Ebay Scam

I had a buddy of mine buy my 4Runner through craigslist for me when I was in another State. He signed the bill of sale as the buyer in my behalf. It all worked out without hiccup.

 

What am I missing? What's wrong with that if you get paid?

 

A construction worker having an acquisition agent... I'm not about to trust that story

 

You said off shore oil rig worker.

 

I've not sold vehicles on eBay but other smaller items. Once i was selling some Xbox live cards. The bidder bought them, paid, received the codes, then filed claim against me for sending him used codes. Got his money back and left me with Neg feedback and fucked my acct for a year. Another item i sold, someone with Zero feedback won, didn't pay so i had to wait 30 days to relist the item.

Many of the sellers on eBay will create ghost accts that they use to bid on and win other items that are selling cheaper, not pay for them, then they can jack up their prices. I buy on eBay all the time, but I've pretty much given up on trying to sell on there. Too many headaches and too much BS fees.

 

I buy, but don't sell, too.

 

Nor meet someone alone ever..ideally speaking don't have them come to your house either.

 

I sold a fly rod & rod tube a few years back that had only been use one time and was literally in brand new condition. Someone bought it and contacted me (via ebay) saying it was all gouged and scratched (I had a lot of pics on the posting to counter this claim) and demanded I refund 1/2 the $$. If I didn't he said he'd file a complaint. I refused and all he did was submit negative feedback.

 

I work in refineries, does that not make me a construction worker??

 

I wouldn't think of an off shore oil rig worker as a construction worker, no more than I would think a machinist as a construction worker, so no.

The "Off Shore" defines it a whole lot more.
I can see an off shore worker needing to have someone get stuff for them during the days/weeks they are off shore, like not on land. So, an acquisition agent is not unlikely.

I don't want to argue this, you did what you did. I'm gonna let it go.

 

No EBay problems from me. I did get my dirt bike stolen during a Craigslist scam.

A guy had me come to his "house" in a decent looking neighborhood. I should have know better as the surrounding area was NOT a good area. I got tunnel vision on the sale though, so I showed up. When I got there he was standing outside "his house". I talked about the bike and asked him where he rode at. He said off in those woods and pointed to dead building sites with a dirt road and a power line nearby. (Turns out the house was abandoned and being squatted in by crackheads)

So I cranked the bike up, rode it around to show him it ran and had not problems. He asked to ride it, took a left and never came back.

And it was at the moment I let him on the bike, I knew, I had fucked up. My now wife was with me so I didn't pursue. I called the cops, filed a report and three years later have never heard a single peep out of them.

When I sold my other bike, which was worth a LOT more. I wrote in Craigslist "don't even ask about even sitting on it until I have counted every dollar of the asking price". A really nice guy ended up buying it "cash in hand" and he rides it all the time around town. It brings a tear to my eye.

 

I've heard more horror story's about people buying from dealerships than from Craigslist unless we're talking about selling sex, that's a whole different can of worms. Either way good judgement and common sense are necessary.

 

I had someone come to my house for a tractor bagging system but my wife was home and watching. Was easier than humping it all in my truck and meeting them somewhere.

Same with a metal brake I sold, except that thing was too damn heavy to move by myself. I had talked to the guy on the phone though and he was an older fellow so I figured I was safe..still had the wife watching.

 

I bought an engine from an older gentleman, he also showed me around his huge garage full of priceless Mopars, a full race Datsun BRE 510 and more. Nice guy but a little to trusting, still nice to meet people like that who aren't total pieces of shit.

 

Sounds like a fun tour though..and yes I'm old school in that I like to trust people but I also have to plan for the worst case. I don't even like people I deal with at my second job coming to my house, mainly because some just will abuse the privilege.

 

The point being this person was not an offshore oil rig worker and the response to me was a scam

 

I always meet in front of a bank. That way if they try anything it's on camera.

 

I had one really bad Craigslist experience. Several years back I sold a newer 4 stroke 2.5HP Mercury Outboard motor. It was in mint condition as I do take care of my shit. I drove about 45 minutes to the guys house as he had agreed to pay what I was asking. I had just serviced the motor with new plug, gear & engine oil and the prop was damage free. So far so good. So he gives me his cash and I'm on my way.

The next afternoon I see my phone has several missed calls and several voice mails. It's the guy I sold the motor to and he says the engine is sputtering and won't go into gear. I said "it was running perfectly fine when i sold it to you...what have you done". He says "nothing....I want my $$ back". I agreed to drive up and take a look at the motor. He had it mounted to a small jon boat and there was a sheen of oil all around the boat. We pulled the motor and it was way overfilled with engine oil. He said he checked the oil level and added nearly the same amount that was already in there. IDIOT didn't know how to check (even though I provided the manual). So we drain some and it's running better. Then I shift and it won't go into gear.....I raise the motor and I see the prop is all banged up spinning freely (the shear pin is busted). VOILA - these idiot ran it into some rocks and fucked it all up. So a heated conversation ensues....he's demanding his money back and I'm refusing as this motor was near perfect when I sold it to him. Next thing I know here come three of his buddies from the house down to the dock we're standing on and they all surround me. I'm like "Hmmmmm.....not good". I was carrying my Beretta 9mm at the time too, but an incident over a motor certainly wasn't "life threatening".

I brought a cashiers check from my credit union (never use personal check as it's got personal info) for a refund if it came to that....so I agreed and handed him the check and I took the motor. After I was on the road, I immediately called my credit union to put a stop payment on the check (HAHA.....fuck that guy). So I had my motor back and I had his $$. He tried to cash the check the next day and NADA!! I got several calls as he was SO pissed! He only had my phone # so he couldn't do much.

I replaced all the fluids again and replaced the shear pin and put on a new prop (they were plastic & pretty reasonably priced).....got it running again and it was back to like new. I reposted the ad and sold it again for the same amount.

Karma's a Bitch!