Is there such a thing as a bad LIFer?

I won’t speak for anyone else, but the reason I didn’t respond was I think I need more info to form my opinion.

I think there could certainly be cases of a bad LIF’er.

I could also see how a box my have gotten forgotten about. I do a bunch of BIF’s and boxes are always coming and going. I have never forgotten one I owed, but I could see someone losing track.

Has your friend reached out to said person, and did the get ghosted or ?

 

LIF's are tricky because, like you said, it’s free beer. There are other factors that come into play with LIF’s, and the one that might deserve some more consideration is the standing of the people involved on either side of the LIF “contract”. Is the winner an upstanding member of the community? Have they themselves offered up their own LIF’s prior to, or since winning? If someone jumps into a BIF and enters someone's LIF without participating in anything else or first posting their own LIF, that's usually frowned upon.

Are the two senders still active members of the community? Have they been logging trades, and/or sending / receiving boxes since the LIF’s closed? If they're active and participating in shipping, but aren't upholding their commitment to the LIF, this would be an issue.

I think in the end, a simple reminder in PM form would be the best course of action. I’m sure at this point these boxes aren’t on the top of their mind so that could be helpful. A simple “Hey, I’m going on vacation in a couple weeks and just wanted to make sure the box won’t sit on my porch” is a polite way to give the sender a chance to respond (or remember that they forgot to send).

 

I certainly agree that if the person is still doing trades and other BIF’s while not sending a LIF box, it’s an issue. If they came on hard times and are taking a break it’s more understandable.

 

For what it is worth, I would only care (it is free beer) if the following happened:

I won an LIF, did an LIF in return, and sent out some very general beers since I was going to be receiving some very generous beers.

If they were all easy to get - even if I am out some money - that's a bit frustrating, but I wouldn't be emotional. After all the whole nature of a LIF in my opinion is the nature of giving. I can see how someone would view it as "Beer come in - beer go out" balancing. I'm not going to get upset that I sent out $60 of beer to someone in a BIF (presumably whom I like, since they are in your BIF) without reciprocation.