Just sold iPhone to new member with 0 feedback score. Scared to ship.

[skyler440]

So I listed my iPhone working in great condition as a buy it now item, and just sold it to a buyer who apparently opened their account today with zero feedback score. 

The buyer does have a US physical address in an apartment but I am worried about scams. I set the iPhone up as an item with no returns, but am worried they will try to scam by claiming a problem with the item. 

What is the best way to proceed here? Am I bieng too cautious? 

[fashunu4eeuh]

The description you gave of the buyer ID is likely a guest account, which comes with no Feedback.

My experience with low to no FB buyers has been overwhelmingly positive. In the ten years or so i’ve sold here, i have never been scammed, and haven't even had a return in years. I often list higher priced items and those have been my easist sales. But i am cautious and rarely list things that are high scam targets. 

Has this buyer done anything suspicious? Like ask to send to another address not on their PayPal ship to information? How long was your item up before it sold? Is there anything about the transaction that is suspect? If not, then i would take my chances and ship. (Although not required in this case, i would consider adding signature confirmation to the package as well as shipping insurance. If you add SC, be sure to let your buyer know.)

Good luck to you, in whatever you decide. Please keep us posted on the outcome.

[max39666]

Having concerns now is kinda like closing the gate after the bull has left the area.

 three possible considerations--1- the customer did pay and funds are actually in your paypal account and everything will  wprk out positive.

2.  your no return means nothing if buyer wants to return --he files a snag--you refund to receive some thing back broken or etc

3. refund-don't ship-accept a defect as well as a neg.

Best of luck with your concerns

[bubbleman2010]

I'd just give them a call once you get this number is no longer in service you can cancel the sale and select problem with address no defect get your fees refunded and relist or go ahead and ship your $500.00 and see what happens....

[rschissler]

It seems to me that if you were so afraid of being scammed, you shouldn't have listed it for sale.  Let  me guess, you bought a new iPhone.  Instead of trading in your old phone and getting less money for the trade in, you decided that you wanted top dollar for it, thus why you listed it on eBay? 

[turquoisetulips]

What is the best way to proceed here? Am I bieng too cautious?  skyler - op - unquote ------------

Yes , I think you're being a little  too cautious . You've been paid for the phone , your pay pal has confirmed  it . Therefore  I see no reason to suspect this buyer  is going to  pull a scam . Everyone starts with zero feedback  so you really can't fault a person just for being new . Tulips 

[*madison]

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@missjen831 wrote:

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@skyler440 wrote:

What seems fishy to me is the random string of numbers in the username

firstname.lastname.f7483udhvl

Gives me the impression that this user has possibly made several accounts..

feedback does not tell you anything about a buyer. A buyer with 10,000 feedbacks can and will scam you just easily as a 0 feedback member. If you are afraid of a zero feedback buyer, you should be even more afraid of an experienced buyer. An experienced buyer knows the ropes.

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Experienced scammers know the ropes too, and most of them have 0 feedback..

[cherry*fizz]

I wouldn't worry too much about the random string of numbers. I recently made a new account and it randomly assigned me a username with a random string of numbers. It had been years since I had opened a new account, (I have a couple seller accounts, 7 and 10 years old, and now a buying account and a posting ID) and it still gave me those numbers. I think it gave me a shorter one with this ID (for whatever reason when I registered it was not letting me pick out usernames, it would assign them and then I'd have to change it afterwards), which was after the one with the longer string. I think it's all random and doesn't necessarily show that that particular person has opened several accounts. Just wanted to set your mind at ease a bit, if that helps.

[eden-ent]

Whatever you decide to do, make sure you update your buyer requirements and don't allow buyers with 0 feedback or a negative feedback score to purchase from you.  This is the only way to prevent this from happening.  I do tech support for iPhones, so a few things come to mind.  Write down the IMEI number of the phone so that IF this is a dishonest buyer, you can compare the iMEI number of the one you're selling to any that happen to be returned.  You can find it in the settings>general>About

Also it is on the back of the SIM card tray, so if the SIM tray and Settings don't match, this is a foolproof way to keep yourself on the up and up.

Also, be sure to remove the phone from Find My iPhone, if it was ever turned on.  I've heard it time and time again that the previous owner either didn't sign out of their Apple ID or they left FMIP turned on and erased the phone.  This will not unhook it from the system. 

Good Luck!!

[eden-ent]

One more thing, take a photo or screen shot of the phone's IMEI number.  Then you have proof.

[loveyourimagination49]

You can’t block a 0 feedback user.

[stuff4divas]

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@skyler440 wrote: 

What is the best way to proceed here? Am I bieng too cautious? 

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Call eBay

[orangehound]

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@518sportscardsandtoys wrote:

Unless you give free shipping you end up on the bottom of the barrel of the search,

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This is not true (in general).

I've done trials, and I've found no difference in sales velocity between free shipping and reasonable shipping.

[fashunu4eeuh]

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@loveyourimagination49 wrote:
You can’t block a 0 feedback user.

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This is correct for most sales, but to add  clarification, there is a setting in Buyer Requirements for managing the number of items a member can buy within a certain time period. Under that requirement only, one can set a second block designating members with a 0-5 feedback score be blocked if they have purchased over the buying limit a seller has set. I believe this has led to some confusion. Otherwise, a seller can set a block for those with a negative feedback score. There is no general block available for 0 feedback members, save for that one exception.

http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?BuyerBlockPreferences

[missjen831]

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@fashunu4eeuh wrote:

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@loveyourimagination49 wrote:
You can’t block a 0 feedback user.

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This is correct for most sales, but to add  clarification, there is a setting in Buyer Requirements for managing the number of items a member can buy within a certain time period. Under that requirement only, one can set a second block designating members with a 0-5 feedback score be blocked if they have purchased over the buying limit a seller has set. I believe this has led to some confusion. Otherwise, a seller can set a block for those with a negative feedback score. There is no general block available for 0 feedback members, save for that one exception.

http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?BuyerBlockPreferences

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Actually the block that has caused the confusion is the “block buyers with a feedback score of -1 or lower”. The confusion occurs because a lot of people seem to have forgotten that 0 is greater than -1 so they think they are blocking zero feedback buyers when they use that block. That block is a carryover from the old days when buyers could receive negative feedback. 

[castlemagicmemories]

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@eden-ent wrote:

Whatever you decide to do, make sure you update your buyer requirements and don't allow buyers with 0 feedback or a negative feedback score to purchase from you.  This is the only way to prevent this from happening.  I do tech support for iPhones, so a few things come to mind.  Write down the IMEI number of the phone so that IF this is a dishonest buyer, you can compare the iMEI number of the one you're selling to any that happen to be returned.  You can find it in the settings>general>About

Also it is on the back of the SIM card tray, so if the SIM tray and Settings don't match, this is a foolproof way to keep yourself on the up and up.

Also, be sure to remove the phone from Find My iPhone, if it was ever turned on.  I've heard it time and time again that the previous owner either didn't sign out of their Apple ID or they left FMIP turned on and erased the phone.  This will not unhook it from the system. 

Good Luck!!

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Buyers can't get negative feedback.  That stopped in 2008.  That block won't do anything.  And you can't block zero feedback buyers, either.