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Help ---- Scammed on Ebay

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jeannie712

Rough_Rock
Joined
Apr 24, 2006
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I am very new at this particular forum, so if I don''t use this site please tell me gently. My situation is, I won an auction on ebay for a beautiful ring. It was supposed to be a 1 ct oval diamond with 1.4 tcw sapphires (one on each side). I was also supposed to receive an appraisal with the ring, but I didn''t. What I did receive is a .50 carat diamond and .25 each ct sapphires. I called the company immediately to notify them of the situation and what I''ve gotten since then is the run-around. Actually , I started calling them way before I even got the ring, because they advertised same or next day shipment, and 2 weeks later it still hadn''t shipped and no on could tell me why. Also, this company carried a BBB logo, but when I went to file a complaint, they aren''t actually members. I did still file a complaint anyway.

Now my dilemma is, their "unconditional return" policy, requires that I take a picture as good or better than the one they advertised, get the ring appraised so that they can compare appraisals (of which I didn''t get one), and then they will send it to Egypt to be verified stating it may take 60 days. The final kicker is the statement at the bottom of the return instructions that says they may chose to refund my money in installments or with diamonds.

I JUST WANT MY RING!!!
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Please help me, what do I do? I''d say who it is, but I don''t want to violate any rules. After reading "nightmare on ebay" I think we''re dealing with the same person. I wish I''d seen that first.
 
Jeannie712,

Sorry to hear about your experience. Did you pay by cash, credit card or PayPal?
 
if you didn''t get an appraisal, how do you know you got a .50 ct. oval instead of the 1ct.?
 
Buyer Beware. Words to live by. I''ve only heard of a few successful Ebay purchases.
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I took it and had it appraised. Not to mention it was visibly way to small to be 1 ct.
 
I paid with bank wire transfer. Yeah I know it was stupid. I thought I was safe, because I checked feedback, and the seller had good ratings prior to this and had been with ebay for years.
 
Is it a US company? You can consult with an attorney and check whether you can file a small claim suit? Keep all the records: receipt, shipping documents, appraisal, everything.
 
You got scammed. This is why buying on ebay is so risky. Sorry to hear about your trouble. Can you post the link to the auction so other people can be warned?
Have you left feedback yet?
I would contact ebay and file a formal complaint. was the return policy clearly stated in the auction?
where is the seller located?
how much did you pay?
 
Yes, they are on 47th st in New York, of course. The lawyer idea means more expense for me. Is that really my only option? I hate to put even more money into this, especially being out of state. Would I be able to use a local lawyer?

http/cgi.ebay.com:80/ws/eBayISAPI.dll=3fViewItem&ru=3dhttp=253A=252F=252Fsearch.ebay.com=253A80=252F8914862380_W0QQfkrZ1QQfromZR8QQfviZ1&item=3d8914862380

I think that's the website. I did the best I can as far as a complaint with Ebay. They aren't registered users anymore (imagine that).
 
What you can do is do a search online and call the New York Police Department regarding online sales/high tech crimes etc. I dont really know what that department is called but every state should have a police department that takes care of high tech (computer) crimes and online fraud issues. You should definitly try that.
 
Yep, that appears to be the one. Lovely ring don''t ya think? Shame I got a miniature version.
 
Did you really think you were going to get a 1ct G VS2 diamond with 1+ct sapphire sidestones for just over $1,000? How is the quality of the diamond/ring? Was the color and clarity verified by the appraiser? I really hope you are able to get a refund but since you can''t do anything more with eBay and you don''t have paypal or credit card protection I don''t see what you can do short of small claims court. Good luck.
 
This is exactly why I don''t buy high price items on ebay, unless the seller is a company I know otherwise (and to be honest I have never bought a high price item on ebay, at all). I would file all the complaints you can (ebay, BBB, etc) but since you paid by bank wire you have considerably less intrinsic protection (if any at all) on the purchase. The whole thing sounds extremely fishy - I would take action sooner rather than later, or I have a feeling that money will be gone forever.

