I have to go against the majority on this one. Although i agree completely with the risks of buying on ebay a very close friend of mine "won" a 2000 dollar medium format camera, and i know of others who have purchased some rather expensive lenses and stuff other than camera equiptment.
This is why places like escrow.com exist. To protect buyers and sellers for high priced interactions, or any interaction for that matter.
It totally horrible that you lost all that money and that even more that supposedly safe places like e-bay cant be safe. I am NOT saying that this is your fault. because it is not...just that we should all learn from this and prevent it from happening next time.
Very sorry to hear of your problems, but I see that others have already posted some good information for you. Nice to see.
jkarc21, that seller who scammed you is the girlfriend of Dan Zappin, the crook who took me for $1200 last year on an iBook. TechTV's CyberCrime show actually did a show on him a few months ago, the guy they interviewed in that episode that got ripped off on a PowerBook was the guy who set up a mailing list for us all. The guy had taken about 70 of us out for anywhere from $1200 to $2500.
It wasn't a screaming deal, and he had decent feedback, so I went ahead. I did use a credit card through PayPal however, so my cc's fraud protection got me the money back within a few days of my contacting them.
I'm not sure about eBay anymore... I mean it's fine for me since I mostly do selling now, and I know I'm not ripping anyone off, but I'd have trouble making a big ticket purchase again. My last few purchases have been for really cheap items.
Best of luck in hunting the scum sucker down, I really hope you are able to get your money back.
eBay has worked well for me for rare books and CDs and so-so for computer items (though I have never been ripped off except by eBay itself [as a seller]). Even if they don't out and out scam you there's a lot that can go wrong. I don't know if I'd buy anything off of eBay again for over $100 (my pain tolerance).
Edit: as far as the mail fraud, go to the post office for the place you sent the payment from. They'll have a form for you to fill out. I've never had to do one myself, but I understand it's fairly detailed.
Did you send the m.o. via US mail? If so you need to file a complaint with the USPS. A 2k theft is a felony theft. I would also contact the company that issued the money order, as you might get some satisfaction there.
I'm not saying you'll get your money back but you might have the satisfaction of seeing the s.o.b. go to federal prison
I've only sold on eBay -- a few old computers and some old audio equipment. I've never made a purchase from eBay
What surprises me is how trusting most of the buyers have been. Only two people out of the six or seven sales I've made have asked to pay me through escrow -- the rest paid me up front, via check, money order, or PayPal.
It feels good to be trusted like that, and for my part I'm much happier to get the money up front before I ship my item away -- but I do wonder how big a risk they'd be taking being so trusting with just anyone on eBay.
The seller might not like it (I know it doesn't thrill me), but if you're worried about a deal on eBay, look into paying via escrow. You'll probably have to pay a little more to cover the escrow fees, but at least you'll be buying some peace of mind.
<strong>I've only sold on eBay -- a few old computers and some old audio equipment. I've never made a purchase from eBay
What surprises me is how trusting most of the buyers have been. Only two people out of the six or seven sales I've made have asked to pay me through escrow -- the rest paid me up front, via check, money order, or PayPal.
It feels good to be trusted like that, and for my part I'm much happier to get the money up front before I ship my item away -- but I do wonder how big a risk they'd be taking being so trusting with just anyone on eBay.
The seller might not like it (I know it doesn't thrill me), but if you're worried about a deal on eBay, look into paying via escrow. You'll probably have to pay a little more to cover the escrow fees, but at least you'll be buying some peace of mind.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I do agree. I would add to stay away from presale auctions. The time is longer than you think and puts supposed arrival just past when your credit card payment is due. Once payment is sent, its harder to get the charge taken off.
I have no experience with escrow. It sound good but with the extra costs involved it might be better to just buy from a store and avoid ebay all together. Personally after many problems I will only buy low $ items payed for with my CC. And again NO pre-sale auctions. Its just a bad concept which only leads to Large Cases of fraud on Ebay.
Ex.
ShadowSB
Calvinsauctions
1globalsource
I'm sure many more..
