Sorry, another question, if he does agree to a refund amicably, should he refund before I send the camera back or after he has received it? I have had different opinions on this and I am not sure what it correct. That's 'if' this is resolved amicably, as he hasn't answered my last message, saying that I feel, that considering the item was not as described, (although to be fair everything else seems fine on the camera, except a scratch on the lcd, but nothing major) and had a fault that wasn't mentioned, that a return and refund is in order. I sent the message only a very short while after he messaged me, so I would have thought he would have got it by now. He is usually a fairly active member on the forum , and usually answers messages fairly quickly, but I might be worrying needlessly. But I dont want to jump in and start saying about paypal disputes etc. too quickly.

previous post was in answer to john riley, our posts must have crossed
Yes maybe that would be an idea, dont really know what to do now.

Oh ok, didnt realise that. will look into it, do you think it would be wise to send this message offering the 10% off of the refund as a way of resolving this amicably? thanks.

Hi, I haven't heard back yet, but I am thinking of sending this message as a way of resolving this situation amicably:

Hi, Following my last message, I really dont want any animosity between us and I can understand that you feel unhappy about the fact that the flash was working when you sent the item, but it doesn't alter the fact that the item was not as described when sold to me and the fault of the missing flash supports was the reason that the flash was so easily pushed back. I think Fuji should be responsible for the fault, and I think that they should repair it free for you, but feel that this is for you to pursue. But I would be prepared to accept the refund minus, say, 10% for the fact that the flash is now not working, although I do have to stress that I still feel that this is solely down to the lack of flash supports, and not being told about this in the description, and I do feel that you have to accept that not disclosing a fault (missing supports, making flash weak) in the description of an item for sale is your responsibility. This means that I would receive back £20 less than I paid for the item + I would have the cost of postage back to you, which I think is a very fair and generous offer considering I bought an item in good faith based on the description that it was in 'excellent condition' with no faults. This would mean a refund of £180.00 to paypal, immediately on receipt of the item. Please let me know, regards, jacqui.

What do you think? thanks.

Yes I have to agree, and yes the flash being pushed back too far was done by me, but only as a result of the supports not being there, which allowed this to happen. If I had been told about the fault before buying, I probably wouldn't have bought it, but even if I had it would have had to have been at a reduced price and I would have been aware of the problem and that the flash was particularly weak. I have replied basically stating all this, so we will see what he says. thanks everyone for your help.

Hi, just received a reply, (copy and pasted):

Hi Jacqui,
I would strongly suggest you do not return the camera until I have heard back from Fuji. There are a few points we need to clear up, firstly, Regarding the hinges. The hinges are not faulty and have never given me cause for concern.
It was my assumption that the flash unit should have been fitted with an
arrest strap, which I had seen fitted to other cameras on the Fuji product site. I need to confirm with Fuji that these were actually even supposed to be fitted to this model. I have owned this camera for over two years and in that time it has been faultless in it's operation and, in my opinion, that was the condition in which I sold it. Depending on the response from Fuji, this may conclude that, unfortunately, you alone are responsible for the damage.
I will let you know as soon as I've heard from Fuji and I will endeavour to bring this to an amicable conclusion.
Regards,

*But, on his first message to me (before this one) he states:

Yes, it sounds like a loose wire. I think I may know why this happened. Last year the rubber eye piece around the viewfinder came off, so I contacted Fuji and they repaired it for free. However instead of just replacing the rubber eyepiece they replaced the entire top section of the camera. When I received the camera back I noticed they never put the hinges back on the flash unit which meant the flash raised higher than normal. You may be able to see a little notch either side of the flash where they are supposed to go. Without these I would imagine the flash isn't as strong as there's nothing from stopping it being pulled back.
If you want I will contact Fuji, explain the situation and see if they have any ideas.

Thanks,

What do you think? I really hate all this thanks.

Ok, thanks, I have, this morning, contacted him, saying pretty much that, stating that the item was described as excellent condition and there was no mention of the fault. I haven't had a reply yet, so we will wait and see, thankyou all for your advice and I will let you know as soon as I hear, thanks again

Hi, thanks for all your replies. Yes, if he had mentioned the fault in the description then I could have considered the camera knowing about the fault, but I certainly wouldn't have paid full price for it.

Hi, I recently bought a camera privately through a forum for my son (not this one ) and when I received the camera, as I was unpacking it the pop up flash got knocked back slightly and caused it not to work, Im guessing that it may have pulled one of the connecting wires loose. Ok, my fault, I thought. But then discovered from the seller that, actually the reason it probably happened is because he apparently sent it off to fuji to get a new eyepiece and when they returned it, they had left the flash hinges off, therefore, in the sellers own words, making the flash weaker and allowing this to happen. This was not mentioned at all when he described the camera to me, just that it was in excellent condition, no mention of a fault at all. When I approached him about getting a refund, he said, although he wouldn't mind giving a refund, he would prefer to get in touch with fuji and find out about the cost of repair and how long it would take first. I dont really feel it is fair that I bought a camera in good faith described in excellent condition with no mention of a fault, and then have to wait around to find out about repair costs/times etc. I realise that the wire was pulled by me when unpacking, but this would not have been possible if the flash did not have the hinges missing as they keep the flash from going back any further. I fully believe when I sell something that I describe everything about it including any faults in detail, no matter how small or large. Where do I stand with this? anyone any ideas? thanks, jacqui.

Hi, managed to get the metz flash yesterday from park cameras (where my daughter works) had a try last night and it works very well, just what I was after. Thanks for that