UPDATE 2nd page....

I just received an unpostable, but highly requested book.  It has water damage, no water staining, but clearly has been wet.  I have several options, and I'm not sure what to do.  I could mark the book RWP and ask for my credit back...I really don't feel like haggling over a credit.  I had to do this recently with someone else, and I ended up feeling like the bad guy.  I could also mark the book RWP and not worry about asking for my credit back.  Since it is a sought after book, I'm sure I could offer it as a freebie to get an order off my shelf.  However, the sender could still get mad and say I could have PM'd that it had a problem. 

What would you do? 

You should mark it as RWP! It is stated in the rules that no books can have water damage. I would tell the person this and ask for my Credit back! That is another book that you could get! I would then offer it as a Freebie. You said that you could offer it as a Freebie and then get an order off your shelf. But if you offer it as a Freebie and you do get an order off your shelf you are still not getting your Credit back and you are out 1 Credit for a book that you can not post. It is up to you but I would mark it RWP and try to get my Credit back!!! :)

Sheena, the RWAP now has an option to mark it as the transaction was settled to your satisfaction or not. So if the book is readable and you figure you'll get your credit's worth out of it, then mark it RWAP, tell the person that it's unpostable and why. If you ask for a credit back, give a deadline for the response. If you don't want to bother with asking for a credit, you can wait for the acknowledgement from the other person and then decide whether to mark the transaction as settled or not.

I would mark it RWP, but it's up to you if you want to PM the person and ask for your credit back.  I know what you mean about feeling like the bad guy, but sometimes you just have to take it all with a grain of salt.  I used to not ask for my credits back for that very reason, but then I realized that if I was spending a hard earned credit, then I ought to be getting something in return that is postable.  It can't hurt to ask.  Some people are very quick to return a credit if a problem is pointed out.  Others aren't worth arguing with, but you're not going to know what kind of person it is unless you go out on a limb and zip off that PM.  Good luck!

The interesting thing is that I have requestor conditions, including a blurb about PBS conditions...no writing, no water damage, etc. 

The member wrapped the book really well, plastic wrap, heavy brown paper, and strong shipping tape.  I'm just guessing, but I think that the member didn't realize it was water damaged.  I mean, if you know it is water damaged, wouldn't you leave off the plastic wrap and hope the member thinks it got damaged by USPS.  I know, none of that matters b/c it is against the rules, and everyone should double check their books before mailing.  I just hate confrontation!  ;)

Definately mark it RWP.  If this is a unique occurance for this member, it won't hurt them, but if they're habitually sending out damaged books, it will bring them to R&R's attention.  To ask for your credit back or not is up to you.  If the member gets upset "and say I could have PM'd  him that it had a problem", you can remind him that's not how PBS works -- problem books all get marked as such, regardless of what sort of solution you work out with the sender.

Cheers,

Catt

I would mark it RWP. You don't have to ask for your credit back.  If they PM with an apology and/or offer you a credit back you can go back and say that to PBS.  Not marking RWP just encourages people send out bad books or books they haven't looked at closely enough and hope they don't get called out on them. 

OK...marked it RWP and I PM'd the member and very nicely requested the credit back.  (crossing fingers)

Thanks guys for your advice.  You prompted me to do what I know I should do!  Sometimes you just need a little encouragement.  :)

I am glad you asked for your credit back. I hate being a meany, but I also don't like people getting credits for unpostables. If they never get to keep them then it will discourage them from doing it, if they are getting to keep credits for sending unpostable WL books, they might keep doing it.

Good for your for doing the right thing!  I hope you get your credit back

From one non-confrontational person to another:

At least you never meet face to face. It's much easier to confront (nicely of course) on a computer where you don't HAVE to deal with them again if you don't want! :)

That is true, Holly.  The computer does make it easier. 

You guys are right...marking books RWP and requesting a credit back will weed out people who send bad books. 

I'd mark it received with problem, and ask for my credit back(and then try to remain calm if I didn't get it)--then I'd post it as a  freebie with an order from my shelf(because the books on my shelf need a new home anyway, right)--well after I read it of course. 

Since no one has mentioned it yet, I will.  If the pages are just wavy, but not hard or brittle or feel thicker, then it might not be water damage.  It seems a lot of newer books are just made with cheap paper that gets wavy quickly (sometimes already wavy when you buy it).  Since you said there was no staining from water damage, maybe this is an option.  If this is the case, then the book was postable.

