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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

I just sold an expensive camera but then a few hours after the package arrived to the buyer I get a message from him asking if I sent a radio. I was confused but then realized he might be trying to scam me claiming I sent him a cheap radio when I actually sent an $800 camera. So I immediately called eBay & they said if he does open a case that I'll basically win because I have shipping weight proof (I.e. Radio doesn't weight the same as a camera) Yet I'm still worried that he'll open a case & I'll lose.  It's only been one day & the buyer hasn't said anything but I'm sure he's going to open a case or send a harassing message any day now.  What should I do? Or what should I say to this buyer? 

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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

The buyer is laying the ground work for the scam that are going to nail you with.

 

As mentioned above, they will file a SNAD and then send you back a cheap radio and ebay will do NOTHING - absolutely nothing to help you.  So stop calling ebay and listening to what the CS who have been trained to get you off the phone with false promises are saying.

 

What you do is go all proactive on the buyer and tell them that you sent them xx________xxxx camera and if that is not what they received, then since it is so expensive there must be a problem with the post office and that an employee must have tampered with the package and stolen the camera.  That you will be filing a rifled/tampered report with the post office and calling the buyers postmaster to have a chat with them about the honesty of their employees.  Could the buyer please send a pics of the package to add to the report.  And when might they be home in case their investigators want to come and take a look at the package.

 

That might get them to back off on the radio claim.  BUT, if they do and they are experienced at scamming - take a look at their feedback and the feedback left for others to see if works with, problem or refund appears often.  If they are experienced - then they will announce that the camera they miraculously found, is broke - and what are you going to do with it.  And again - ebay will do nothing to help you because the ONLY protection a seller has you have already used, tracking that shows delivery.

 

In case it hasn't dawned on you yet.  It isn't a good idea to list and sell high dollar items on ebay unless you have the same amount of recent selling feedback as the dollar value of the item you want to sell.

 

 

(*Bleep*)

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Message 5 of 27
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26 REPLIES 26

Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

CSR lied (big surprise, I know). They will say whatever they need to say to get you off the phone.

Shipping weight will have zero influence on the outcome of any case.

If the buyer lies and files a SNAD claiming he got a cheap radio, you'll be refunding the cost of the camera and paying to have the cheap radio returned to you.




Crusader Cat is watching


Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself. - L Tolstoy


"You are entitled to your own opinion, you are not however, entitled to your own facts."

Message 2 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio


@firstlightlasers wrote:

What should I do? Or what should I say to this buyer? 


You should reply to his message. In your response let the buyer know you sent a camera and not a radio and he must have you mixed up with another seller.

Message 3 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio


@coolections wrote:

@firstlightlasers wrote:

What should I do? Or what should I say to this buyer? 


You should reply to his message. In your response let the buyer know you sent a camera and not a radio and he must have you mixed up with another seller.


And ask him what the exact return address is on the shipping label. He would not know yours unless it's on a label - just the city and zip that is in the listing.

 

 

_____________________________
"Nothing is obvious to the oblivious"
Message 4 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

The buyer is laying the ground work for the scam that are going to nail you with.

 

As mentioned above, they will file a SNAD and then send you back a cheap radio and ebay will do NOTHING - absolutely nothing to help you.  So stop calling ebay and listening to what the CS who have been trained to get you off the phone with false promises are saying.

 

What you do is go all proactive on the buyer and tell them that you sent them xx________xxxx camera and if that is not what they received, then since it is so expensive there must be a problem with the post office and that an employee must have tampered with the package and stolen the camera.  That you will be filing a rifled/tampered report with the post office and calling the buyers postmaster to have a chat with them about the honesty of their employees.  Could the buyer please send a pics of the package to add to the report.  And when might they be home in case their investigators want to come and take a look at the package.

 

That might get them to back off on the radio claim.  BUT, if they do and they are experienced at scamming - take a look at their feedback and the feedback left for others to see if works with, problem or refund appears often.  If they are experienced - then they will announce that the camera they miraculously found, is broke - and what are you going to do with it.  And again - ebay will do nothing to help you because the ONLY protection a seller has you have already used, tracking that shows delivery.

 

In case it hasn't dawned on you yet.  It isn't a good idea to list and sell high dollar items on ebay unless you have the same amount of recent selling feedback as the dollar value of the item you want to sell.

 

 

(*Bleep*)
Message 5 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

Dear ____. Yes we sent you the , add your description of the camera. Please check if you have confused us with another purchase from another seller. If you have received a radio, we will be filling an insurance claim with the USPS, or whoever. Keep all packing materials in the event that the postal inspector comes to examine the package for tampering.  Now in reality, when a buyer makes a false claim like this the cases are most of the time slanted in the buyers favor. They really do not need to even show any evidence most of the time. You have to be careful here because there is a remote possibility that they have confused you with another purchase.  Be polite, factual. 

