Private sale of a fish tank advice please

[bnessa]

Hi and thankyou in advance for any help and advice offered, We recently advertised a large fishtank for sale on an sales site on Facebook market place, we put a picture of the fishtank fully stocked with fish, rock ect for display purposes we explained that the actually tank and stand only was for sale we put on the advert a description, the size of the tank in cms and the fact the tank was collection only and it would need 2/3 strong men to move it it also states on advert no delivery, somebody contacted us through fb messenger asking about the tank and if he could come and see it that night, I told him I was still cleaning it out but he woukd have to give me time to empty and clean it, the person said it would take them an hour or so to get to us so I agreed to let them come over. I asked them on messenger if he had people to help move it as it was mega heavy he replied "yes" they turned up an hour later, a man in his 60s and a young lad (the person I assumed was buying it) they looked at the tank and said they wanted it, they paid the cash to my girlfriend and then tried to lift the tank to take it to their transport, I offered to help as they were clearly struggling they said they had only come in a car but it should fit in. As they couldn't lift it due to the weight, I offered them my trolley to put it on, they accepted they then preceeded to try and lift it again onto the trolley. I again offered to help as they were again struggling and they accepted but as they slid the tank off the stand the plastic weir pipe snapped off the tank and broke, we assumed after having a quick look that it shouldn't be a problem fitting a new plastic pipe so we assumed no problem. They then decided that due to the weight and size it would not fit in the car and asked if they could leave it at the property til the next day until they could arrange a van and more people. I agreed to this but told them they woukd have to move it out of the living room as it was in the way (it's a very large tank ) they agreed and we moved it stil on the trolley outside. They said they would be back the next day with a van. They took the lid to the tank with them including the lights to the tank. The next morning my gf went into the garden and noticed there was water all over the decking after taking a closer look we noticed that the tank had cracked on the bottom glass and was leaking it was a spider type crack steming from the weir pipe, I contacted the people who had purchased the tank to explain and asked what they wanted to do about it. Obviously they weren't very happy they then went on to say that they wanted a full refund on the tank as it was my fault as they bought a water tight tank. I said it was there full responsibility to move the tank and it wasn't my fault if they came unprepared without suitible people to lift or transport, I said I didn't want to fall out with them and as a god will gesture I woukd refund half of their money but they have refused, I have received a letter from them this morning saying they are plannin g to take me to court, I had to laugh also on the morning after they bought the tank before I had told them it had cracked they sent me a message asking if it woukd fit through their door so they obviously had not measured the door beforehand obviously this is irrelevant now in light of what happened but does show how il prepared they were. Any advice would be very much appreciated ps the person taking me to court is not the person who was messaging me about the buying the tank that was his son the father is taking me to court.

[ostell]

So who paid the cash (and could you paragraph your post please to make it easier to read)

[bnessa]

I'm pretty sure it was the older gentleman who handed my gf the cash for the tank however it was the younger man who we had been dealing with on messenger he said the tank was for his wife in the messages. I will try and edit the post and put it into paragraphs thanks

[bnessa]

They did not ask for a receipt either even though we offered

[Setmefree3]

Did you keep the messages? They took the lid so I guess they were happy with the purchase at the time they left. Not having a receipt I suppose would make it tricky for them as where’s the proof of purchase.

It reminds me of when I bought a car from an auction. No sooner the hammer went down, the radiator blew. However it was still my responsibility as it was as seen.

[bnessa]

Hi yes I have the original advert and I have the Facebook messages saying they woukd need people to remove it due to the weight ect I'm willing to go to court but obviously I'm worried that he will win and il be responsible for all the costs as far as I'm concerned it's no different from buying a TV from argos and me dropping it on the way out it woul6d be my fault but obviously they arnt seeing it like that, just can't understand how they think it's my fault lol

[Setmefree3]

I could be wrong but can’t see how this is your fault. They saying they are taking you to court for money back, which in my opinion admits that they were happy with the tank when the money was handed over. You have the evidence in your messages, being cheeky I would probably charge them for storage :-)

At the end of the day when they bought it, the responsibility no longer belongs to you. They have admitted that by asking for the money back.