Seller Would Not Sell Because I had Zero Feedback. Why?
I tried to purchase equipment on CAM priced at $17K. The Seller first wanted me to send a wire. I said no, that I'd pay using paypal. He said ok, but would only accept sent using the "Friends and Family" option. Again, I said no explaining that I needed PayPal's Buyer Protection and that I would not send such a large sum across an international border with no recourse. I explained to the Buyer Protection requires that payment be categorized as "Goods and Services" and that I would pay the 2.99% fee. The seller would not take a credit card. Ultimately, he said that he didn't want to move forward because I had zero feedback. Further, I believe that PayPal offers Seller Protection to shield against nefarious buyers. What am i missing that would make the Seller not want to do the deal based on my lack of feedback if the product wouldn't ship until the cash was in his account?
The Seller did have an excellent feedback rating, but I wasn't about to send such a large sum across the border to a stranger. Thoughts?
Escrow does not work well in our kind of transactions. An escrow business will open the box think yeah, that’s a brand ____ something, send it along. Who knows if it works? It takes someone with hIgh-end experience to judge whether gear is working properly, is the correct item, and what condition it is in. You just have to pass on or be passed on for some deals. It’s just the way selling online goes. Again, don’t take it personally. |
@patrickalston it's not a given that travelling makes sense, I certainly would not travel to e.g., Florida for anything. But if it's a desirable location, I would try to figure it out, you can travel anywhere off season for under $500. Not so much for the payment issue but to check out the item in person. The issue for me is that I could get something in impeccable shape or with questionable aesthetics and functionality. I feel I would need to see it in person. 17K is astronomical to me. |
I bought approx. a dozen items on Audiomart with Paypal F&F and it was always a very pleasent experience. So much so, that if they have a handful or more of positive feedback, I relax my suspicions. I was just in the middle of my largest transaction to date - a $4K buying transaction on Audiomart. I was emailing back and forth with the seller, and I gave him my mobile phone to call me the next day for some technical questions. He said he would, but, also pushed to get the deal done before the call. I woke up the next day with an email from Audiomart that the ad was banned and the user was banned. He had plenty of good feedback, and his phone number was in the ad. I am shocked because I had zero suspicions, and almost sent the money without a phone call. |
