Immediate Ebay help needed!

Message

dc81 · #1 Post by **dc81** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 11:08 am

I have recently won an auction for a T41p on Ebay, and I was in the process of getting my Paypal account verified(payment still not sent), when I noticed that on Paypal my "bill" has been cancelled. I wrote the seller this:

"Did you cancel the order for the computer? I logged on to Paypal and the bill said cancelled."

Her response was this:

"No I did not cancel it Paypal did.
I sent you an email explaining everything. My account has become limited Paypal wants some personal information that I am not willing to give them. I had an old Paypal account and I filed a suit against Paypal a couple of years ago now they are giving me a hard time. I can't use Paypal I'm sorry I should have known better than to fool with them. I bought something from someone and I never received it and paypal won't do anything about it that's the real way they are . You can send a money order or cashiers check or cancel the transaction . I will relist it with money orders or cashiers check only if I need to."

My question is do I trust this and send payment via Money Order or Cashier's check?

Keep in mind I do have her name, her email, and her address.

I need to make a decision fast, otherwise I lose the sale. It was one month old T41P with 2years 11months IBM Easyserv Warranty. The price was for $1200+$30 shipping. (She did send me the computer serial number so I can confirm the warranty, which I did)

#2 Post by **Kyocera** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 11:15 am

I tend to be very trusting of people and like to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, however, that is when I can get my hands on them if I have to.. If money is not a big deal to you then go for it, if not and you are like me, you want to have some recourse if something goes wrong.
There is always Peoples Court.

I know you will find a good deal, just be a little patient.

Greg Gebhardt · #3 Post by **Greg Gebhardt** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 11:24 am

dc81 wrote:I have recently won an auction for a T41p on Ebay, and I was in the process of getting my Paypal account verified(payment still not sent), when I noticed that on Paypal my "bill" has been cancelled. I wrote the seller this:

"Did you cancel the order for the computer? I logged on to Paypal and the bill said cancelled."

Her response was this:

"No I did not cancel it Paypal did.
I sent you an email explaining everything. My account has become limited Paypal wants some personal information that I am not willing to give them. I had an old Paypal account and I filed a suit against Paypal a couple of years ago now they are giving me a hard time. I can't use Paypal I'm sorry I should have known better than to fool with them. I bought something from someone and I never received it and paypal won't do anything about it that's the real way they are . You can send a money order or cashiers check or cancel the transaction . I will relist it with money orders or cashiers check only if I need to."

My question is do I trust this and send payment via Money Order or Cashier's check?

Keep in mind I do have her name, her email, and her address.

I need to make a decision fast, otherwise I lose the sale. It was one month old T41P with 2years 11months IBM Easyserv Warranty. The price was for $1200+$30 shipping. (She did send me the computer serial number so I can confirm the warranty, which I did)

You are a GUPPY! This is a scam and if you got an email from what looked to be eBay or PayPal and YOU clicked on the link in the email you were taken to a site that looks just like the real thing but is a scam site. You then put in your user ID and password and you are screwed. This scammer can not do as he wishes with you accounts including clean out your bank account.

Never NEVER follow a site from an email and input your personal info. Just cause it looks like PayPal or eBay does not mean it is. You should always log onto these sites yourself and never follow a URL in an email.

Contact ebay/PayPal and close you account

Edward Mendelson · #4 Post by **Edward Mendelson** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 11:28 am

Could be legit, but sounds a bit shaky - why did she list PayPal as one of the means of payment if she couldn't use it??

BTW, in response to the second message - the original poster didn't say he responded to a scam message - he said he was on PayPal, and presumably he got there by logging in in the normal way. No reason to insult the original poster for something he did NOT say he did.

Greg Gebhardt · #5 Post by **Greg Gebhardt** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 11:30 am

Edward Mendelson wrote:Could be legit, but sounds a bit shaky - why did she list PayPal as one of the means of payment if she couldn't use it??

BTW, in response to the second message - the original poster didn't say he responded to a scam message - he said he was on PayPal, and presumably he got there by logging in in the normal way. No reason to insult the original poster for something he did NOT say he did.

Bait!

