Advice Needed: About to do a transaction - Will it be safe?

PaulG_3

Hi guys. Im looking for advice on the following. I made 2 posts on another forum looking for advice but havent had a reply to the last post and could do with advice soon as Im stalling a possible buyer. I shall just copy and paste the 2 posts and if u can help me, it would be greatly appreciated.

Hi guys. Im looking for advice on a possible transaction Im about to make. I have some items I was about to list on ebay and was browsing thru ebay looking at auctions for the same items. I saw one which had 1 bid on it. I checked the bidders feedback and saw that he has bought similar items in the past plus he had current bids in on a couple of them too. The items are PC graphics cards for workstations so I assumed he possibly owns a business that uses them or similar.
Anyway, I mailed him to see if he'd be interested in any of mine, I have 9 in total for sale, and he said he'd be interested in them all if the price was good enough. We eventually agreed a price for all of them, $4500 USD.
He asked that I list the items on ebay in 5 seperate auctions, 4 @ $1000 and 1 @ $500 so that his purchase is covered by Paypal buyer protection policy.
He is located in Taiwan and Im in the UK. I must add I have no reason to question the guy at this point or think he has any bad motives, but I just want to ensure I have no problems with this transaction as I have read about reversals etc so decided to post here and ask for advice.
Should I go thru with this deal accepting payment via Paypal?? Is there another method of payment that would be more suitable but also offer him some form of protection?
If I receive the payment and withdraw it to my account, once I have money, what can Paypal do if the guy decides to reverse it?? I have no reason to expect he will and the goods are all brand new and perfect condition so if he did it would only be if he was trying it on.

Lastly, my Paypal account is a UK Premier Account. I know some types have limits on receiving but am I right in thinking I dont have with this type?? Will I be able to receive such an amount? I am subject to a 3.4% charge on funds received too, is this right??

Really appreciate any advice guys as I cant afford any mishaps on a deal like this. Cheers.

OK, after making that post I was advised not to make the deal with the guys location being Taiwan and the chances of him making a Paypal reversal were high. By this time I had been emailing him a few times and provided him with pictures, and the guy does seem totally genuine.
I tried typing his name and Taiwan into Google and believe it or not, actually found him and his website, which confirmed what he had told me, he was a student in 3d animation, and there was links to his university on it. He doesnt know I found this. I added him to MSN and chatted with him and this next post below is the issue that came up from that convo.

Thanks for replies guys.

The deal hasnt been done yet but is still a possibility, but only if I can cover myself against anything happening. What I am gonna say here will send out more alarm bells probably but just want to see if I can cover myself.

It turns out the buyer is a student in 3d animation, in Taiwan, so he would use the cards I am selling as they are high end cards for doing this kind of work. I have been able to verify this by simply typing in his name and Taiwan into google and found his website, which has some of his work on it and links to his university. I havent told him I found this info.

Now, he wants to pay via Paypal, and with me listing the cards in 5 auctions so they are $1000 and under and he is covered by paypal policy. I have read that to eliminate the risk of credit card fraud, have buyers pay either with funds from bank account or paypal balance. I set my account up to only accept it from his bank account and told him this.
Now this is the big question and a strange one. I advised him that the cheapest I could find shipping to Taiwan was just under £80. I found a courier who charge £44 for it but to insure the package up to £2500, it cost another £37.50. We were chatting on MSN about this and he asked if Id send it without insurance, firstly to reduce costs but mainly as he would be subject to a 12% charge by Taiwan customs. I told him I couldnt do that as if something happened to damage the cards or parcel went missing, I would have no way of claiming from them. He said he is pretty certain nothing would happen and all the stuff he buys from the US has been sent this way. He has on his feedback purchased a few of these cards at $700-$750 a piece. I said I still couldnt taske the risk as if something as did happen I am not willing to pick up the bill for it. The only way I would consider it was if he agreed he was responsible for this. He said he would agree if I could promise to pack the cards properly and make sure they are well cushoined etc. He feels certain enough they will deliver the package and take adequate care of it. I tried to advise him that stuff did happen and parcels do go missing but this is how he felt.

So what Im wondering is, if I list these auctions and and clearly state on them that if the buyer chooses to have item sent without insurance cover added, then he is liable should anything occur that damages the card in any way or if package goes missing. If I list the auction this way, and also have the MSN conversation saved where he agreed this, then if he tried to make a claim via Paypal, would this be enough to cover me against it?? I would withdraw balance to my account and ship once completed and keep the invioce from shipping company to prove I did send it.