It has "wrinkling" that you see when water gets on paper and the pages have that stiff, crunchy feeling. 

Thanks for the input, though.  I have a few wavy books that I received brand new from Amazon. 

Seeing if this link works...

 http://s306.photobucket.com/albums/nn254/dazeerae/

If it works, can you clearly see the water damage? 

<<can you clearly see the water damage?>>

Yup, and it is clearly liquid damage and not just a "wave pages" issue.  Very not postable.

Cheers,

Catt

Since there's no staining, I'd try to press that out.  It looks very repairable to me.

Thanks for checking out the pics.  I'm not sure how I would press it out.  How do you do it?

I just wanted to pop my head in this thread & say that this is one instance out of a number of books I have received.  Most books I get are in really good or like new condition.  I've also gotten a lot of good deals here from nice swappers.  I'm feeling the need to spread a little PBS joy.

There are instructions here, Sheena:  http://www.paperbackswap.com/forum/topic.php?t=107768

Down toward the bottom under water/moisture warped books.

If you don't want to bother with asking for a credit, you can wait for the acknowledgement from the other person and then decide whether to mark the transaction as settled or not.

Question related to that: I recently received a book full of fresh yellow highlighting.  I marked it RWP, quoted the book guidelines on highlighting being a no-no, and asked for my credit back.  The sender said she didn't know it was against the rules but quickly gave me back my credit.  I expected to have a way to mark this as settled but don't.  Was it automatically marked as settled when she gave me back my credit, or am I missing something? 

Pattie, if you go into your transaction archive there should be a button on that transaction to mark it as resolved. Its new within the last month.

Thanks much, Melanie!  I figured I had to be missing something, and sure enough, I was. 

Sheena,

What was the resolution with this....did you get your credit back? From your pics it is obvious water damage.  You deserve that credit back! I've been a member here for several years and have traded hundreds of books. I have had my share of receiving damaged books and have always asked for the credits back but I am really getting tired of it now. Some people get very nasty and want you to mail the book back or never reply and then you lose out on the credit. I am getting very disheartened about it as the last 3 books I have received have all gotten to me damaged by the sender. I'm tired of complaining and fighting to get my credits back. The first book has a huge black ink stain like a bottle of ink was spilled on the edges of the pages. It's not a black remainder mark as it's soaked through like a stain. The second book was SO disgusting it looked like it could have been in someones flooded basement. It was a childrens book and my son opened it and was disgusted!!! It was stained front to back..cover to cover and all the pages in between with a brown stain, YUCK!! It was SO obvious I cannot imagine the sender didn't notice it. It was packed in a readypost cardboard envelope that must have been purchased at the PO and sent first class! I checked the envelope for stains and it was completely clean. I PM'd the person last week and have heard no answer back. The third book arrived with the back cover creased and inside is an obvious dirt marking from a shoe/bootprint!! It looked like it was stepped on and the back pages are wavy and look water damaged as well as pages in the middle of the book! I haven't sent a PM to this one or the ink stain as I am just so tired of this! I wish that they had a feature to list book condition and for us to review each other and then we could avoid these type of traders.  I currently have my shelf on hold and plan to use up my credits and am seriously considering closing my account here and mpving to another trading site instead. I really like it here otherwise, it's a great community.  I  wish that we didn't have to fight so hard to get our credits back.

WWYD?!!

Lately I have had a high ratio questionable books sent to me (or offered to be sent to me), and I have to wonder if new members are either overwhelmed by the amount of information at PBS, and they skip over the book guidelines, or they think that the guidelines are suggestions rather than requirements.  I just had a member try to argue with me that red underlining in a non-textbook was OK, and another member told me she had no idea that highlighting was not OK in a non-textbook (however, as noted above, she did give me my credit back). 

Of course, on the flip side, last fall a member who claimed she had been a member for 4 years -- which was impossible, since this was 2007 and PBS was only formed in 2004, but I digress -- insisted that advanced reader copies were perfectly acceptable for swapping here and that *I* was incredibly rude for telling her they were not.  So it isn't just new members that have problems following the rules. 

I think the bottom line is that there will always be some bad apples, just as there are in almost every other situation.  Hopefully the new system for reporting and following up on problems will do a good job of sorting them out.  And we can be thankful for the majority of the members who send us nice, clean, repostable books.