think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

[ste887]

hi all,
i did a trade on here about 6 weeks ago, and i recieved the ak74su and the revolver, but upon opening the package i noticed the shotgun was missing, the user apologized and said it would be sent as soon as possible, so taking him at his word i sent him my SLR and browning HP plus a load of accessories, i sent him a message about the shotgun and he told me that he had just moved house and was out of funds. that was over 2 weeks ago, i have sent neumerous messages and the user hasnt replied, and he has also not logged in on the forum, i know its only a spring shotgun, but its still a 50 pound value that i should have recieved, and to be honest im getting slightly annoyed with it all.

if anyone can give me some advice on how to proceed with this, as i woud have mailed him a letter, but seen as he told me he has moved house i dont know if it will go to his new or his old address.

thanks in advance for any and all advice

[fuzzhead]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

i would go to his 'old address' as he has probably lied and still lives there

[Wilkes 1875]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

Yeah, pay him a visit - and in future, don't trade. I've found them to be nothing but trouble... Unless its of low value stuff!

[ste887]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

problem is, dont drive so the cost of getting there on public transport far exceeds the value of the shotgun i am hoping to get, hell by this point id settle for 40 quid cash off him and call the matter over and done with

[Wilkes 1875]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

Well it's up to you then... You don't really have any protection when it comes to trades, it's all about trust. Only trade with someone who has a very high feedback score! It depends how far you want to go. First, I'd make a copy of all the communication between the two of you, so you have some kind of evidence of the 'written contract' that you have and what was included in the deal etc. You can threaten the guy with coming to see him, negative feedback and if you really wanted to, the Police - but what they can do in a situation like this, I'm not sure tbh. It doesn't seem legit that the guy 'forgot' to put a whole gun in the box.. I would say you've been had here tbh. I'd threaten him a bit, call his bluff - either try and get some money off him or it sent out to you immediately, I take it that the stuff you sent has already been delivered? As there could be a possibility of cancelling delivery if you used a courier.. If all this fails, then leave negative feedback and put this down to experience!

[RiflemanLizard]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

The old "I moved and am very busy" trick is bullshit in the vast majority of cases.
It goes hand in hand with "My mum wrote me a note".

Negative feedback for "forgetting" the shotgun is a no brainer.
You forget to use black ink instead of blue, or miss a digit on a post code as you write it out.
I mean, how do you forget the very objects you're boxing up? That's just retarded (unless you've a severe head injury).

Fair to say you've been done. Keep record of his name, address and consider contacting his local police constabulary on the grounds of petty theft, assuming you don't reach a timely resolution. Be polite and patient and I'm sure they'll be the same.

One thing I wouldn't do is leave it and chalk it up. Casually pursue it on your own terms and keep him sweating. Even if he has not logged into the forum it's still likely he'll see this and is just being evasive.

[Johnno]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

See if anyone knows him and can get a grip for you.

[steve grey]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

I'd be a bit wary about jumping to conclusions with this, as he's already sent you most of the stuff, but it's very poor of him not to have sent the shottie, and the old "I'm out of funds" is a classic, when he actually owes you it, perhaps he'd like you to "lend him the postage" lol, some people do make me laugh..good luck with it mate..

[Knight]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

He probably thinks nothing is going to happen if he doesn't send you it, so why not keep it?
Send a letter to his address, as the above, the "I've just moved" trick is just old.

In future, only trade face to face, or with someone you know.

[Lt. Macka]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

Never trade with or buy from users new to the forum.

Never trade with or buy from a user who does not actively contribute to the forum. (100 posts over two years? GTFO)

Never trade with or buy from a user with no feed back.

Never trade with, buy from or sell to a user with negative feedback.



Always check all of the above.

Always get the users address.

Always get the users phone and mobile number. - Always verify these and speak to the user.

Always trade face to face if possible.


I really don't understand why it's so hard for people to do this. Especially with the seemingly never ending torrent of 'I got scammed' threads that pop up on what feels like an hourly basis.

Sales are slightly different. Once the money is in you're account you can post the item out. Do not post anything until the money is in your bank account. Not your PayPal account, your bank account. There have been instances of people receiving items then opening a PayPal dispute to get their money back.


Andy

[Phaeleh]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

Never trade with or buy from a user with no feed back.

If everyone stuck to that rule most new users would be screwed from the start lol

[Wilkes 1875]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

If everyone stuck to that rule most new users would be screwed from the start lol

I hear where you're coming from but I personally wouldn't buy off anyone with no feedback - unless it was face to face.

I'll quite happily sell to anyone though.

Thing is, if someone is serious about airsoft and not just out to scam people, it's fairly easy to get a few positive feedback by buying items and then selling low value items until people can trust you.

That's how I started anyway

[Olphy]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

I've bought from and sold to plenty of genuine people with little to no feedback, hell back in June 2011 I was one of them! Sure it was a leap of faith but provided you are cautious and scrutinise everything you should be okay. Genuine sellers have nothing to hide so be nosey and if you think it's even the slightest bit suspect, walk away.

Oh yeah, and ALWAYS VERIFY UKARA DETAILS.

[seansamurai1]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

Never trade with or buy from users new to the forum.

Never trade with or buy from a user who does not actively contribute to the forum. (100 posts over two years? GTFO)

Never trade with or buy from a user with no feed back.

Never trade with, buy from or sell to a user with negative feedback.



Always check all of the above.

Always get the users address.

Always get the users phone and mobile number. - Always verify these and speak to the user.

Always trade face to face if possible.


I really don't understand why it's so hard for people to do this. Especially with the seemingly never ending torrent of 'I got scammed' threads that pop up on what feels like an hourly basis.

Sales are slightly different. Once the money is in you're account you can post the item out. Do not post anything until the money is in your bank account. Not your PayPal account, your bank account. There have been instances of people receiving items then opening a PayPal dispute to get their money back.


Andy

Conclusions and jumping springs to mind.
No where does it say the other party was a zero feedback member.

Now the fact he hasn't logged on either could be a genuine sign of moving, or it could be that he knows he is in the doo doo.
Keep persisting, try and find peeps who know him etc etc.
Last resort, report to the police.

[Phaeleh]

Re: think i may have been scammed and need a bit of advice

I hear where you're coming from but I personally wouldn't buy off anyone with no feedback - unless it was face to face.

I'll quite happily sell to anyone though.

Thing is, if someone is serious about airsoft and not just out to scam people, it's fairly easy to get a few positive feedback by buying items and then selling low value items until people can trust you.

That's how I started anyway

If I'm honest, I probably wouldn't either hahah!