These people are so good at this. Would you send a certified check?

dc81 · #6 Post by **dc81** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 11:44 am

Guppy? What is up with the name calling? Why are you assuming that I followed a link through an email to get to Paypal? Insults are not nice, everything I have done through paypal I have logged onto www.paypal.com.

I came to this forum for some advice, not insults. I think I am smart enough to recognize a scam and for you to assume otherwise and insult people because you think they got scammed is just rude.

Greg Gebhardt · #7 Post by **Greg Gebhardt** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 11:46 am

My Apoligies then. I was so scared that you had followed the link. Please forgive.

Edward Mendelson · #8 Post by **Edward Mendelson** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 12:16 pm

It might help if you posted the link to the auction page, but it does sound a bit shaky to me..

EDIT - was it this one? 6808476929 ?? Hmm... the seller has exactly 1 feedback item. If I were you, I would walk or run but certainly would back out now...

pae77 · #9 Post by **pae77** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 12:22 pm

What kind of a track record does the ebay seller have? How long does their feedback go back for sales of similar items and how is the feedback? Unless they have a reasonably long history of selling similar items with mostly very satisfied customers, I wouldn't risk buying an expensive item from them.

dc81 · #10 Post by **dc81** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 12:30 pm

Edward,

That was the item, I think I am going to be backing out of the item. Better safe than sorry!

cj3209 · #11 Post by **cj3209** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 12:39 pm

Greg is a respectable member of this forum and others that I frequent as well. He has never called anyone a 'name' out of disrespect. His response was more out of a sense of outrage at a potential fraud rather than towards the orig. poster.

In any case, from past personal experience, unless the seller has strong feedback I wouldn't send them any money. There is just too much fraud on eBay these days; sadly...

...longing for the days when I could leave my car unlocked everywhere...

#12 Post by **GomJabbar** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 12:42 pm

dc81 wrote:Edward,

That was the item, I think I am going to be backing out of the item. Better safe than sorry!

Smart move in my opinion.

smugiri · #13 Post by **smugiri** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 12:46 pm

I agree with all the other advice you have received. Do not send any money. As a rule on eBay, I would not buy from a seller who has sold less than 10 of the same item unless they were willing to let me pay with a credit card or/ and pick up in person.

For about 199 more, you can buy from a reputable dealer and still get a good deal. Check out this auction with a T41p for $1399 Buy it now

http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-ThinkPad-T41p-1 ... dZViewItem

and for $1199, you can get a T40p. The main differences are a 64MB Radeon rather than 128MB and the processor is 1600MHz rather than 1700Mhz... (there are other 'minor' differences like bus - the T40p is 400MHz me thinks )

http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-ThinkPad-T40p-1 ... dZViewItem

Even better, this seller has sold 5400 thinkpads with only 17 negative feedback items. To me, it seems that that says something about them. They also advertise all their stock as being IBM classified as L (new returns, overstock or cancelled orders on custom items ). I should warn you though that I like them more because I bought my T40p from them.

dc81 · #14 Post by **dc81** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 1:40 pm

I have made my decision that I am probably going to purchase from ThinkpadWorld. But just for the heck of it I responded to the seller and asked if there was any kind of assurance that she can give me and this was her response:

"What is it you want me to use.
I can't use Paypal you want me to call you?
I told you I had Paypal before and I filed a complaint against them they owe me $500 dollars which I may never get. and they are upset about that."

Nolonemo · #15 Post by **Nolonemo** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 1:46 pm

Or you could insist on using an escrow service that YOU select. No other way would I do this transaction.

Edward Mendelson · #16 Post by **Edward Mendelson** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 1:46 pm

Either a scammer or a nutcase; either way, to be avoided.

#17 Post by **RonS** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 1:54 pm

Paypal is pure evil. I don't bash people or companies very often, but Paypal is truly the most wicked and evil company I've ever encountered. I've never been robbed by them, but thousands of people have.

Google PayPal Problems (or any other Paypal-related term) and you'll see what I mean.

Never, ever, ever give them access to your checking account. They are not a bank, and are not subject to banking regulations. But they can deduct money from your checking account for any reason (or no reason) at any time, and never give it back. It's in the fine print of the terms you must agree to when you use their service.

