eBay

njsneaks · ‎10-30-2017

I sold a macbook pro earlier this month (max specs), retail is $4.5k after tax and was scammed by a buyer. I shipped using USPS priority mail signature confirmation and insured for half the value of the item (I know it was dumb not to get the full insurance). The buyer has 135 feedback all positive and has been active on the account.

The buyer signs and receives the laptop on a Friday. The next morning I wake up to my Paypal $4k less than the night before. He opened an item not as described case and stated that I had sent a bunch of magazines in place of the laptop. I've been in a situations like this before and immediately filed an investigation with the post office, filed an ic3 and then a police report in the buyers county. I knew eBay would let him return "the item" regardless of what I responded.

About a week goes by and I finally get the package back from the buyer with no laptop. I knew my only hope at this point was to file an appeal with eBay. I uploaded all the pictures that I had taken prior to shipping, screenshots of the USPS investigation, police repoort, etc. Ebay tells me that there is no way to prove that what I had mailed was actually the laptop even with all of my evidence. And since the post office has not concluded their investigation, they would be siding with the buyer. Since my PayPal had more than enough funds when the buyer opened the case, the money was automatically deducted and returned to him.

At this point I'm at a loss for what to do. I went to the post office to return the packaging that I had received back from the buyer and had spoke with the manager regarding my case. Best case scenario I will get the insurance money, which is only half the value of the actual laptop. I'm unsure of what other actions I can take at this point since I have lost the appeal and eBay is basically unwilling to do anything more.

kattinsanity · ‎11-04-2017

3 feedback? OP has 74 feedback as a seller. I have over 6000 feedback and I wouldn't sell anything for over a grand.

kattinsanity · ‎11-04-2017

I've seen that done before but I would think you would want "future" legit buyers to see glowing feedback for the high buck items you sold~~You really wouldn't want them to see no feedback exchanged. The only way a future buyer of high buck items would know you were experienced would be through the feedback~~"completed listings" or "sold items" disappear from your history pretty fast.

slati_2013 · ‎11-04-2017

By failing to respond to, and deal with the feedback accusation that you sent an empty box, you opened the door for the scammer to scam you. He knew because you were once accused of sending an empty box or wrong thing, he could make the same claim and get away with it.

For the money involved, I would hire a private detective to trail the guy. If he has it, he is bound to take it out with him sometime. I wonder if you steal back something he claims you never sent, can he report the theft to the police?

prescott4 · ‎11-04-2017

@slati_2013 wrote:
By failing to respond to, and deal with the feedback accusation that you sent an empty box, you opened the door for the scammer to scam you. He knew because you were once accused of sending an empty box or wrong thing, he could make the same claim and get away with it.

For the money involved, I would hire a private detective to trail the guy. If he has it, he is bound to take it out with him sometime. I wonder if you steal back something he claims you never sent, can he report the theft to the police?

I never take my laptop anywhere, I take my cheap tablet, so what if the Op's buyerm does the same?

What are you going to do, break in to his house and steal it?

kattinsanity · ‎11-04-2017

No private I is going to risk going to jail by stealing the laptop from the buyer as he's leaving his house. The buyer will have it in a case anyway so it couldn't even be seen. To get someone to steal it back you would have to hire a crook who knows what he's doing and the crook isn't going to give it back anyway~~he'll take the OP's money and run and pawn the laptop. If you hire a dummy who gets caught you can bet you'll go right down with him. He may even hurt or kill the buyer and THEN there will be REAL trouble. Maybe I watch too much Discovery ID.

slati_2013 · ‎11-04-2017

Haha. I agree with everything you say. I meant if he took it out with him on a train or to cafe and you stole it what would happen? Even in the case of breaking in when he is not home, I wonder if he could file a claim for the laptop? That said, I agree, it is just looking for more trouble. Next thing you know, someone is dead and you are staring at life in prison. Better would be to catch him in the act with the laptop and then try to get the police involved.

