[Myka]

I think communication between buyer and seller is of utmost importance. I believe all sellers should have an arrive alive shipping guarantee provided the package arrives on time and as agreed upon. If the package arrives late, then it would be the buyer's responsibility to buy insurance. Sometimes insurance isn't available for live shipments in which case I think buyers should be refunded/credited for the value of the frags minus shipping. For private buying and selling there is always risk on each side of the fence, and there should always be an agreement of expectations before the transaction is made.

Personally, I like to buy unmounted SPS frags as I find they tend to ship better, and I can choose what they get mounted to. I would also be rather PO'd if the seller dipped the corals before packaging since this would increase the corals' stress during shipping. I think dipping should remain the buyer's choice...I have received infested corals from vendors as well as private sales. A good guideline for pricing is approximately 1/2-2/3 market value (which is debatable).