Look at the Ebay sellers selling 23" HD displays over the next couple of days. Usually 0 feedback and shades. Weird locations, etc.
Stay away from ebay! <img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughing]" /> Hey that rhymed pass it on!
Yahoo Auctions to me is better than Yahoo not only is it cheaper to list items but it seems like people are a little more honest. I sold my old 1ghz P3 laptop on yahoo for 1150$ with no problems I had the money in my account in under 3 days and I had it shipped to him in 2 days after that. You just have to do your home work before you bid, I don't think I would ever purchase any thing that is over 100$ on ebay or yahoo just for the fact that I can order online and know I am getting my product I am more welling to pay the full price rather than lose out on the deal.
Another thing I usually do even if I am selling or bidding I get the persons phone number and usually contact them just to be sure, extra security!!!
If I'm buying a computer I have no need to go through eBay... far, far too many variables, and very seldom is it ever worth it. For my college computer I'm either going to buy it through the Apple Store for Education, or my college's compshop, if they can get it for less than $50 cheaper than the MSRP which is all I get from the former.
<strong>If I'm buying a computer I have no need to go through eBay... far, far too many variables, and very seldom is it ever worth it. For my college computer I'm either going to buy it through the Apple Store for Education, or my college's compshop, if they can get it for less than $50 cheaper than the MSRP which is all I get from the former.</strong><hr></blockquote>
The price should be the same. You get free shipping from the apple store with your order. I know at my campus hub they just have an apple powermac g4 set up and let you log onto the apple store directly to order - just like your at home. It may be different at your school.
Just a thought. You may just be better off ordering from home.
I feel bad for those here who've gotten scammed on eBay, that sucks! It's so much money.. I'd be tempted to track down the person myself and exact payback.
When I buy via eBay, if the amount is large, I always do the transaction in person. Even if it means taking a weekend to drive to another state, it's still safer than sending the money, AND I get to inspect the product before paying for it.
For buying a computer, if you do the transaction in person, you can make sure that the seller leaves it set up so you can try it out.
I caught a guy once by doing this. Speaking on the phone he talked a big game about his B&W Powermac, and we were all set to make a deal outside of eBay. Then I told him I wanted to drive down to Ohio and pick it up in person (about an 8 hour drive). Suddenly he wasn't so sure he wanted to sell it and made a bunch of excuses to wait a few weeks. He never did sell me the computer.
that really sucks that you got screwed over on ebay. Well there's always hope that the guy will get caught, you will get your money back, and the guy that stole your money will end up in jail with a cell mate named bubba and he'll take it up the *** all day and night. At least that's what i would hope if someone got me for 5k
BTW after reading the posts in this thread there is a very tiny voice in my head saying that maybe i should scam people on ebay and make a quick 5k. Then i could go to apple.com and actually afford a pimped out g4. But then again that would be really evil........
Sorry to hear about your losses. I sell on ebay and have sold over 200 items ranging from 50 dollars to 700 dollars. I always require a paypal payment with confirmed address and i always insure the item. i state this in my adds and if someone wants to pay through money order, i deny that method. i figure it is better safe then sorry. ebay is a great way to sell and buy but always take the extra steps to insure you do not lose your money or product being sold. I have had people attempt to con me, but by using this method, i have never lost, nor has my customer.
I wonder how that site on ebay was able to aquire so many feedbacks and still fraud their customers.
well, i hope they catch that person and that you get your money back. good luck
i too am sorry to hear about what happened to you i've used ebay only once for a low-cost item and it went well, but i like jd's idea, if im spending 2k you bet im gonna want to handle that in person thank you.
if they have a problem making the transaction in person then NO SALE...
however this escrow.com site looks ok i might do something like that too if they're honest.
but the amounts that people overpay for stuff on ebay is astounding! im sure someone could do nothing but sell items for a living there...
<strong>I feel bad for those here who've gotten scammed on eBay, that sucks! It's so much money.. I'd be tempted to track down the person myself and exact payback.
