Ebike Seller Says Using Ebay Speedpak to U.S., But That Is Impossible by Weight

Question

I ordered an ebike for a price that seems too good to be true - $299 with $50 shipping using Ebay Speedpak. The seller has not responded to my questions for two days making me suspicious already. Then I researched Ebay Speedpak restrictions, and the weight exceeds limits as does the lithium battery. Has anyone else had an experience where the price is too good for an item and the Ebay Speedpak shipping does not seem to fit the product? How would the seller scam me in this situation? I am conside...

marktdm850 · Answer

Thank for your detailed guidance. I will see if I can cancel the order before it ships since this seems to be a scammer per your advice.

eburtonlab · Answer

@marktdm850

The time to investigate your seller is prior to making a purchase; a buyer cannot cancel unilaterally without the cooperation of the seller, and if the seller is a scammer, the seller will not cooperate.

In general, you can avoid a lot of headaches by choosing to purchase only from established sellers that have recent and past positive feedback as a seller for selling items in the same category that you intend to buy. If someone is selling a dozen apple watches, but has no feedback, or only has feedback as a buyer, or only has feedback for selling dress patterns or fishing lures (actual examples I have seen), perhaps wait until they have a track record of positive feedback for selling electronics before you buy from them.

You might miss out on a good deal from a new seller once in a while, and nothing can guarantee that you won't still run into an issue anyway, but you can avoid a lot of potential problems by choosing to do business with established sellers. Anyone can put together a listing that looks nice -- it is not hard at all to simply copy an existing listing -- but it is much harder to create a history of consistent sales and positive feedback.

For more experienced sellers, you can learn a lot about the sort of seller you are dealing with by checking the seller's feedback page to see where the seller is registered and to notice if the seller has any negative feedback. If you see negatives indicated in the table of recent feedback, you can choose to exclusively see each type of comment by clicking on the numbers shown in the table. Reading negative or neutral comments can often tell you if a seller has a pattern of problems with items not matching the descriptions, canceled orders, late deliveries or item location misrepresentation.

If a seller has a pattern of too many serious negatives -- or just not enough positive history -- it is often better to find another seller with a better track record to do business with.

You will likely have to wait and see what if anything arrives by the last estimated delivery date or when the tracking shows delivery. Bookmark the seller's feedback page in case the seller's account is removed by eBay. What the tracking actually shows and what arrives will determine whether you need to file an "item not received" case, a "not as described" return, or pursue a false tracking claim.