Your seller is just one of thousands of people screwed by PayPal.

If I wanted to buy a used Thinkpad, I would first look at www.CraigsList.org for my local area. That way I could drive over and personally use it before I paid for it.

keku · #18 Post by **keku** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 2:17 pm

Well I myself sold 2 thinkpads on eBay ... Once Someone tried to fraud me by sending fraud emails etc. fortunatly I was careful.

well Paypal account usually have a receiving limit, to lift that limit seller has to enroll a credit card and Checking account. what could be the reason for a true seller to not.

"No I did not cancel it Paypal did.
I sent you an email explaining everything. My account has become limited Paypal wants some personal information that I am not willing to give them. I had an old Paypal account and I filed a suit against Paypal a couple of years ago now they are giving me a hard time. I can't use Paypal I'm sorry I should have known better than to fool with them. I bought something from someone and I never received it and paypal won't do anything about it that's the real way they are . You can send a money order or cashiers check or cancel the transaction . I will relist it with money orders or cashiers check only if I need to."

Summary : sounds like a scam to me .... I'll say avoid.

Michael1980 · #19 Post by **Michael1980** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 2:37 pm

Don't go for it.

Greg Gebhardt · #20 Post by **Greg Gebhardt** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 2:56 pm

cj3209 wrote:Greg is a respectable member of this forum and others that I frequent as well. He has never called anyone a 'name' out of disrespect. His response was more out of a sense of outrage at a potential fraud rather than towards the orig. poster.

In any case, from past personal experience, unless the seller has strong feedback I wouldn't send them any money. There is just too much fraud on eBay these days; sadly...

...longing for the days when I could leave my car unlocked everywhere...

Thanks very much. You are correct and I may have worded these this wrong. Haivng lost $800 with PayPal because I did not follow the rules enrages me to her these things. My apologies to the poster and hoe they decline. So many get scammed because they want to save a little money.

dc81 · #21 Post by **dc81** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 4:01 pm

I emailed the seller, and told her that I cancelled the order. I went ahead and purchased a T41p through ThinkpadWorld an Ebay Store. Thanks for all the info. Greg apology accepted, I was also a little upset at the moment, I was very close to sending payment to the initial seller, and thanks to guys/gals I didn't.

SOON TO BE A PROUD OWNER OF MY VERY FIRST THINKPAD. A T41P!

zelchenko · #22 Post by **zelchenko** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 4:46 pm

I know this is over, but I thought I'd add my two cents:

I used one of these money-order services once (bidpay). Seller closed up shop and left several buyers in the lurch. Luckily I pursued the issue with my bank and after a little time and effort I got a full refund.

Although in the end I didn't lose my money, it was a stressful experience that I never want to repeat. After this incident, I revised my ebay guidelines:

No Paypal? No deal. No exceptions
eBay member less than a year? No deal. No exceptions.

Feedback guidelines:
- Feedback must be 100% if they have received less than 100 comments.
  Feedback must be >=99% if they have received less than 500 comments.
  Feedback must be >98.5% if they have received >500 comments.
  Even if they match any of the above, their negative feedback will be scrutinized using Firefox's eBay negs extension.
  Positive and Negative feedback will be examined in the above cases and to determine exceptions to failing to meet the above guidelines. If rating is lower than 97%, they must have thousands of comments and the circumstances must be exceptional (degree to which product is >needed<, alternate availability, etc).

dc81 · #23 Post by **dc81** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 4:49 pm

A happy ending to the matter:

I wrote the seller with the following message:

"Sorry M***, (Leaving her name out of this)
But I am going to have to cancel. I don't see any other method of a smooth
transaction. I will not be sending a cashier's check or money order.

Sorry,"

Her response was this:

"I don't see what's not so smooth about a money order or cashiers check. When
you first bid on the auction I did not accept Paypal. that's ok I have
another buyer who is interested and will pick it up locally he lives 100
miles from me I will meet him half way. I will file with ebay to get my
money back.
I left a message on your voice mail.
M*** (Leaving her name out of this)"

My mistake, I wrote her an email from work, and the email had my work signature which contained my work telephone (minus my extension, but she got to my voice mail through the receptionist, and she called and left me a voicemail leaving her cell phone number and for me to call her. And contrary to what her email says, her Ebay listing did say that she accepted Paypal.