When I buy via eBay, if the amount is large, I always do the transaction in person. Even if it means taking a weekend to drive to another state, it's still safer than sending the money, AND I get to inspect the product before paying for it.
For buying a computer, if you do the transaction in person, you can make sure that the seller leaves it set up so you can try it out.
I caught a guy once by doing this. Speaking on the phone he talked a big game about his B&W Powermac, and we were all set to make a deal outside of eBay. Then I told him I wanted to drive down to Ohio and pick it up in person (about an 8 hour drive). Suddenly he wasn't so sure he wanted to sell it and made a bunch of excuses to wait a few weeks. He never did sell me the computer.</strong><hr></blockquote>
Your idea of driving to other states to pick up merchandise in person could be a good one depending on the item, cost, and distance.
If your buying a computer and saving $200 dollars off the apple store price because your buying it through ebay, you might be better off just going to the apple store in the 1st place, spend the extra 200 and save 16 hours of driving/headache.
This method of picking items up sounds like a good idea for an art or antique dealer - But for your typical ebay buyer a complete waste of time and money. <img src="graemlins/bugeye.gif" border="0" alt="[Skeptical]" />
<strong>I feel bad for those here who've gotten scammed on eBay, that sucks! It's so much money.. I'd be tempted to track down the person myself and exact payback.
When I buy via eBay, if the amount is large, I always do the transaction in person. Even if it means taking a weekend to drive to another state, it's still safer than sending the money, AND I get to inspect the product before paying for it.
For buying a computer, if you do the transaction in person, you can make sure that the seller leaves it set up so you can try it out.
I caught a guy once by doing this. Speaking on the phone he talked a big game about his B&W Powermac, and we were all set to make a deal outside of eBay. Then I told him I wanted to drive down to Ohio and pick it up in person (about an 8 hour drive). Suddenly he wasn't so sure he wanted to sell it and made a bunch of excuses to wait a few weeks. He never did sell me the computer.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I dunno, it depends what grade of scumbag you're dealing with. I'd rather lose money via the mail than by a lead pipe to the back of the head but that's just me.
I'm sorry to hear that you got ripped off. That really sucks.
Fortunately for me, my experience purchasing on eBay has been very positive. In August '01, I purchased a 6G Tangerine iBook for about $865. It was a little on the high end of what that model was worth (most winning bids were between $775 and $825 at that time), but the ad contained several high-quality pictures of the machine, which looked in pristine condition. What made me go for the purchase, however, was that the iBook was located within the same city I live, which gave me the opportunity to finish the transaction in person. The seller also allowed a 24-hour return period if the buyer was not satisfied, a good sign that the seller believed in the quality of the merchandise being sold. (And this was from an individual, not a store.) The iBook turned out to be even better than described, if that's possible. All the original documents, software and packaging came with it. I still use it to this day, and it works great.
So, my advice is, if you're interested in a big-ticket item on any online auction service, make sure you bid on something that's near enough for you to drive and see it in person before you actually pay for it, otherwise *don't bid*. In my case, it was worth the slightly overpriced winning amount to do just that. eBay can be a good service, but you just need to use a little wisdom when giving large sums of money to people you don't know.
One of my supervisors learned that lesson the hard way when he bid over $10,000 for a classic motorcycle, which turned out to be in much worse shape than advertised. It was a big mess. Of course, I wish *I* had that kind of money to blow, but that's another story.
[ 07-29-2002: Message edited by: Gandalf the Semi-Coherent ]</p>
List me among those who got scammed, but I was also able to get some justice.
About four years ago -- on my very first eBay transaction -- I bought my sister a rev B iMac & printer from a guy on eBay ($1500). Paid with a money order, too. There was, of course, no computer for sale.
Long story short, it took two years and three trips to NJ (about 300 miles roundtrip) to get it resolved, but he went to jail for six months and I got my money back. This was before a lot of the safety measures they have now. Apparently I wasn't the only one who he ripped off, but I was the only one who got reimbursed because I wouldn't let it go.
