Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

young van man · Joined: 31 Aug 2009 Posts: 117

just a quick warning to all you ebayers whom are thinking of purchasing a van from the ebay site.....

i have just had a really nasty experience, having won a nice vintage caravan and being chuffed to have won it my day was shattered when i found out that it was a big con and that the seller wanted me to send a bundle of cash via a money gram (post office money exchange) up to Scotland with no insurance or protection.... only to find he had sent me fake ebay forms stating how he was a verified ebayer and that ebay was backing him as a genuine seller!

after contacting ebay they new nothing of the forms or emails that i had recieved and that his membership had been rejected!!!! they advised not to send any money as he was no longer a member and he could not be trusted!

he would not tell me where the van was nor would he even give me his phone number!

a close shave on my part thankfully my money is still in my pocket and all i can say is buyers beware do your home work before even thinking of parting with any cash!!!

Roger-hatchy · Joined: 07 Dec 2007 Posts: 2135 Location: Tiptree, Essex

My first question when buying anything on ebay is
Do you do cash on collection, or can this ???? be collected in person?

If I get a negative answer, or fobbed off with a negative excuse I walk away.

A bogus seller will not want someone knocking on the door, or let anyone know were they are.

OK I know there are seller that for a genuine reason can't accept callers.

Roger

Buskitten · Joined: 20 Jul 2009 Posts: 40

Goodness, that's frightening - thanks for warning us! I guess it's best to really check things out with ebay purchases, then? Thank goodness you realised in time, and didn't send them any money Shocked

young van man · Joined: 31 Aug 2009 Posts: 117

i smelt a rat from the begining, he wouldnt give me a phone number the address where the winchester caravan was suppose to be turned out to be a hotel and they had never heard of him! yet he was still sending me emails asking for the money so that we could finish the "transaction" he even had the cheek to say that because he'd sent me letters from ebay stating he was verified that i could totally trust him......that was a laugh!

just be very careful and if your in doubt just call ebay up and have the seller investigated, they were very quick and helpful and very thankful to me for bringing this to there attention!

Dalek63 · Joined: 15 Aug 2009 Posts: 490 Location: North Cornwall

yes I saw that Winchester and it had been on e-bay a month or two ago. It was a genuine sale then, I think he must have copied off the photo and the details and stuck it on again in a bogus auction. I was very suspicious of it.
_________________
I can resist anything except temptation ! ( Oscar Wilde)
"Don't try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig." ( Mark Twain)
http://www.period-classic-caravan-club.co.uk/

Highland classics · Posted: Tue Feb 02, 2010 9:48 pm Post subject:

I tried to view this van as we only live 70 miles from wick but was told it had to be delivered with a ten day money back guarantee if we wasnt happy with it. He said we could have it for £1500 and it would be delivered at his cost( yer right) I emailed him back and said there was no way i was handing cash over for something that couldnt be seen. Just shows the con's going on, it is a sad person who can play these tricks. Hope nobody sent him any money and is waiting for there caravan to be delivered! Shocked

Barry Lord · Posted: Wed Feb 03, 2010 12:04 am Post subject:

We bought three of our caravans via eBay, happily from very genuine sellers, two of whom turned out to be people we had already met through the HCC.

Stories like this make you think about how much money we transfer to other people these days by means of a quick click on the internet, trusting that the transactions are genuine. I'll certainly be more cautious when making bigger purchases in the future.

gresham flyer · Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 1435

I won an AGA cooker on ebay.
Before bidding I had telephoned twice to enquire about the condition,was informed it had been taken out by a AGA approved fitter,and was in perfect condition,the photo`s proved this.

The people selling were very well to do,the photo`s showed their huge victorian kitchen ,everything they said and the impression I got was of something of "QUALITY".

I even tracked down the fitter and phoned him about it,he said the same.

I phoned to arrange collection and was told to pay by paypal first.

I told them I had cash to pay on collection but they were not happy.

After many calls backwards and forwards I arrange to collect.!!!!

I arrived at this huge country pile,rubbing my hands with glee I walked up the driveway.

I was greeted by a gentleman who informed me the lady of the house would meet me shortly.

When she arrived the atmoshere was tense,she showed me into the garage and there on two pallets was the AGA.

But not the one I had bid on,this one had been around for years,moved about,items lost,rotten as a pear,ready for the scrap heap.

When I voiced my concern,all manner of excuses where given.The husband stood sheepishly in the background with a baby in his arms,(so I would not hit him).the AGA had been falsely advertised and they new it!!!

I walked away,glad I had not paid by PAYPAL before arriving.

A lesson learnt!!!!!

Barry Lord · Posted: Wed Feb 03, 2010 10:54 am Post subject:

I had a similar experience with a 1960's caravan I bought from someone living on the other side of Shropshire a couple of years ago. I didn't look at the caravan beforehand as it looked very nice in the pictures shown on eBay and, having won it, paid by PayPal. The pictures must have been very old ones, because when I went to collect it, I was confronted with what I can only describe as a tatty, rotting monstrosity. Fortunately, it was not the most expensive caravan I have ever bought. We eventually donated it to a local farmer who now sits in it overnight with his flask of tea whilst waiting for his sheep to lamb . . .

Bayliss Thomas · Joined: 25 Sep 2009 Posts: 557 Location: SUFFOLK

Thanks for sharing these bad experiences, an sharp reminder indeed that not everyone is honest.

emmerson · Joined: 30 Sep 2008 Posts: 1268 Location: South East Wales

Highland Classics, how's your Royale?

Highland classics · Posted: Wed Feb 03, 2010 8:54 pm Post subject:

emmerson · Joined: 30 Sep 2008 Posts: 1268 Location: South East Wales

Good man. Are you going to join the club? We've some super rallies coming up this year.

Highland classics · Posted: Thu Feb 04, 2010 9:17 pm Post subject:

Yes we sure are going to join. looking forward to some nice classic caravaning this year. Very Happy

Bluebirdbank · Joined: 18 May 2009 Posts: 7

I just thought I'd let you know that this happens on ebay with others also I had a similar experience with a 2 yr old van recently - I asked to view, despite being miles away, and was told that she was out of the country. I was asked to pay for the item, then it would be delivered to me 'on approval' and if I didn't like it they'd collect it back. The adress didn't make sense, and later i realised the photo, which wasn't a brochure photo, was exactly the same as that in another listing for the same type of van. I reported it to ebay but they didn't do anything as no sale had taken place so they said it didn't fall in to any category for them to deal with!!!
Is there no end to the scams people dream up??