GOT SCAMMED ON AUS EBAY HELP

[pheonix83]

well guys i got ripped off over $500 on ebay :(

i purchased a G1 trypticon, G1 seekers, G1 Diaclone cars, and G1 Cassettes and players.

I only received one package out of 3 from the seller, and paypal was only able to receive 44c from his accounts for my troubles :(

the package i did receive was sent by a different person to the seller, who had differed bank name/details to his real name.

i have the following info if anyone here may be able to help out, as he was obviously a transformers collector.

former ebay usernames = NEMOZAC, now deregisterd
user home state = NSW
Suburb of package sender = Lake illawarra ( full address available )

Full name of package sender = (available on request )
Alias of package sender = transfront21 or transfront
Full name of bank account holder = ( available on request )
Name alias of email attached to ebay registration = (Available on request)
home phone number of package sender = ( Available on request )


If anyone can help out, or knows how i can move forwards please tell me.
im stuck out of pocket a lot now, and am resorting to selling my spares collection to cover the loss.

thanks guys

[iceburn]

wowww...sorry to hear that pheonix83!
hope the guys in NSW can help you out

[Pulse]

I feel terrible for you :(

Guys, Can we do anything to help Pheonix83 out?

[GoktimusPrime]

Give me the sellers name and address and I'll go fix him up for ya in my usual fashion. ;) :p

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y227/goktimusprime/Transfandom%20Comic/transfanmeet14.jpg

[pheonix83]

oh if online you were being serious gok.

:(

the guy who sent the packages has emailed me back saying keep waiting its on its way, but i dont believe it

he came up with lame excuses to why it hadnt been sent etc etc.

[STL]

So my understanding is that u've initiated Paypal proceedings against him?

And if you haven't are you still within the 45 day complaint period?

[iceburn]

hey...even if you can only receive 0.44 from his account via Paypal.
you should still be proected by paypal's protection policy!
why aren't they doing anything at all for you???

[pheonix83]

yes and paypal came back in my favour but were only able to retrieve 44c out of his bank account

[STL]

yes and paypal came back in my favour but were only able to retrieve 44c out of his bank account

Isn't Paypal's policy to protect irrespective of what is in that guy's account?

[pheonix83]

nope

there policy is they will only get what they can get.

thats why paypal is a scam in itself, offers guaranteed protection, only if the seller isnt a smart scammer.

bit of a joke really

[iceburn]

Isn't Paypal's policy to protect irrespective of what is in that guy's account?

+1, that aren't right!

[Pulse]

I wonder if Tiby can offer you any advice from a legal perspective? :)

[Robzy]

That really sux! There's gotta be more they can do!

[iceburn]

Sue Paypal!!!

[Robzy]

Sue PaypalWho's she? :D

[Demonac]

Your best option is to find someone on here willing to go to where he lives...someone physically imposing and not afraid of confrontation.
I remember years ago, after 1 of my items 'disappeared', it reappeared after I told the seller that ppl were going to get him (which they were).

[STL]

Who's she? :D

ROFL!!!

[Borgeman]

put wouldnt paypal be able to track where the $500 went from the scammer's paypal account? and from there, use the details of the bank account the money was deposited in to find out who the person actually is....

just a thought....

George

[iceburn]

Who's she? :D


ROFL!!!

My future mistress...you like?

[kup]

I hate to say it but in my Ebay experience, the biggest scammers are local Australian sellers.

Almost everytime I have bought an Ebay item from an AU seller who I didn't already know, has ended up badly. This is also reflects in all the scalpers and scammers you see at the Parra Fair.

If you have his details, try to get in contact with the person. Its possible that the dude isn't lying but if you don't get the item within a week or so, ask what is going on and if he doesn't reply with a satisfactory answer, open a Paypal/ebay dispute before the 60 days in which you are able to do so expire.

Take not that many of these loosers like to use delaying tactics so that they can trick you into missing the dispute deadline.

[gamblor916]

That's not right. Some people are scum, pure and simple.
I hope you get this guy, at least you have some contact details and address.

[pheonix83]

paypal dispute is over and done with, they already ruled in my favour.

but i still didnt get the money.

he emptied his bank accounts out.

i initially purchased all the items on the 25/05/08 so its a been a few months.

has anyone had any luck going to the police before on fraud cases before ?