It is very embarrassing to admit you got taken in, but don't let that stop you from pursuing it. Call everyone you can until you get this resolved. It will take a long, long while but you can get most, if not all, of your money back.
For what it's worth, I still like eBay. I've gotten some good deals there, but I have very, very cautious now. Good luck with your case.
Note that you want to talk to your local postmaster, not the Postmaster General. The Postmaster General is the head of the entire U. S. Postal Service.
Your local postmaster is the manager of your local post office. Go to the post office where you sent your money order, and ask to talk to the postmaster about a possible case of mail fraud.
The postmaster will probably pass it along to the U. S. Postal Inspectors, or will put you in touch with them. The Postal Inspectors are badasses. They're the FBI, except exclusively for mail fraud (and similar).
I just want to chime in about using escrow.com. I used it to purchase a bass amp from a guy off of a message board similar to this. It cost me $18 (I got to use a CC as well), the piece of mind was worth every penny. I got the amp, he got his $$, and neither of us got scammed.
If you don't feel comfortable, suggest using an escrow service. If that makes the seller nervous, then that should make you nervous.
I don't work for escrow.com or anybody in that field, it just worked for me. I got an amp for 50% of new so the fee didn't hurt.
Comments
<strong>
We don't flame here in Florida! We BB-Q, drink beer, and make friends.
you've got a new one, for sure !
<img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughing]" />
This is why places like escrow.com exist. To protect buyers and sellers for high priced interactions, or any interaction for that matter.
It totally horrible that you lost all that money and that even more that supposedly safe places like e-bay cant be safe. I am NOT saying that this is your fault. because it is not...just that we should all learn from this and prevent it from happening next time.
best of luck finding your stolen funds.
jess
jkarc21, that seller who scammed you is the girlfriend of Dan Zappin, the crook who took me for $1200 last year on an iBook. TechTV's CyberCrime show actually did a show on him a few months ago, the guy they interviewed in that episode that got ripped off on a PowerBook was the guy who set up a mailing list for us all. The guy had taken about 70 of us out for anywhere from $1200 to $2500.
It wasn't a screaming deal, and he had decent feedback, so I went ahead. I did use a credit card through PayPal however, so my cc's fraud protection got me the money back within a few days of my contacting them.
I'm not sure about eBay anymore... I mean it's fine for me since I mostly do selling now, and I know I'm not ripping anyone off, but I'd have trouble making a big ticket purchase again. My last few purchases have been for really cheap items.
Best of luck in hunting the scum sucker down, I really hope you are able to get your money back.
Edit: as far as the mail fraud, go to the post office for the place you sent the payment from. They'll have a form for you to fill out. I've never had to do one myself, but I understand it's fairly detailed.
[ 07-27-2002: Message edited by: BobtheTomato ]</p>
I'm not saying you'll get your money back but you might have the satisfaction of seeing the s.o.b. go to federal prison
What surprises me is how trusting most of the buyers have been. Only two people out of the six or seven sales I've made have asked to pay me through escrow -- the rest paid me up front, via check, money order, or PayPal.
It feels good to be trusted like that, and for my part I'm much happier to get the money up front before I ship my item away -- but I do wonder how big a risk they'd be taking being so trusting with just anyone on eBay.
The seller might not like it (I know it doesn't thrill me), but if you're worried about a deal on eBay, look into paying via escrow. You'll probably have to pay a little more to cover the escrow fees, but at least you'll be buying some peace of mind.
<strong>I've only sold on eBay -- a few old computers and some old audio equipment. I've never made a purchase from eBay
What surprises me is how trusting most of the buyers have been. Only two people out of the six or seven sales I've made have asked to pay me through escrow -- the rest paid me up front, via check, money order, or PayPal.
It feels good to be trusted like that, and for my part I'm much happier to get the money up front before I ship my item away -- but I do wonder how big a risk they'd be taking being so trusting with just anyone on eBay.
