Should I be concerned?
I need a business phone and found it on ebay for only $40, when everyone else is selling it for $150+. Furthermore, the seller has only sold 4 items; only has 8 listings; and has NO reviews. The seller is located in the USA and I'm located in Canada. Should I be concerned about buying an item when the price is unusually low and the seller has no reviews? Could it be a scam? Would I be protected by ebay?
8 comments
simba6
·2 years agoFirst always pay by credit card for it's added protection. Listings with too good to be true priced by sellers with little or no feedback are often scams. While eBay does offer some protection, some scams like the fake tracking number scam are a pain to fight. Can take months and many hours of work.
No umpire will get every call right, I say you should avoid that listing as I think it's a scam.
mudshark61369
·2 years ago@wp2288,
Reasons why I would be concerned about buying from that seller.
1) (0) feedback seller. Since they have only made 4 sales which cannot be proven, they may still be under the 21 day payment hold ebay places on all new sellers first few sales. Most do not know about the hold or how to deal with it. Unfortunately a very common issue with new sellers. They also do not know how to deal with returns, or how to proceed with returns from International buyers.
2) The seller's location is uncomfortably close to the ports in New Jersey often used by China based sellers who are less than trustworthy.
3) If the seller is not an authorized dealer of that brand of phone, even though it is New, the Mfr.'s warranty may not be accepted by them, because the seller isn't an authorized dealer. The Allstate plan available, may not be of much help if things are bad with it.
I would be willing to pay more from a more experienced phone system seller who has a Return Policy.
4pawsup*
·2 years agoOne of the biggest targets for scammers on ebay phones. When something is to good to be true you know the rest.
soh.maryl
·2 years agoWith so many red flags here, and considering the fact that there are so many phones listed on eBay, why take a chance? Yes, you have the MBG, but you do not get an immediate refund etc. Let's hope you can find another phone that doesn't have so many possible negatives attached to it.
mudshark61369
·2 years ago@wp2288,
An item with a much lower than trending price can be a scam. Beyond that, is the seller's description complete, or have they just posted the Mfr.'s information. Another concern may be that the phone is locked into a particular cell provider's system and cannot be used with your cell service's system. If the phone cannot be used with your cell provider's system you would be stuck with paying the return shipping cost, because you did not check with the seller to see if it was unlocked, or not. You could post the 12 digit ebay item number so we can check out the listing and the seller's info to see if there are signs of a scam.
Personally, I would not buy a cell phone from a newish seller listing items for international purchase, who may not have any experience selling them. What may seem like a good deal, could end up being troublesome and because it is an international sale, you may have to pay the return postage cost w/ tracking, because the seller cannot buy CP postage from the U.S.. They would have to refund the return cost once the phone has been received by them.
As for ebay's Money back Guarantee (MBG) protections, they do work very well in most cases. However, you need to know what the protections are and the time frames for using them. You should open and read the terms of the MBG in the link below, and save the link for future reference.
https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy?id=4210
wp2288
OP2 years agoThank you for the insight. It is greatly appreciated. Further to your request, I've provided a link to the item below. It is a Polycom VVX Expansion Unit, which would go with my current Polycom desk phone. The seller is providing an accurate description and they're also saying it is brand new and sealed. A great deal at $30, considering other sellers have it listed for $150, $200, etc.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/335089559274?epid=19012041000&hash=item4e04e4e6ea:g:euoAAOSwvfBlOms8
mr_lincoln
·2 years ago@wp2288 Just curious, what do they sell for new from a certified dealer?
alcoforever
·2 years agoyes, it could be a scam. Too good to be true prices are often associated with scams.
You should be protected by ebay's Money Back Guarantee though.