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Is seller trying to scam me
Hi bought silver 1kg bar today, seller had 10 and all have sold .
Just received message from seller staying here will send letter to my address 1st to make sure its correct before sending item??? My address is veifed with ebay has been for years.
Am worried if he sends letter to be singed for but is making out that is the item.
What do you think? Seller also has no feedback
Thanks
27 comments
kclemoo
OP10 months agoJust looked this morning and his account has gone. He has either deleted it or ebay have closed it down. Will this effect my case???
The case is still open. I carnt escalate till the 4th December
Any help be grateful. Thanks
jckl1957
·10 months agoEbay have closed the account - no seller can close an account with recent sales that quickly.
You can either speak to Ebay Customer Services or wait until 4th to escalate the case.
Given the amount of money involved, I would speak to Ebay today.
Use the link below to get a callback.
Be calm and concise. Get them to look at your open case and the fact that the seller's account has been closed - those are the key details.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/eua?id=5275&mkevt=1&mkpid
kclemoo
OP10 months agoThank you just spoke to them. I still have to wait till the 4th to escalate the case, but ebay saying with the messages and evidence I've provided i will get my money back. They wouldn't say if ebay or seller closed account but it has been closed.
Thanks for all the help and support 🙏
red_magpie
Mentor10 months agoThanks for being such a responsive questioner. So many people ask a question but don't respond to anwers or even thank mentors who have tried to help).
We will keep our fingers crossed for you, and hope that it's all sorted by Christmas.
However, I'm afraid that just because eBay has advised you to open a case doesn't necessarily mean that they will find in your favour. Don't forget the warning in my original post, that the seller may have sent this so-called "test communication" specificlly to get tracking proof of delivery to your address. If eBay refuses your case for this reason you may be able to appeal, but ask here for advice again first.
It's wise to plan for the worst. Depending upon how you paid, or funded the payment, e.g. by credit or debit card, you may be able to file a claim with your payment provider. For card chargebacks the time limit to claim would probably be around six months. If you paid by one of the newer methods like Klana, check what buyer protection they may provide, and the time limit. But you must NOT file a dispute through any other institution while the eBay case is still open, or both are liable to be closed. To ensure that the evidence isn't lost, take screenshots or hard copies of the original listing and all correspondence with the seller. Good luck.
john1297576
Mentor10 months agoYour seller does not even seem to know what he sold, referring to “gold”.
Not a chance this is genuine, just do not let it get beyond the time allowed for a claim, as if you paid by Paypal they also have a 30 day time to open a case. Make sure you open a NOT AS DESCRIBED CASE, I doubt seller will even send a reply paid label, as it would turn his scheme to make a lot of money, a loss maker, but may try to delay refund. Do not delay in escalating if no refund.
Remember to leave feedback, negative, but keep it brief so there is no excuse for having it removed. Something like “unsatisfactory transaction” says it all as there are so many words “refund” “ebay” “opening case” which are not allowed. Also of course give LOW star ratings.
*vyolla*
Mentor10 months agoExactly what @papso22 says up there ^.
Do not engage further with this seller.
Wait 3 business days and if he doesn't supply you with a pre-paid returns label then use the option to ask eBay to step in.
Personally, I'd be leaving a well worded negative feedback to warn other potential buyers mentioning that you've received an empty envelope and not a 1kg silver bar.
kclemoo
OP10 months agoDid speake to ebay and they told me to to open case as advised by yourselves, so money on hold, but to give seller a chance and see if he does send and add special delivery tracking number?
tressygirl
Mentor10 months agoIf you have opened the case deal Only with the case details, and do not for any reason close it, no matter what the seller says, or promises.
Opening the case gives the seller 3 days to pay for a return label , Or refund you, if they do neither, then on day 4, escalate the case, ask eBay to step in and they'll force the refund.
You do not need to answer any message the seller sends.
@kclemoo
kclemoo
OP10 months agoThank you so much
tressygirl
Mentor10 months agoYou're very welcome, as said if you've opened a case, just keep a watch on those case details.
🤗
@kclemoo
papso22
Mentor10 months agoAs pointed out already there is absolutely no legitimate reason for the seller to send this letter and not just send the goods.
Please treat the seller as a scammer and have no further contact with him outside of the case. Do not close the case yourself for any reason.
jckl1957
·10 months agoAfter 3 days, you will be able to escalate the case to Ebay. However, you do have a window of up to 21 days to ask Ebay to step in.
So, if on Monday or Tuesday, the bullion bar arrives and you get it properly checked and you are happy that you are holding a kilo of silver, then you could choose to close the case.
However, you bought from an Ebay member who opened their account this year, has absolutely no feedback and has suddenly sold about £13000 in bullion bars.
Do I think you will receive a 1kg silver bar from this seller?
Honestly, not a chance.
If a little part of you thinks the seller is genuine, you could message the seller and say that, if the bar arrives by Tuesday and you are happy with it, of course you will ask Ebay to close the return case.
red_magpie
Mentor10 months agoIs seller trying to scam me
You really like to live dangerously, buying a £1,300 silver bullion bar from a supposed private seller with zero feedback!