The seller might not like it (I know it doesn't thrill me), but if you're worried about a deal on eBay, look into paying via escrow. You'll probably have to pay a little more to cover the escrow fees, but at least you'll be buying some peace of mind.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I do agree. I would add to stay away from presale auctions. The time is longer than you think and puts supposed arrival just past when your credit card payment is due. Once payment is sent, its harder to get the charge taken off.
I have no experience with escrow. It sound good but with the extra costs involved it might be better to just buy from a store and avoid ebay all together. Personally after many problems I will only buy low $ items payed for with my CC. And again NO pre-sale auctions. Its just a bad concept which only leads to Large Cases of fraud on Ebay.
Ex.
ShadowSB
Calvinsauctions
1globalsource
I'm sure many more..
Look at the Ebay sellers selling 23" HD displays over the next couple of days. Usually 0 feedback and shades. Weird locations, etc.
Stay away from ebay! <img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughing]" /> Hey that rhymed pass it on!
Another thing I usually do even if I am selling or bidding I get the persons phone number and usually contact them just to be sure, extra security!!!
[ 07-28-2002: Message edited by: BrianMacOS ]</p>
<strong>If I'm buying a computer I have no need to go through eBay... far, far too many variables, and very seldom is it ever worth it. For my college computer I'm either going to buy it through the Apple Store for Education, or my college's compshop, if they can get it for less than $50 cheaper than the MSRP which is all I get from the former.</strong><hr></blockquote>
The price should be the same. You get free shipping from the apple store with your order. I know at my campus hub they just have an apple powermac g4 set up and let you log onto the apple store directly to order - just like your at home. It may be different at your school.
Just a thought. You may just be better off ordering from home.
When I buy via eBay, if the amount is large, I always do the transaction in person. Even if it means taking a weekend to drive to another state, it's still safer than sending the money, AND I get to inspect the product before paying for it.
For buying a computer, if you do the transaction in person, you can make sure that the seller leaves it set up so you can try it out.
I caught a guy once by doing this. Speaking on the phone he talked a big game about his B&W Powermac, and we were all set to make a deal outside of eBay. Then I told him I wanted to drive down to Ohio and pick it up in person (about an 8 hour drive). Suddenly he wasn't so sure he wanted to sell it and made a bunch of excuses to wait a few weeks. He never did sell me the computer.
BTW after reading the posts in this thread there is a very tiny voice in my head saying that maybe i should scam people on ebay and make a quick 5k. Then i could go to apple.com and actually afford a pimped out g4. But then again that would be really evil........
I wonder how that site on ebay was able to aquire so many feedbacks and still fraud their customers.
well, i hope they catch that person and that you get your money back. good luck
i too am sorry to hear about what happened to you i've used ebay only once for a low-cost item and it went well, but i like jd's idea, if im spending 2k you bet im gonna want to handle that in person thank you.
if they have a problem making the transaction in person then NO SALE...
however this escrow.com site looks ok i might do something like that too if they're honest.
but the amounts that people overpay for stuff on ebay is astounding! im sure someone could do nothing but sell items for a living there...
good luck dood...
<strong>I feel bad for those here who've gotten scammed on eBay, that sucks! It's so much money.. I'd be tempted to track down the person myself and exact payback.
When I buy via eBay, if the amount is large, I always do the transaction in person. Even if it means taking a weekend to drive to another state, it's still safer than sending the money, AND I get to inspect the product before paying for it.
For buying a computer, if you do the transaction in person, you can make sure that the seller leaves it set up so you can try it out.
I caught a guy once by doing this. Speaking on the phone he talked a big game about his B&W Powermac, and we were all set to make a deal outside of eBay. Then I told him I wanted to drive down to Ohio and pick it up in person (about an 8 hour drive). Suddenly he wasn't so sure he wanted to sell it and made a bunch of excuses to wait a few weeks. He never did sell me the computer.</strong><hr></blockquote>
Your idea of driving to other states to pick up merchandise in person could be a good one depending on the item, cost, and distance.
