Did I get scammed? :(

[Glen C]

Ttran97, it sounds like he is genuine, in Aus we are treated like 2nd class citizens by Ebay/Paypal (not that they are loyal to the US either, we pay our ebay bills to Switzerland obviously so they can avoid US taxes) so it could be just a hiccup. If you have any hassles at all please feel free to PM even if it is sometime in the future, as the amount is really too small for any authorities to get involved. I hope you have a happy ending and this doesn't put you off shipping to my fellow countrymen in future. Most of us are OK

 

[EV_007]

This is one of the reasons why I try to avoid used items online through auction style sites.

I'm sorry to hear of your experience.

 

[jbviau]

You do definitely want to wait until an e-check clears to ship, though it looks like this time you might get a happy ending. Hope so. It's possible that the buyer didn't intend to make such a slow payment. I once inadvertently sent someone an e-check. After that experience, since I'm an impatient person, I added a credit card to my PayPal account as a back-up source of funding, and since then it's been smooth sailing with "instant transfers." Does this do the trick for non-US PayPal buyers also?

EDIT: Just to be clear, I meant I'd always had my bank account funding PayPal, but it wasn't until I also stored my credit card number that I could do instant transfers. The money still comes out of my bank account.

 

[Glen C]

jbviau, credit cards or better still the bank account direct work well for us in Aus, our rules are fairly onerous on credit cards, as we were historically slower to accept them compared to the US, which I think Paypal doesn't like. Our banking system because of a small number of players and our vast distances has always been good, payments are easier via banking so Paypal pushes for that. They still label you as 'non US' as if there was only 2 types of people in the world It probably shows that it peeves me their view, I would like to think most US citizens can tell the difference between say Aussies who were standing right beside (some aussies were even in before) the US when they steped into Iraq and say a different country like Russia. Paypal views us the same :hairpull:

 

[lightemup]

+1 if you need another Aussie to do some digging

 

[adamlau]

Interesting scam. I will have to try it out one of these days .

 

[zipplet]

I added a credit card to my PayPal account as a back-up source of funding, and since then it's been smooth sailing with "instant transfers." Does this do the trick for non-US PayPal buyers also?

Yes it does - when I send payments with paypal they always clear instantly because I added my debit card as another source of funding.

 

[ttran97]

The e-check still hasn't cleared yet! But I think it's because of Paypal, and not the seller this time. Paypal showed that it was estimated to clear on July 18th (yesterday)...but it's still showing as "uncleared". Now it's the weekend, so I guess the wait continues until Monday. :sigh:

 

[ttran97]

The second e-check got canceled. Looks like this is a pointless venture. I'm going to PM the guy's information to those that offered their help. I appreciate it!

Edit: I just filed an unpaid item dispute through eBay. Hopefully that'll get things moving. I'm tired of being yanked around like this and 2 e-checks getting canceled is just beyond asking for me to be patient.

 

[Glen C]

PM recieved, will let you know what I find.

 

[TorchBoy]

 

[Glen C]

TTran, on the basis that the street exists but no one of the name you gave me is listed in the phone books for that area and seemingly no relatives nearby (after checking those also), nor is any derivative of his email address, I am guessing this is a scam. Will keep on researching using other methods but get ready to write this money off. The address is over 600 miles from here so wont do a visit but others may. For any Aussies reading the address is near Ipswich Queensland.

I am guessing the 2nd Echeck was a charade to stop you filing a complaint while he scams others, I suggest you contact Ebay or his recent purchases to alert them also (not that it will do you any good, it will just save others). Will continue her via other methods as discussed in PM.

Cheers

 

[ttran97]

TTran, on the basis that the street exists but no one of the name you gave me is listed in the phone books for that area and seemingly no relatives nearby (after checking those also), nor is any derivative of his email address, I am guessing this is a scam. Will keep on researching using other methods but get ready to write this money off. The address is over 600 miles from here so wont do a visit but others may. For any Aussies reading the address is near Ipswich Queensland.

I am guessing the 2nd Echeck was a charade to stop you filing a complaint while he scams others, I suggest you contact Ebay or his recent purchases to alert them also (not that it will do you any good, it will just save others). Will continue her via other methods as discussed in PM.

Cheers

Thank you so much for your hard work!

I filed a non-payment dispute with ebay...and just left a follow-up feedback saying how two e-checks were canceled before clearing. Hopefully that'll save others from being scammed by him too.

Even if this was somehow a legit mistake by him or his bank, it's definitely jeer-worthy and I feel that I'm justified in my frustration and anger.

 

[AlexGT]

Sad to hear that, hope karma gets him some other way.