[Sam]

Mate, I feel for your loss.

Not sure if this story is any help / encouragement:
http://www.news.com.au/technology/story/0,25642,23993302-5014108,00.html

Perhaps you could try typing out all the names, aliases, contact details, transaction details of the seller, printing it out and lodging it with the local police?

[JuzMel]

Try your luck with the cops, there's no harm, what are the items still missing and how much are they worth? Paypal is smart for "pretending" to be of help, but they take forever to deal with matters. They are fast is taking money but slow to return them. I would have thought PayPal protection was money returned to buyer from PayPal itself, now it seems otherwise.

I have a PayPal dispute opened at the moment too. Have a read at this:
https://www.paypal.com/au/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=p/gen/ua/policy_buyer_complaint-outside
It says that PayPal may at its sole discretion refund the buyer from PayPal itself with amounts covered up to $20,000. So even if seller has no money in his account, PayPal should refund you the money from their own pocket.

[Mixmaster]

Your best option is to find someone on here willing to go to where he lives...someone physically imposing and not afraid of confrontation.
I remember years ago, after 1 of my items 'disappeared', it reappeared after I told the seller that ppl were going to get him (which they were).

Images of Pulp Fiction spring to mind.

It sucks that you got ripped off. What a scumbag.

[lcz128]

That's really sad to hear dude :(

Good luck with the rest of the stuff coming !!!

[Tober]

How did you pay for it? Was it through PayPal with a credit card or bank account?

[Vector Sigma 13]

Your best option is to find someone on here willing to go to where he lives...someone physically imposing and not afraid of confrontation.
I remember years ago, after 1 of my items 'disappeared', it reappeared after I told the seller that ppl were going to get him (which they were).

Im with Demonac. if messing with his head doesnt work, mess with his face.
Sorry to hear about this dude- always looms in my mind when making an Ebay transaction.

[GoktimusPrime]

Other possibly useful avenues...

http://www.accc.gov.au/ (Australian Competition & Consumer Commission)
http://www.australia.gov.au/Consumer_Rights

[Tober]

I tried asking on another board and it appears that there's not much you can do about it as far as PayPal goes.

It was recommended that you contact your bank or creditcard provider and talk to them about it. It is possible to retrieve money from PayPal through your bank or creditcard if the bank rules in your favour. However I heard that if PayPal has resolved the dispute then there's not much they can do.

Either way you might as well give it a shot - Nothing ventured...

[Rampage]

can't you still make a claim through ebay itself not paypal

i had to do that a few years back when i got got screwed on a lcd monitor

it took forever but i got most of my money back minus shipping & $25 processing fee

if the guy was local i'd be willing to help ya out with a personal visit from myself however if i plan on heading down 'the gong' anytime soon i'll shoot you a pm

good luck phoenix:)

[dirge]

Yet eBay still want to claim that their forcing Paypal on everyone is for increased security!

Good luck, pheonix83.

BTW I'm heading down to Wollongong in a couple of weeks (Lake Illawarra is a suburb of the 'Gong), want me & Tiby to go "talk" to this fellow? (:

[sifun]

get tiby to rock up to his house and throw some legal jargon down his way to own him

[Pulse]

BTW I'm heading down to Wollongong in a couple of weeks (Lake Illawarra is a suburb of the 'Gong), want me & Tiby to go "talk" to this fellow? (:

But you guys aren't very "threatening"... :rolleyes::D

[dirge]

But you guys aren't very "threatening"... :rolleyes::D

Hey, the dog ran away with reckless abandon

:(

[Pulse]

I hope that dog's ok...

Maybe it was more threatened by your groovy hairstyle rather than our "imposing stature"...

[STL]

If I was in this punk's suburb, I'd personally go and have a nice chat with him.

[Pulse]

If I was in this punk's suburb, I'd personally go and have a nice chat with him.

For the "ultimate payback", Maybe you should become "more than just friends" with his Missus... ;)

[pheonix83]

well he is still claiming he has sent it.

he gave me a number, but it means nothing to me, and a tracking search on auspost comes up blank

550798900015 dunno what it is though.

[STL]

well he is still claiming he has sent it.

he gave me a number, but it means nothing to me, and a tracking search on auspost comes up blank

550798900015 dunno what it is though.

