help guys..fruad or for real

[emzy86]

i just won on an auction yesterday which sounds too good to be true
http://www.webidz.com/auction_details.php?auction_id=1815933 so please check it out and tell me what do you think
and i came across another one today also
http://www.webidz.com/auction_details.php?auction_id=1815933

both sellers have no feedbacks

[mj-trading]

I would do a ticket on it as like you said it could be to good to be true!
When your lookin to bid on items like this and they sound to good it is best if you buyers go and check out some other sellers that sell the same thing and see what there selling it for! Check sellers with feedback! By doing this it should tell you what the story is on that item!

[katandron1]

John is right, what sounds too good to be true usually is. Not sure what you can do about it at this point, you could turn in a ticket, but I don't think there is anything he can do either until it's turns into a non performing seller. But he can try to communicate with the seller, and see what comes of it.

[rnrgiftsnmore]

i just won on an auction yesterday which sounds too good to be true
http://www.webidz.com/auction_details.php?auction_id=1815933 so please check it out and tell me what do you think
and i came across another one today also
http://www.webidz.com/auction_details.php?auction_id=1815933

both sellers have no feedbacks


Did you notice that those are the same auction?

Good luck getting the merchandise you bought,
Roz

[DiMoraGifts]

Looks like this person is a newbie, might have made a mistake??? Only a little time will tell! :rolleyes:

[katandron1]

You know, I have thought about this for a couple of days now, and this is just my opinion.

I have looked at the FAQs, and here is what I find.... Once you've confirmed your purchase, you are obligated to pay the seller. and.....
A bid or Buy Out purchase is considered a contract and you are obligated to purchase the item.

You can read the full FAQs on buying here.... Buying (5) (http://www.webidz.com/faq/category-12.html)

As a buyer, it is yours/ours responsibility to ask questions of the seller BEFORE placing a bid or buy out. If this is not done, then in my opinion, the buyer can and should be held to the same rules as the seller. Pay for the widget by some sort of secured payment (paypal, cc), if it does not get sent, then file the appropriate complaints to get your money back and get the seller gone.

There are several scenerios on this particular "transaction".

The seller could be a fraud. This seller could also actually have some of these on hand, and doing a promo for themselves.

However, the seller could be new to the whole thing and simply forgot to place a reserve amount. Then he/she would be obligated to let this widget go for the price you bid and won, unless you both mutually agree to not follow through. If it is a legit seller, then you as a buyer can hold that seller to let that item go, yes it would cost that seller some money, and it would be an expensive lesson learned.

If this is a fraud seller or a legit seller who now realizes they cannot possibly let this go for the $1.00 bid/win, it will be an inexpensive way to get them booted for non performance.

I could be wrong but, if it were a fraud, wouldn't that seller try to get more money out of people than $1.00? I would think that they would have started the bidding out at say around $50.00......note they have 7 of them.....so $50.00x7 sold = $350.00 plus S&H. That would be in contrast to them selling all 7 at $1.00 each plus S&H.

Anyhow, this is getting long but just wanted to say that sellers AND bidders should all be held accountable for what they do. Looking at the other auctions that this seller has up, it appears that they are selling some things at appropriate prices, and could have made a mistake not setting a reserve. It is now up to both parties on if this transaction takes place or doesn't and if there will be a complaint filed.

As a seller, we are obligated to let a widget go at whatever it was won for, or risk being suspended.

As a buyer, we are obligated to pay for the widget we have won, or risk being suspended.

Do I want to see people get scammed out of money? No of course not, but what it comes down to is it IS a binding contract on either party!

[Lanascountry]

That is a excellent report Kathy!!

[crystalhanger]

When I clicked on the first one, I thought it must have been a mistake by the seller. But when I clicked on the second one, I did not think so as much.

Thing Is! I know where they are getting most of these items from and believe me, there is no way you can purchase them wholesale at that price anywhere unless someone gave them to the seller.

My mother told me LONG ago and it has been said here! "IF it looks to good to be true......."! You know the rest!

But in my honest opinion, if the seller has the same thing twice and it is not a mistake, I would have a 50/50 on whether to even place a bid. BUT as the rules state! IF you purchased it for that amount, they must sell it for that amount! A contract is a contract, seller mistake or not! It is legally binding!

As many people are unaware of! The laws that are in place OFF the internet APPLY to the internet. Theft is theft no matter where it took place at! Same as fraud!

Crystal

[katandron1]

Crystal, the two links provided are the same link......same auction number, same winners.

We have all said the same thing, if it looks too good to be true, probly is.

However, a bid was placed, now the money has to change hands. If the product is not received, then THAT would be the time to turn in complaints.

Not beforehand.

Let's say this is a scam, the bidder doesn't pay because they think it's a scam. The seller can actually turn in a non paying bidder BEFORE the buyer can turn in a non performing or scam seller. No one knows for sure execpt the seller if it is a scam or not, until the transaction takes place.

Like I said, a bid has been placed, and a win has taken place. It's a binding contract, pay up and pray you get it. If you don't get it, then it's time to file the documents.

[mj-trading]

Another thing is that the seller might have more then one! They might have 25 of them to sell so the ad will run again!
Pay by paypal and that way if you don't get your item then you can file a dispute at Paypal for it

[emzy86]

thanks guys for your help :)
i already contacted the seller and told her that am willing to pay through paypal and asked her why she`s selling it at such low price
she told me that there was a mistake in listing and she felt bad to relist it all over again after ppl started bidding and she sent me her paypal,i didnt pay her yet but am planning to
wish me luck guys and i`ll keep you posted

[katandron1]

Good for you emzy on communicating with the seller, hope it all turns out well. Once bids are placed, sellers cannot change the price or end dates. They can edit description I believe, but nothing else. Like I said, an expensive lesson learned to the seller.

