Am I being paranoid? (Buying from strangers)

welly01 · July 2014

There is a Blueberry monster cover for sale on a FB B/S/T page. I told the seller I wanted it. Its in good condition, smoke free home, etc. She sent me a PayPal invoice, but the invoice is from a different name. I asked her to confirm her PayPal address since the names were different. I meant her email address but she gave me a physical address and a story about using her middle name as her first name and her last name is her boyfriend's name. (They'll get married when they can afford it, etc.). However, on her FB page, what appears to be her boyfriend has a totally different last name. Now I'm a little spooked.

Am I being paranoid? Is Paypal good enough that if this is a total scam, I'll get my money back?

cedenton · July 2014

If you make sure you say goods/services not friends/family then you'll be covered for any loss by paypal.

welly01 · July 2014

Ok, thanks. I really feel like I'm just being paranoid.

sarenu1 · July 2014

Just watch the time limit. I think you need to file a claim within a certain amount of time, maybe 30 days?

TugboatSheila · July 2014

Is your paypal account attached to your credit card or your bank account? If it is linked with a credit card, even if disputing the charges with paypal isn't an option (though like a PP mentioned I think it is an option) you should still be able to dispute the charges directly with your credit card company. Most credit card companies are very good at making sure you aren't liable for goods/services not rendered particularly if it is a scam.

welly01 · July 2014

Its linked to my bank account but I just paid with my PP balance. Hopefully it will be okay.

PrincessPeach13 · July 2014

It could be legit, but it does sound slightly odd. Always always follow your instinct though when dealing online. There is also a cd scam group on fb where they keep an updated list of known scammers. I always check on there first when doing transactions, just to be safe.

TugboatSheila · July 2014

@PrincessPeach13‌ what is the name of the group?

PrincessPeach13 · July 2014

https://www.facebook.com/groups/230556317135831/

You have to join the feeder page first so that admins can filter out actual scammers I think. It took me about 2 days to be sorted into the actual group.

YellowLily2013 · July 2014

Seriously a CD scam list?!

That just seems insane to me.

As for this, if it doesn't feel right I wouldn't do it. But otherwise I feel like buying strangers is fine, especially though PayPal.

PrincessPeach13 · July 2014

I agree it seems a bit extreme, but if you sell or buy on fb b/s/t groups for very long at all, you will run into someone who's been scammed or someone who's trying to scam you. It's sad that anyone would be shady about diapers.

wrightpalomo · July 2014

OP I use my middle name on FB and my first name on all my legal stuff (bank, credit cards, paychecks, etc) so it seems plausible to me that she is legit. As pps have said, PayPay is very buyer friendly. My friend sells a lot on ebay and has been cheated as a seller by buyers who receive the product then call PayPal and say that it was not as described or was damaged before arrival and get a refund. So if the seller turns out to be scamming you can count on PayPal to side with you.

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