I was scammed. eBay won’t help.

[28wils]

Hi. So long story short I was scammed by a buyer. I sold an engagement ring for $900. I received fake emails from eBay and PayPal telling me I was safe to ship out and that I received the money. I paid out of my pocket $50 for the shipping. Sent the package. Email said I would get paid once it was shipped because there was a high case of it being fraud because it was an expensive item. Seemed legit. Package was delivered. I never got paid. I completed the Internet crime form, haven’t heard anything. Buyer will not email back. I’ve contacted eBay multiple times and they’ve done nothing! I am now out an engagement ring and $900. Why was I not protected!? Why did eBay not know this jerk was a scammer?! I’m so mad and eBay hasn’t done a thing. Does anyone know of an email or phone number to contact a higher up from eBay? This is absolute **bleep**. 

[vintage-car-magazines]

How did the scammer get your email address?

[oldold-timer]

Being semi-sympathetic towards someone who just lost big might not hurt you too much.

[duncanvr]

Don't call a scammer a buyer that was not a legit buyer just a scammer and sadly this is what happens when no feedback account lists an expensive item without knowing the platform and what can go wrong. You should have researched known scams so you would not fall for it. Basically you should now change all your Internet passwords, banks etc if you clicked open a fake link they may have also planted a virus or key locker on your computer you need to make sure your system is not infected with malware etc because of this bogus emails you received there is a risk of PC infection. Especially change your PayPal, bank and ebay passwords after you have scanned your PC at this point if you logged in from a fake link. Not a lot else you can do I give the same advice to every other new seller who made the same mistake you did. File a police report on the scammer if you have their name and address and that is if that was even real at the time of the scam. 

[iart]

Why did it cost $50 to ship a ring?

[gracieallen01]

You can file a complaint with USPS for mail fraud, your police dept. and theirs, and with IC3.  You're not too likely to see either the money or the ring, however.  You can go through small claims court - if you have any real information on the scammer.

However, ebay probably isn't going to help since you 'took the transaction off-site' by answering their e-mail privately (thereby giving your e-mail addy for the fake payment information) and expecting payment other than through ebay's system by not telling the scammer to pay through check-out.

Hard lesson to learn, but you probably won't let it happen again.

[lamber9347]

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@28wils wrote:

Hi. So long story short I was scammed by a buyer. I sold an engagement ring for $900. <snip>

Why was I not protected!? Why did eBay not know this jerk was a scammer?! I’m so mad and eBay hasn’t done a thing. Does anyone know of an email or phone number to contact a higher up from eBay? This is absolute **bleep**. 

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While I'm sorry that you got scammed I'm also confused as to why you are posting this now? Reason being you already posted about this when you first sold your ring and before you shipped it out. You sold the ring on 12/26 and posted on 12/28 that you suspected this was a scam because the buyer kept emailing you. You were advised on this board to cancel the order and you even acknowledged that you knew something was wrong and were going to do stop the shipment. 

Apparently you did not do this and a month later you come on here to post claiming you were duped and eBay should have your back? Are you in fact looking for more advice? 

You are a zero FB seller who didn't read up on the policies for selling online. You chose to sell an expensive piece of jewelry than fell for a scam which you suspected from the get go was bad news. Yet your desire for the money outweighed your good senses and you pursued it anyways, only to be left minus any money. This is a life lesson which hopefully you will learn from. Your instincts were good from the start yet you still fell for the scam. Learn to think things through more thoroughly next time. Best of luck to you.... 

[1959stratocaster]

Hello,

I am sorry to read you were scammed.    Not everyone is a scammer, but they are out there.

If you shipped the ring to a USA address, contact the police dept  nearest the buyers zip code and file a theft complaint.  Go to your local police dept and see if you can file a report with them also.

Keep ALL the fake emails you received and sent.  Print them out to have hard paper copies.  SAVE ALL YOUR COMMUNICATIONS!

Go to your post office and speak to the Post Master and bring all those papers including the Ebay paperwork with the buyers name and address and file a theft complaint with the USPS.

If you already filed a IC3 report, bring a paper copy of that also to the Police and USPS.

Again, I am sorry to read this happened to you.

Good luck!

[futuremarine2011]

from reading your post im of the opinion that you were your own worst enemy as to this transaction.  you made so many mistakes and with something that wasnt even slightly cheap. i see 0 feedback with you.   looking for the fast buck before you did your due diligence to check out the what could go wrong situations. if you had just done that i dont believe you would be in the pickle you are now. but hey, thats just my opinion

[coastaltechsolution]

This is your original post from 12/28/2020: SCAM?  

You already knew then that it was a scam and had multiple of experienced sellers giving you great advice that you obviously ignored. 

Why are you posing this now? Why didn't you follow not only your own advice but the advice of others???

Life lesson not to let the greed of fast money blind you from reality. 

[iart]

Wow. Nice work digging up that old post. No sympathy for this seller. There was zero reason for him to get taken. Unbelievable.

The OP should name your post as the solution.

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@coastaltechsolution wrote:

This is your original post from 12/28/2020: SCAM?  

You already knew then that it was a scam and had multiple of experienced sellers giving you great advice that you obviously ignored. 

Why are you posing this now? Why didn't you follow not only your own advice but the advice of others???

Life lesson not to let the greed of fast money blind you from reality. 

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[bonjourami]

Wow..very hard to be sympathetic when a newbie seller walks around with a big' Please Scam Me' sign around their neck..unbelievable.

[southern*sweet*tea]

Wow...proof positive that you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. 😞

[futuremarine2011]

well you know how it is,  some people have to get hit right between the eyes before they get the message. wonder if he got hit hard enough

[bonjourami]

That old joke about the hillbilly hitting his mule with a 2X4.."I wasnt beating him, I was just trying to get his attention."

[coastaltechsolution]

Probably not because he is here a month later claiming to be a victim and eBay won't help 

Unbelievable