Who hands over first?
Nobody, and that is the point.
A used camera. Four million rupiah. Two people who met in a forum an hour ago.
The seller
Money before the camera leaves
FearShips first, no transfer arrives, camera gone
The buyer
Camera before the money leaves
FearPays first, nothing ships, money gone
Neither position is unreasonable. Taking turns does not resolve it, it only picks which one carries the whole risk.
What actually happens
They meet in a food court
Works, and caps the market at people within driving distance.
One of them swallows the risk
Usually the party who wants the deal more, which is not a principle.
The sale does not happen
Between strangers with no shared history this is the most common outcome.
A working secondhand market gets strangled by a problem that has nothing to do with anyone's honesty.
Have you walked away from a sale because somebody had to go first?
neitherfirst@neitherfirst.site
Neither First does not
- Hold funds at any point
- Take custody of goods
- List, sell or advertise anything
- Charge a percentage of a sale
- Judge who was right when a deal goes wrong