Buying using Leboncoin from the UK?

[zerogravitas]

Anyone doing it/have any advice on how? There are a few bits and bobs listed there that are hard to come by/astronomically expensive in the UK.

Upon trying to register it seems you need a French or at the least EU phone number to even make an account. Is it even worth finding a workaround for this? Any users here on RB?

 

[Guinessisgoodforyou]

@Woz

 

[Woz]

LBC is essentially France domestic only. It's gone through a radical change in the last 4 years or so - totally bullet proof. Phone numbers are verified too. LBC now acts like a complete broker with a very rigid process for buyer and seller.

I would like to help out, and have in the past, but it is a ball ache to collect purchases from the not so local Relais and do the onward shipping to the UK now - the cost and hassle is simply too much. I no longer ship my Ebay sales to the UK either.

Depending on what it is, if the seller is a professional seller (many are, and many actually have a website too) they may be willing to ship directly to you and circumnavigate LBC entirely. It's my least favourite buying platform (and I don't sell stuff their either) - it can be like pulling teeth. By default I don't buy from anyone without feedback and who doesn't use the full LBC broker system. LBC doesn't use Paypal either.

You can PM me, and I could quickly see about the sellers.

 

[zerogravitas]

Thanks Woz for the clear information. Chimes with my surface understanding of how the platform currently works. I'm sure Brexit hasn't done us any favours either.

I'll drop you a PM, cheers!

 

[Woz]

This is the list of acceptable phone numbers to create an account - France (including overseas territories) and EU only.

https://assistance.leboncoin.info/h...numéro-de-téléphone-pour-accéder-à-mon-compte

The intention of adding some foreign numbers is mainly for visitors to purchase, replying to job adverts (for example seasonal work) or interest in buying property. It's not at all geared up for international buying and selling of goods.

This is what you can do and can't do from abroad - even with a French number and an account!

https://assistance.leboncoin.info/h...souhaite-utiliser-leboncoin-depuis-l-étranger

 

[Glug]

They sure do have some good prices on vintage french stuff.
I checked
Mafac Racer
Super Champion arc en ciel

We need to be back in Europe before I get too old to care

Edit: I did buy some Mafac Racer from rural france last year using Ebay.co.uk, decent price too
A complete lack of communication but they did arrive.

 

[Woz]

They sure do have some good prices on vintage french stuff.
I checked
Mafac Racer
Super Champion arc en ciel

We need to be back in Europe before I get too old to care

Edit: I did buy some Mafac Racer from rural france last year using Ebay.co.uk, decent price too
A complete lack of communication but they did arrive.

That sort of thing doesn't surprise me.

For all those reading this, you need to have in mind Internet and France does have an odd legacy - in short the uptake very very late compared to Anglo speaking nations, and in part due their own enclosed very successful system (Minitel etc.).

The next point is actually buying and selling between individuals in a legal sphere in a country of law (proper law, not made up on the fly, not written in sand, and in the walls of a nation). I still get utterly amazed when I receive a purchase via Ebay.fr from someone in France - they will still go to the trouble of printing the invoice, including it in the shipment / post and hand sign it has paid as full. I've had items with hand written invoices, with meticulously drawn out segments with a ruler and signed as sold and payment is completed. Some have frankly been works of past administrative art, and some especially what I presume are more elderly people pop in a personal hand written note of Thank You. The notion that the electronic platform replaces all of this is still rather young for many.

The other notion of selling abroad, even to say southern French speaking Belgium on-line can be a real journey into the unknown for many and some will not embrace it despite the legal framework is in place for several years - and supported too via at least Ebay.fr and with some effort from the end user. Logistic hurdles in the most part have been solved, and it's ironic it's the French that maintains / hosts the ICC that have done so much to make cross border transactions happen. France on a general private level is not the fastest to venture in a new world, it's all I want to say really.

Ebay is, because of being first, practically one of the very best cross border channels between buyer and seller, whether private or professional. In my experience I have found all French Ebay sellers to be very sincere and committed.

 

[PanoIgano]

Thanks a lot @Woz ! I was always curious to know how the French approach on line buying and what you describe resonates a lot with my experience when using LBC.

Basically, I live in Belgium and without a French mobile number the only way I managed to buy from LBC is to ask the seller if we can do the deal outside LBC and via PayPal. As you can imagine not many agree but so far I have managed to get what I wanted.

 

[Woz]

Thanks a lot @Woz ! I was always curious to know how the French approach on line buying and what you describe resonates a lot with my experience when using LBC.

Basically, I live in Belgium and without a French mobile number the only way I managed to buy from LBC is to ask the seller if we can do the deal outside LBC and via PayPal. As you can imagine not many agree but so far I have managed to get what I wanted.

Interesting - how do you manage to make contact with the seller because it seems most people / LBC now hide telephone numbers and apparently the messaging system won't allow you to initiate a conversion from abroad?

 

[PanoIgano]

I seem to be able to contact sellers via the messaging option within LBC.

It might have to do with the fact that I created an account when I was in France before they put all these new restrictions in place?

Can’t tell for sure but it still works for me fine.