Restricted Account

[imliltink]

There are many scammers out there that are getting better at hiding the obvious.  When in doubt, I always forward the email to spoof@ebay.com.  I recently received one that said they wantd to purchase my item but would send a cashier's check with a moving company to pick up the item.  I knew this one was a scam because they didn't even negotiate the price or asked me anything about it.  I told them I did not accept cashiers' checks and we went back and forth on the email string.  I ended the comminication with only accepting payment through PayPal and forwarded the entire email to spoof@EBay.com.  Today, I was sent an email from EBay restricting my account for not following their policies on payment requests and even quoted the PayPal comment from my email.  Seriously??  They obviously didn't read the email chain AND this brainless employee at EBay must not have realized when you tell someone you only accept payment through PayPal DOES FALL WITHIN THEIR POLICIES!  Stupid ass people are taking over everything!!  Lesson to learn from this, don't report anything suspicious to EBay becasue they will ultimately take it out on you!

[tiramisu41]

@imliltink  -- Probably a human idiot never even laid eyes on what you sent.  Most likely it was a bot, which is at the top of the no discretion/idiot decision food chain.

I'd call eBay - ask for the Trust and Safety department and calmly explain what happened.  Request they lift the restriction they placed on your account in error.

Stay on the phone with them until they in real time remove the restriction from your account.  Ask to speak with a supervisor if need be.  Also better to call around 9am Mountain Time in order to get a US CS rep.

Keep us posted how it goes...

[reallynicestamps]

Hindsight is 20/20, but the most appropriate response to this would actually have been to ignore and delete the offer then put the scammer on your Blocked Bidder List, with No Communication enabled.

Meanwhile, phone Customer Service and ask to be escalated to a manager. Politely read her your messages to the scammer.  And then politely ask that your account be unrestricted.

Best wishes.

Politely.-- Captain Malcolm Reynolds.

[imliltink]

Thank you so much for that feedback and I will definitely try that tomorrow and report back.  It's really frustrating when they send you an email and then tell you not to reply since it's an automated email.  You can't even defend yourself by responding!  Thanks again for the feedback, I'll keep you posted!

[copper.boom]

I agree with the above posters. Hopefully the T&S team will lift the restriction for you. Also make sure to officially report the buyer to them after your account is cleared up.

Did the communication come through eBay messaging or your e-mail? I wasn't clear on that part. And if it was directly to your e-mail, how exactly did the buyer get that information?

If it all came through eBay messaging then I agree that you should have blocked the buyer then reported them to eBay. But I wouldn't have forwarded to the Spoof address unless the messages were somehow sent directly to your e-mail.

[imliltink]

They all came through EBay Messaging which sent a copy to my regular email.  Since they came through EBay with a member ID, I wasn't 100% sure it was a scam until they asked about the cashier's check for payment in the 2nd email.  I wish I had just blocked them, but if they turned out to be real they would have reported me for not responding right? They gave up on my 3rd response when I emphatically stated I do not take cashiers' checks and directed them to PayPal.  I never heard back from them.  I find it diffiuclt to report anything to EBay and especially a "potential" buyer/scammer.  The Resolution Center would only let me select an item already purchased in order to report a buyer and this didn't fit into any category that I could readily find.  Thank you to everyone who has provided me with options I didn't think I had!

[copper.boom]

You can call eBay to report a potential buyer trying to circumvent policy, FYI. Hope that helps for future.

[fab_finds4u]

You don't direct someone to PayPal who has not purchased the item.  

You knew it was a scam attempt so you should have just ignored and deleted.  eBay won't do anything to the buyer because they'll just pop up on another account.  If anything your response should've been I've not seen where you've purchased the item.   If you decide to buy my item please make the payment on eBay using the accepted payment method in the listing.  

[imliltink]

Yes I corresponded way too long, but I thought I was doing the right thing ny telling them the only accepted payment method was PayPal.  I didn't know it was a scam attempt until I received their 2nd email.  I will not make this mistake again and great feedback, thank you!