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Topic: inadequate RWAP choices

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rutabaker avatar
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Subject: inadequate RWAP choices
Date Posted: 2/12/2013 5:50 PM ET
Member Since: 1/3/2010
Posts: 30,381
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I haven't had many RWAPs but today I received a book, not a text book, with writing and underlining in it. I marked it as a problem, but the drop down menu didn't give me much of choice. The closest I could get was 'damaged by sender' and I don't know if that's the actual case. It could be a book the sender bought at a USB or FOL sale and never read. I would have preferred the option of 'does not meet PBS requirements', but that isn't one of the choices. And without marking one of the choices on the drop down menu the blank for actually describing the problem does not appear.

How to handle this in future?

JonnieAngel avatar
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Date Posted: 2/12/2013 5:59 PM ET
Member Since: 10/26/2008
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Damaged by sender is correct.  Even if they didn't physically damage the book, they sent it damaged.

Consider it Accessory to RWAP

smiley

FlouncePony avatar
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Date Posted: 2/12/2013 6:21 PM ET
Member Since: 12/31/2009
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Agree with Jonnie. Anything that was in unpostable condition when it left the sender's hands = damaged by sender. 

It's true that they may not have read the book but really, why wouldn't a person take the 2 1/2 seconds necessary to flip the pages before sending it out? 98% of the books I post here came from Goodwill or were given to me by my family. I have never read them. I still check them over because I am responsible for what I post here.



Last Edited on: 2/12/13 6:24 PM ET - Total times edited: 1
EmilyKat avatar
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Date Posted: 2/12/2013 6:24 PM ET
Member Since: 7/19/2008
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If you go to the Help Center, they further explain the categories.

Damaged by Sender

And the results.  (Different problems now have different results.)

  • Damaged by Sender
    • You will be required to describe the book condition problem in a text box - the text you type in will be included in an email, and sent as a Personal Message, to the sender.
    • You will have the option to request a credit refund - this is checked by default for this problem type.  If this option is checked, the email the sender gets will include the request for a credit refund. If you uncheck this option, the email sent to the sender will NOT mention or request a credit refund.
    • If this was a Wish List book (and there are no other copies available), you will go back in your previous place in line for the book.  If there are other copies available, the book will go onto your Reminder List.


Last Edited on: 2/12/13 6:26 PM ET - Total times edited: 1
Generic Profile avatar
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Date Posted: 2/12/2013 7:27 PM ET
Member Since: 11/9/2009
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Just a FYI.  Any book can be a text book.  They do have to get your permission to send a book with underlining, highlighting or writing.

EmilyKat avatar
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Date Posted: 2/12/2013 7:38 PM ET
Member Since: 7/19/2008
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Yes. The line between "textbook" and not was so fuzzy that PBS declared that all books were covered by the textbook rule.
IlliniAlum83 avatar
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Date Posted: 2/12/2013 8:24 PM ET
Member Since: 4/28/2009
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I got burned recently with a WL book that I suspect was used as a textbook-- the book came with the cover laminated.  But I didn't see til I started reading it that the first short story (and only that one) had a lot of pencil underlinings in it and one short phrase was lightly highlighted in yellow-- I checked it when it arrived but in poor lighting I missed the pencil marks and the single highlight.  The sender did not ask me before sending if I was OK with this condition,

rutabaker avatar
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Date Posted: 2/13/2013 6:29 PM ET
Member Since: 1/3/2010
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Thank you for your comments.

My RWAP comment went to the sender yesterday, but the PM remains unread.

How long must I wait for the sender's reply before taking contact with PBS in order to get my credit returned?

thameslink avatar
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Date Posted: 2/15/2013 8:46 AM ET
Member Since: 2/13/2007
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I wait one week. Many people do not check their accounts daily, but 7 days is a sufficient time to wait for a response.

melanied avatar
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Date Posted: 2/15/2013 10:19 AM ET
Member Since: 8/16/2007
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The Help Center document on Problem swap follow up is below. After you mark the follow up in a week, you should wait a few more days before using the Contact Us link to send in Feedback in order to give the site time to talk to the member.

Follow-up on Problem swaps

added 3/13/2008

If you as the requestor marked a book received with a problem, you can now provide follow-up on the situation from your Transaction Archive.