The ring looks a lot like SanDiegoLady''s ring, shown in this thread.
 
Yep, unfortunately you were scammed. It happens to the best of us. I purchased through ebay (what I thought to be) a designer handbag last yr from who I believed was a good seller with great feedback. After I bought the item she dissappeared from ebay, and kept giving me excuses as to why she had not sent the bag. Finally after I threatened her with calling the police she sent me a bad fake, and this was 4 mths later- can you believe that? I filed a complaint with ebay, but never heard from them. I wrote the lady a nasty email, but figured for $350 bucks it would probably be cheaper just to let it go...I am still so pissed about it, but it prob would have cost me a lot of $$$ to drag it out and try to get my $$$ back. It really bothers me that there are people like this out there, complete and total scam-artists. It kills me to think of how many people my lady and your people scammed out of their money, but the bottom line is that most people prob do what I did- not that much. And that is what these crooks are hoping for...terrible!

After this whole episode, I was totally turned off from ebay. I dont go there anymore. And if I ever do again, it will only be for cheaper items, and I will only pay through PayPal- that is the only way you can get your $$$ back- if you pay with wire transfer, personal check (like I did) etc., they can just take your $$ and run....

I would definitely call the police and file a complaint, at the very least-$1000 is a lot of money to lose. I am sorry you have to go through this, I know how you feel....IT SUCKS!
 
Everyone has already given you good advice. Ebay is so risky and paying by bank wire transfer is a huge no-no, I don''t care who the seller is, unless it''s a business like Signedpieces, DiamondsbyLauren or Pearlmans who sell on ebay but also have actual stores.

I''m guessing your money is probably gone and it''s a very expensive lesson. When it comes to diamonds I have found you get what you pay for. There just aren''t that many needle in a haystack deals out there. What did the appraiser say about the ring you did receive? Is it at least worth what you paid?
 
Thanks for all the advice. The appraisal values it at 1995, and I paid 1050 + insurance + appraisal. I''m thinking about just trying to sell it back on ebay. It''s pretty, just too petite for me and not what I wanted. I''ve got to say the diamond was pretty. The appraisal graded it at H/SI2, but it looked good to my uneducated eye. Again, not what I was suposed to get in anyway.
 
So sorry to hear about your story Jeannie, but I hope all works out for the best if you are able to re-sell it on ebay.
 
Date: 4/24/2006 2:15:22 PM
Author: Agent3Civ
So sorry to hear about your story Jeannie, but I hope all works out for the best if you are able to re-sell it on ebay.
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Just don''t ''scam'' the next person if you do. Be the better person.
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Your honestly WILL be rewarded in the long run.
 
Date: 4/24/2006 2:11:52 PM
Author: jeannie712
Thanks for all the advice. The appraisal values it at 1995, and I paid 1050 + insurance + appraisal. I''m thinking about just trying to sell it back on ebay. It''s pretty, just too petite for me and not what I wanted. I''ve got to say the diamond was pretty. The appraisal graded it at H/SI2, but it looked good to my uneducated eye. Again, not what I was suposed to get in anyway.
Click to expand...

well, that''s the good news here. I think reselling it on ebay is a good idea but do be sure to be honest, and I''d include the appraisal you just got in the listing. You might even check with your local jewelers to see if they''d consign it for you. You normally get about 50% of what it''s worth or valued at so you might end up pretty close to even.
 
I am sorry you were scammed, nobody deserves that. But at least it did appraise for twice what you paid! That is great. At least it wasn''t CZ. I would have been very suspicious of the too good to be true price. 20/20 hindsight right?
I was actually scammed as a seller, a buyer took advantage of my generous return policy to return something they (most likely) broke. There was no way to prove it and so I accepted the loss of about $200. It has completely turned me off to e-bay, although I''d had some other positive experiences on it before. I would not spend anything on there that I coudn''t afford to lose.
 
jeannie
sorry to hear you got scammed. rule #1....when its too good too be true "RUN FAST"
 
well it was definitely false advertising. but since you paid $1k and it appraised for $2k it's more, you definitely got what you paid for and more actually, but they lied about what they were sending. don't know what qualifies as SCAMMED technically since you got something that was worth more than what you paid, but hopefully you can resell it on ebay and recoup your $$ if the return policy does not work out.

lesson learned....ebay can be good or bad depending on the use! check return policies carefully.
 
