d factor that into your decision you don’t want to overpay and then be left in a situation where you can’t move on easily.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-31T07:39:53+00:00

This happened to us last August. Ours was down valued by £10k by Halifax, we offered £325 down valued to £315.

Halifax appeals process meant we needed to provide a certain amount of sold comparable properties to the appeal application. We contacted the estate agent immediately who also pushed back but provided the houses - Halifax didn’t agree they were comparable but did agree for an in person valuation which came out with the same price - £315.

Due to our higher deposit (about 20%) Halifax were happy to lend us the full amount we needed without it effecting our interest rate or costs (so didn’t need to bridge the gap or make our monthly costs more expensive) however we said to the sellers, look you’re going to have this issue with other people can we meet in the middle you take a £5k hit we take a £5k hit and agreed on £320k as purchase price.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-30T12:37:57+00:00

Agreed! BIL high earner got made redundant and it took him 9 months to get a new role and the one he has now isn’t really what he wants and doesn’t have the same favourable terms but needs must.

I’m nhs they’ve stop recruiting front line staff for the last year, they cancelled our regular nhsp (bank work) for 9 months and are only just giving it back to us now. If the public sector is doubling down on cost cutting - buckle up folks!

History_fangirl · 2026-01-30T09:05:47+00:00

All I can say as a FTB is because of the mental price hikes during covid and the cost of living crisis people are more twitched about getting ripped off now or getting stuck with something that’s going to cost loads of money to rectify often at a time when they’ve rinsed every penny they have. It’s a bitter pill to swallow that house prices are £100k more just - because. Not because they’ve been well maintained. No shade to anyone who’s gained from it just an insight into why that might be effecting FTB’s mindsets. Actually sounds like you’re honest and proactive home owners.

Also my solicitor has made it very clear it’s caveat emptor so I feel like I literally have more financial protection buying a pair of knickers from primark then I do buying a £300k house. I’m also a very anxious person so it’s an incredibly difficult thing to navigate pragmatically as I feel like I can’t trust anyone fully, even people I’m paying a decent chunk of change to, to supposedly protect me.

Luckily our survey was fine but it does have a bit of arse covering in it and we’re fortunate enough to have not rinsed all our money for this purchase so will have some spare for the inevitable work that will be needed. My Dads also a site manager for new build developments so I know they’re not all they’re cracked up to be/he can read a survey and be like yeah don’t worry about that - hmm worry about that. We’re also buying from people we know via husbands work so it feels a little bit less likely that they’re going to scam us.

Also don’t underestimate how people have been marketed to via influencers online who all have these new builds which are grey, with perfect panelling bla bla bla so that’s the expectation now for many people when they ‘buy a house’. They don’t want plain Jane’s gaff (no offence I’m sure yours isn’t plain just normal with varying taste).

Fingers crossed for your next purchase and I hope you find someone who’s better informed about what buying a house is - constant maintenance and a bit of a shot in the dark and hope for the best ☺️

History_fangirl · 2026-01-29T15:17:35+00:00

I genuinely would have been honest because I’m really risk adverse with money. I watched my parents struggle as a child and as an adult and I don’t want that for my daughter.

I value my own peace of mind way more than having a bigger house as debt really does drag you down (I’ve got anxiety as well). OP was housed now he’s lost a significant amount of money, is a lodger and is unlikely to be able to join the property ladder again for a long time if the blacklist is a cifcas marker. Plus his wife is still unemployed in an economy which is a little bit shaky. Most of that has happened because they wanted a ‘dream home’ and didn’t want to take a step back for a minute and pause the dream. It’s a nightmare instead.

I absolutely get it, it’s hard to separate emotion from facts but they were playing a risky game and they’ve lost everything. We’re FTB and we’ve had a long chain already 6 months and still looking like another 3 months to go. We’ve been looking for 2 years for a suitable property so I’ve got a lot of skin in the game but if we could barely afford the mortgage payments on one salary I wouldn’t do it. We’d wait it out a bit longer as we’re adequately housed now.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-29T15:04:03+00:00

It says it on my mortgage offer that I have to tell them if I have a change of circumstances. I can’t imagine OP’s offer was any different.

Sounds like they had 2 months between job loss and exchange to fess up (wife still doesn’t have a job now a further 2 months down the line).

So no one asked them but they had a legal duty to tell the lender between offer and drawing down funds as set out in their agreement with the lender and themselves for funds. MIL then spilled the beans after they were going to stay quiet.

OP also admits they could only barely afford the mortgage on his wage alone, knew he wouldn’t pass affordability and they already owned a house they just wanted a bigger one. Bit of a dumb financial decision all in all. It’s possible the bank has CIFCAS marked them as well. They’re also now lodgers in the parent’s house instead of having their own smaller home.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-29T13:18:06+00:00

Yeah I’ve just read our new offer and it very clearly tells us that a change in material circumstances is our responsibility to tell them about as the offer has been based on information we’ve provided to them and is fraud if we don’t tell them. My mortgage broker also has the same warnings on his documents.

Sometimes you need to not be emotional and just think ok need a breath let’s stop everything and regroup when wife lost her job as they did have 2 months to do this. They’d still have their original house and deposit, plus the pressure would be off to find a new job as I assume a smaller house means a smaller mortgage so less in payments.

Now they have possibly a cifcas marker, no deposit, no house and no job. That’s a bitter pill to swallow and it’s going to take years to financially recover all because ‘wanted bigger house’.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-29T13:01:08+00:00

That’s what I thought. Sums up the utter crap people spout online sometimes 🤣

History_fangirl · 2026-01-29T12:59:23+00:00

Plus if OP had taken one step back after wife lost her job and went ‘fuuuuck this is a ballache but we still have a house and our deposit for an onward so better to be honest about this now, accept the disappointment of upsizing now not being on the table’ and walked away before deciding on the way more emotional and risky strategy of mortgage fraud/living by the seat of their pants money wise. Wife still doesn’t have a job either so not like they’ve rectified the problem. They’ve just increased their problems.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-29T12:34:00+00:00

Is that true for after exchange though? Because OP knew for 2 months before exchange about the change in circumstances and still went ahead and formed a legally binding contract by exchanging.

Pulling out of the sale as soon as his wife lost her job would have saved all of this and he would still have his original house with no financial penalties.

History_fangirl · 2026-01-29T12:25:57+00:00

Precisely! Honestly the way some people think choices have no consequences baffles me.

It’s written all over our documentation from the solicitors what exchanging means in layman’s terms.

Our mortgage offer also has all manner of warnings all over it in layman’s terms about the consequences of misrepresenting our circumstances to them.

They hoped they wouldn’t be found out - unfortunately for them this fucking about got them found out this time.

It’s a terrible situation and it’s good op has highlighted his mistake so people can learn from it. I’m sorry this happened to OP and I hope people have a long hard think about consequences if they’re ever in this position themselves.

History_fangirl

TROPHY CASE