The matter is finally over.

EDIT: I thought the matter was over, she just called my cell phone. I didn't talk to her. But when I returned the number I got her voicemail stating her name. (She must have gotten that information from paypal? It was listed as my primary number through Paypal.

Greg Gebhardt · #24 Post by **Greg Gebhardt** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 5:20 pm

zelchenko wrote:I know this is over, but I thought I'd add my two cents:

I used one of these money-order services once (bidpay). Seller closed up shop and left several buyers in the lurch. Luckily I pursued the issue with my bank and after a little time and effort I got a full refund.

Although in the end I didn't lose my money, it was a stressful experience that I never want to repeat. After this incident, I revised my ebay guidelines:

No Paypal? No deal. No exceptions
eBay member less than a year? No deal. No exceptions.

Feedback guidelines:

Feedback must be 100% if they have received less than 100 comments.
Feedback must be >=99% if they have received less than 500 comments.
Feedback must be >98.5% if they have received >500 comments.
Even if they match any of the above, their negative feedback will be scrutinized using Firefox's eBay negs extension.
Positive and Negative feedback will be examined in the above cases and to determine exceptions to failing to meet the above guidelines. If rating is lower than 97%, they must have thousands of comments and the circumstances must be exceptional (degree to which product is >needed<, alternate availability, etc).

May I respectfully add that ebay payment MUST be from a verified PayPal account and the item must be mailed to the confirmed PayPal address. Only one payment can be accepted in full for the item.

I lost money big time because I accepted two PayPal payments to pay for an item. Sent the item to the confirmed address and TWO WEEKS LATER got a email from PayPal that they had backed the funds out of my account due to the buyer using a fraudulent account.

If you follow ebay and paypal rules you are covered, if not . . well beware.

dc81 · #25 Post by **dc81** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 6:21 pm

Good advice...I am a little smarter now.

Thanks,
Daniel

smugiri · #26 Post by **smugiri** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 10:18 pm

Another great thing about thinkpadworld is overnight DHL shipping. I ordered my Thinkpad at about 3pm on Thursday and was fiddling with its knobs and punching its buttons 8am Monday morning.

maryemar · #27 Post by **maryemar** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 8:36 am

I am the one everyone is talking about and I am not a scammer. I originally bought the T41p from Thinkpad world for$1499. I got laid off from my job and need the money I thought $1200 was pretty good for something I paid $1543 with shipping and tax for only a month ago. I addes Norton Internet Security Antispyware Edition paid $59 for and I added Office XP Pro 2002 With Frontapage too. and System Mechanic 5.0 version.
Yes I had problems with Paypal but I didn't know they were going to jerk me around. I admit it I hate Paypal they don't have seller or buyer protection like they claim only protection for themselves. I was part of the class action Law Suit and every since they give me a hard time.

All in all I don't appreciate my business being announced on the internet, and I am not a scammer. Yes I will relist again and someone will get a nice laptop they can pick it up if they live locally in North Florida, or I will meet them within 50 miles.

dc81 · #28 Post by **dc81** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 10:17 am

Nowhere in this thread did I list any personal information. Actually I made an effort not to. All I did was describe my situation, and ask for some advice. Sorry if this offended you. That wasn't my intent. But like you said before you got scammed using Ebay and Paypal and all I was doing was looking out for myself so the same thing wouldn't happen. I was fully aware that this might not have been a scam but I wasn't willing to take that chance.

lvlolvlo · #29 Post by **lvlolvlo** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 2:47 pm

you guys know there are alternatives to paypal.....

i use greenzap.....if you sign up put me as your refer you get sum extra cash as i do to....

http://www.greenzap.com/join-greenzap.a ... d=lvlolvlo

enjoy...

maryemar · #30 Post by **maryemar** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 3:13 pm

Thanks for the info for Greenzap

Immediate Ebay help needed!

Immediate Ebay help needed!

Re: Immediate Ebay help needed!

in defense of Greg

I say walk away.

Re: in defense of Greg

I like Paypal

Re: I like Paypal

ebay scammer

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