Did you at least file a report with ebay about how you were scammed??? What a crock that they are making you jump through hoops to return it...but I guess that''s the risk incurred when buying off ebay. I had a bad experience so I''m sour to ebay...won''t ever buy from there again. I guess my only advice on future purchases is that you ONLY buy from sellers that except paypal and NEVER use your bank account. Always use a credit card through paypal. I won a dispute through paypal when I went through american express. They credited my account immediately when I provided them with all of the evidence of the sellers fraud. It was a 300 purchase...not huge but definitely not something I was willing to lose. This was only my second purchase on ebay ever but I knew enough to know not to use my bank account through paypal as the bank is much harder to get to fight your battles than is a credit card. Even paypals dispute and recovery isn''t a guarantee. They also frown upon going through your credit card company because they know more times than not your cc is going to stand behind you and issue you a credit!
I say sell it back honestly on ebay and hope to recover most if not all of your money. Like others have said...if it looks too good to be true, more than likely it is!
 
Hey I just thought I''d correct something I said yesterday. The ring has to be sent back to Israel not Egypt. Anyway, I''ve made an appointment with an attorney and called the company to let them know I want my ring. I had to leave a message because the guy I''ve been dealing with (Arye) works less hours than anyone I''ve ever seen in my life. I guess if I was stealing, I mean misappropriating thousands of dollars at a time I could work 2 or 3 hours a day also.

I also wanted to say to everyone, I would NEVER scam anyone or even mislead them regarding a purchase from me. I always go the extra mile to tell the negatives just to make sure the buyer isn''t caught off guard and unhappy.
 
Like everyone else I am really sorry to hear about what happend. Also like everyone else, this is exactly why I would never buy anything more expensive than a movie off of ebay.
I think you are handling it the right way. Did you ever call the NYC police. They might be very helpful just b/c if this company get a call from the police AND your lawyer, you might just scare them into sending you the ring they told you that you were buying in the first place.

I am really interested to see how this works out - please let us know

good luck
 
I think the only thing I would want from these people is my MONEY.....Forget about the ring fornow and buy one from a legitimate seller later.

It is a shame what eBay has turned in to. I have been twice the fool on what should have been an expensive watch and handbag. I scared one guy into giving me backmy money and the other one I just contested through my credit card since it did not look like PayPal was going to rule fairly. My PayPal privlages have been revoked obviously, but i could careless, just more of a reason to stay away from eBay!!!

Good Luck.
 
Just wanted to say I feel for you jeannie. I''m sorry to hear about the ordeal you are dealing with, but I have to agree that you are getting something MORE than what you paid for, so you are fortunate in that sense. Most people who get "scammed" would''ve received a crackerjack ring for what they paid for.

Anyway, re-selling sounds like a good idea. I wish you the best and let us know what happens!

I remember a thread a while back when we were debating about "Power sellers" and people with positive feedbacks and you can''t even bank on those to validate any seller.

Good luck!
 
Date: 4/25/2006 11:26:43 AM
Author: jeannie712
Hey I just thought I''d correct something I said yesterday. The ring has to be sent back to Israel not Egypt. Anyway, I''ve made an appointment with an attorney and called the company to let them know I want my ring. I had to leave a message because the guy I''ve been dealing with (Arye) works less hours than anyone I''ve ever seen in my life. I guess if I was stealing, I mean misappropriating thousands of dollars at a time I could work 2 or 3 hours a day also.

I also wanted to say to everyone, I would NEVER scam anyone or even mislead them regarding a purchase from me. I always go the extra mile to tell the negatives just to make sure the buyer isn''t caught off guard and unhappy.
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Good for you!!! Wish there were more of you in the world.
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Keep us posted.
 
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