Keep us posted, and we will keep our fingers crossed for ya.

[Lanascountry]

Yeppers please let us know how it comes out. Do you know if she
has a feedback record elsewhere? Most of the time, if it is good any where,
they are good.. I have found this with my own purchases. Thank you for
the update! :)

[emzy86]

i thought i can give it a shot and pay through google checkout (which i never used) and since it really freaks me out to use my creditcards online i always use a VCC to pay for online transactions so google checkout cancelled the payment as am using a VCC and i told the seller about it ( so dumb of me ) so she`s now making it an excuse for not selling the item ,i told her about me using VCCs and that she can check my ebay account to see my 100% positive feedbacks
so any ideas about what can i do if she sticked to her excuse

[katandron1]

Have to ask what a VCC is? If you pay via a gateway she offers, and it goes through, she has no choice but to send it or be reported.

So if she offers pay pal, and pay pal will let the VCC go through, pay that way.

If she has stated in her TOS that she doesn't accept a form of payment, and you send it that way, then yes, she can refuse to send. But as long as you follow the TOS, then she has to send.

[katandron1]

Read her TOS carefully, is there a deadline for payment and are you within that deadline?

What are the payment options? Make sure you send money via one of her payment options.

[emzy86]

she offers paypal but i dont wanna open my paypal as i am rightnow in a vacation outside US visiting my home country :) so i dont wanna get limited or so,also she offers to pay through authorize.net which would serve me well and money orders,she sent me a message rightnow asking me to send her a money order

[katandron1]

Money orders have no buyer protection. I could ask you to send me a money order, and then say I never got it. Use them only with someone you trust.

She admits she made a mistake in the listing. It's too late now to correct that listing mistake. She is obligated to sell the ipod for the $1.00 you won it at. She realizes just how costly this mistake is gonna be on her since you are not the only winner of one of these.

I offer many different payment gateways, and since I offer those, I have to accept whatever form you end up sending me. I can't make you choose one over the other.

You can let her off the hook, but you would not get your widget, or you can hold her to it. Your choice on the payment gateway you use, if she refuses the payment, then you can turn her in. As long as you use anything she has listed, there would be no good reason for her to refuse the payment.

[emzy86]

thanks alot katandron1:) i really appreciate your help

[katandron1]

Your most welcome,

I don't want to see either side scammed. But like stated, a transaction is a binding contract.

Personally if I was you, I would hold her to the sale and send my payment (who doesn't want an ipod for $1.00). She may not deliver, and then I would report. Knowing she has made a mistake, I would probly allow more time to ship since she is going to have to come up with money out of pocket. But I would be very clear in the shipping time frame, and I would save any and all communication between the two of you.

But then, we are not playing with my money either LOL.

If I was the seller, I would follow through to keep my customer happy as it was my mistake, but I would have to beg for your mercy and ask for more time to ship as that IS a lot of money to have to come up with.

May I also add, that if you guys do follow through with this, please leave an appropriate feedback for her when it's time. She may be as honest as the day is long, we all make mistakes.

[mj-trading]

If a seller only offers say Paypal and money orders then that's the way the Buyer needs to pay! I as a seller is not going to go and open some new kind of payment gateway just for on buyer! Some sellers can only except Paypal or money orders! If a buyer doesn't want to pay that way then it is best to find a seller that offers the payment gateway you want to pay with!

[katandron1]

John, this seller offers google as a direct, but also has pay pal listed as an offline, along with money orders and a few others. So any of those would be good to send money by, I do not see the authorize.net logo on this listing but it is on other listings of hers, so could have been added as a gateway.

I would not send it by money order though.

[Rockforge]

I would suggest not mailing to a P.O. Box though. If you get an actual street address you will be able to file a complaint with the local authorities if needed.

I also would suggest using a U.S. Postal Money Order because they are easier to trace and if charges have to be filed for fraud it is a government document and agency which carries a higher penalty.

I hope you work everything out fine and you don't have to go through any legal action to complete this transaction.

Best of Luck, Riff

[mj-trading]

I would suggest not mailing to a P.O. Box though. If you get an actual street address you will be able to file a complaint with the local authorities if needed.

I also would suggest using a U.S. Postal Money Order because they are easier to trace and if charges have to be filed for fraud it is a government document and agency which carries a higher penalty.

I hope you work everything out fine and you don't have to go through any legal action to complete this transaction.

Best of Luck, Riff

I must have missed something on this! Were did she say was sending to a PO Box??

[katandron1]

Emzy, If you come back and read this, you have to pay via the gateways on the specific listing. I do not see authorize on this one, and she will more than likely refuse the payment if you pay that way since it is not on the listing.

You could call pay pal or send them an email and let them know that you are currently out of country and plan on making a purchase, give them a heads up and it should help with paying that way. Of course they are going to want you to proove who you are, but hey, you get the buyer protection.

[Lanascountry]

In THIS case, (if it were me) I would send it PAYPAL with DC AND insurance.
enclose as much detail on your item with payment, as possible)
(JMO) I would do it no other way.

[emzy86]

thanks guys for your help
the seller already listed she accepts visa/mastercard/amex as a payment method also,i might consider calling paypal and arranging it with them
anyways i`ve sent her a message 5 min ago, i`ll keep you posted guys :)