Ebay scams?????

[sharpcat]

I recently found a great deal on a vehicle on Ebay which is almost too good to be true. The owner wants to sell the vehicle through Ebays protection program for vehicles and I am unfamiliar with this.

Are there any scams out there I should be worried about?

[blackbeSSt]

you seem like a sharp cat, so you know the old saying.....if its too good to be true..........

and link to said vehicle auction?

[Sanka]

Seems like it is for your protection:

Ebay Purchase Protection

[sharpcat]

The vehicle was on craigslist but the seller emailed me this morning asking for my full name, shipping address, and contact numbers because she wants to use the Ebay purchase protection and said that Ebay will contact me.

The vehicle is a '99 Yukon SLT 4x4 with 150,000 miles and from the pictures is in great shape but the owner stated they are selling the vehicle because their son lost his life in a car accident. The seller also mentioned that they own a business and are frequently out of town and will take care of the shipping so I get the impression that I may not be able to inspect the vehicle before purchase.

VPP offers protection only for losses associated with eligible transactions for qualifying vehicles in the following situations:
You pay for a vehicle and never receive it.

You send a refundable deposit for a vehicle and never receive it.

You pay for a vehicle and receive it but suffer losses because:
The vehicle was determined by a law enforcement agency to have been stolen at the time of the end of the listing.
The vehicle has an undisclosed or unknown lien against its title.
The vehicle make, model or year is different than what was described in the seller's listing at the time you placed your bid or offer.
A title is required for the vehicle by your state and the seller's state but you did not receive a title from the seller and it is not possible to obtain a title from the appropriate DMV.
The vehicle has a title with an undisclosed salvage, rebuilt/rebuildable, unrebuildable, reconstructed, scrapped/destroyed, junk, lemon, manufacturer buyback, or water damage brand at the time of the end of the listing. (This protection is not available for vehicles listed in the Dune Buggies, Race Cars or Trailers categories.)
The vehicle is less than 20 years old and has more than a 5,000 mile odometer discrepancy from the mileage as stated in the seller's listing. (This protection is only available for vehicles listed in the Cars & Trucks and RVs & Campers categories.)

In addition, the VPP also provides protection against certain undisclosed damage for vehicles that are less than 10 years old:
The vehicle had undisclosed engine, body, transmission, and/or frame damage at the time of purchase that will cost more than $1,000 to repair. The cost of repair to any one of those components must exceed $1,000. For vehicles in the Boats (engine and hull only), Buses, Commercial Trucks, and RVs & Campers categories, the cost of the undisclosed engine, body, transmission, or frame damage must exceed $1,500. Race Cars are not eligible for this protection. Vehicles that are subject to a recall for this type of damage are not eligible for VPP.


It states in the Ebay protection plan under #7 that I would be reimbursed if the vehicle requires more than $1,500 in work.

I don't wanna miss a good deal but I do not wanna get scammed either

[DrunkHorseplayer]

It states that the vehicle must be less than 10 years old in order to get protection; this is a '99 so it's 11 years old. I'd stay away from this unless you see it first.

[TR88]

It's a scam......stay away buddy

[ouman101]

How far away is the vehicle? Too far to go check it out? I'd have them send you additional pictures than just the ones they have posted.

[sharpcat]

It states that the vehicle must be less than 10 years old in order to get protection; this is a '99 so it's 11 years old. I'd stay away from this unless you see it first.

Nice catch

I am going to make sure I can see it first, this is kind of the way I was leaning anyhow I am from the oldschool and I have never purchased anything online, too many scams on the internet especially in this economy.

[blackbeSSt]

"the owner stated they are selling the vehicle because their son lost his life in a car accident. The seller also mentioned that they own a business and are frequently out of town and will take care of the shipping so I get the impression that I may not be able to inspect the vehicle before purchase. "

yeah this has scam written all over it.

[TR88]

if u looking for a car i'm selling mine, but I dont know if you are looking for a old or new vehicle

[sharpcat]

How far away is the vehicle? Too far to go check it out? I'd have them send you additional pictures than just the ones they have posted.

less than an hour away so there is no reason to not let me come and see it.

I do have many pictures of it and it appears to be in great shape, my main concern is mechanical defects I would like to hear it run and take it for a drive.

[magynuck]

The #1 giveaway to these scams is volunteering too much info...

[sharpcat]

[sharpcat]

[blackbeSSt]

less than an hour away so there is no reason to not let me come and see it.

I do have many pictures of it and it appears to be in great shape, my main concern is mechanical defects I would like to hear it run and take it for a drive.

get a carfax first. then see it in person and drive it. then take it to a well known mechanic and go from there.

