Possible Audiogon scam, advice needed please!

[cchean]

Hey all,

I might need some advice and help on this. I bought a Fisher X-1000 amplifier on Audiogon and I had an ongoing communication with the seller, nicknamed "Standstill", until I sent him the payment. After I sent the payment, he asked for the shipping address but, after that, I haven't heard from him anymore. I sent the payment on Jun/02 and several emails after that. :sigh:

Since the transaction was not an ebay transaction, and the paypal payment has already cleared, is there anything that can be done? Can I file a claim or dispute thru paypal?

In the worst case scenario, if I decide to use law enforcement, what are my options?

This seller has a 30 point all-positive rating on Audiogon and seemed pretty knowledgeable, I would not think that it could be a scam. Can anybody point out what are my options at this point?

 

[similost]

You never know.. god forbid, but could have been in a car accident or something... but hope not...

SO.. I believe you still have like 60 days to dispute through paypal. If he already removed the funds, they can lock up his bank account.. that would get his attention...

 

[spartanmanor]

Email him asking for a response within that day. If you do not hear back start the dispute. Paypal backs the buyer.

 

[cchean]

Email him asking for a response within that day. If you do not hear back start the dispute. Paypal backs the buyer.

Payment was sent on Jun/02 and that was the last email I got from him.

I sent him the shipping info on Jun/05 and never heard from him since. I've been emailing him on a daily basis for the past week.

Does paypal back the buyer even if that's not an ebay purchase? What if the funds had already cleared at his end?

 

[cchean]

You never know.. god forbid, but could have been in a car accident or something... but hope not...

SO.. I believe you still have like 60 days to dispute through paypal. If he already removed the funds, they can lock up his bank account.. that would get his attention...

That crossed my mind too. An accident, sickness or even worse things. God forbid, but that would be too much of a coincidence...

I would assume that, in that case, a family member like wife or someone would at least check emails or bank account...

 

[stereocuuple]

I just went to audiogon and looked him up, It seems he has another item posted for sale yesterday, so either someone else is using his account, or the dead, accident, or sickness thing isn't the case.

I don't know if this is good news or bad news... i guess it's good that the guy is still around, but that also means he's getting your emails and probably avoiding them.

Thanks,
Erin

 

[a_retent]

You might want to check the fine print with PayPal as I think you may only have 30 days to register a transaction complaint. I had a sleezbay ordeal that lasted over 120 days over something very similar, and PayPal would'nt do anything for me because I notified them past the 30 period.

On another note; if your PayPal account is linked to a Visa/Mastercard credit or debit card you could disput the transaction through the card merchant. I did it once and PayPal didn't like it because they lose their 3% on the transaction. It did get them off their collective asses to investigate however. Most importantly if you choose this route you must remind customer service that this was a took the money and run situation, I failed to do that and the customer service people came back with a finding of:

"The transaction was good, merchant was paid in full, this request is closed".

Huh?! I know they got paid...the problem is they didn't send the goods! :screwy:
Some people don't get it, even if you draw them pictures.

 

[spartanmanor]

Yes paypal should back you. I would start the claim now!

 

[cchean]

OK, after 8 or 9 emails, the seller emailed me back YESTERDAY, saying he was sorry and he was BUSY.

He told me the TT was already packed and ready to be shipped, I just hope that was a typo as I bought a tube amplifier from him and I can tell the difference from a TT...

I will keep you all posted about what happens next, wish me luck...

 

[wajobu]

File a claim, just as spartanmanor noted. Sounds fishy to me.

 

[WhiteSE]

isnt there a request refund/cancel clicky? I have sent funds to the wrong people sometimes, and I use that feature..

 

[Rotoplooker]

I'd be more than concerned at this point. What's he been doing for the last 12days since he got your money and address? Start the claim.

 

[ctom3]

Get hot on a PayPal claim. I shipped a fragile item that was extremely well packed, but was broken anyway. I offered to help the buyer with the claims process through FedEx, but he claimed it was poorly packed and was my fault. Funny that he couldn't come up with photos of the damage. Anyway, I documented and described my packing as best I could and Paypal simply locked my account and took the money. It became obvious that they take the easy way out, which is to simply give the money back to the buyer, regardless. So, work it to your advantage.

BTW, I continued a damage claim with FedEx and they ponied up not only the stated value of the item, but also refunded shipping cost and sent the damaged item back to me. Other than the fact that they damaged the shipment to begin with, they were very responsive. Try that with UPS!!!

 

[gip111]

Three weeks later no reply and no amp seems like a long time. Does Audiogon keep the seller's records, sort of a feedback like eBay? I have been lucky I guess, I have purchased many items from the bay without issues (some minor stuff) and I do check feedback. Get in touch with Paypal NOW!

 

[quicksand]

Directly from Paypal Help:

The best way to resolve a problem transaction is to communicate directly with your seller. Most sellers welcome the opportunity to work out problems and provide good customer service.
If you and your seller are unable to work out an issue, you can go to PayPal's Resolution Center to open a dispute within 45 days of payment. If you're still unable to resolve the problem, you can escalate the dispute to a claim. A dispute can be escalated to a claim any time within 20 days of the date the dispute was opened. By escalating to a claim, you are asking PayPal to review the case and decide the outcome.

 

[cchean]

I already opened a dispute on paypal a couple of days ago. Still haven't heard back from the seller. Should I escalate to a claim? I am worried because my purchase was non-ebay and the seller already withdrew the funds. :sigh:

 

[quicksand]

Not sure what to say - I might give it some time before filling a claim. Depending on locations and shipping method it could take up to a week of transit time. Just keep track of the dates.

Hopefully with all the extra time it is taking they packaged it extremely well and you will be listening to it by the weekend.

Best of luck!

 

[BwanaJim]

A good businessman is NEVER too busy to conduct business......

 

[similost]

you may be hozed here.. it's past 30 days...

 

[ehoove]

Three weeks later no reply and no amp seems like a long time. Does Audiogon keep the seller's records, sort of a feedback like eBay? I have been lucky I guess, I have purchased many items from the bay without issues (some minor stuff) and I do check feedback. Get in touch with Paypal NOW!

The problem with Audiogon's feedback method is that the seller can delete the listing, and you have no way the leave feedback. positive or negative!
Regards,
Jim