O/T Ebay Question- Scammer or Idiot?(Long)

After years of having no real problems using ebay, I ran into something a little different today.

Last Friday I used "buy it now" on some items(lot of 4 vintage framed pictures) I'd been looking a long time for. Immediately payed with paypal, then wasn't able to check email until today.

The seller had emailed me saying he didn't know how to make paypal work. He had paypal refund my money, and then emailed again asking if I would wire money to him via Western Union since he can't figure paypal out. He also said that he thought it would cost more to safely ship the pictures than what he'd had listed for shipping price in the auction. Then he emailed again saying he doesnt have a printer so he doesn't know how to ship the pictures(print a shipping label).

In the meantime, he's relisted the item, at a higher buy it now price along with a higher shipping price.

I suggested that he find one of those stores that will sell things for people on ebay and have them handle the payment and shipping at the original price, but really think I'm just going to pass on any further dealings, since I suspect he's not smart enough to safely pack and ship glass-framed pictures.

But, just out of curiosity, I know that when paying with paypal using a credit card a person is protected against someone taking your money and not shipping the item or the item showing up damaged, but is there any guarantee like that when using Western Union to wire money?.

When someone wants paid by Western Union , once money is transferred , its his . No guarantees . Usually scammers want paid in that manner because its even hard for the cops to trace it . Buyer beware - Trust is a thing of the past . God Bless

NEVER WIRE MONEY BY WESTERN UNION OR OTHER METHODS TO A STRANGER.The minute they want wired money, your cash is gone. Period.
Report it to Ebay..it's a scam.

The only thing you can safely wire through Western Union is your Mother in Law. Odds are good you will never see her again.......

Yea, sounds a bit scamish........is that a word?

"is there any guarantee like that when using Western Union to wire money?."
No, Absolutely none. When you wire money there is no guarantee or recourse, it's just like sending cash.
If I were you, I would file a compliant with Ebay.

File a complaint with ebay about it

Sounds like a scam. File a complaint with ebay. They will know how to handle it.

Thanks for all the fast replies! This guy sure "sounded" like he was just a legit bozo who couldn't make paypal work...sent me what he said was his home address, home phone number, etc. He even gave me a sob story about how he HAD to have the money tomorrow or his electricity would be shut off!

I'd never had any dealings with Western Union, and wasn't about to go in blind and send money!

Told him if he couldn't make Paypal work, then I figured I'd just pass. I'll be able to find another one of the pictures I'd been looking for.

Gonna report him to ebay. Thanks again!

Whew...maybe NOT gonna report to ebay...after clicking my fingers off all around the ebay site, I can't seem to find ANYPLACE where I can actually type out a message to them about what happened.

When I go to customer support, I'm given several options to pick from. The closest I can get is "item not recieved" and when I click there it says that "paypal reports that we cannot open a case on this item", probably due to the fact that he had paypal refund my money.

Guess I'll wait until business hours and try playin' phone tag with them.

Yep, that is a SCAM for sure, he sure figured out how to work paypal to refund the money!

Did you save the emails?? Forward them on to ebay customer service. The worst they will do is cancel the account. There is nothing to prevent the scammer from opening a new account though...

If the guy was able to figure out how to get paypal to refund your money, he knew how to take your payment. I think he was just trying to take your money with no intention of sending the merchandise. Sending Western Union would be just like sending cash with no protection. Whether it cost him too much to ship the pictures is his problem. It was up to him to determine shipping before he listed it. If he was honest and didn't know the shipping, he could have listed it as "buyer pays actual shipping" which means after the sale he gets your zip and charges just what the post office charges. Since you were the high bidder he was obligated to sell you the item. He had no right to cancel the sale and relist it. I would file a complaint with ebay. He broke several rules. At the very least you can give him negative feedback and tell your story. It might save someone else.

Yep, I saved all the emails, but can't seem to find the proper email address to send 'em.

When he relisted the pictures, he even put in his email address and asked people to contact him there or on yahoo messenger rather than through ebay. It wouldn't even let me report the relisted auction as suspicious, but I'd think they'd catch him on that.

Is it that hard to refund money? His "reason" for refunding it, he said, is that it didn't directly transfer from his paypal account to his bank account.

I haven't taken in money on paypal for a few years, but I seem to remember that it took a day or two for the money to transfer from paypal to my bank- is this correct?

He said he needed the money right away, but even if he WAS honest(which it isnt sounding like) he sure must not be very smart to figure he could put up a 6-day auction on the worldwide web and expect to have the money right away? Even mailing a check would take several days...

And again, like I posted below- the process I went to trying to "file a complain" with ebay got me nowhere. Since he'd refunded the money paypal said ebay couldn't do anything.

Go to customer support and then to resolution center and fill out the information. He needs to be stopped before someone gets ripped off. He knows what he is doing and he is just preying on anyone who will bite. Did your Paypal account actually get credited or did he just say that hoping you would send him MORE money?


Steven

It's a scam. Had he not relisted it, I'ld say that it could be either, but relisting while the transaction is is progress is dishonest.

It's close to the same process to accept a payment as it is to send a refund. You just go to paypal and choose which transaction you wish. It's been a long time since I was a vendor at ebay but the paypal account is like a bank account. You just keep acculumating funds and when you wanted the money you could just wire transfer it from your paypal account to yout bank account. During a weekday when the banks are open the transfer from Paypal was nearly instant. You can send money to anyone that has a paypal account. You just need the email address associated with their paypal account. It doesn't even have to pretain to a ebay transaction. Having his sales paid by paypal is the quickest way he could get the money in his hand.

There is only one gaurantee when you send money via Western Union. You will never, never, ever, ever see that money again!
I posted in the other forum to NEVER use Westewrn Union under any conditions UNLESS it is your next door neighbor or you know the person very well.
Your seller is an obvious scammer and should be reported to Ebay immediately.

Here's a big red flag! If he can't figure out Paypal... How did he do the refund?!

Run and don't look back !!!

Western Union must be the real deal, because just last week, Clown - I mean, Crown Prince Bongo Kabongo of Gabon urged me to use that very method to send the front money to secure my receipt of $25,000,000, to aid him in getting it out of the country. I get to keep 10%! What could possibly go wrong? We're in the money, we're in the moneyyyyy. . .

i would have told that the money is on its way,[not] send items when you get it, lol, he'll be waiting for a long time, pay backs are a b!#ch,,did that to a scammer one time when i was checking on a tractor on c-list

Better leave negative feedback before he scams someone else.