How to avoid being ripped off when selling on ebay

[avanham]

I pulled my a1200 out of the closet and got it back into working condition so that I can sell my a4000t with:

-- QuikPak 4060 (68060 accelerator card)
-- 144 MB memory
-- 16.7 GB SCSI hard drive
-- CD ROM (SCSI)
-- Picasso IV (missing the detachable scandoubler module)
-- X-surf III
-- Cyberpatcher original disks
-- Cybergraphx original CD
-- Amiga OS 3.9 original CD

None of it has yellowed.

I want to sell it on ebay but I am a little leary about selling to someone in a foreign country which, when you live in Canada, includes pretty much everybody.

I have heard that there are scams where people steal other people's accounts and buy an item then disappear with it.  When the real owner sees the charge on their credit card, they go through the Credit Card company and get their money back, and the seller ends up with nothing.  

Is this true?  Are there other scams as well?  What kinds of situations do you turn away from?  Can you refuse to sell to a bidder because you don't trust them?  For that matter, how do you know who to trust?

On another matter, how much would the whole lot be worth?  I paid about $1,700 USD for it all and would like to get my money back.  It should be noted that the Picasso IV lacks the detachable scandoubler module but it works fine otherwise.

[CaptChaos]

You could advertise it here or on www.amibay.com.

On amibay you need to set your price, sounds like you already have one in mind.

[Astral]

avanham wrote:

I have heard that there are scams where people steal other people's accounts and buy an item then disappear with it.  When the real owner sees the charge on their credit card, they go through the Credit Card company and get their money back, and the seller ends up with nothing.  

Is this true?  Are there other scams as well?  What kinds of situations do you turn away from?  Can you refuse to sell to a bidder because you don't trust them?  For that matter, how do you know who to trust?

This is true, and there is an entire website...www.paypalsucks.com (?) that contains stories relating to this exact method, and similar - how old they are, I am not sure.

One thing I have learnt recently is that in the case of a dispute, if you don't have "adequate" proof of postage when it comes to a buyer dispute, you will lose the case, your item and your money. The exact definition of "adequate" can be found with snippets here there and everywhere on PayPal's poorly designed site - which doesn't make it easy to know EXACTLY what you are expected to prove! And, as with eBay, if there is ANY discrepancy, it'll WILL go in the buyers favour.

But, don't let this put you off using eBay/PayPal  :roll:

[countzero]

splitting your stuff will increase your revenue, and make stuff go quicker, but I doubt you'll get your 1700 USD back even splitting.

[Fingers]

Once you have sold your item and been paid through PayPal there are two things you can do to protect your money;

a: Spend it by purchasing something with PayPal.

b: Send it to a friend's PayPal account.

If there is nothing in the PayPal account, they cannot retrieve anything.

I had an eBay buyer contact me with an obviously bullsh*t (described totally impossible fault combinations) problem recently, so I did just that, spent all my PayPal funds on what I wanted ASAP! I didn't need to bother though, as he didn't lodge a dispute...oops! hahahaha

PZ.

[TjLaZer]

Always send the item insured and delivery confirmation and or registered mail.  That way you have proof the item was shipped.  One scam that I know of is the buyer will state the item was never received and will refund them, and take the money from you.  Even if you have no money in your Paypal account I believe they will run you in the negative so you are still SOL.  Be careful!

[Trev]

@Astral

And, as with eBay, if there is ANY discrepancy, it'll WILL go in the buyers favour.

As it should; however, fraud is considered pretty serious in the US these days, and all fraud claims must be reported to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network at the Department of the Treasury http://www.fincen.gov/. If eBay/PayPal isn't doing that, then something isn't kosher.

[terminator4]

Hey,
I'm in Canada too.  I send you PM.

[terminator4]

He said he's from Canada.  As such he should report it to his country's equivalent agency.  His first bet would be his credit card company, which has fraud prevention.  If he's a seller than he should simply refuse paypal and ask for wire transfer or money order?

[orange]

I think you could see if buyer bought Amiga items in past,  its not a proof though..

[Astral]

Fingers wrote:

If there is nothing in the PayPal account, they cannot retrieve anything.

This is not true. Your account will be taken into the negative.

[Astral]

Trev wrote:
@Astral

And, as with eBay, if there is ANY discrepancy, it'll WILL go in the buyers favour.

As it should;

Why do you say this?

[ZeBeeDee]

How to avoid getting ripped off on Ebay? hmmm ... tricky ...

Don't use it in the first place ..?  :-)