Craigslist and Ebay scammers

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
  • Super Cedar firestarters 30% discount Use code Hearth2024 Click here
Status
Not open for further replies.

mywaynow

Minister of Fire
Hearth Supporter
Dec 13, 2010
1,369
Northeast
I have been seeing similar type ads running on both of these sites, for Husky saws. They seem similar in the descrition that the saw had no gas in it, so it appears new. It may have a couple scuffs and is missing paperwork, etc. Each time I ask about the authenticitiy of the saw I net no response. One ebay seller in Oakboro, NC claimed to be an authorized seller, but when I asked for the company name that Husky would have him listed under, guess what? No response. How does the department that governs these types of scams not have a field day with this?
 
Can you post a link to one of the ads?
 
The Craigslist scams are usually pretty obvious. Copy a part of the ad and google it. You will usually find it posted all over the country. Flag it and it disappears pretty quick.
 
yeah... they're everywhere.

I've found the same thing looking at Polaris rangers and gators. Decent ones rung $7-10K and all of a sudden you'll see one for $2K.
 
I've run into a couple of ads for tractors that were to good to be true also. Dave.
 
discussing a couple different scams here:

counterfeits: You get the product, but it is a fake copoy of varying, but usually very low, quality.

pure scam: usually a very cheap price for a tractor or loader, car, ATV, etc. It is usually located in a different location than the seller due to his job or divorce or travel at the moment, so can't send pictures. However, the ad picture posted is most assuredly the actual product, trust me.... The price includes shipping to your location. Send money, get no product at all. Like, why would you have to advertise a one third price tracdtor and loader in a Minnesota lpaper if it is located in Montana, but the seller is in Alaska at the moment? Ya think someone in the same Montana town would want it at that price for less hassles to the seller?


'Nigerian scammers' named after a Nigerian law, and a common origination source: I want to buy the xxx you have advertised, it is exactly what I am looking for. I will send a certified check including shipping, yousend money to the shipping company rep who will then come and pick it up and ship it. Weeks or months after you sent moeny somewhere, the bank check bounces and you lose.
I have had buyers who wanted to ship a used $300 motorcycle overseas.... My favorite was the person who forgot to fill in the info to correct the boiler plate letter before sending it: Dear [seller] I saw your [ item ] in the [ source] and it is exactly what I want. I have been looking all over for [ item] here in [country ] but they are jut not avilable in such good condition......


scambaiters.com and a couple other sites are fun reading.

Generally, if it seems too good to be true, it IS too good to be true.

The real deals are almost always found face to face, usually when there are no other buyers that know about it and it is not advertised.
 
The CL scams are obvious but ebay scams, especially from sellers with a lot of good, WELL ESTABLISHED (how long has the seller been selling for) feedback are pretty rare in the 10 years I've been using ebay. Thats why I wanted to see a link to the ebay ad. Of course there are the guys that have been selling for a few months, make a few bogus deals for bogus positive feedback and then proceed to scam, rinse and repeat.

In both cases, CL and Ebay, the scams are obvious...I like to reply back to those ads sometimes just to mess with them.
 
Jutt is right on the money. Craigslist is full of scams that are pretty obvious. Watch for bad grammar , spelling etc.
eBay has more unscrupulous buyers than sellers. As a seller you can't eF up or your done fast.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.