How To Buy Ebay Local Pick Up Only Items And Get Safe Delivery

eBay is undoubtedly the most popular place in the world to find and buy second hand items and get a good deal.

However, while many items such as mobile phones, cameras, clothes can be shipped easily through courier companies or postal services,relatively heavy items such as furniture and cars cannot. Therefore, many eBay sellers select the option “local pickup only” when selling these items. This means there will be less bidders and generally lower selling price.

This guide will give your some useful tips on how to get the eBay local pickup only item you want and get it delivered safely.

Get the item location

Let’s say you have found an item that you want to purchase but only available locally. Save it to your watch list and ask the seller the item location including town name, zip code etc. Once that information is obtained, you can then start finding a courier company to pick up and deliver the eBay item.

Find the delivery company

Firstly, have a look at local directory websites or Yellow Pages and find the correct category for delivery companies.Select delivery companies offering national or regional service. There is no point calling a delivery company that only delivers within your town.

Directory websites such as Yell or Freeindex also provide reviews about particular delivery companies which gives some insights into their service quality.

Once you have got a nice list of regional/national delivery companies, call them up and ask whether they run trips to the item location area and how much they charge. Note down the important details including the next date they are going there, their quotes as well as insurance details.

After getting at least a 5 to 10 quotes, pick the best ones based on prices and date availability.

To save time and effort, you can try transport marketplace websites.

When using these websites, you list your request and delivery companies on the site will give quotes to you. Many of these websites offer quotes in a reverse auction type in which delivery companies bid against each other to give you the best quote.

With the eBay delivery quotes in hand, you are now ready to bid for the item.

Arrange payment and delivery

Once you have won the item, the next step is to pay and get it. Since "local pick up only" eBay sellers normally expect cash on item collection, it is advised that you ask the delivery firm to pay for you.. If the eBay item is rather valuable, you might want to pay via PayPal or bank transfer..

It is important to make sure the delivery company is reliable and trustworthy. Ask for their references, visit their office, check their delivery vehicle capacity and their insurance details. Be a bit more careful if you are dealing with a man with a van remover since they are not always as reliable as delivery companies.

Before the delivery company picks up the item, ask the eBay seller to give you some high resolution pictures of the item so you can compare the item condition upon delivery.

By: Tony Devino

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Tony Devino is a freelance writer who crafts quality content for websites. His work includes articles specialising in online shopping, eBay and using online courier services advising on how to get the safest delivery of goods through a cheap courier.