You'll have to call up on 131318. Aust Post is a hopeless mob in terms of tracking. Absolutely F---ing hopeless.

[pheonix83]

well next step in the saga.

contacted Australia post with the number i had.

they told me that it wasnt on the system as having entered tasmania.

they couldnt tell my if it was a legit number, or a current number.

they wouldnt initiate a tracking for me as i wasnt the sender, so legally the package wasnt mine, and after heated arguments i was basically told i was screwed and there was nothing i could do.

the tracking has to be lodged by the sender and thats that.

what a mess of a system we live in.
EBAY is a scam, Paypal is a scam, and now Aus Post are useless at anything but mailing postcards.

Wonderful

The only hope i guess i have is that if by some miracle of god the package is still in nsw, and this guy replies to my emails is getting a local to pick it up for me and send it on again, :(

transformer collecting is supposed to be fun

[iceburn]

transformer collecting is supposed to be fun

mate, you just hit the "right" spot
where has all the fun gone too......

lucky we (melbournians) had that midnight event to enjoy for...

[kup]

We have all been through this sort of thing in one form or another. However I am lucky than in the couple of times that it happened to me it wasn't for a large amount of money.

The most I lost was $50 for a G1 Skystalker which I was scammed.

If it had happened to my Fort Max or my Botcon 06 set I would be spewing.

If you do have his address another thing that you could do is get someone local to knock his door for you and demand to know what is going on.

Another thing you can do is get his phone number from Ebay and call him. You can do that through their help options.

[darockk]

call up Today Tonight, explaining how hopeless paypal is and they will make a story out of it.

[pheonix83]

well the guy has stopped replying to my emails, and has blocked me on msn i think.

the package number he gave me was bogus so i guess that means im outa luck.

oh well.

lessons learnt.

dont trust anyone with a low ebay sales record, dont trust ebay, and dont trust paypal.

expensive lesson

[pheonix83]

WOW amazing new development.

paypal emailed me this morning advising they would cover the full amount not recovered.

which means i have got my money back.

didnt think it would happen but i wont look a gift horse in the mouth.
( or something like that )

[gamblor916]

congrats pheonix, that's amazing coming from paypal.

[pheonix83]

i just logged into my paypal and its marked as a reversal, so maybe they sucked it out of his bank account once some funds were available. :)

im a happy man anyway

[iceburn]

hooray!! moreover you've got part of the stuff you paid for...
thank the lord...

[Robzy]

Congrats mate! :)

[JuzMel]

Congrats! Now I'm feeling much better cause I'm currently in the middle of a dispute as well. Hmm I think PayPal must have up its customer service cause in the past there is even a website about PayPal being the worse money transfer merchant online and how people have got cheated on online sales and PayPal does nothing, at least now they are DOING something. :)

[kup]

Congratz, Its refreshing to see an ordeal like this end positively!

[Pulse]

Congrats Mate!

I guess your faith in Ebay has been restored a little... :)

http://amadeo.blog.com/repository/196381/1114807.gif :D

[Zippo]

Wow, congrats.
First time I have heard of Paypal actually doing that.

I'm still out £50 from 2006 that is still an open case with Paypal. Though the guy I brought the figure from died before sending the item so I shouldn't be too harsh.

[STL]

Wow, congrats.
First time I have heard of Paypal actually doing that.

I'm still out £50 from 2006 that is still an open case with Paypal. Though the guy I brought the figure from died before sending the item so I shouldn't be too harsh.
Congrats, man. Now u can spend it all again. :)

Whoa, Zippo! the case sis still open?

[pheonix83]

unfortunately all the money is going back to pay for all my target laybye's

got 2 mp-4's and a bunch of animated waiting for some lovin :)

[Sam]

Glad you're getting your money back!

[STL]

unfortunately all the money is going back to pay for all my target laybye's

got 2 mp-4's and a bunch of animated waiting for some lovin :)

I think then the word "unfortunately" is a poor choice of words ;)

[Tober]

Good news!

So what actually happened to cause PayPal to give you full refund?



I think then the word "unfortunately" is a poor choice of words ;)

Yep. Still saves you $500. :p

[pheonix83]

i dont know.

either they finally decided to refund me from there own funds, as they say in the small print of the contract, or the original seller placed mony in his bank account again and paypal took it back out as per there policy that we all agree to when we start using paypal.