I think if eBay is going to fight this kind of scamming, they need a database where everyone who makes a claim of an empty box or is accused of sending an empty box is entered. There has to be an algorithm just like for sellers where eBay emails a buyer and tells them they can no longer buy on eBay because they pose a risk to the integrity of eBay. Maybe then, scammers will think twice before they scam.

slati_2013 · ‎11-04-2017

@prescott4 wrote:
@slati_2013 wrote:
By failing to respond to, and deal with the feedback accusation that you sent an empty box, you opened the door for the scammer to scam you. He knew because you were once accused of sending an empty box or wrong thing, he could make the same claim and get away with it.

For the money involved, I would hire a private detective to trail the guy. If he has it, he is bound to take it out with him sometime. I wonder if you steal back something he claims you never sent, can he report the theft to the police?
I never take my laptop anywhere, I take my cheap tablet, so what if the Op's buyerm does the same?

What are you going to do, break in to his house and steal it?

Emmmm. That was my plan; break in the house when he was not there based on the private detective, and steal it. I agree it is a terrible plan. I am more curious what would happen if it was successfully stolen by the seller, who then put it up for sale on eBay, what would the buyer do?

sabrinmurraon_0 · ‎11-04-2017

@slati_2013 wrote:
@prescott4 wrote:
@slati_2013 wrote:
By failing to respond to, and deal with the feedback accusation that you sent an empty box, you opened the door for the scammer to scam you. He knew because you were once accused of sending an empty box or wrong thing, he could make the same claim and get away with it.

For the money involved, I would hire a private detective to trail the guy. If he has it, he is bound to take it out with him sometime. I wonder if you steal back something he claims you never sent, can he report the theft to the police?
I never take my laptop anywhere, I take my cheap tablet, so what if the Op's buyerm does the same?

What are you going to do, break in to his house and steal it?
Emmmm. That was my plan; break in the house when he was not there based on the private detective, and steal it. I agree it is a terrible plan. I am more curious what would happen if it was successfully stolen by the seller, who then put it up for sale on eBay, what would the buyer do?

The OP could ben busted for B&E/Burgelry. Chances are the OP would get jail time and the scamming buyer would get away with it.

However, I suspect there was no laptop and the OP did in fact ship magazines

slati_2013 · ‎11-04-2017

But the scammer claimed he never got the laptop. So how can he file a claim for a stolen laptop that he got $4000 from someone and claimed he never got? That is grand larceny. My point is I don't think the scammer would dare go to the cops.

The problem as I have pointed out for the OP is, he has been accused of sending an empty box with another Apple product and he did not forcefully push back. I feel that is what gave the scammer the gall to pull off this scam.

The OP needs to produce the receipt or tell us how he got hold of the laptop. Right now there is not much anyone can do to help him.

sabrinmurraon_0 · ‎11-04-2017

@slati_2013 wrote:
But the scammer claimed he never got the laptop. So how can he file a claim for a stolen laptop that he got $4000 from someone and claimed he never got? That is grand larceny. My point is I don't think the scammer would dare go to the cops.

The problem as I have pointed out for the OP is, he has been accused of sending an empty box with another Apple product and he did not forcefully push back. I feel that is what gave the scammer the gall to pull off this scam.

The OP needs to produce the receipt or tell us how he got hold of the laptop. Right now there is not much anyone can do to help him.

Scammer says he bought the laptop on CL from some random person....

And in any case, the OP or his P.I's CAN go to jail on various charges related to a break in. NOT the smart way to go and an extremely irresponsible suggestion

kattinsanity · ‎11-04-2017

AND the OP would have to leave N.Y. and spend some time in LA. which would leave a paper trail showing he was there. No suggestion of theft or hiring a P.I. or anyone to break into the buyers house should even be entertained.

jonathankirkland · ‎11-04-2017

@sabrinmurraon_0 wrote:
@slati_2013 wrote:
@prescott4 wrote:
@slati_2013 wrote:
By failing to respond to, and deal with the feedback accusation that you sent an empty box, you opened the door for the scammer to scam you. He knew because you were once accused of sending an empty box or wrong thing, he could make the same claim and get away with it.

