Answer: Adverse Selection.
Step-by-step explanation:
The above situation described Adverse Selection because Adverse Selection refers to a situation where there is information asymmetry between buyers and sellers of a good or service. This means that a party involved has more information about the transaction than the other and this can lead to the person who has more information engaging in a transaction that is sure to benefit them at the expense of the person they are transacting with. A serious example is one of life insurance. Perhaps if a person knows that they will be dying soon but it won't show up on all medical scans and tests, they will get the life insurance and claim on it when they die. They had more information than the seller.
In the above scenario, Tim can make all the assumptions he wants to make but the fact is he simply will.not know what defects the television has because he is not the seller.
It is applaudible that he is approaching with caution though. He at least has a higher chance of success.