Camera Equipment Scams On Ebay By Buyers

[tbcass]

Scams on local and online selling sites are common. You have to learn what to look for. I am trying to sell a camera and lenses on Craigslist and out of 4 responses 3 are obvious, to me, scam attempts. For example a scammer will present an offer often too good to be true. They then say they want to send you a money order or cashiers check. The scam goes like this. The bank will give you the money and then you send the person the product. The problem is the check or money order is not legit and about a week or two later the bank will ask for their money back. By then your camera is long gone. To avoid this on Craigslist I do face to face cash transactions only. I part with my product only when the cold hard cash is in my hand. Even then I suppose there's no guarantee that the money isn't counterfeit.

Regarding Craigslist - no shipping and only cash face to face in a public place.

In all my Craigslist posts I always specify face to face cash only (and yes I use a public place) but it doesn't stop the scammers from trying. Craigslist even warns against the cashiers check/money order scams and suggests a public place. I use Dunkin Doughnuts because they are everywhere and I like coffee.

 

[fstopx2]

Scams on local and online selling sites are common. You have to learn what to look for. I am trying to sell a camera and lenses on Craigslist and out of 4 responses 3 are obvious, to me, scam attempts. For example a scammer will present an offer often too good to be true. They then say they want to send you a money order or cashiers check. The scam goes like this. The bank will give you the money and then you send the person the product. The problem is the check or money order is not legit and about a week or two later the bank will ask for their money back. By then your camera is long gone. To avoid this on Craigslist I do face to face cash transactions only. I part with my product only when the cold hard cash is in my hand. Even then I suppose there's no guarantee that the money isn't counterfeit.

Regarding Craigslist - no shipping and only cash face to face in a public place.

In all my Craigslist posts I always specify face to face cash only (and yes I use a public place) but it doesn't stop the scammers from trying. Craigslist even warns against the cashiers check/money order scams and suggests a public place. I use Dunkin Doughnuts because they are everywhere and I like coffee.

Thats funny about the Dunkin because thats where I did it yesterday. LOL.

 

[Smaug01]

Pick a place with a security camera, and try to do the transaction in front of the camera where it will capture the buyer's face. If possible, an outside camera that will also get the buyer's car.

I sold an Omega watch awhile ago. Big bucks. I specified a public place. I was thinking maybe a fast food place with a security cam. I was lucky enough to sell it to another collector who was also a lawyer. He upped the ante and suggested the local police station waiting room. Cameras everywhere, good lighting. I had no qualms at all about exchanging the watch for the cash in that environment.

...but that is still quite different than ebay. ebay gets you better money, especially when you don't live near a big metro area. It's hard to resist, even though there is a higher chance things could go badly.

 

[Jonsi]

And Ebay wonders why their revenue is not like the others in terms of growth - MORONS.

Do they? What source do you have for that? I haven't read anything about it.

2018 revenue $10.7 billion, up from $9.9 billion in 2017. Some "morons", eh?

And when it comes to online auction sites, who are "the others"?

Surely the name calling makes them look bad here. Sheesh.

You make an environment hostile to sellers, than why bother.

Oh brother...

 

[Ring A]

It now appears that anyone with a debit card can make a purchase on eBay. I thought that having a eBay account was a prerequisite in order to make a purchase.

 

[Jonsi]

It now appears that anyone with a debit card can make a purchase on eBay. I thought that having a eBay account was a prerequisite in order to make a purchase.

 

[Smaug01]

Pics of the scratched filter:

Is the brand, model, and type correct?

Seems to be. I want to know how you scratch a lens like that except intentionally.

If it gets dragged across a chunk of concrete, for example while touring Alcatraz.

Don't get me wrong, this guy seems like a scammer and that he scratched it intentionally so he could return it as "not as described". But it is definitely possible to scratch a filter like that unintentionally.

--
-Jeremy
*********
"Rudeness is the weak person's imitation of strength."

 

[Smaug01]

Maybe I'm lucky, but I've been buying and selling on ebay for over a decade and only got scammed once.

I sold a silver service set to a woman in rural California. She said it was dented up. Said I didn't pack it properly. I said I did and asked her to file an insurance claim with UPS. She did. UPS said they were going to inspect the packaging and the item. But they decided not to, since she was way out in the countryside, it just didn't make business sense. They paid her.

Then, she wanted a refund from me. I said: "OK, just send the silver service back then."

 

[pcrc11]

It now appears that anyone with a debit card can make a purchase on eBay. I thought that having a eBay account was a prerequisite in order to make a purchase.

Surely you still need to make an account.

How else do they have your address?

They have had guest accounts for years where you dont have to be a registered user. Ebay also has started doing their own payment processing where you no longer are required to have a paypal account to purchase from the site. Right now it is in beta and they are slowly moving sellers away from paypal and into the new payment processing system. I would expect by the end of next year for all ebay sellers to be moved over to it and buyers will be able to pay directly from their credit/debit cards, apple pay, paypal and whatever else comes down the pike. They saw that having a paypal account in order to buy was creating a barrier for new buyers and I think it is great they are accepting all forms of payment just like every other online seller.

 

[pcrc11]

Pics of the scratched filter:

Is the brand, model, and type correct?

Seems to be. I want to know how you scratch a lens like that except intentionally.

If it gets dragged across a chunk of concrete, for example while touring Alcatraz.

Don't get me wrong, this guy seems like a scammer and that he scratched it intentionally so he could return it as "not as described". But it is definitely possible to scratch a filter like that unintentionally.

I would be interested in hearing the outcome to see if there was an actual scam completed or not. I always find it intriguing how someone will start this conversation and never finish it. My guess is always when the OP never comes back perhaps they jumped the gun on whether or not they were actually scammed in the first place.

