graphics card scam

[josepren-7]

I just purchased a graphics card slightly below MSRP - immediately after purchasing I googled information about ebay scams and realized I 100% had purchased from a scam. I immediately cancelled the order (under 5 minutes). I tried to call Ebay but have had zero luck speaking with a human. The seller has not marked sold yet, what are the chances of me losing money here? am I out $500? 

[wastingtime101]

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@josepren-7 wrote:

I immediately cancelled the order (under 5 minutes).

what are the chances of me losing money here? am I out $500? 

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It's not possible to cancel an order as a buyer. It's only possible to submit a cancellation request and the seller can accept or decline or let it time out (which is the same as declining).

If seller ships you a fake you have 30 days from delivery to file a return request with the appropriate not as described reason. Check the listing to make sure it was listed in the correct category and that it offers the 30 day Money Back Guarantee (MBG).

If the seller doesn't ship anything you have 30 days from estimated delivery to file a non-receipt claim assuming the listing was in the correct category and is covered by the MBG.

The system is automated in both of these situations; it's an easy process.

https://www.ebay.com/help/buying/returns-items-not-received-refunds-buyers/returns-items-not-receive...

If the seller sends a package to a different address within your same zip code, come here for help before doing anything. That's less likely to happen, but it does happen, but you'll need assistance outside of the automated system.

[mudshark61369]

@josepren-7,

If you did a Google search for eBay scams, it would return only those results which could give you a skewed idea of what actually happens on ebay.  Most people who get scammed and lose money have that happen because they did not read the terms of ebay's Money Back Guarantee (MBG) or follow its time frames. Below is a link to the MBG policy.  Read it then save/bookmark it along with the link given you by wastingtime, for possible future use.

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy...

[josepren-7]

So it sounds like - ultimately I will get my money back - but it's going to be locked up for quite a while if the seller does not accept the cancellation. 

[monica-sells]

curious...why do you 100% know it's a scam?

(with ebays Money Back Guarantee, and all the hassles sellers have to do to get their money, it is pretty difficult for a seller to sell stuff and steal your money.....)

[josepren-7]

Thank you for the response - in this case, this is 100% a scam, I don't purchase ebay a lot and didn't know the signs to look out for 
New seller
no sell history
no returns status
generic photos
....

This purchase checks every tick on the list - I probably should have known it but felt an urgency to purchase if it was real - then after I purchased and the sense to verify...

[fab_finds4u]

Wow,,,,there are also new sellers with no selling history  that don't  accept returns and they use stock photos and they're not scammers.

It's  wrong assume the seller is a scammer.

If they were out to scam you they would list it in a category like Specialty Services that do not offer eBay Money Back Guarantee.

[teleman59]

I don't think this is limited to graphics cards.  I've had two transactions that clearly were scams - Ebay's "forced" path of resolution thru the website seems purposely convoluted and Byzantine.  

For over 20 years I had no problems with buying thru Ebay - but I just get the perception Ebay has become a place for scammers in recent years and very little oversight is being performed by Ebay itself to police Sellers.

I can't trust buying off Ebay anymore, especially when it comes to straight forward help.  It's almost as if laid off government workers have been hired by Ebay.

[titipeo]

While you are reading info on how to protect yourself on a scam, also check info on fake tracking scam, in order to prepare your self. 

[josepren-7]

no it's not wrong to assume they are scammers - it's nothing personal and it's my own $500 on the line. Ebay does, tho it may not make sense, have scams everywhere. It is smart to know what to look for and anywhere on the internet - assume some level of risk. To say it's wrong to assume they are scammers like this is a moral issue -- is a bit guarded and if I'm being honest strange. 

[albertabrightalberta]

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@josepren-7 wrote:

 immediately after purchasing I googled information about ebay scams and realized I 100% had purchased from a scam. 

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@josepren-7 wrote:

- then after I purchased and the sense to verify...

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At this point, no one knows that you have been scammed (including you).

But in the future, the time to do your research is BEFORE buying an item.

Let this be a learning experience for you.

[josepren-7]

Just following up here. This did turn out to be a scam the seller rejected the cancellation at the very last minute. The seller never shipped or responded to my messages. eBay policy required me to go thru several steps including, waiting for the cancellation to go thru or be cancelled, waiting for item to not be shipped, reporting the item not shipped, waiting 3 days passed the report date passed the original date to call back and confirm. Essentially I got the refund but had to manage many steps and nothing was automated. I could imagine someone missing one of these steps and somehow losing out. Anyway eBay did refund me but it wasn't without several painful steps and conversations. 

[kathiec]

nothing was automated. 

But it could have been automated. You chose to make it complicated. You didn't need to obsess over whether it was a scam, or contact eBay at all. All you needed to do was find the last estimated delivery date. Then when the item didn't arrive by the day after the last estimated delivery date, you could have simply gone to the transaction in your purchase history, opened More actions, and clicked 'I didn't receive it'. That would have opened an MBG case. Four days later you go back to the case and ask eBay to step in. So two automated steps and you would have gotten a refund.

[josepren-7]

Thanks! awesome advice. Sounds like you've done this a lot. You are required to follow up "and ask ebay to step in. That's not automated. but I said 3 days you're right it is 4. and yes I "obsess" over being scammed. The scammers literally make their money on people who do not.

[kathiec]

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@josepren-7 wrote:

Thanks! awesome advice. Sounds like you've done this a lot. You are required to follow up "and ask ebay to step in. That's not automated. but I said 3 days you're right it is 4. and yes I "obsess" over being scammed. The scammers literally make their money on people who do not.

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Actually, I haven't done it in more than a decade, and probably only two or three times total in nearly 27 years on the site. Scammers aren't as prevalent as most people think. Yes, asking eBay to step in is totally automated. You just go back to the MBG case and do it. And obsessing about being scammed has zero effect on scammers making their money. Buyers not opening cases is how scammers make their money.