Rivalry between forums and Clubs .

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Like many other members here , I am also active on a number of other forums , including the Mercedes-Benz Club one and the MBO one .

Just the other day , a new member posted a query on the MBO forum , asking where he could obtain a valuation for his 190E as his insurers appeared sceptical about his estimate of £1800 .

Here is a link to the thread

Mercedes-Benz Owners' Forums

I originally posted a reply after Renault12ts 's post no 2 , informing the OP about the Mercedes-Benz Club's long established valuation scheme , which involved a fee and that he would have to join the Club to avail himself of it .

A further two members added posts endorsing this and recommending the offical Club's valuation scheme .

Less than one hour ago , I happened to look back to find that my post had been completely deleted , along with that of another member , and a third member had his edited to remove all mention of The Mercedes-Benz Club .

I responded by adding the following post

"I am disappointed to note that my reply ( which was post no 3 in this thread ) has been deleted , besides those of two other members having theirs edited to remove all mention of the Mercedes-Benz Club's longstanding valuation service , which we were all recommending and is established and accepted by the insurance industry .

Mercedes-Benz Club valuers have undergone extensive training , in conjunction with the insurance industry before being permitted to write valuations , which are recognised and accepted by leading insurers .

As amply illustrated by Colt 45GTO in his post above , a valuation written out by just anybody amounts to no more than an opinion which is not even worth the paper it is written on .

For a valuation to be recognised by an insurer , it has to be done by someone suitably qualified .

Since this forum probably feels threatened by a little competition , this will probably be deleted too . "



I then added the following comment , as I was genuinely interested in how they proposed to 'value' the car -



"
Hi Paul

We would be delighted to confirm the value of the 190E, however we would also need to know the following:

Year
Service History
Number of owners
Condition of car

Please feel free to contact me on 018********* to discuss further.

Best wishes,
Beccy

How can a car be valued without actually seeing it ? "


It will be interested to see how this progresses .

This has also been added to a long running thread over on the official Club's forum .
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Just kidding :D

I think in the particular circumstances you describe it was probably the best answer to the OP's question and despite advertising a competitor the posts should have remained if the intent of the forum was to help its members.

That said, sometimes it can be a tricky call to moderate these things and if in previous threads references to other clubs have been removed and the practice was the norm then it would be pretty hard to justify it should stay in this particular post of yours. The lesser of two evils would therefore be its removal.
 
It sounds as if the other forum are trying to reposition themselves by ofering other related services. But whilst they get up to speed it may well be at the expense of its members.

Frustrating I'm sure, but it's their forum, so their rules.

Just goes to show the grass isn't always greener on the other side.

ps. what IS the car worth? ;)
 
I just received a warning , and in response posted a new thread 'Censorship' , which I expect will be taken down pronto . I won't be going back there .

Pity , as it was only to try and help the other guy .

The following is what I posted -

"Since I just received the following message from TomV , regarding my attempt to direct a fellow forum member to the valuation service offered by another Club ( a non-commercial organisation ) - a service which is NOT AVAILABLE from this forum ( at least at present ) .


tomv said:
Hi,

This is an official warning that if you continue to post unpaid advertising you will be banned from the forum.

I doubt they'd allow it here, and you won't be allowed to do it on this forum either.

Tomv


Furthermore , since I don't see any difference between this and directing fellow members to vehicle dismantlers , parts specialists , independent garages , official dealerships and others who may be able to help members having problems with their cars - the only possible reason for this unacceptable CENSORSHIP - must be some sort of 'inferiority complex' which makes the admins of this forum feel they have something to worry about .

This is my last word on the subject , it will be published elsewhere so that it can't be deleted , and I shan't be back .

Kindest regards everyone ,

Derek ."
 
I've seen at least one other MB forum mentioned on this one umpteen times. It doesn't mean I'll desert this one for that one. In fact the opposite. I'm not even interested in visiting it, but I know that it exists if ever I do want to.
Seems they are being overly precious.

On smart fora, they mention and cross refer to each other all the time. All in the name of helping members.
 
ps. what IS the car worth? ;)

I have no idea , never having seen it .

Most 190's are worth less than that amount (£1800) , but there are also good ones worth more .

No one can give a proper valuation without inspecting it .
 
Double standards Derek. I replied to your post:

"Sorry to hear this. Disappointed because often people advertise here and nothing is said about ii. People advertise their own businesses in the title and at the bottom of each post.

Double standards methinks."

I may get banned for associating with you.:p
 
I was just banned over this - so take care

"You have been banned for the following reason:
This is my last word on the subject , [...] and I shan't be back .

Date the ban will be lifted: Never"

If they ban everyone - they will have no members left .
 
I would always prefer to follow a recommendation from a forum member than a paid for one.
Not impartial.
 
I was just banned over this - so take care

"You have been banned for the following reason:
This is my last word on the subject , [...] and I shan't be back .

Date the ban will be lifted: Never"

If they ban everyone - they will have no members left .

So sorry to hear this Derek...you have received another supporting message on your last thread on the other side.
 
I previously left that forum over exactly the same issue , stayed away for a long time , and only went back eventually because a lot of people I knew over there asked me to .

I'll be sorry to lose contact with a lot of the nice people over there , but won't miss the heavy-handed admin policies .
 
Sorry to hear this Derek. Perhaps your friends and contacts will follow you over here.

3 more posts and you roll over the 4000 mark. All quality posts and all very helpful.

Their loss totally.
 
The only thing that I am a bit nervous with here is that on this post we are seen to be bashing the other forum.

I have to say that I am uncomfortable with seeing to be doing this. I'm also uncomfortable with disputes from the other side escalating over here. Is it possible to have this thread without this - I'm not so sure it is. :confused:
 
The only thing that I am a bit nervous with here is that on this post we are seen to be bashing the other forum.

I have to say that I am uncomfortable with seeing to be doing this. I'm also uncomfortable with disputes from the other side escalating over here. Is it possible to have this thread without this - I'm not so sure it is. :confused:
To me, Pontoneer seems to be stating facts :confused:
He tries helping someone out, their mods see it as indirect advertising, Pontoneer stands his ground and gets banned.
 
To me, Pontoneer seems to be stating facts :confused:
He tries helping someone out, their mods see it as indirect advertising, Pontoneer stands his ground and gets banned.

I understand that bit but thinking out loud, is it right that a dispute on another forum is publicly aired on this one?
 
The only thing that I am a bit nervous with here is that on this post we are seen to be bashing the other forum.

I have to say that I am uncomfortable with seeing to be doing this. I'm also uncomfortable with disputes from the other side escalating over here. Is it possible to have this thread without this - I'm not so sure it is. :confused:

Spike , I appreciate that , and have no wish to 'escalate' things any further .

I have really said all I intended to say on the matter .

If you want to close the thread I have no problem with that .
 
I understand that bit but thinking out loud, is it right that a dispute on another forum is publicly aired on this one?

I , and others , tried to air it on that forum , but our posts were taken down .
 

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