I realise this is pretty strange and would normally just walk away, but is it possible that I can cover myself against chargebacks by ensuring the above?? If he pays from bank account, this would eliminate credit card fraud and if he agrees to have item shipped without insurance, he agrees to be liable for anything happening, card being damaged or not working??

Having spoke to the guy on MSN and in many emails, I actually do believe he is most probably genuine but obviously cant say for sure. So only way this deal can happen is if I am covered against anything happening. Would the above do this for me, is there anything else I would need to do etc?? If it is stated in the auction clearly that buyer is liable for anything, can Paypal make a chargeback on any other grounds??

Really appreciate the advice guys as only way this deal can go thru is if all bases are covered.

How would u guys deal with this?? I know there are alarm bells ringing especially with sending such a parcel uninsured but Im wondering of this could possibly work in my favour should he attempt to do a chargeback??
If he chooses to Buy It Now on my auctions which will clearly state that buyer accepts FULL responsibility for damaged/missing goods should optional shipping insurance not be taken up, and if the threat of credit card fraud is eliminated by him paying from bank account, would this be enough on my part to go ahead?? Or would u just walk away??
Really appreciate any advice, cheers. +

RACHIE77

Hmmm - all I can say i blimey!! LOL! It does sound legit to me and you checking out his links etc all sounds good but just as you say there is a little ringing sound in the back of my head which is warning me something doesn't add up - maybe its because it all seems too good to be true??

If you had listed these auctions without contacting the seller and he had simply clicked 'buy it now' then would you be worrying so much?

I think the only thing that I can say would worry me is posting an item of such value without insurance - Apart from that he seems to want to do everything by the book and not trying to buy things outside of an auction or by a dodgy payment form etc??

I'm not sure on the rules for something of such high value but I always give the buyer the option of paying for standard royal mail first class postage or special delivery - if they choose 1st class then I always assume its their own fault if it gets lost in the post, my items are usually under £20 though so not such a risk!

I think I would try and push to get the item insured, is there not a way that you can say it is a 'gift' to reduce the % he pays? I've heard that b4 but am not completely sure? Or split the difference with him?? I would have thought it was in his interest too to get it insured, a broken graphics card is no good to him or you??

Sorry if i've not been of much help with ideas for a solution, just thought it may be useful to hear someone elses angle on this!??

HTH

Rachie

culpepper

They are your items up to the point that someone pays for them under your terms , so I would list the terms im willing to sell under and post under ,not his.
Is he getting a fantastic bargain?
If he is then someone might just outbid him anyway.
It sounds a bit like putting all your eggs in one basket to sell all to him under his terms.If it goes wrong,you've lost your whole collection of graphics cards.
I think I would forget him and put them up like you were going to in the first place and see how things go.
If they dont make the same price at the end of the day, how do you know you were actually going to get it anyway?
What if someone had outbid him on some of them? Would you have felt honour bound to sell them only to him?

nsrjo1

Paypal terms and conditions state that you must send items using an online tracking service that verifies you sent the item to the address you were given in the payment and that they were signed for. Essentially that means using a carrier such as Fedex or UPS as their systems allow you to see the physical address that the parcel was delivered to. If you use Parcelforce or International Signed for airmail you WILL NOT be covered under Paypals policy as you cannot prove the address the parcel was sent to.

You can put whatever terms and conditions you like in your auction, it makes no difference. You cannot override Paypal's terms and conditions or alter them and they will take precedence.

If you send the items with any carrier that does not provide a verifiable online track and trace service then the buyer can issue a chargeback and you won't have a leg to stand on. Even if you've withdrawn the funds from your Paypal account Paypal can and do pursue individuals for them.

The simple answer is - DON'T DO IT. There are many people out there that know the flaws and holes in Paypal's policy and will try and exploit them in the hope the seller isn't aware of them.

JPS

Took me a while to read that! Like the others have said, I would not do it. culpepper sums it up nicely - it is like putting all of your eggs in one basket. What is the need for this? Are you making a lot more money from this rather than selling them individually?

It just seems pointless doing all this to me. Forget him and list each card seperatly. If they are top of the range then surely you will get good prices for them on eBay anyway? When alarm bells are ringing, you should take note. A couple of times I have had alarm bells ringing, but thought "it's fine" and I ended up in trouble and almost losing big money.

Just sit back and think for a second how you would feel if you DID lose all the money you could make from those graphics cards for whatever reason. You are seriously going to be out of pocket.

Don't be affraid to tell the buyer you do not want to do it anymore. DO NOT feel pressured by him either. Why should you? You are the seller.

Good luck and be careful...there are a lot of nasty people out there.

Josh