Potential scammer

[olivatree-10]

A buyer with over 300 positive reviews has potentially tried to scam me. I am normally fairly vigilant about unauthentic communication and can usually smell a rat! This was different, possibly AI generated. The EBay messaging was very believable and the voicemail message received by the collector (someone called ‘George’ who the buyer had arranged to collect) was very authentic. Unfortunately I had given my address and mobile number, and I’m now worried. I have been bombarded with messages and voicemails, so will now be blocking this account.  Please be careful out there, it’s not easy to verify who’s real and who’s not. And EBay aren’t interested in removing this account. 

[jckl1957]

You should not be able to exchange contact details with the buyer until they have paid through Ebay and then you should only let them take the item away when they give you the collection code.

With those two simple provisions, I am not sure how a scam could happen with a collection only item.

What actually happened?

[olivatree-10]

The buyer came to my property unannounced when I wasn’t in. This has scared
me and I’m now receiving nuisance calls during the night. The buyer does
not even have the same name as the person trying to call me. I wish to
cancel this order and relist. I don’t want to feel threatened in my home.

[john1297576]

Has buyer paid? If collection you would only hand over to person who gives you code, and you have entered and it worked. Do not rely on any code in case it is not “real”.

Cancelling without buyers agreement, can give you a defect.  

[jckl1957]

Sorry but none of this makes sense to me.

Has the buyer paid?

Who is the third party?  Has your buyer asked somebody else to collect on their  behalf and is that person contacting you?

The buyer could only come to your home if you had told them where you live.

They can only ring you if you have given them your number.

Why don't you just contact your buyer and make a firm arrangement for them to come to your home when you will be there and collect the item.  Remind them they need the collection code when they pick the item up.

[olivatree-10]

Yes. The buyer appears to be trying to use a third party to collect the
item.

Also, the buyer’s name is different from the original communication,
initially the buyer was using ‘Leigh’ but the profile was ‘Patricia Lee’.

I’m receiving calls and emails from persons named; Leigh, George and
Patricia in the middle of night.

In addition the voicemails do not appear to be authentic, have an
inconsistent pronunciation and the speech had a strange rhythm.

This kind of message is commonly used in scams to: Pretend a courier or
buyer attempted pickup and pressure the seller into rescheduling or sharing
more personal information

Regards,

[jckl1957]

Have. They. Paid?