Is this a scam?

[matt12023]

Hey

I have to say I can usually spot a scam a mile off but not sure with this. I'm selling the rolling shell of my e30 on ebay becuase there's no way I'll have the time to do anything with it. so I get this message:

"Greetings Matt,
My name is Louis and I am in the process of restoring a German Spec Euro 87' - 325i. The body shop who painted the shell lost so many parts. My question is this: I would like to purchase the vehicle, but only have you ship the following items if available to Elmer, NJ 08318 USA. Please let me know if you would entertain this.
Regards,
Louis
(e mail supplied)

1. complete bumpers, impact strips, and all brackets w/ hardware
2. complete headlamp assemblies with grills
3. rear trunk with lip spoiler
4. instrument cluster

The remainder of the vehicle I have. Selling or scrapping the remainder of your vehicle would be your option. Please let me know either way, and thank you in advance for your time.


- louis8105"

It just seems a bit weird

[Funk]

Doesn't sound right to me.

[EDLT]

matt12023 said:

Hey

I have to say I can usually spot a scam a mile off but not sure with this. I'm selling the rolling shell of my e30 on ebay becuase there's no way I'll have the time to do anything with it. so I get this message:

"Greetings Matt,

Scam.

[Toyless]

Jeeeesus.

Shipping....

Ebay..........








You REALLY have to ask ???????

[Rubin215]

If you are asking us, then you already know the answer!

[carreauchompeur]

Hmm, some of it whiffs of scam, scam, scamola... But they are very specific about the parts!

[Deva Link]

Surely the headlamps wouldn't be any use to him, whether it's German or US spec?

[marshalla]

It's weird, but it doesn't actually have the hallmarks of a scam yet

usually they involve one or all of

• escrow
• using his shipper
• overpaying and asking you to return some cash

Might be worth responding to see how he wants to proceed with it, just in case it's real.

[uncinquesei]

I am normally an utter sceptic but the guy's very specific enquiry seems genuine to me. Not the usual "i'll send you money then you ship car" general scam email. He's in the US looking for euro spec bits on a 20+ yr old car - he's not going to find them locally... I'd be tempted to correspond with him and suss him out a bit more rather than dismiss him out of hand.

[FunkyNige]

This bit strikes me as odd -
"The body shop who painted the shell lost so many parts."

But apart from that I can't see how this would be a scam from that message, maybe the body shop genuinely did lose some bits, they gave him the money and he's after new bits.

[HereBeMonsters]

Rare car, chap looking for some bits. Sounds alright so far?

[edo]

uncinquesei said:

I am normally an utter sceptic but the guy's very specific enquiry seems genuine to me. Not the usual "i'll send you money then you ship car" general scam email. He's in the US looking for euro spec bits on a 20+ yr old car - he's not going to find them locally... I'd be tempted to correspond with him and suss him out a bit more rather than dismiss him out of hand.

+1

[AndyLB]

Try googling his e-mail address, or the first part of it to see if he's active on any other forums.

[Rubin215]

Thinking about it, is the car likely to be really rare over there?

If it is, the maybe he is genuinely struggling to get parts.

On the other hand, the parts might get over there and he claims they are damaged so asks for a refund; if he has paid by paypal the matter is out of your hands anyway.

You getting a refund from the carriers insurance then depends upon him playing ball with their investigation, but either way, he still gets his parts for free.

As happened to me with a motorcycle panel I sold on Ebay that left me £50 out of pocket...

I would bodyswerve it.

[Garlick]

marshalla said:

It's weird, but it doesn't actually have the hallmarks of a scam yet

usually they involve one or all of

• escrow
• using his shipper
• overpaying and asking you to return some cash

Might be worth responding to see how he wants to proceed with it, just in case it's real.

This is good advice, however the 'greetings' part is the hallmark of a scammer.

Proceed with caution, might be legit, but shows some signs.

[carmonk]

If you get payment and it clears and it's in your bank account, ship the parts. If not, don't. It's that simple.

[marshalla]

carmonk said:

If you get payment and it clears and it's in your bank account, ship the parts. If not, don't. It's that simple.

Actually, no it isn't. It depends on how the payment is sent. PayPal, for example, can cause a world of pain if the transaction is reversed - even if the money has left PayPal and gone into your bank account.

[simion_levi]

In the absence of any other information - sounds genuine to me so far.

I am the biggest sceptic on the planet, so this is not to be taken lightly. If I was you, I'd certainly go in with inherent distrust and the requirement that the potential buyer really does prove themself, but I'd be open to exploring the possibilities of a deal. Suggest first thing to clear up is shipping cost and overall price, including premium for additional hassle if you want to add this in - if they are still agreeable once you have this answer, you then want to lay down your conditions to protect yourself as much as you would like.

At the end of the day, if you can get 100% genuine funds before anything leaves your hands, there's not much that can come back and bite you. Don't take Paypal, don't take cheque/draft or any credit-card derived funds. Western Union would be absolute best for you, though a little costly in fees to the buyer and you may push the trust envelope too far the other way. International bank transfer is acceptable if they pay all fees and do the currency conversion their end, provided you wait for cleared funds. Cash via post is probably the only other thing I would take, assuming they can courier it with appropriate insurance, but doesn't inspire much more confidence from a buyer than WU.


First thing to do is check there are no glaring holes in the story. Look on eBay US and see if suitable alternatives are available much closer to this guy?

[carmonk]

marshalla said:

carmonk said:

If you get payment and it clears and it's in your bank account, ship the parts. If not, don't. It's that simple.

Actually, no it isn't. It depends on how the payment is sent. PayPal, for example, can cause a world of pain if the transaction is reversed - even if the money has left PayPal and gone into your bank account.

If you have proof of shipping and photos of the items then Paypal are very unlikely to reverse the transaction. And if they do, open another account. It's a pain but I doubt any scammer would go ahead on the basis that they might be able to reverse a transaction. What they do is get money up-front, or get you to send the items without pre-payment. They can't get money back once it's in your bank. Alternatively organise a direct bank transfer outside of ebay.

[VeeFour]

Could well be genuine - if he owns a Euro spec car, he'll find it very hard to track down stuff like bumpers in the US.

Your headlamps would be useless to him, though.