Scam Alert

[Edward]

Correct me if I’m wrong but signing for a package doesn’t protect you much from being scammed. A person signs for the package before opening it correct? Therefore you don’t know for sure what’s in the box until you get it in the house, open it, then it’s too late. Like someone else on here said, I check the sellers content as best I can and can usually get a sense thru communication if they are on the level. Usually my bullshit alarms go off if not. Personally I have bought and sold dozens of items from all over the world thru eBay etc and have never been ripped off, but certainly understand why people are hesitant to make purchases from strangers. I had a woman in Montreal who wanted to purchase a vintage bicycle from me last year, actually she wanted to buy 2 of them, at $750 each she was terrified of sending me that much money cause she didn’t know me. Anyway she decided to just buy one to start, after she got it delivered she immediately purchases the second one and was over the moon happy. She thanked me and it was a great experience for both of us.

Sending something signed-for or tracked doesn't nix out all potential scams, but it does at least stop anyone from trying to claim it never arrived. It can also protect the buyer, of course, as it stops a dishonest seller from taking the money and then claiming it got lost in the post, and refusing to compensate. Sadly, it's a reality that there are dishonest people in the world, and they will always find some way to try and scam people.

 

[Drzdave58]

Sending something signed-for or tracked doesn't nix out all potential scams, but it does at least stop anyone from trying to claim it never arrived. It can also protect the buyer, of course, as it stops a dishonest seller from taking the money and then claiming it got lost in the post, and refusing to compensate. Sadly, it's a reality that there are dishonest people in the world, and they will always find some way to try and scam people.

Establishing trust is key I guess and it sucks that there are people out there who would misuse it.

 

[WillyW]

I have purchased four jackets from established members of TFL in the past. All the transactions went without a hitch. I felt comfortable with the members I was dealing with and didn’t question their integrity with regards to actually mailing the items. But Im sure, if I had the Item for sale…there would be an air of uncertainty due to my limited involvement. I do like this forum as I’ve learned a lot from perusing these pages.

 

[SPEIRMOOR]

Bright78 also contacted me in response to my WTB ad in the classifieds. Cant find my old messages since the site was updated but the gist of the message was to
"contact (Name Which I can't remember) he has what you're looking for"

 

[Ol’ Sickly]

Being New in Town myself I recognize my opinion draws no water, that said, the confirmation of a successful sale is recorded and is helpful when eyeing up your dance partner. I’ve completed two transactions here over the past few months and each of them started with a little seller recon. Not fool proof but worth the effort.

 

[Slimshady201]

Bright78 also contacted me in response to my WTB ad in the classifieds. Cant find my old messages since the site was updated but the gist of the message was to
"contact (Name Which I can't remember) he has what you're looking for"

These guys are prevalent on the car forums using the exact same methods

 

[KITMAN22]

Correct me if I’m wrong but signing for a package doesn’t protect you much from being scammed. A person signs for the package before opening it correct? Therefore you don’t know for sure what’s in the box until you get it in the house, open it, then it’s too late. Like someone else on here said, I check the sellers content as best I can and can usually get a sense thru communication if they are on the level. Usually my bullshit alarms go off if not. Personally I have bought and sold dozens of items from all over the world thru eBay etc and have never been ripped off, but certainly understand why people are hesitant to make purchases from strangers. I had a woman in Montreal who wanted to purchase a vintage bicycle from me last year, actually she wanted to buy 2 of them, at $750 each she was terrified of sending me that much money cause she didn’t know me. Anyway she decided to just buy one to start, after she got it delivered she immediately purchases the second one and was over the moon happy. She thanked me and it was a great experience for both of us.

In this case no it wouldn't really offer much protection. My response was regarding protection for the seller rather than the buyer in the case of a seller being scammed by the buyer, who claims they didn't receive the goods when they did and then getting PayPal to refund them, it would help prove to PayPal that someone did indeed sign for the package at the posted address. I have seen some people being scammed in the way you mention above and that is a tough one to protect against, however I am sure you can open the package before signing it and then refuse the item if it is not what you had expected. With goods sent to the company I work for I don't sign the paper work until the goods have been checked especially for stationary goods ect that are often missing items in the box. I am not sure it should be any different for personal goods sent to your home.
Having sent and received goods between the UK and the USA I have yet to have any problems other than some delays but I always send singed and tracked no matter what as this removes a big chunk of the risk when being the seller.

 

[SPEIRMOOR]

Another trend I've seen lately is sellers only accepting the PPF&F option stating the new PP $600 Tax requirement. This is not really the intent of the new measure as most often than not goods sold at a loss are exempt from this. Dont let them sway you if you are unsure who you are dealing with.

 

[Mizzoufan94]

has anyone been told “contact Randall Brown at this email…” regarding an item you are looking to buy?

 

[Mizzoufan94]

I have to say that “Julie78” is a scam account. Probably the same person that made “Bright78”. Please beware!

