I "bought" a 74 off eBay and the seller received his money by wire promptly. After two trips the shipper chanced to find a worker at the address given by the seller. He took him with police following to an old junk yard where the proper VIN 74 sat in weeds with the hood strapped on and an axle broken; apparently sitting for a long time. It was in such disrepair the shipper would not transport for fear of items flying or falling off nor did he think he could get it on the transport. Also the police advised against taking it in any event altho he had the proper paperwork.

I would strongly advise doing things differently from what I did. Call the place of business and get them to call you back with proper caller ID. Get references and check them all out. Call the phone company and check the phone number with the address and the yellow pages if it's a dealer. Also call the references provided to the shipper. You may be shocked and wealthier if you do!

Never wire money until you are in receipt of the auto. Get to know your shipper and have him call you when he gets there. Make sure it's on the transport and it's as described before releasing the funds. The seller can call his bank in a three way call to make sure his end is ok. Make certain to wire the money to a neutral third party you can trust before it's released to the seller. I'll have to get back to you about this one after I talk to my banker.

Most shippers have a computer with color printer and will accept the ads photos by email. They can then take these with them and check it against the car they are supposed to transport.

If you paid the shipping make sure the shipper knows it's COP and not COD.

I'm sure most of you alreadly know this and more. However, if one person is saved my problem then my advice was worth it. :banghead: :mad :banghead: :mad :cuss: :_dupe: :withstupid:

 

Thanks for the advice. I'm so sorry about the rip off. I've almost tried a couple of purchases this way, but wasn't sure. Thanks to you, I'm protected. :thumbs:

 

Sounds like your experience was exceptionally :skep:

 

Thanks. That was the second car I've gotten off of eBay. The first was a 98 Honda Civic that was a great deal. Very happy with the car. This has been a hassle to say the least. I think I can get some money back.

 

 

Save the wave !

 

Is the wave like in goodbye money? :lol:

 

Very good advice...

...sorry it seems to have come at such pain to you.

 

HAHA, IVE GOT YOUR MONEY, AND IM SPENDING IT RIGHT NOW....


just kidding....


Sucks, ive bought alot of small things via Ebay with no problem...Some people just dont understand I guess. But you can get some of it back through Ebay. They insure all bids. Contact them!

 

"NEVER RETURNED CALLS AFTER HE RECEIVED MONEY. HAD TO CALL BANK AND POLICE"

He had this feedback a couple weeks before you bought on the car.
People that ripoff over the internet really get me PO'ed.
But in this case, What did you expect?




[Modified by 92corvette, 3:38 AM 9/7/2003]

 

:iagree:

Man sorry to hear about this but " a word to the wise is sufficient" THANKS!

 

I looked at his feedback before bidding and the complaint you referenced was not on his feedback at the time I bought the car. It appeared afterwards. There was one negative about him selling a car to someone else, but the seller stated the guy did not send him money for the car in time so he sold it to someone else. The other complaint appeared on his feedback much later. I feel your judgment made without all the facts to be a tiny bit annoying.

I will say I was too trusting to wire the money before checking his references off eBay. And I wish I had wired it to a third party. I'm going to have to see if the bank here or there will hold the money until both parties agree to have it released. I also wish I had gotten a land line to go with his cell and checked that with the phone company.

The shipping company did not check their references either and I did not think to ask them if they even had any. They knew all the people personally he referenced and felt comfortable. They checked after being unable to communicate with the seller other than by rare fax and email only when the driver was down there trying to pick the car up and unable to call him or find the place for the second time. One reference stated by third hand information, the seller had done this type of thing before. He gave him a poor recommendation obviously, but in hindsight. This poor shipper made two trips to the physical address given and is out over eight hundred dollars in loss production. Everytime they make a trip and don't get a full load it costs them. They could have picked up another car each time and made money from responsible people. They also lose the time fooling around with mess like this. I did not realize they can only work ten hours at a time. And looking for, loading cars, and stopping for gas and what is included in their schedule. So their time is valuable. They don't have time to look for addresses the seller is purposefully vague about or in this case gives bogus directions; much less wait for police to arrive and then have a drunk employee of one week take them to an abandoned vehicle in such a state of disrepair it is unsafe to transport. Also vehicles that are unable to be driven on the transport take much more time to get on the transport and be secured.

The people at Wright Auto Transport made many calls to the seller, most of which were messages left and unanswered, me, faxes long distance to and from him and mostly me, calls to references finally, and innumerable calls to the driver. They are very good people, both Jackie and Brandt Wright, and I would highly recommend them for any transports on the East Coast. They can be reached by phone or fax at 704-855-1101 outside Salisbury NC.

But you're right. It's difficult to know what to expect from some people. :seeya


[Modified by jobberone, 2:29 PM 9/7/2003]

 

:lol: Thanks. I've reported it to the fraud department and you are protected for the purchase price less a $500 deductible up to a purchase amount of I believe $20,000. However I'll probably be out the $445 sent for shipping and fees as well as the $500.

Hey, it's only money and you can't take it with you. :D

Cheers! :cheers:

 

I would never buy a car off ebay without going & checking it out real good in person first! :smash: Sorry to hear you got burned!

 

I had read the dates wrong on ebay. Please accept my apology.
I absolutely hate scammers like that.

 

I accept although no apology was necessary. Your post was very thoughtful and I sincerely appreciate that. :cheers:

 

That's the smartest thing although it's expensive to look at vehicles 900 miles away. Of course it's more expensive to get ripped off. Too bad you can't trust everyone.

 

heres one for ya!

3 years ago, on a Wednesday afternoon, my dad was reading a "used muscle car mag". He saw a small B/W ad for a 1967 Thunderbird. It said, "Car runs, shifts, nice paint, P/N, and price.
My dad called him(car was in Ill.) made plans to come get it. Next day he went and bought a 1200.00 car hauler trailor, hitched it to the Truck, and off we went. From Florida. Got there on Saturday, the house was covered in 12 foot snow drifts...snow was falling, ice everywhere!!!..We loaded it up, gave him the money, got the title, Keys and such, and within 45 minutes we were on our way back down! Made it back home safely Sunday night at 12:00 midnight.... c Car was perfect! Needed tires, and tuning but it was basically perfect!

We had a garage sale a few weeks later, and the Trailor (now useless) was sitting off to the side of the house. Man walked up to us, said "ill give you 1500.00 for the trailor. OK!!!

Long story longer ...we got REALLY LUCKY!!! Car could have been a POS!! CLUNKER CRAP WAGON!!!
well, Im gonna shut up now... :cheers:

 

trailer

 

:iagree: Ten fold. Don't buy big ticket items sight unseen. EVER! To many tricksters out there in cyber space. :skep: Hope everything works out in the end for ya.