For the money involved, I would hire a private detective to trail the guy. If he has it, he is bound to take it out with him sometime. I wonder if you steal back something he claims you never sent, can he report the theft to the police?
I never take my laptop anywhere, I take my cheap tablet, so what if the Op's buyerm does the same?

What are you going to do, break in to his house and steal it?
Emmmm. That was my plan; break in the house when he was not there based on the private detective, and steal it. I agree it is a terrible plan. I am more curious what would happen if it was successfully stolen by the seller, who then put it up for sale on eBay, what would the buyer do?
The OP could ben busted for B&E/Burgelry. Chances are the OP would get jail time and the scamming buyer would get away with it.

However, I suspect there was no laptop and the OP did in fact ship magazines

I wish people would stop repeating this nonsense that the OP probably really did ship magazines.

Why on EARTH would anyone even do this to begin with? You know that for NO AMOUNT OF MONEY are you going to successfully pull such a scam on here and that is a 100% waste of time.

Furthermore, even if you were trying to pull such a dumb trick, would you really come on a public forum and draw attention to yourself from hundreds of people?

NO!!!

So please stop this nonsense suggesting "oh maybe the OP really does ship out magazines in lieu of $4000 items!", it's completely ridiculous.

18704d · ‎11-04-2017

"For the money involved, I would hire a private detective to trail the guy. If he has it, he is bound to take it out with him sometime

---------

A teenage computer-hacker-geek-type in Romania could do a better job

for less than a hundred US dollars.

Because the trail would be on social media.

Lynn

Lynn

You love me for everything you hate me for

.

a_c_green · ‎11-04-2017

@slati_2013 wrote:
prescott4 wrote:
What are you going to do, break in to his house and steal it?
Emmmm. That was my plan; break in the house when he was not there based on the private detective, and steal it. I agree it is a terrible plan. I am more curious what would happen if it was successfully stolen by the seller, who then put it up for sale on eBay, what would the buyer do?

It occurs to me that that's very similar to what finally landed O.J. in the joint: not for the old murder charges, but for a hair-brained plan to steal back sports memorabilia of his that he thought had been stolen from him originally.

ooak-tammy · ‎11-05-2017

@jonathankirkland wrote:
@sabrinmurraon_0 wrote:
@slati_2013 wrote:
@prescott4 wrote:
@slati_2013 wrote:
By failing to respond to, and deal with the feedback accusation that you sent an empty box, you opened the door for the scammer to scam you. He knew because you were once accused of sending an empty box or wrong thing, he could make the same claim and get away with it.

For the money involved, I would hire a private detective to trail the guy. If he has it, he is bound to take it out with him sometime. I wonder if you steal back something he claims you never sent, can he report the theft to the police?
I never take my laptop anywhere, I take my cheap tablet, so what if the Op's buyerm does the same?

What are you going to do, break in to his house and steal it?
Emmmm. That was my plan; break in the house when he was not there based on the private detective, and steal it. I agree it is a terrible plan. I am more curious what would happen if it was successfully stolen by the seller, who then put it up for sale on eBay, what would the buyer do?
The OP could ben busted for B&E/Burgelry. Chances are the OP would get jail time and the scamming buyer would get away with it.

However, I suspect there was no laptop and the OP did in fact ship magazines
I wish people would stop repeating this nonsense that the OP probably really did ship magazines.

Why on EARTH would anyone even do this to begin with? You know that for NO AMOUNT OF MONEY are you going to successfully pull such a scam on here and that is a 100% waste of time.

Furthermore, even if you were trying to pull such a dumb trick, would you really come on a public forum and draw attention to yourself from hundreds of people?
NO!!!

So please stop this nonsense suggesting "oh maybe the OP really does ship out magazines in lieu of $4000 items!", it's completely ridiculous.

Why would you say it's ridiculous? He has been accused before and sellers have sent out empty boxes and they've sent out the wrong item before, I received an empty box once and the wrong item a half dozen times. It happens.