Scammers

[erjen_48]

So I sell art and I’ve have multiple if not all of my offers end up being from people who are trying to lure me off eBay and trick me into spending money or create some type of account. They ask for my phone number for questions about the item, which makes no sense because any questions can be answered through the messaging system on eBay. Because of this I’ve had to relist my  items multiple times. I’m not sure what eBay is doing to stop this but just a heads up to anybody else out there experiencing the same thing. 

[jhr-4800]

This scammers are always looking for new sellers.  And in your case 0 feedback, its a target rich environment.  What I will do to build your feedback, is to buy items that you need.  Another thing that I will do if I was in your shoes is to remove "or Best Offer", on your items.  

Good luck on your sellers journey.

[krazzykats]

Add immediate payment required to your buy it now listings.

[reallynicestamps]

Fixed Price/Immediate Payment Required is your friend here.

Note that if you also have Best Offer on the listing, an accepted Offer nullifies the IPR.

Just delete the scam offers without reading (if possible) or responding.

And yes buying some household needs through eBay, from sellers who leave feedback on shipment, would be a useful protection.

[ckimodog]

Your artwork is exquisite.  Great job.  Buy it now is the best way to avoid people like these.  You should even consider taking the best offer down as you are somewhat of a new seller and scammers try to feed on new sellers inexperience.  Also click the immediate payment box by the payment methods accepted.  Hope you get some great sales!  Good luck. 

[soh.maryl]

Most sellers have found that listing with fixed price, immediate payment required is the best way to thwart these people.

If you ignore these offers, why do you have to relist your items multiple times?  

[greatstuff80]

New sellers are scam magnets. Even experienced sellers are having issues these days. Ebay has done little in the past about it and I do not expect they will do much in the future. It has gotten much worse the last few years. I would not sell anything pricey here. In fact, I do not sell here anymore at all. I do better elsewhere and do not have near the headaches I had here. 

[downunder-61]

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@erjen_48 wrote:

So I sell art and I’ve have multiple if not all of my offers end up being from people who are trying to lure me off eBay and trick me into spending money or create some type of account. They ask for my phone number for questions about the item, which makes no sense because any questions can be answered through the messaging system on eBay. Because of this I’ve had to relist my  items multiple times. I’m not sure what eBay is doing to stop this but just a heads up to anybody else out there experiencing the same thing. 

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Remove offers as advised - ignore offers all together and report these buyer's to eBay.

When an offer is made your item remains live until you accept the offer - no need to relist if you don't accept.

[southern*sweet*tea]

Yes, these scammers are a pain, and there is no real way for eBay to stop them until after the fact. The majority of them are overseas using VPN, and when one account gets shut down, 100 more will take its place. They target new sellers, hoping to cash in on their inexperience and lack of knowledge of the scam.

This is what you do:

Report the buyer https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/resolving-buyer-issues/reporting-issue-buyer?id=4084 Use the reason "asking to complete a sale off eBay". This only works if they have made a purchase. If they have not yet purchased, scroll to the bottom of that page and use the "contact us" button on the left to contact eBay support. When the chat box pops up, click 'See more' the "request an agent". This bypasses the chat bot and gets you a real person. You also have the option of requesting a call back.

Add the buyer to your blocked bidder list: https://www.ebay.com/bmgt/BuyerBlock Ignore any further messages from them.

If they actually purchased, cancel the sale immediately using "problem with buyer's address". You don't have to let the unpaid item process play out. You can do that here: https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/getting-paid/cancelling-transaction?id=4136

For your reference, this is how the scam works:
All contact should always be through eBay messages. Do NOT, under any circumstances, give your phone number or email address to a buyer. Do not send a Paypal invoice, either. Your email address can be found on the invoice. Do not click links that claim to fix a buyer's payment issue. There is no legitimate link for buyers to fix a payment issue.

No legitimate buyer needs any of these things, and no legitimate buyer will give up their eBay buyer protection by paying off site. Your "buyer" wants your email or phone number so they can send you a very real looking, but very fake payment email. They are hoping you are too inexperienced to verify the payment. There will be NO PAYMENT, only a fake email saying you've been paid and you must ship immediately so the payment can be released. This is a lie. This person wants you to ship your item without being paid. They want to steal your stuff.

As long as you are aware of this, you can simply decline these offers and add the ID to the blocked bidder list using the link I gave above. Also report the buyers using the report link. Bookmark them for future use. Trust your gut - if it feels wrong, it usually is. If you ever have any questions you can always come here and ask.

***Immediate payment***

Immediate payment is only available in the business listing form. It is not available in the quick listing tool most new seller start with.

To switch, if you are creating a listing, at the top right side of the listing page, click the 'switch to business tool' link. It looks like this: https://i.gyazo.com/0e37ffbfbe3e19e3c7d460eb8158e915.png You may need to press F11 to expand your browser. You'll get a message that is is for high volume business sellers. Ignore that. Any seller can use it. It's actually simpler than the new "easy" forms, and you will have control over your listings without the added automatic relists and best offers that the easier forms have.

If you don't see the "switch" link, you can directly access the advanced form here: https://bulksell.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?SingleList

You can also access it from the seller hub https://www.ebay.com/sh/ovw under listings>create a listing.  If you use the direct link you will need to start a new listing from scratch.

[moondogblues]

I owned an art gallery for a number of years.  Not dissing the 2 items you have for sale but....different strokes for different folks.

[moondogblues]

"Your artwork is exquisite.  Great job."

Am I looking at the wrong listings?

[moondogblues]

Looked at your Sold listings.  Are they numbered?  Limited editions?  Or just copies?  Are they prints...if not how do they come to look so identical to each other?

[powell-memorabilia]

OP had to relist because of sales not completed

[soh.maryl]

If the OP did not accept these offers etc, that means his items did not sell.

If your item does not actually sell, it's still live and there would be no reason or need to relist.  

[powell-memorabilia]

When someone buys an item, but does not pay, it shows up as sold. Once a seller cancels that item because of nonpayment or some other problem, there is the option to relist.