dohhhhh6 Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Hey, I'm selling a bunch of gear (because I have to much) and I have a possibly suspect message. It's my first time selling anything online, so I hope one of you seasoned vets could help. The item in question is a Fender MIM P Bass Neck. Here's the message: I am still interested in the item ok, the price of the item is ok by me, but i will like to inform you that shippment of this item will be taking care by my client and i will want to inform you that the shipper will not come for the pickup of this item until the payment is cleared from the bank, so get back to me with your payment information so that payment can be made asap. Buyer........ > Hello, I've attached some pics of the bass neck. > I've had another inquiry, but the neck is still not > sold. I'm wondering, do you live in the UK? I'm not > sure if I'll be able to ship it overseas if you do > (I've never dealt with it before). I can accept > money orders, though paypal is preferred. > > The neck is in good condition. The neck's finish > in the back has no problems at all. The only blemish > is the small chip between the nut and the truss rod, > as seen in the picture. It comes with the string > tree, nut, etc. Shipping will be $25 in the CONUS, > making the total $145. > > If you'd still like to buy the bass, email me back > and we'll work something out. I'll be more than > happy to answer any other questions you have. > > Thanks, > Seller..... > > Hello seller, > I am interested in purchasing your item and i will > like to know the following: > - The final asking price of this item, > - The present condition of this item > And i will also like to inform you that money order > will be my mode of payment for this item, If you are > ok with this mode of payment, get back to me asap so > that we can do business together. > I Await your quick reponse soonest. > Buyer..... Thanks for reading all of that. What do you think? Just a pushy person, or do you think this could some kind of scam? I don't really see how he'd be able to make any money, so I have to accept it as a genuine offer. Any thoughts? Also, can someone explain money orders for me? I've never dealt with them before, but they seem to work well. What's your seller policy regarding them? Thanks a ton! LadY In Skynyrd We Trust Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mighty Thumb Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Seller be ware! If you haven't already, check The Scam Baiter out. I'm not saying with 100% certainty that this buyer is trying to scam you, but the ones that do can be pretty clever about it. Unfortunately, the broken english would make me suspicious. It sounds A LOT like the transactions I've read about on that site. A red flag should definitely go up if the money starts to get weird. The *nus Laptop saga is a good example of how these scams work; it's pretty funny reading too. Mighty Thumb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Force Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Personally, I would suggest forgetting about this dude. You waste so much time with these clowns who seem to, IMO, NEVER purchase your item. Move on. My 2 cents. Steve Force, Durham, North Carolina -------- My Professional Websites Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcbn Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Find another buyer. Even if you sell for $20 less it is worth the pain and suffering you will avoid if this goes sour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruuve Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 I get these all the time...I'd say this is definitely a scam. He is trying to get your checking account number, but he first trying to build your trust in him. Wait for a credible buyer. Make sure you have accurately represented the item, list it on your local craigslist and bassgear.com, if it doesn't sell there, put it on Ebay. Get a paypal account if you can...that'll make it easy for buyers to buy from you. Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
picker Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Sounds like double talk to me. I'd tell them the neck will ship after you recieve the money order for both the cost of the neck and shipping, and if they make a fuss over that, forget it. Always remember that you are unique. Just like everyone else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
way2fat Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Word. You don't ship until his payment clears. If he is from abroad, forget it. www.ethertonswitch.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmrunning3 Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 I completely agree with everyone. Don't ship any thing until you have the cash in the bank. Money orders are purchased in lieu of sending cash. The problem these days is that money orders can be easily altered and are frequently as the basis for overseas scams. -- Joe -- "If you think you're too old, then you are." --Lemmy Kilmister "I have not seen a man who is not god already." --Austin Osman Spare Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenfxj Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Like Dave said. You know, of course, to NEVER give your checking account/routing number to someone so that he can "deposit" the money into your account. Push the button Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dohhhhh6 Posted April 25, 2006 Author Share Posted April 25, 2006 Yeah, though the afirmation is well welcomed. Somewhat ironically, another sketchball inquiry turned out FOR SURE to be a scam. Funny how I could've sworn that guy was clean where as this guy was possibly the scammer. I have a paypal, but he wants to do a MO. I told him I preferred paypal. Less hassle. Thanks for the advice. In Skynyrd We Trust Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocky McDougall Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 I like the ones where they tell you they have 1.5 million dollars for you but they need you to first pay the transfer fee of $150.00 Or.... they are going to pay with a cashier's check that is ten times more than the selling price. Just send them the difference. The safest money order right now is supposed to be US Postal Money order. The most dangerous is said to be the Western Union. I would give them all 10 days to clear your bank before you ship. "Democracy is two wolves and a lamb, voting on what to eat for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb, contesting the vote." Benjamin Franklin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred TBP Posted April 26, 2006 Share Posted April 26, 2006 Although I seldom talk shop about my day job, I think this is the exception where my experience may help a little. (a) a recent scam our office helped uncover consisted of some Nigerians who collaborated with some people connected with the mailing system over in Denmark and Norway. By giving the "mark" an address in Europe but a postal zip in Nigeria they reasoned well that the European handlers would run it through a scanner and then forward the item to Nigeria, where it would disappear forever. The Denmark and Norweigan officials have been notified and are returning items fitting that modus operandi back to the sender via the original carrier. (b) a US customer was selling a notebook computer on eBay and was contacted by a "buyer" who offered him 25% over the highest bid to buy this for his "son" who was about to leave for school in Canada. The "buyer" offered to pay him with a UK money order (turned out to be bogus) and the "school in Canada" had a forwarding order to South Africa. The "buyer" was hoping the seller would deposit the UK money order in his bank account and in the 5-day clearance wait have the notebook re-routed before the scam was discovered. Turned out the seller had a contact at Barclay's Bank in NYC, who was able to determine the money order was a forgery. The seller contacted the US Postal Service to have the shipment stopped, but by then it had been forwarded to the Canadian Postal Service, who had forwarded it to South Africa. The seller contacted the South African embassy, the South African Customs office, and finally the South African airport police, who happened to recognize the "buyer" as on their list. The notebook was found at the airport, seized by the police, and then returned to the US seller. I apologize for the length of this but it's to show you how elaborate a third-party scam can be. Based on what you've provided, I would only ship to this "buyer" on two non-negotiable conditions: (a) payment via some form of certified bank money order drawn on funds from a bank with a US branch office, so you can have a copy of that faxed to them for validation. You'll find quite a few international banks have branch offices in most major US cities and some are willing to help customers validate suspicious financial documents. (b) a mutually-signed agreement using a certified air carrier who will sign upon acceptance of the shipment and take responsibility if the item is lost or damaged in transit. For instance, I did ship a bass once via UPS Ground to a Cayman Islands air frieght carrier, but I had the agent's name on the shipment and got a signature from him and a signed fax from the buyer stating my liability for the shipment ended when the air frieght carrier signed for the UPS drop. And, yes, all this is horrendously elaborate and not 100% foolproof, but then if you really wanted to sell to a foreign party you should take those precautions. Frankly, I'd pass on your "buyer" and keep it a US sale. A final note: though most US carriers provide global shipping services (some with certification options), most will actually pass on a shipment to another contract carrier for the final part of the journey. Some will provide tracking from that contract carrier's office and not just blindly forward shipments to a third country, but some won't. Best to ask those kind of questions before choosing an overseas carrier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.