 

[Jonsi]

It now appears that anyone with a debit card can make a purchase on eBay. I thought that having a eBay account was a prerequisite in order to make a purchase.

Surely you still need to make an account.

How else do they have your address?

They have had guest accounts for years

Ok. I didn't realize that.

 

[Ring A]

It now appears that anyone with a debit card can make a purchase on eBay. I thought that having a eBay account was a prerequisite in order to make a purchase.

Surely you still need to make an account.

How else do they have your address?

Nope, incorrect, eBay accepts your debit card as a guest, no account needed.

 

[abe4652]

Sold a Hoya variable neutral density filter about a week ago. The filter was brand new, in the original hard case and I wrapped it in bubble wrap inside a priority mail box.

Today I get an email from the buyer that that the glass is scratched and broken. Sends me a picture of a broken filter. There is NO WAY it arrived like that inside of the box.

Basically I got scammed. If I dont take it back Ebay will just give him the money. So I followed the Ebay policy, told him to send it back and when it arrives I will refund his money.

I have read about people doing this - they have a broken ABC, buy a good one off of Ebay and than turn around and complain the one that you sent is broken so they get their money back.

I should have known as the guy was haggling over $5.

You got off easy.

As a seller, you could have sent him a fully functional camera. He says that he got a brick.

He gets his money back, and your camera.

 

[abe4652]

From this page: https://www.welivesecurity.com/2015/02/09/common-ebay-scams-avoid/

"eBay scam 4: The bait and switch

How it works:

You’re selling a common item – an iPhone, perhaps. A buyer wins your auction, pays up and you ship them. So far, so good. Then, however, they get in touch with photographs of a iPhone with a broken screen, claiming that you sold them a dud, or that they broke in transit. They complain to eBay, and with nothing but your word against theirs, eBay sides with the buyer (it’s called the Buyer Protection Policy) and forces you to issue them a refund. They’ve got your fully-functional ‘phones AND your cash.

How to avoid it:

Tough one – if you’ve been stung by it, it’s too late. The best defence is pre-emptive: make sure you ship valuable items with insurance, that the buyer pays for. It’s possible to list with ‘no refunds’ but may deter genuine customers."

And why would "insurance" believe you any more than ebay?

Let's even say your carrier believes you once, and doesn't even raise your rates. They gonna pay next time it happens?

 

[abe4652]

Basically I got scammed. If I dont take it back Ebay will just give him the money. So I followed the Ebay policy, told him to send it back and when it arrives I will refund his money.

If he's a half-awake scammer he'll send you a damaged one - or a box with a small rock in it - and shipping will be at your expense. You'll then (unsuccessfully) try to prove to eBay that you got cheated. eBay will side with the buyer and refund his money from your account, you'll still be missing your original good filter, your payment from the buyer, and the additional money eBay withdraws from your account to pay for the return shipment to you.

Hey, a trifecta!

 

[abe4652]

For every 40 items you sell on ebay there is a scammer.

Can you please provide documentation supporting this claim? As stated in last weeks ebay rant thread I have sold thousands of items on ebay as it is what I do for a full time living and can not remember ever being "Intentionally" scammed. Based on your claim I should be getting scammed 2-3 times a week.

And, on schedule, here is the weekly "I've sold millions of items on ebay, and it never happened to me" post.

 

[abe4652]

Pics of the scratched filter:

Is the brand, model, and type correct?

Seems to be. I want to know how you scratch a lens like that except intentionally.

But why would the buyer scratch it intentionally?

Are you saying they have paid you, received the filter and then taken to it with a knife or (whatever), just so that could send it back to you and get a refund?

Or have they taken an identical filter, presumably in good condition, and then deliberately damaged it so they could send it to you in lieu of the one they bought to you?

In either scenario the buyer has gained nothing except potentially the "satisfaction" of annoying a complete stranger and maybe costing that stranger a few dollars in postage and the value of the filter. The buyer would have to be mildly sociopathic to do that.

Perhaps I am misunderstanding your meaning.

The buyer bought his filter BECAUSE he already had one that he'd accidentally scratched.

When he gets the new one, he'll swap it into the return package and send our seller the scratched one, claiming the seller sent it to him like that.

Yep, I absolutely get how the scam (if there is one in this case) works. But that is premised on the damage to the buyer's original filter being accidental, as you said. The claim by the OP is that the buyer scratched the filter intentionally. That's the bit that makes no sense to me.

Perhaps the buyer's original filter had one smaller accidental scratch. He then made it much worse to make sure.

 

[abe4652]

Except in one scenario - all the buyer has to do is say the item is "not as described". Once the buyer says the item is not as described Ebay automatically refunds ALL their money including the shipping. If the seller wants the item back he has to pay for the return shipping.

Not automatically. First it must be returned and tracking must show it was delivered. Here is a little technicality that may work in your favor. The buyer has only 5 business days to get it in the mail and have tracking uploaded to ebay. If after the 5 days tracking was not uploaded you can call ebay and have the return closed. This happens to me about 20% of the time. Buyers either drop the ball or never really wanted to return it in the first place, just fishing for a refund.

This guy was haggling me over $5 on a $100 filter. So this is very possible.

That was your first mistake. 99% percent of the time when a potential buyer asks me for a discount I refuse and block them from buying from my items.

I am following the policy as you said - I did the buyer must return the item for a refund to be issued.

What happens if you claim you never got the returned item?

 

[jeffnles1]

this, combined with their exorbitant fees, is precisely why I stopped selling things on Ebay. It's a shame really because I used to sell (and buy) quite a few things on EBay.

 

[ZodiacPhoto]

Why doesn't another company compete with Ebay, but closer to the original idea of an online auction, with equal protection for buyers and sellers through an escrow service? Or there is no sufficient ROI with this business?