eBay Fraud?

[Progressive]

I have also been of the mindset; "if something is too good to be true, it usually is". This may well be a case of this.

My other half eBay'd some shorts that were nothing special. TopShop or similar. Worth a tenner at the most.

Auction finished at £70 with a buyer with generally good feedback and a strange history of paying over the odds (this price range) for women's clothes. Also a few designer handbags (£800+).

It appears that the auction has been 'bid up' from around £5 by the same bidder, right up to £69, where it finished and the buyer won the item. This mystery bidder is now 'no longer a registered user'.

The buyer has paid within a couple of days and the money has arrived in PayPal.

Is this some kind of fraudulent activity or just somebody with too much money to blow on shockingly over valued clothes? By posting the item, will my other half open herself up to a world of problems or is the worst case scenario the cash gets removed and she loses the shorts?

Sorry for the long post, and thanks in advance for any contribution!

[joewilliams]

Is the money there if you log in to your Paypal account?

Don't trust an email.

[Steve in Stoke]

Chances are it has been paid using a stolen credit card against a legitimate but hijacked ebay & paypal account.
Innoccuous items are bought initially to test the water, before they start buying laptops and other such items.

Expect the fundss to be reversed any day soon.

[Dr Doofenshmirtz]

Transfer the money to your bank account NOW!
There are some truly stupid people out there...so you never know, might be genuine

[bazking69]

Do not send the item.

[Progressive]

Cash is there in the PayPal account.

Is the general consensus to withdraw the cash into the bank and send the item to the address given? As long as the worst case scenario is losing the item, it's not the end of the world.

If it gives the 'fraudster' free run of her bank account then maybe just walk away. As far as I know, PayPal is not 'connected' directly to your bank account.

[joewilliams]

Dr Doofenshmirtz said:

Transfer the money to your bank account NOW!
There are some truly stupid people out there...so you never know, might be genuine

Makes no difference.

If the transaction is reversed, PayPal will still hold you responsible for it.

[Progressive]

bazking69 said:

Do not send the item.

Any reason why. Losing the item (worth only about a fiver realistically) isn't the end of the world.

The seller's 250 positive feedback seems genuine but still...

[freecar]

Progressive said:

bazking69 said:

Do not send the item.

Any reason why. Losing the item (worth only about a fiver realistically) isn't the end of the world.

The seller's 250 positive feedback seems genuine but still...

you're being scammed that's why. The funds may be there now but they wont be for long. Even if you withdraw it, paypal will retrieve it from your account so you will be out the money and the goods.

It's no wonder people get robbed, they really are trusting!

[Progressive]

So what should the plan of action be? Just sit on it and do nothing, expecting the funds to be withdrawn?

Sorry for going on about this! Just a bit worrying.

[toohuge]

joewilliams said:

Dr Doofenshmirtz said:

Transfer the money to your bank account NOW!
There are some truly stupid people out there...so you never know, might be genuine

Makes no difference.

If the transaction is reversed, PayPal will still hold you responsible for it.

Yes true, but they will only try and recover the money from you. I have been through this and researched this deeply and they categorically state that they cannot guarantee the money to be paid back. So my advice is to move the cash out from paypal.

[Steve in Stoke]

toohuge said:

joewilliams said:

Dr Doofenshmirtz said:

Transfer the money to your bank account NOW!
There are some truly stupid people out there...so you never know, might be genuine

Makes no difference.

If the transaction is reversed, PayPal will still hold you responsible for it.

Yes true, but they will only try and recover the money from you. I have been through this and researched this deeply and they categorically state that they cannot guarantee the money to be paid back. So my advice is to move the cash out from paypal.

Then the PP account will be in negative when they recover the money, so the next item sold by the OP only goes towards clearing this negative balance. Or given enough time, the letter from Intrum Justitia arrives.

Given the item was only a relatively cheap item of clothing, it is probably easier in the long run to wait for the reversal.

[Adz The Rat]

Some people are just stupid and pay well over the odds for stuff.

I had some tatty scratched MK3 Golf front indicators & fog light blanks, thought they would be of use to someone so put them on Ebay with a £2 starting bid.
I even mentioned in the description that they were £10 each side from VW.

They sold for over £50 to someone new to Ebay

[speedchick]

If you are going to send them, make sure the address is confirmed as ok to send to (Paypal will tell you this, there will be an OK or tick next to the address) and make sure that you send them tracked.

It might be worth trying to phone Ebay or Paypal to see what you should do, but I think in these cases, proof of delivery will help you should there be a claim for unauthorised use of a card.

[andy400]

Adz The Rat said:

Some people are just stupid and pay well over the odds for stuff.

I had some tatty scratched MK3 Golf front indicators & fog light blanks, thought they would be of use to someone so put them on Ebay with a £2 starting bid.
I even mentioned in the description that they were £10 each side from VW.

They sold for over £50 to someone new to Ebay

I put a used, but very good condition, gunslip on ebay, expecting to get a few quid. It sold for £15 more than I paid for it in my local shop, and £20 more than someone was selling them brand new for on..... ebay!

[Dr Doofenshmirtz]

Progressive said:

So what should the plan of action be? Just sit on it and do nothing, expecting the funds to be withdrawn?

Sorry for going on about this! Just a bit worrying.

Dear god Man - just send them. It's a cheap pair of shorts that most people would chuck in the bin if they didn't want them.
Scenario 1: The buyer kicks up a stink and they will have to return them - you give a refund. No big deal really.
Scenario 2: The (stupid)buyer is delighted with said shorts, and everyone is happy.
Send them recorded delivery as per PayPal rules though.

[Progressive]

I think I'll post them recorded delivery. Short of contacting the buyer on facebook (I have found them on there), which is admittedly incredibly creepy, I'm not sure what other assurance I could get.

It just seems odd that a 'bidding war' started on a cheap pair of shorts and ran to £70. Seems too good to be true.

I Google Earthed the postcode and it brings up a farm type property in the middle of nowhere.

[Dr Doofenshmirtz]

Progressive said:

I think I'll post them recorded delivery.

You have to post stuff recorded (online trackable) delivery if you use PayPal - it's in their T&Cs. If you don't, the buyer can claim to have never received the item and claim a full refund.

[Swoxy]

Progressive said:

I think I'll post them recorded delivery. Short of contacting the buyer on facebook (I have found them on there), which is admittedly incredibly creepy, I'm not sure what other assurance I could get.

It just seems odd that a 'bidding war' started on a cheap pair of shorts and ran to £70. Seems too good to be true.

I Google Earthed the postcode and it brings up a farm type property in the middle of nowhere.

Contact them on FB

[Neil H]

If they're only worth a fiver just send them. It could be that they're a particularly special pair of shorts to that buyer, maybe they had a pair and lost them etc, or maybe they have a 'thing' for pre-worn shorts....