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How hard is it to defraud Amazon?

J

jordieshapiro

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 2, 2007
16
0
Okay so this is a little random.

There's a deaply discounted apple product that has struck my curiosity on Amazon. The seller is new and has no feedback listed.

Buying things that are too cheap online from unauthorized sellers is something we all know not to do BUT Amazon claims it offers 100% protection. They'll reimburse you if the product never comes, as well as if the product is not exactly what was advertised. I'm wondering, what is the process for selling on Amazon? What info do they ask of you to be assured your not going to take the money and run. Anyone?
 
I know I used a provocative title. But I swear, I am the potential buyer. I'm just concerned that I'm going to throw down $2000 and then spend weeks pleading my case to Amazon and stressing about getting it back.

What I basically want to know is, with Amazon's buyer protection is it completely safe to make a risky purchase. And do they ask more information from a seller than just his cell number and email address?

Hopefully, I can get some good responses by morning.
 
jordieshapiro said:
I know I used a provocative title. But I swear, I am the potential buyer. I'm just concerned that I'm going to throw down $2000 and then spend weeks pleading my case to Amazon and stressing about getting it back.

What I basically want to know is, with Amazon's buyer protection is it completely safe to make a risky purchase. And do they ask more information from a seller than just his cell number and email address?

Hopefully, I can get some good responses by morning.
Click to expand...

I would email Amazon and verify their price protection/alert them of a potential fraudulent seller.

What are you trying to buy, by the way?
 
If you don't mind, I'd rather keep the item anonymous until I decide whether to snatch it up or not.

I'll give you some of my info as an offer of authenticity.

Jordie Shapiro
editor/videographer
brooklyn NY
www.jordieshapiro.com
jordieshapiro@mac.com

I've bought a lot but never sold a thing online, and I have no aspirations to scam anyone ever. I'm just curious about the mechanics of places like Amazon, and how they can be sure a buyer is truly safe
 
Alerting Amazon is a good idea.

I'll come back here tomorrow. Show what the item was, and let you if anything came of it
 
The answer to your original question is "it depends." It depends on a lot of things, including what type of seller you are talking about -- merchant with an Amazon e-commerce website vs. someone who clicked "sell yours", etc.

Amazon has a lot of information online about your question, including a good description of their guarantee policy. Start here.

And, as with anything online, buyer beware.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
jordieshapiro said:
Alerting Amazon is a good idea.

I'll come back here tomorrow. Show what the item was, and let you if anything came of it
Click to expand...

Sounds good. Don't worry dude, I'm not looking to buy it, just curious. Some things (like .Mac for example) may show up dirt cheap sometimes. That's the only reason I asked, because then we could have clarified this if it was something along those lines.
 
jordieshapiro said:
I know I used a provocative title. But I swear, I am the potential buyer. I'm just concerned that I'm going to throw down $2000 and then spend weeks pleading my case to Amazon and stressing about getting it back.

What I basically want to know is, with Amazon's buyer protection is it completely safe to make a risky purchase. And do they ask more information from a seller than just his cell number and email address?

Hopefully, I can get some good responses by morning.
Click to expand...

If you're concerned...why take a chance?
 
The seller is not associated with any retail outlet. It's just a dude. In Alabama. With a couple of cheap, random production items.
 
I am concern, and yet I still want to take a chance.

This is where it gets interesting. We all can identify the kind of "too good to be true" online deals, and we all know to steer clear of them. But as sites like Amazon start taking the responsibility on themselves to make sure their sellers are legit, maybe its time we adjust our notion of online safety.

Amazon claims to have my back if I want to do something stupid. So maybe its worth the risk.
 
IMO, as others have said, call amazon and double check that the purchase would be covered and that he is a valid seller, etc.

But, if you're willing to take the risk, be willing to accept the consequences good or bad.
 
i would say that if you have the money to possibly do without for a bit.... go for it. The buyers always get the hose on these deals. You would probably get your money back but no guarantees on speed
 
You're probably asking for a bureaucratic nightmare. They're not just going to hand over $2000 once you send them an email.
 
jordieshapiro said:
I am concern, and yet I still want to take a chance.
Click to expand...
Congratulations - you are exactly the type of buyer who the scammers love to feed on.
But as sites like Amazon start taking the responsibility on themselves to make sure their sellers are legit,
Click to expand...
I'm going to seriously question that assumption.
Amazon claims to have my back if I want to do something stupid. So maybe its worth the risk.
Click to expand...

Read the fine print, qualifications and exclusions before assuming it is the case. Is this seller authorized or verified or whatever qualified for protection to be offered? Does this sale meet all criteria for protection? (One is thatyou must pay through Amazon Payments, no other way) Even so, all the seller has to do is ship you an empty box with a signature on delivery, and sure, you have a "Materially Different" claim, but you could be fighting it until you're old and grey.
 
Also keep in mind that people post things under the wrong item, either deliberately or accidentally. A lot of times I've looked for a used text book, and the low price will be for the study guide or a different version, listed under the other listing. This allows them to have the low price, sometimes they'll explain in the description, sometimes they don't and you've got to figure if the price is too good to be true it's probably the wrong one.
 
I don't see the real risk here. Pay with a credit card, you will be covered. I ordered a mac mini from amazon through macmall for 150. Well it ended up being an iPod nano. I called amazon and they said that if I didn't get it as advertised, then I would be would be covered by their a to z program. Couple that with my credit card being able to do a charge back if it wasnt as advertised, I think there is not that much to worry about.

Good luck!
 
Make sure it is the exact version though...

You really shouldn't be so secretive.. It's like asking if a particular Made-In-China food is alright to eat, but not say which one :rolleyes:
 
So a lackluster conclusion,

The product was a Canon HDV camcorder, being sold for 2500, (about a G below market).

I ended up talking to the seller on the phone, after a couple of email corispondings. He seemed like a nice guy BUT um,

In 2 different emails he listed two different last names. No combination of which I was able to find through yellow pages or google. Same with the production companies he said he worked for. The one that did exist never heard of him. The one thing about him, I did believe was that his first name was Kareem.

And even after all this I'm thinking, well this guy seems really sketchy, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have the camera. Maybe this was a simple case of his posse having held up a truck.

As I was getting more and more weirded out, I never stopped being polite. I accepted his explanation of one of the last names he gave me was his middle name. He answered right on the beat. Maybe in the end, I asked too many questions. I tried to get him to do the deal through a site called www.escrow.com where he doesn't get paid until I inspect the item. He has stopped returning my phone calls.

Oh well. The good news is, I still love cheap **** and I go on record as having learned nothing from this experience.
 
jordieshapiro said:
Oh well. The good news is, I still love cheap **** and I go on record as having learned nothing from this experience.
Click to expand...

Excellent. May you loose 2500 before learning something ;)


And since when did Apple make Canon HDV camcorders?

There's a deaply discounted apple product that has struck my curiosity on Amazon. The seller is new and has no feedback listed.
Click to expand...
 
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