Before I go on my rant, I just want to preface it by saying that I mostly agree with what flabbergast has to say here. Geekhack is run by volunteers and any type of enforcement always will be sporadic.
This is a forum. I do not think the mods should be involved any more than they are now; i.e. I do not like any of the "mods should keep insurance policy", etc... This would make GBs look more legitimate (than they really are), and would even more fuel the impression that "it's run on GH so GH should do something about this". Again, I thought this is a forum, not a new MassDrop.
I personally do not really agree with any kind of hard requirements. I would suggest that in every GB thread the second post would be the CAVEAT EMPTOR, which would explicitly state that *the expectation* is that these requirements should be followed by the GB leader, explain what options do participants have (paypal chargeback within 180 days) {and maybe a few links to the failed buys. It's hard to find these for the newcomers, speaking from experience.}
It should also say in big red letters that the GB participants are basically giving money to a private person (the GB leader), based only on what they read on an internet forum, and so that they should think long and hard about trust and risk.
If the GB leader has good reasons not to follow some/any of these *expectations* and manages to convince enough people even despite these warnings, then good for her/him.
EDIT: BTW, the caveat emptor should be even more emphasised for the GB that are linked from here which may look more "legitimate" than GBs run from here, e.g. Ellipses's GB. Just that fact that he's got a website and a checkout system there does not mean that it's any different from a GB on GH; it's still giving money to a private person on a promise. {I am participating in these things, I trust Ellipse ATM, but I do understand the risk.}
This whole discussion reminds me of government regulation. We have a problem, so we create more rules and requirements to attempt prevent the problem in the future. However, in our attempts to solve the problem, we create so much burden that we may discourage group buys from every happening. As I read all the suggestions here, I am formulating ways in which I still can scam people. The rules will be in place, but people can still get around them.
I mentioned this in one of the other threads, and I know there has been discussion of some sort of
S-corporation, and I think that Geekhack's best long-term solution is some sort of legal entity that can be held accountable for not delivering the product as promised. Every group buy organizer must use this legal entity to process payments from buyers and submit payments to manufacturers. The legal entity also would hold excess group buy money from the organizer until the group buy is completed. In the case that the group buys fails (which some will, without a doubt), the entity returns the money to the buyers. I guess that would almost make Geekhack a company that is paying independent contractors for their work.
I'm not sure how this entity would deal with all the little expenses involved in a group buy, like shipping, packaging materials, payments for multiple small items. Like having to contact a board directors to buy a shipping label sounds like a terrible situation.
In general, the entity would not allow the group buy organizer to collect any extra payment until the group buy is completed and customers are happy.
This solution, however, is not easy. It will require time, knowledge, investment, administrative work, upkeep costs, and potentially taxes and fees. It may even need a small board of directors to oversee the whole operation. And the more I write about what this idea entails, the more I realize how ridiculous it is to actually implement for hobby community.
In the long run, though, I feel that Geekhack needs a legal entity (besides Paypal) to run group buys that keep organizers accountable and makes buyers feel safe about where they are putting $$$. How much money is transferred each year as a result of keyboard group buys? Does it balloon into the millions? More rules and requirements sound like the solution and, in theory, and may work in the short term, but I don't have faith in their efficacy in the long term.
A group buy organizer would then have a choice. Run the group buy through the legal entity, or the traditional way without the protection of a legal entity. Buyers decide upon the success. For small group buys with only a few dozen buyers at most, the legal entity seems like too much of a hassle.
In my opinion, the time of trusting individuals to complete group buys to their fruition is over. This hobby is too big, with too much money, with too much potential for easy profit and scams, that we cannot rely on trust and following a few rules alone as the surety for running and completing a group buy.