  • This will allow us to screen more effectively for those accounts that are sending problem books and NOT resolving the problems, and also allow us to avoid excessively penalizing senders who might make a mistake, but who do resolve the problem.
  • Senders who send problem books and do not resolve the problem will have their accounts double-marked "behind the scenes"; if a pattern of this emerges on a sender's account, it will jeopardize membership .

Before submitting follow-up on a problem swap:

  • You must have sent a PM to the sender, clearly asking for a response (and a credit refund if that is desired)
    • You can send the PM during the process of marking the book received, OR using the PM button on the swap in your transaction archive as described in How do I contact another member?.
  • You should allow the sender a week at least to respond to your PM and resolve the swap.
  • You should check the member's bookshelf (by clicking his or her highlighted name on the swap, which will take you to his or her bookshelf or profile, where you can click the Books button) to see if his or her account is on vacation. If the account continues to be on vacation for more than a week, you can contact us to find out when you might expect a response from the requestor.

To give follow-up on a Problem Swap:

  • Find the problem transaction in your Transaction Archive (linked from the top of your My Account main page)
  • Click
    • this button appears only on the requestor's account
  • Choose one of the options given in the menu next to Update Status
    • Sender resolved the problem
    • Sender did NOT resolve the problem
    • Sender did not respond to PM asking to discuss the problem
    • Marked problem swap in error
  • Click Submit to submit the follow-up information

What the options mean

  • Sender resolved the problem means the swap does not need to be resolved further
    • the resolution could have been that the sender refunded the credit
    • the resolution could have been that the sender sent another book as replacement
    • the resolution could have been that the sender offered resolution, but you declined
  • Sender did NOT resolve the problem means that the sender responded to your PM, but did not settle this swap to your satisfaction, and there is no further negotiation happening
    • this could be because you disagreed about a book's condition
    • this could be because you did not like the resolution that she or he offered
    • this could be because the sender refused to refund credit or replace the book (or promised to replace the book or refund the credit, but book/refund was not received)
  • Sender did not respond to PM means that your PM asked for a response, but the sender did not respond
    • You should not choose this option if the sender responded (even if you don't agree with what the sender said)
    • You should not choose this option if your PM did not ask for a response
    • You should not choose this option if you never sent the sender a PM at all
  • Marked as problem swap in error means that you made a mistake when you marked it as a problem swap
    • Choose this option if there was actually no problem with the transaction

What happens when you submit follow-up

  • Sender resolved the problem
    • this removes the "Was Problem Resolved?" button from the transaction
    • this does NOT change the problem icon in the Transaction Archive
    • Adds the notation that the problem was resolved to the Transaction Archive
      • this text appears on both sender 's and requestor's transaction archives
    • Changes the swap status "behind-the-scenes" so that this problem swap does not count as heavily against the sender as an unresolved problem
  • Sender did NOT resolve the problem
    • this removes the "Was Problem Resolved?" button from the transaction
    • does NOT change the problem icon in the Transaction Archive
    • Adds the notation that the problem was NOT resolved to the Transaction Archive
      • this text appears on both sender 's and requestor's transaction archives
    • Adds a "double mark" against the sender in his or her account record "behind the scenes"
  • Sender did not respond to PM
    • this sends an email to the sender, notifying him or her that his or her account has been marked as nonresponsive in a problem swap
    • the email refers the member to the Help Center information about problem swaps, and tells the sender that he or she needs to resolve this problem
    • this does NOT change the problem icon in the Transaction Archive
    • this does NOT remove the "Was Problem Resolved?" button from the Transaction Archive (so that further follow-up can be given when/if the sender responds about this swap)
  • Marked received with a problem in error
    • this removes the "Was Problem Resolved?" button from the transaction
    • this changes the status of the transaction to "Completed Successfully" on both sender and requestor's transaction archives

Note that once follow-up is submitted, it can't be changed. The only follow-up option which allows further follow-up to be submitted is "Sender did not respond to PM".



Last Edited on: 2/15/13 10:21 AM ET - Total times edited: 1
rutabaker avatar
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Date Posted: 2/15/2013 11:00 AM ET
Member Since: 1/3/2010
Posts: 30,381
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Thanks for the information.