ebay Fraud

[MadDoc]

Hi,

I hadn't really used ebay very much until the last few days when I decided to sell some things before I move to Australia for good (DVDs, etc). I have sold about 15 items with no problems at all except for one item - a Sony PSP with a couple of games. I have just had to relist it for a third time because of (what I guess are) fraudsters.

The first time the auction ended, someone sniped the leading bid (at a reasonable £160) with a bid for £1220 which is clearly ridiculous for a PSP. I thought something was suspicious and so I made a second-chance offer but ebay cancelled the listing as the original winner's account had been stolen. The second time it ended, again someone tried to snipe with an offer of £1000 but this time I was able to cancel the bid and the auction ended at a more measly price of £115. Immediately after I sent the invoice the winner became "unregistered". I don't know what this means but it strikes me as suspicious and ebay warns against this so I decided to relist it again.

My questions:

1. Why would someone offer such a ridiculous amount for a PSP and then go through the motions of paying correctly through PayPal? What is the scam?

2. What does it mean when someone becomes unregistered as in the scenario above?

3. How can I reduce the chance of this happening again. This is crucial as I plan on listing my MacBook as soon as my new 2.2Ghz SR MBP arrives (it has just shipped!).

Thanks,

MadDoc,

 

[mcarnes]

1) I wouldn't worry too much if the buyer is using PayPal. It's when they want to pay by Western Union or have it shipped to Nigeria or something is when you want to worry. Be aware that if you sell to a fraudulent buyer, PayPal my freeze your account. PP can be a nightmare for sellers.

2) Unregistered means the member has been banned by eBay, usually for illegal activity or a violation of their listing policies.

3) There are a lot of reasons why people will over bid on your auction. Usually they are pissed at you for some reason, or they see you as a competitor. Try selling it locally and blocking outside bidders. There are options for that when you list it.

This is for U.S. The rules may be different overseas.

 

[MadDoc]

1) I wouldn't worry too much if the buyer is using PayPal. It's when they want to pay by Western Union or have it shipped to Nigeria or something is when you want to worry. Be aware that if you sell to a fraudulent buyer, PayPal my freeze your account. PP can be a nightmare for sellers.

Thanks. I hear you on that front. I remember selling something a few years back that the buyer claimed was faulty on arrival (it most certainly wasn't when it shipped). He had specifically declined postal insurance. PayPal eventually sided with him and refunded him the money EVEN though he didn't return the item (£200 worth). That was largely why I avoided PP for a while.

3) There are a lot of reasons why people will over bid on your auction. Usually they are pissed at you for some reason, or they see you as a competitor. Try selling it locally and blocking outside bidders. There are options for that when you list it.

Hopefully someone doesn't have a vendetta against me (can't think why they might!). I think I will block bidders from other countries bidding on the item too.

Thanks for your help mcarnes.

MadDoc,

 

[mcarnes]

My pleasure.

I assume you're in the U.S. I only sell inside the U.S. now and it has been much better. Unless you're selling something unique, your winner bidder is likely to be in the U.S. anyway. Also, block bidders with neg feedback and stuff like that. Your auction will not suffer, you only need two people interested in the item for the bids to jump up.

Another thing that really helped my auctions is adding the line: "The winner is welcome to pick up this item in person if they wish, and save on shipping. I live in Portland, Oregon."

No one has ever taken me up on the offer, but the bids really shoot up because buyers know they can trust you. All the questions about your credibility vanish.

Anyway, good luck.

 

[gadgetgirl85]

My pleasure.

I assume you're in the U.S. I only sell inside the U.S. now and it has been much better. Unless you're selling something unique, your winner bidder is likely to be in the U.S. anyway. Also, block bidders with neg feedback and stuff like that. Your auction will not suffer, you only need two people interested in the item for the bids to jump up.

Another thing that really helped my auctions is adding the line: "The winner is welcome to pick up this item in person if they wish, and save on shipping. I live in Portland, Oregon."

No one has ever taken me up on the offer, but the bids really shoot up because buyers know they can trust you. All the questions about your credibility vanish.

Anyway, good luck.

Looks like according to his profile hes from the UK