 

[HarryN]

BTW, a credit card backed paypal payment is not a sure thing either. My son was scammed by a guy in Korea that paid via cc paypal.

My son received a confirmed PP payment, sent the item with delivery confirmation (was confirmed), then after I think 3 months (just under the maximum to cancel a payment), the buyer cancelled / reversed the CC payment.

Paypal reversed the payment to my son, even though he had delivery confirmation and there was no dispute.

Basically, my son was out the money, with no ability to recover. (he is also a power seller if that matters to anyone)

Since EBay only allows buyers to post feedback about sellers, my son watched more or less helplessly while the same buyer continued to purchase items on EBay - probably scamming others. Eventually, this buyer was shut down, but I am not sure just how - took months.

He continues to sell items and ship worldwide but is becoming more and more restrictive on where he sends items, the qty, and tries to do more buyer screening.

 

[Aluminous]

BTW, a credit card backed paypal payment is not a sure thing either. My son was scammed by a guy in Korea that paid via cc paypal.

My son received a confirmed PP payment, sent the item with delivery confirmation (was confirmed), then after I think 3 months (just under the maximum to cancel a payment), the buyer cancelled / reversed the CC payment.

Paypal reversed the payment to my son, even though he had delivery confirmation and there was no dispute.

Basically, my son was out the money, with no ability to recover. (he is also a power seller if that matters to anyone)

Since EBay only allows buyers to post feedback about sellers, my son watched more or less helplessly while the same buyer continued to purchase items on EBay - probably scamming others. Eventually, this buyer was shut down, but I am not sure just how - took months.

The thing sellers are supposed to in situations like that (which they've always been able to do, but is now the only thing they can do in lieu of negative feedback), is report the buyer as a non-paying bidder. Buyers with sufficient 'non-paying bidder' reports first get restricted on what they can bid on, and eventually get banned entirely.

 

[kramer5150]

My son received a confirmed PP payment, sent the item with delivery confirmation (was confirmed), then after I think 3 months (just under the maximum to cancel a payment), the buyer cancelled / reversed the CC payment.

Paypal reversed the payment to my son, even though he had delivery confirmation and there was no dispute.

Are you sure you son gave you all the facts? I don't think PP can "force" any major credit card company or bank to reverse a charge, without authorization from the bank/credit company and approval of both buyer and seller. If your son kept $$$ in his paypal account (something you should NEVER do), then YES PP does have some degree of control over that, and they CAN transfer funds between parties with minimal authorization.

My 100% rule is to never keep $$ in my PP account, and always pay through Visa. Maybe its my miss-understanding, but I think Visa will protect its account holders and cut off any charge-back attempts that are not authorized.

 

[HarryN]

KRAMER150

The buyer told his cc company that the charge was not authorized. (but waited until the last possible minute of the 3 month period to avoid getting caught in non - reversal) The CC company reversed the payment to PP. PP reversed the payment made to the seller (my son). Basically, a major cc company trumps PP, and PP trumps my son.

The idea of not keeping money in PP is fine, until you are a regular power seller and do a fair amount of transactions.

Your idea of always using visa to make your PP payment protects the buyer, but not the seller, even if the transaction was 100% perfect and goods were delivered in 100% perfect condition with proof of delivery.

Aluminus - I am not an E Bay regular, but the way I understood it, the seller's ability to file a complaint against the buyer for non payment expires 90 days after the transaction, or something like this. Since the seller waited until just around the 90 day period to do the CC reversal, my son was not notified until just at the 90 day point. A few days delay on his part trying to prove delivery confirmation put him over the limit for a complaint.

Happily, this has not happened often, but it is one of the areas that makes a seller uneasy, esp since the fees are not insignificant. Probably, there is no perfect system, so people will alwasy find a way to do something "funny".

 

[kramer5150]

Ooh... OK, that sets it straight. I was merely speaking on behalf of a frequent buyer. Not a frequent seller.h

 

[Wattnot]

Thank you so much for your hard work!

I filed a non-payment dispute with ebay...and just left a follow-up feedback saying how two e-checks were canceled before clearing. Hopefully that'll save others from being scammed by him too.

Even if this was somehow a legit mistake by him or his bank, it's definitely jeer-worthy and I feel that I'm justified in my frustration and anger.

Go ahead and file with Paypal too. Just because the seller's address wasn't verified does not mean you cannot open a dispute. Seller protection virtually guarantees you coverage for this sort of thing . . . but you're still entitled to dispute resolution for ANY paypal transaction.

The bad news, however, is that they lean heavily toward the BUYER, in most situations. I have friends who have shown proof of delivery and still lost buyer opened disputes. It seems to me that these days, it's SELLER beware, not buyer beware, when it comes to Ebay and Paypal!