Is this a possible scam?
This is my 1st post in the Ebay forums, go easy on me!
I had a customer purchase an item of mine, then 2 days later they bought 2 more. Then 2 days after that they bought 3 more. It feels unnatural & scammish. Will they report something later? How can I be sure & protect myself? Thank you for any help!
11 comments
sin-n-dex
·2 years agoThere's really nothing you can do (or very little) if you get scammed, if you are getting scammed, come back here for help.
It depends what the items are. Yesterday I sold two banknotes to a guy in the morning, and two more to him int he afternoon (after I'd packed his first order, so I couldn't combine them at that point). I've had a few people come back every few days to buy items. I sell collectibles, so it stands to reason someone might make multiple purchases if I have things they like.
C.
erikstuff
·2 years agoI wouldn't worry about it. I had one customer who purchased one political button a week, for 3 weeks in a row @ $4.95 and $4.50 shipping. In my ad I say I combine shipping. He could have bought all 3 at once and saved $9.00.
12345jamesstamps
·2 years agoI have had a lot of buyers like that.
I hate that because you get charged a fee per item sold.
And it screws up shipping.
If you combine items...if in the same box...add tracking number to each and every item.
Some sellers will put all items in a box and just post one tracking number....each item in the box needs a tracking number. You can always refund buyer if they pay too much for tracking.
Careful with shipping refunds...that is immediately taken out of "available funds"...even before the item is in "available funds".
Some buyers think they get more feedbacks by paying each item individually.
I never tell what a buyer to do....it is what they want to do.
trijoh_635
OP2 years agoI'm not sure what you mean as far as combining...? The order said they bought 2 of one item, so it appears as just one order, not two. Would what you said apply to that? I do refund shipping overages...so I buy shipping with just one tracking #, and refund the difference. If someone were to buy 2 different items I would still do this, but can put a tracking # in manually for the second item? (I can do this on Etsy)
tinsoldierunderground
·2 years agoIs this a new buyer account? Is it possible they just like your products? Has the buyer left good feedback for other sellers? It's difficult to predict what a buyer will do, just as it's difficult to know why they're doing it. Have you communicated with the buyer at all? I'm assuming the buyer has paid for all 6 items. If so, I would ship and then go from there.
trijoh_635
OP2 years agoNot a new buyer, been on since 2017. He has all good ratings as a seller & buyer. He hasn't left any feedback at all. I don't want to ask much of the buyer, I figure it's their business... just paranoid I guess:)
Unavailable member
·2 years agoIf the buyer is paying why worry about it? Some buyers have strange buying patterns. Nothing scammy or hinky about it.
Repeat business is the best though!
pjcdn2005
·2 years agoUnfortunately we can't know what may happen in the future but a person purchasing repeat orders from you in itself doesn't sound like a scam. Are they all going to the same address?
If you are using a service with tracking there shouldn't be a problem with buyer filing an inr.
trijoh_635
OP2 years agoYes, all the same address....same guy. He has good ratings on Ebay. The buying pattern just seems odd: he bought 1, then a couple days later 1 more, then a couple days later 2 more, now 2 days later he bought 3. Maybe a reseller? But why not buy all at once?
Unavailable member
·2 years agoYou don’t sell high risk (for a scam) items. And you have some interesting stuff - not surprising that someone that buys one might buy several. I wouldn’t worry about the purchase pattern - some buyers are just goofy 🙂
trijoh_635
OP2 years agoThank you! 🙂