Originally Posted by veganbikes

A crack might be plain as day when you know it is there but if you don't know and aren't looking for it, probably isn't. If nothing is out of place or working incorrectly there is nothing really to notice unless you are specifically looking for it. I am generally not looking for cracks unless someone says there is an issue that could be a crack or they have crashed or something is clearly visually off. I also don't recommend people buy used bikes especially from random sellers for reasons like this. If you really know what you are doing it can be fine but you lose out on any warranties or support from anyone.

Also a reflector is not something a shop is going to install on a used bike unless you request it. The law is generally that a bike must be sold with reflectors but there is nothing saying a shop must install them when you bring in a used bike for service. If that was something you wanted you could always ask them to install one instead of blaming them for you buying a used bike without one. I am not going to go around installing random things if a customer didn't ask for it or if it is not part of the service asked for. People remove reflectors all the time and I am not there to police that, that is your choice as an individual what you choose to do with your bike.

Not hearing the shop's side it is tough to really form a useful opinion. I have had enough parents come at me saying "I want a bigger bike for my kid they can grow into it" and plenty of times I have said "this bike is the wrong size they don't fit it there is nothing you can do to make it fit" and they of course still want to purchase it. I have also seen plenty of kids who are out of control and the parents are not calming them down and taking care of their kids. I have had plenty of times where I need to step in and prevent the kid from making a mess or causing damage to a bike. I really would love to hear their side of the story.