eBay has become a familiar name to the buyers. Many of the buyers on eBay are not frequent Internet shoppers to buy on eBay yet. Such is the power of eBay giving simplicity of shopping and superior business. Occasionally, there is some fraud on eBay over counterfeit fashion items, event tickets that do not exist, some e-ticket items that do not exist.
eBay does its best to intervene and resolve such disputes. As a buyer, you can follow these 10 safety tips to avoid being scammed buying on eBay.
1. Check the seller’s feedback.
Positive Feedback of over 95% is good. If there are many recent negative comments, then this is not a good indication. Also, read all the negative hopper. Are these reasonable negative reactions? What kind of response that the seller has for these feedbacks? Does the seller sound reasonable defense? Sometimes new members who purchase on eBay are paranoid and leave negative feedback in a hurry so make sure if the seller has defended himself in a reasonable manner. If there are too many complaints of the same nature, then it is probably true.
2. Sellers must have some form of identification or recognition of the seal like Paypal verified, or Square trade or a Powerseller seal on the auctions.
These sellers are more reliable. This is especially a good check when you buy an expensive item.
3. Ask the seller before you bid on the item.
Responsible sellers reply promptly to questions. Also, if the seller actually has the item, he / she may able to answer a question otherwise invalid.
4. If you are buying something expensive, then get the contact information of the seller http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQtZvbQQsofindtypeZ9.
You have to login to your eBay account and submit an application. You can get the seller’s address and phone number. In this way, address and phone number will also be emailed to the seller.
5. Items must have the images unless a service that is sold on eBay.
If no image, then there is probably no points. Almost all sellers to at least one photo of the item. Let us assume that the issue is there, but the seller has been lazy in not putting the image in the auction listing. Would you like dealing with someone who is so careless? This shows that the issue can not be in good condition, maybe defective or broken.
6. Read the item description.
Research other websites for the same item. Some of the shopping websites to research would be shopping.yahoo.com, overture.com and shopping.msn.com. These sites are suitable for the investigation of the elements and get the description you need. The eBay description should match item description on other sites.
7. Research prices for the items for sale.
If the item on sale is Gucci handbags, then look for this model of handbag on shopping.yahoo.com. If you sell for $ 800 in Yahoo and eBay seller is selling a new brand for $ 90, then this item may not be true! Wholesale large are able to sell items for around 50% of retailers, but something like an original Gucci bag, it is unlikely that a seller will let go for $ 90 because these items are selling like crazy. Just one note on the issues of fraud – a lot of eBay fraud occurs on fashion items. This is very unfortunate and eBay has taken many steps to eliminate fraud.
8. If the seller has not mentioned any shipping and handling terms, then ask before bidding.
There are many auction listings where the seller mentions that shipping and handling will be referred to the winning bidder. Surprisingly, there are bargains on this subject! If you start bidding on the item, then it means that you agreed to the terms and conditions of the vendors and there is less space for you to ask later disputed clear instruction on the transport and handling.
9. reliable vendors have clear description on their refund policy.
If not there, then ask the seller for it. If the seller has a return policy, then do not bid on the item. If there is no refund policy in the auction description, then be sure to get the refund policy in an email to the seller. In this way, you have a paper return policy.
10. Do a search for sellers of items on eBay past.
Check if the seller has sold similar items in the past. To search past auctions, go to advanced search page. Here click on the contact points and the selling rate in the identification of sellers and check the box for Include Completed listing. It is always good to check this especially if you are considering buying something expensive.