If your buying a computer and saving $200 dollars off the apple store price because your buying it through ebay, you might be better off just going to the apple store in the 1st place, spend the extra 200 and save 16 hours of driving/headache.
This method of picking items up sounds like a good idea for an art or antique dealer - But for your typical ebay buyer a complete waste of time and money. <img src="graemlins/bugeye.gif" border="0" alt="[Skeptical]" />
<strong>I feel bad for those here who've gotten scammed on eBay, that sucks! It's so much money.. I'd be tempted to track down the person myself and exact payback.
When I buy via eBay, if the amount is large, I always do the transaction in person. Even if it means taking a weekend to drive to another state, it's still safer than sending the money, AND I get to inspect the product before paying for it.
For buying a computer, if you do the transaction in person, you can make sure that the seller leaves it set up so you can try it out.
I caught a guy once by doing this. Speaking on the phone he talked a big game about his B&W Powermac, and we were all set to make a deal outside of eBay. Then I told him I wanted to drive down to Ohio and pick it up in person (about an 8 hour drive). Suddenly he wasn't so sure he wanted to sell it and made a bunch of excuses to wait a few weeks. He never did sell me the computer.</strong><hr></blockquote>
I dunno, it depends what grade of scumbag you're dealing with. I'd rather lose money via the mail than by a lead pipe to the back of the head but that's just me.
Fortunately for me, my experience purchasing on eBay has been very positive. In August '01, I purchased a 6G Tangerine iBook for about $865. It was a little on the high end of what that model was worth (most winning bids were between $775 and $825 at that time), but the ad contained several high-quality pictures of the machine, which looked in pristine condition. What made me go for the purchase, however, was that the iBook was located within the same city I live, which gave me the opportunity to finish the transaction in person. The seller also allowed a 24-hour return period if the buyer was not satisfied, a good sign that the seller believed in the quality of the merchandise being sold. (And this was from an individual, not a store.) The iBook turned out to be even better than described, if that's possible. All the original documents, software and packaging came with it. I still use it to this day, and it works great.
So, my advice is, if you're interested in a big-ticket item on any online auction service, make sure you bid on something that's near enough for you to drive and see it in person before you actually pay for it, otherwise *don't bid*. In my case, it was worth the slightly overpriced winning amount to do just that. eBay can be a good service, but you just need to use a little wisdom when giving large sums of money to people you don't know.
One of my supervisors learned that lesson the hard way when he bid over $10,000 for a classic motorcycle, which turned out to be in much worse shape than advertised. It was a big mess. Of course, I wish *I* had that kind of money to blow, but that's another story.
[ 07-29-2002: Message edited by: Gandalf the Semi-Coherent ]</p>
About four years ago -- on my very first eBay transaction -- I bought my sister a rev B iMac & printer from a guy on eBay ($1500). Paid with a money order, too. There was, of course, no computer for sale.
Long story short, it took two years and three trips to NJ (about 300 miles roundtrip) to get it resolved, but he went to jail for six months and I got my money back. This was before a lot of the safety measures they have now. Apparently I wasn't the only one who he ripped off, but I was the only one who got reimbursed because I wouldn't let it go.
It is very embarrassing to admit you got taken in, but don't let that stop you from pursuing it. Call everyone you can until you get this resolved. It will take a long, long while but you can get most, if not all, of your money back.
For what it's worth, I still like eBay. I've gotten some good deals there, but I have very, very cautious now. Good luck with your case.
Your local postmaster is the manager of your local post office. Go to the post office where you sent your money order, and ask to talk to the postmaster about a possible case of mail fraud.
The postmaster will probably pass it along to the U. S. Postal Inspectors, or will put you in touch with them. The Postal Inspectors are badasses. They're the FBI, except exclusively for mail fraud (and similar).
If you don't feel comfortable, suggest using an escrow service. If that makes the seller nervous, then that should make you nervous.
I don't work for escrow.com or anybody in that field, it just worked for me. I got an amp for 50% of new so the fee didn't hurt.