 

[gily]

Bright78 also contacted me in response to my WTB ad in the classifieds. Cant find my old messages since the site was updated but the gist of the message was to
"contact (Name Which I can't remember) he has what you're looking for"

I got a similar message see below from Julie78, beware as he was trying to sell me a jacket that I WTB, I contacted the email and he sent me pictures of a jacket that was previously on sale here, when I asked to send me pictures with usename and date he was trying to change conversation, at the end I told him to stop wasting my time that I was going to pay using paypal with insurance and he stopped emailing me. Just if you get a message trying to sell you something make sure they are not new and if they are take precautions and ask for pictures and do not pay FF or a non secure method unless its a well known member

Julie78​

New in Town​

Messages0
Tuesday at 5:34 AM
You can contact Randall Brown, He has a The Real Mccoys Buco J-24L sz 46 for sale in new condition. Here's his email randallbrowny@aol.com

 

[Roy Hobbs]

I almost got scammed a few months ago with a similar tactic. The funniest part is that the pics they sent me were pics of a jacket I had already bought so I KNEW exactly where they came from. It might be good if you anyone questions a picture's validity, to post it to the community for verification as many of these pictures are from FL, some from ebay and some from random sites but never authentic. There's a lot of eagle eyes on this forum willing to help.

 

[Drzdave58]

I almost got scammed a few months ago with a similar tactic. The funniest part is that the pics they sent me were pics of a jacket I had already bought so I KNEW exactly where they came from. It might be good if you anyone questions a picture's validity, to post it to the community for verification as many of these pictures are from FL, some from ebay and some from random sites but never authentic. There's a lot of eagle eyes on this forum willing to help.

Yes a lot of scammers try and use stock photos too. Pretty dumb really.

 

[photo2u]

I have been scammed before. Ones in this forum and one time at the vintage jackets org. However, I feel you must roll with the punches. It is so pathetic that at their age, scammers, for a few dollars they sell their dignity.
In true honesty, when you are a new poster, the burden of proof falls in the newB. Despite the one bad experience in this forum, I had over 30 positive ones.

 

[JMax]

I have been scammed before. Ones in this forum and one time at the vintage jackets org. However, I feel you must roll with the punches. It is so pathetic that at their age, scammers, for a few dollars they sell their dignity.
In true honesty, when you are a new poster, the burden of proof falls in the newB. Despite the one bad experience in this forum, I had over 30 positive ones.

I’m just setting you up for the big zipper score.

 

[J Leather Investigater]

As a seller, there's a catch 22. If you do the PP invoice which offers the buyer protection, a "scammer" buyer could buy your jacket, claim he never got it, get a refund and you're out the jacket.

So there's some chicken and egg here. As a buyer, I'd never buy anything from any new poster unless they did the PP invoice or sent me the jacket on trust and then I would pay them.

As a seller, I would not do the PP invoice to any one new. So it's complicated. If at least one person in the transaction has some standing, there can be a bigger leap of faith, but IMO, the burden has to go on the newer person (i.e. they take the risk of the PP invoice or sending out item without payment until verified).

If it's 2 new people going back and forth, good luck. I probably wouldn't do it unless there was overall proteciton like Ebay, etc.

Hey brother! I think a buyer review thread should be started. Sad to hear this. Tfl is an awsome place an scams have been minimal. I havnt bought/sold in a while so its sad news to hear. If someone is new pp invoice is best. If someone has a good rep an track record ppff is great. I've never done a pp invoice tx honestly with buying or selling. Looks like the game is changing. Be safe family.

 

[photo2u]

I’m just setting you up for the big zipper score.

Love it!

 

[bien]

Do NOT even attempt to do business with "Bright78" or "hector_harris."

thank you for the heads up!

 

[VonTr4pp]

Being someone that's new here, eventually I'll purchase (maybe even sell) and I'd hate to be lumped into the category of "well, you're new, so I'm not doing business with you"

It seems that verification is always a necessary first step. For instance, I've found instagram + linkedin is usually pretty solid. I'd prefer to only do business with people that have a verifiable LinkedIn, but it's not a deal-breaker.

Sorry you got ripped off, man. No marketplace is immune.

 

[stook1]

As yet another new member (more recent interest in this realm)... I'd suggest reconsidering very binary perspectives about dealing with new members. There's been a decent # of "I'd never buy/sell/etc with a new member", etc. I do get this perspective, for sure. However, there are ways to mitigate this concern.

Just by way of example, in my case, I have nearly 4,000 posts on a similar forum in an adjacent interest that I've been active on since 2015. A review of my post history there would likely allay concerns. I am an active seller/buyer of (again) adjacent interests on Ebay with 20+ years of 100% positive feedback. Simply being new in this forum is not necessarily meaningful. We're all "new" at some point. There are other ways to validate that someone is legit, generally. It just requires being direct about the concerns and finding a path forward from both parties.