[sharpcat]

[sharpcat]

The #1 giveaway to these scams is volunteering too much info...

This is what concerns me, here is the email I received in response to my email.

RE: 1999 GMC YUKON SLT

Hi,

The car has 150,000 miles,automatic trans.It's in perfect condition,no electric/engine problems,no accidents/liens/loans.Exterior no scratches,never been repainted,Interior no rips/tears/stains,never smoked inside.I have all the car's manuals,2 spare of keys,title,documents.I'm selling this car because my son of 21 years old died 6 months ago, he was hit by a drunk driver that went thru a red light. Now this GMC YUKON brings me bad memories and I really can't drive it anymore...hope you understand my pain in this moments.If you are really interested in buying the car please do take care of it as we and my son did because it's a beautiful car and it would be ashamed not to...The last price is $1600.
Me and my husband travel a lot with our personal business and we want to make this deal through eBay's Vehicle Purchase Protection Program.I just need your full name,full shipping address, home/cell # so I can open a case.(with no further obligation or fees).eBay will contact you with all the Transaction/shipping details you will need.We will take care of the shipping so don't worry.
We hope to hear soon from you.

[mathdotcom]

Look at seller's profile. If it has the same picture as compaqdikk has for avatar, STAY AWAY.

[sharpcat]

Look at seller's profile. If it has the same picture as compaqdikk has for avatar, STAY AWAY.

Thought about this but I found the vehicle on craigslist but they want to sell the car through Ebay because of the protection program so I do not know what their Ebay profile is.

I still have not heard back from the seller so I am not sure if I can see it first or not the end of the email sounded like they just want to seal the deal and ship it, but I am not going to buy it unless I can see it.

Why the hell would somebody cover shipping costs on a $1600 sale?????

[ProfaneReality]

if the sellers id is po69.... run !

[Ryangene]

tell him that you hate to be rude but if his son lost his life ask for an obit or something. My guess its a scam. If you haven't told him what you do tell him that you work for a police department and after work one day you want to come check out the car...

[Ryangene]

Also why does this vehicle give them bad memories of their son? Are they trying to say that their son died in that vehicle? If so there is no way they got it fixed up. The car would have been totaled.

[sharpcat]

tell him that you hate to be rude but if his son lost his life ask for an obit or something. My guess its a scam. If you haven't told him what you do tell him that you work for a police department and after work one day you want to come check out the car...

Good idea

I am thinking scam I just ran both of their names that were listed in their email address through yellow pages and no hits for either name in my state and I ran those names through local court records and no hits. If you are old enough to have a 22 year old kid I would think you would have at least gotten a seat belt ticket or something in the last 30 years.

Either I see the car and drive it in person or no deal.

[bobbyfk]

Are they trying to say that their son died in that vehicle? If so there is no way they got it fixed up. The car would have been totaled.

my thoughts exactly

[Ryangene]

Scam... read this...

http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/cto/1840432244.html

[sharpcat]

Also why does this vehicle give them bad memories of their son? Are they trying to say that their son died in that vehicle? If so there is no way they got it fixed up. The car would have been totaled.

I do not think so because they stated that the vehicle has never been in any accidents I think maybe it was just his car.


I am going to tell them I want to see it and if they refuse to let me see it before purchasing I will decline and will call the police and warn them about a possible scam

[Ryangene]

If you just do a google search using key words...
Me and my husband travel a lot craigslist scam you will find a bunch of links.

http://www.avoid-fraud.com/auction-fraud/2009/02/05/craigslist-scams-and-fraud/

[sharpcat]

Scam... read this...

http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/cto/1840432244.html

Awesome catch

I am calling the police now

[Ryangene]

Glad I could help. Good Luck.

[madmaxx]

Scamming on eBay is a timeless art

[Abrcrom12]

Sharp, here's something directly from ebay:

http://reviews.ebay.com/Scam-Warning-Craigslist-AutoTrader-eBay-Motors-Scams_W0QQugidZ10000000011673463

[in2thethickofit]

Buy locally, that's all I can say

[Team Ramrod]

I recently found a great deal on a vehicle on Ebay which is almost too good to be true. The owner wants to sell the vehicle through Ebays protection program for vehicles and I am unfamiliar with this.

Are there any scams out there I should be worried about?

Dont do it, its a scam. I had your same exact problem except it was a boat instead of a vehicle.

[sharpcat]

Dont do it, its a scam. I had your same exact problem except it was a boat instead of a vehicle.

Thanks for the advice

I do not plan on it I already called the police to report it and they said they don't do anything about it and told me to report it to craigslist, so I forwarded the email to both craigslist and Ebay.

[ronjon619]

find a mechanic in that city and pay him to go check it out.