Please Be Careful..!!!

[KAS]

Sorry if this has be repeated but it's worth a read because they are now targeting e-bay.

I have also put this in uk-d-i-y because I know you buy and sell expensive tools on ebay

I received this warning, so I thought I would let you know. I know it is true, because someone tried this with me, but I had heard about it and did not get conned..

It does seem to originate from Nigeria and basically works like this:

• You have a car advertised (or other expensive item)

• get an enquiry that immediately asks about payment methods, i.e, will you accept a bankers cheque, what's the best price you will accept etc

• they offer to send a cheque without ever seeing your car

• the cheque arrives for several thousand more that your car is selling for. This can be either that its for shipping or its a mistake they sent the wrong cheque because they are such a busy car dealer/agent

• the cheque will be a UK one but sent by courier from the states

• bank says it looks genuine - you pay it in

• you get bombarded by emails from the buyer/scammer begging you to wire the difference to them/the shipper (immediately and quickly).

• those idiots wire the money before it has cleared in their bank.

• the cheque bounces because it is either counterfeit or lately its a genuine cheque that they cancel 2 days after you submit it to the bank.

Generally the grammar will be terrible, saying they are agents with a client who wants your car. It will get complicated i.e send money to shipper in USA, one day they will be in one country next they will be somewhere else (in reality in an internet cafe somewhere) there may also be a death/accident in their family

In the States this works well for them as the banks let you draw on funds the moment a cheque is paid into the bank. Here it has to go through the system yet people are getting stung! I warn on each reply from my site that you should not sell your car to anyone that does not come to see it.

These people are actually not only targeting car sellers .... they are after anything people are selling targeting ebay sellers etc. They are also setting up dodgy escrow sites where they lure people to create an account - even make payments to the site. Just beware and if using escrow check with the site you are using for anything they may recommend!

Here's a forum of victims

scamming the scammers --- funny

[Dave Plowman]

Anyone who falls for it deserves everything they (don't) get. If you'd trust anything originating from Nigeria, you're mad.

With cheques, ever heard the expression 'don't count your chickens'...

[Nic Mellor]

.....

As my father says "A fool and his money are easily parted."

[RiTSo]

: Just wait for ANY cheque to clear ! end of story

If only it were that simple, if only!

[::compynei::]

[John C]

I am a UK car dealer and had one of these mails the other day, smelt a rat straight away as the mail said they were a company in Holland that wanted to buy one of my cars, not only are they cheaper there, the steering wheel on my car is on the wrong side for Holland.

John

[Dave Plowman]

I'd be most surprised if they fell for that one. ;-)

[Dave Plowman]

Always check an eBayer's feedback when either selling or buying. It's not foolproof, but would take a deal of work to fiddle.

[PoP]

You might like to read the following article:

seems that it is possible to take the 419ers for a ride :)

PoP

[Johannes H Andersen]

In my castle.

[MC_Emily]

True. I think I'm right in saying that the money can be reclaimed up to 6 months after you deposit it into your account!!

Jaqy

[MC_Emily]

In my toybox, of course!

Jaqy

[Dave Plowman]

I've heard this before and don't believe it - unless it was a mistake made by your bank. If you were paid for anything by cheque and this could be reclaimed without recourse to law after it had cleared, business would grind to a halt.

[HP]

Not sure a castle would be big enough to fit everything in...i think i could only just get it all into my universe.

[PoP]

I think it might apply to credit card payments rather than cheque payments.

You can make representation to your credit card company for quite a while after the sale has taken place, and they will invariably credit your account at the expense of the party that received the funds. Plus should that happen the credit card company will usually levy a cancellation charge on the party having to repay the amount.

PoP

[Dave Plowman]

That's a different matter where you're calling on the warranty provided by the credit card act. A bank who removed money from an account on only the word of a third party would be a laughing stock. Well, more than they are already. I'm obviously excluding things like ill gotten gains from drug dealing etc that are covered by law, or something that has a court order to enforce it.

[PoP]

No it isn't. Shareware authors are very well aware of people who purchase software, receive the goods, then have a chargeback after the event because the "customer" either claims they didn't order it, or just wanted their money back. This can happen weeks after the original purchase and supply completed - not least because it can take at least a month before the questionable transaction turns up on a statement.

The card holder doesn't have to prove anything, the card company will take the instruction and implement it without question - to the detriment of the person (or company) who issued the software. And that's even if the author can prove that the goods were delivered.

If you ordered something from Screwfix and then phoned your card company a week later then you'd most likely get a refund issued by the card company. Screwfix might get a bit snotty about it, but there's nothing they can do (aside from their lawyers making your life a misery in the small claims court).

Nothing to do with warranty at all.

PoP