Help, I inadvertently sold a fake item, now buyer threatening to report me to police!

Squidge2009

I hope this is the right section to post in, am quite new to this. I was given a Mulberry bag as a present a couple of years ago and tbh I never liked it much anyway and never used it (apologies to any handbag fans out there). As far as I knew it was genuine and had all tags with it etc.

I had no idea what it was worth but recently did a bit of research and they are about £700 new I think. So I decided to get rid and put it on gumtree. I was inundated with enquiries and sold it to a lady last week. She was really happy with it and I got £350 for it.

She has texted me today claiming it is fake and saying she wants me to pay her back and she will return the bag if I give her my address. She doesn't know where I live as I met her in town(at her request!) but she has my name, and obviously my number.

I am very upset and shocked as I would never have sold it if I thought it was not real, I would have maybe just given it away or something. Its completely against my principles, I am an honest person I am sat here crying now as I am so scared.

I really needed the money, I don't want the bag back and I don't want to return the money as as far as I am concerned I sold it in good faith and she happily chose to buy it. I am not a criminal, or a scammer, but she is threatening to report me to the police. Any advice greatly appreciated please

can anyone help?

will.i.amnt

" I sold it in good faith and she happily chose to buy it."

Good faith won't protect you here. Meet again at a neutral location, make sure the bag you get back is the one you sold, and make sure it's in perfect condition, and give her the money back.

Then get it independently verified.

podperson

Have to agree, I would meet her and if the bag is in the same condition as you gave it to her in, then return her money.
If it is a fake that whether you meant to or not then you have scammed this lady out of her money and if you're an honest person then you need to give it her back.
Tbh it was a present anyway so it's not like you've lost money on it - but if you want to try selling it again then get it checked by someone who can tell you if it's genuine or not first.

oojeyboojey

You could try going to citizen's advice. A friend of my mum's sold something genuine on ebay, the buyer asked for a refund and arranged for it to be returned. What was returned to her was not the same item, it was a fake. So, this could be a scam.

Who gave you the bag - can they verify if it's genuine?

Squidge2009

*oojeyboojey*

I have heard about that scam, which is very worrying. And the person who gave me the bag is an ex partner.

Anton123

Squidge2009 wrote: »

I hope this is the right section to post in, am quite new to this. I was given a Mulberry bag as a present a couple of years ago and tbh I never liked it much anyway and never used it (apologies to any handbag fans out there). As far as I knew it was genuine and had all tags with it etc.

I had no idea what it was worth but recently did a bit of research and they are about £700 new I think. So I decided to get rid and put it on gumtree. I was inundated with enquiries and sold it to a lady last week. She was really happy with it and I got £350 for it.

She has texted me today claiming it is fake and saying she wants me to pay her back and she will return the bag if I give her my address. She doesn't know where I live as I met her in town(at her request!) but she has my name, and obviously my number.

I am very upset and shocked as I would never have sold it if I thought it was not real, I would have maybe just given it away or something. Its completely against my principles, I am an honest person I am sat here crying now as I am so scared.

I really needed the money, I don't want the bag back and I don't want to return the money as as far as I am concerned I sold it in good faith and she happily chose to buy it. I am not a criminal, or a scammer, but she is threatening to report me to the police. Any advice greatly appreciated please

can anyone help?

Make sure you are able to tell the exact one you sold. Perhaps you sold her a genuine one and she is using a fake (different one) as a ploy to get her money back.

durham_girl

Perhaps she is the one trying to con you? How does she know it's a fake? She might have a fake herself and is planning to do a switch. I would be asking to see some proof before going any further.

Oh and if you do decide to meet in town to give her money back, don't take the cash with you, take a tatty old bag without your purse in, in case it's a scam that involves you getting mugged before you can do the refund.

Rereading that, either I have a very suspicious mind or I watch too much of The Real Hustle

BobQ

If you advertised it as a Genuine Mulberry and its not, she has a valid claim and it would be best to refund the money.

Howver it could be a scam. Can you identify the bag you sold? If not it will be difficult to resolve the matter.

If you are willing to pay her back given evidence you could offer to meet her at the local police station.

Did you hand it over without an inspection or just post it. I find it difficult to think someone would pay £350 for a second hand bag without examining it first.

If you google "How to spot a fake Mulberry" you will find some You Tube explanations of what to look for, if you recall the bag or have a photo of it they might help......

superflygal

WHAT????

Don't trust her!!

She checked it over, made sure she was happy with it and then parted with the money. The police won't be interested! This sounds so suspicious I really would worry about meeting her. It sounds like she is trying to scare you, and it working.

She hasn't got your address, so just delete Gumtree profile and don't answer phone/email. Ignore her.

Don't fall for this one! It reminds me of the Nigerian scams.

SFG x

Bigbase

I think she is trying to scam you. Let her prove to you its fake. The person who bought you the bag, can they prove its authentic? Did you get any certificates with the bag?

DPJames

Yeah, just message her back and tell her you are fully aware of this scam, and if she persists in harrasing you, you'll contact the police yourself.

Infact, tell her you've already contacted the police with regards on how to verify if the bag is real or fake. And tell her they informed you it might be a scam. Then just ignore all her messages, don't even read them, just delete straight away, and keep the £350.

It's true that you're not allowed to sell fake items. But you weren't to know, and as in any transaction, it's buyer beware. She even saw, and inspected the item before handing the money over, so knickers to her. She can always stick the bag back up for auction, and might make a bit of money on it.