 

If they start a claim then respond to it immediately. Return for full refund. Get tracking info from the buyer when they send it back. If no tracking I advise you have your mail held at the post office for a few weeks so that when this package comes back you can ask for the assistance from your local P,O, where they can weigh this package and then witness the contents of it as you open it there.  Postal worker can sign off on "package arrived empty", or "package arrived with whatever in it". 

 

Report buyer to Ebay for misuse of the buyer protection policy. You can call them again and ask what to do next. You are probably going to encounter a response such as. "we cannot determine what you actually sent to the buyer" maybe not but that is what usually will happen. 

 

If no helpful or useful response from Ebay , then you have to determine whether the cost of this item is worth filing a small claims case against the buyer, and to report MAIL FRAUD and an IC3 report on the internet for internet fraud. 

 

You can message the buyer stating you recieved back ---- and sent ----, and will be filing the reports. Sometimes the item comes back magically when you do this. Best of luck.

 

Message 6 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

Yes Retrose, your advice is right on target.  Unfortunately new sellers with no history of sales are targets for scammers. Sell lower priced items first, then move to higher priced items as you build a reputation. 

Message 7 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

OP, some here cut and paste the same mantra over and over again for every problem and assume all buyers are theives and you should not sell on Ebay.  Hopefully your situation will be OK, but please return after you hear from your buyer to let us know if you need help with the next step or if all is OK.

Message 8 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

Of course not all buyers are scammers.  I wouldn't be selling  here at all if they were.   But when a low selling feedback OP comes here telling about how their buyer is giving them a story that comes straight out of scammer 101, then of course we are all going to assume that the OP's buyer is a scammer.

 

And if the OP doesn't react quickly with every defense against scammers hard and fast then the odds on their becoming another ebay victim are good.

 

As it stands, the OP's chances are slim.  Their only hope is that they have an inexperienced scammer that will be insecure enough to be impressed by the potential federal investigation by the PO.  And the only way to flush them is to go hard core scammer defense on them.

(*Bleep*)
Message 9 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

He possibly could be but we have not heard back from the OP yet and you have no clue if this guy is a scammer. Several times now you've posted the same thing and the OP has came back saying all was OK. Just because a seller has low feedback, it does NOT mean they will get scammed and does not mean they should not sell on Ebay.  99% of transactions go smoothly without a scam.

Message 10 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

Thank you all for the advice. All is well so far. I ended up just ignoring the buyer & then 3 days later he asked if I have the bottom lens cap. I guess I forgot to pack that small (mostly insignificant) part. So I said sorry I forgot & that I would send the part to him tomorrow & he said thanks. That's where I'm at, so I guess he did get the camera after all.

I still don't know why he asked if I sent a radio. My bf & I think he saw the big brown box & assumed a radio was inside before even opening it. Or maybe he was trying to scam me but then opted out. I really don't know & am just glad he didn't open a case.

I know I was dumb to sell an expensive item w/ barely any selling experience but I really needed the money & fast. From now on I'll be more careful.

Message 11 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

 Hello I am so sorry to hear that a customer may be trying to scam you .  I just want to warn you I have had similar situations with customers and have been told by a representative from eBay that it's a shoe in for me I would win the case, then when everything is said and done it goes to the buyer.  I understand  eBay should protect their buyers unfortunately I think we are punished for the sellers that are scammers out there eBay is geared all around making sure their buyer is satisfied over their sellers.  I've had a buyer make a complaint  because They didn't like the way the package was packed and wanted free shipping.  Which I have to say before they even bought the item they was wanting it lower than what I would sell it for.   I would tell the buyer to return the item 1st of all if they try to ship a radio back to you the weight won't match what you shipped.  Secondly then you have the option to open up a case that they did not return the same item you shipped.  I wonder if it's against  eBay policy for us sellers to compile a list of buyers to block.  I know I've already started myself a list on my account. 

Message 12 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

 That's very wise advice I will definitely keep that in mind for myself as well.

Message 13 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

My first thought when I read your original post a while back was that the word "camera" got changed to "radio" in some type of translation program.  Could it be that your buyer doesn't speak much English?  I am amazed at how many non-English speaking buyers use eBay for purchases.  

Message 14 of 27
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Is buyer scamming me? Sent a camera but asks if I sent a radio

No he speaks English well. He has an English Facebook, insta & Snapchat account. (I did my own investigating in case the problem got out of hand)
Message 15 of 27
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