Whether we or not we think he's trying to scam you, you have to work on the assumption that this is a strong possibility. Did you read the warning in the user agreement that eBay does not guarantee that descriptions will be truthful or accurate? Or that they will even exist. Would you have bought bullion bar from a shop that stated this??
The simplest scam would simply be to send you this (totally unnecessary) "test communication" to get proof of delivery. Be especially wary if it requires a signature for delivery (eBay requires this for an itemof this value) and/or is anything lime the weight of the bar you have bought. This would be s sure sign that he's planning to claim that this contained the silver bar.
The scammer would hope that after waiting for the actual item to arrive you would eventually open an "item not received" case under eBay's money back guarantee. You would automatically lose this, because the scammer would be able to provide tracking proof of delivery. What was delivered would be irrelevant. eBay would not allow you to open a second case, ie. that the item received was not as described.
You could try appealing, but the burden of proof would rest with you. (Did you know that eBay won't even take the buyer's word that the door shown in the photo to prove delivery isn't even their front door? That's an example of how tough they make it to challenge a tracking record.)
You can't cancel the sale now - only business sellers have to accept cancellations by law, private selelrs don't have to.
You will have to wait to see what happens. Don't throw away anything that arrives, you may need it for evidence later. Remember that you have just 30 days from the date of delivery ito use eBay's money back guarantee if anything arrives, or 30 days from the latest estimated delivery date if it doesn't.
Please post here for advice again before opening a case. There are so many pitfalls. We would need to know exactly how you paid and funded the payment e.g. paypal, credit or debit card etc. Depending upon how you paid you may have other ways of claiming a refund.
Good luck - it might of course turn out to be entirely legit. Might ......
kclemoo
OP10 months agoHi thanks for your reply. I know what your saying but the seller had 10 bars for sale, so surely if this is a scam and he doing the same to the other 9 people, surely ebay can clearly see whats going on.
Am going to try phone ebay today.
Would the best thing to do is not sign for anything so returns back to seller?
I paid through PayPal on my credit card.
Ive asked seller to cancel order but now he saying its his way of doing things due to the value.
As i keep saying to him, ive comfirmed my address with you and its verified on ebay/paypal.
Any help would be appreciated
papso22
Mentor10 months agoYou have received very good advice. My only addition is that you can go from an item not received claim to one for not as described, but you need to go straight for item not as described if you receive a tracked envelope, or anything else from the seller that is not your item.
Do not refuse the parcel. That invalidates the money back guarantee which is what you need to make a claim of item not as described if all you end up with is the letter.
The seller may have listed 10 non existent bars, there is no proof they have any, they are simply listings.
There really isn't any point contacting ebay yet.
kclemoo
OP10 months agoHi recived this so called letter today and its a empty envelope. What should I do.
papso22
Mentor10 months agoYou open a case for 'item not as described' using the ebay money back guarantee. You may need to return the envelope so don't throw that away.
kclemoo
OP10 months agotobiasd4
Mentor10 months agoPrivate sellers can refuse change of mind returns.
All sellers have to accept not as described cases.
Open it now, escalate on day 4 if no label or refund.
Ignore seller excuses.
kclemoo
OP10 months agoIs showing this when trying to open case.
jckl1957
·10 months agoFollow the advice you have been given.
Click on 'confirm' and open the return case.
The item was listed with the Money Back Guarantee and, as you have chosen 'doesn't match description', the seller can't refuse the return.
Put in the notes (note to seller) that you received an empty envelope and not a bullion bar. If you can add a photo, add a picture of the envelope showing your address, the tracking number and the weight.
tressygirl
Mentor10 months agoThe seller does not accept returns for a change of mind reason or an item doesn't fit, but your reason falls into a different category, and you're entitled to a full refund.
You select the reason for the return as item does not match description or Photos.
The seller needs to accept this case within 3 days and refund, if they request their item back first , even if it's the empty envelope, they need to pay for that fully tracked return postage, then on receipt of this, they have 48 hours to refund you. If they don't , need to escalate the case, ask eBay to step in, and they'll force the refund.
Never listen to any excuse or promise from the seller to close the case early, and do not forget to escalate.
@kclemoo
**peaseblossom**
Mentor10 months agoThat's a weird one. If he does try it on you would be able to open a "not as described" return to get your money back. eBay's system favours buyers so you should be OK. But you can tell them to cancel the transaction if you prefer.
kclemoo
OP10 months agoDefinitely fishy this seller. He has now marked item dispatched without tracking number also has no feedback.
I carnt even cancel order as he marked as dispatched. Am 99% sure I've been scammed.
He just said he will put tracking number up tomorrow for letter not item.
Ive never had this happen before.
Is it best i phone ebaybin morning
Ive asked him to cancel order
**peaseblossom**
Mentor10 months agoeBay won't do anything at the moment but you can contact them if you like. You can request a callback on here:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/eua?id=5275&mkevt=1&mkpid
As I said, you would get your money back if you opened a "not described" return within 30 days of the delivery date.