 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: nahoj
Date: 2007-05-27 14:57
Hi all!
I just saw this suspicious auction on e*ay for a Leblanc paperclip contrabass clarinet (item no. 110131842560). Just letting you know, in case you know of a stolen instrument that matches the description (sn #2248)...
I would also advise not to accept offers like this -- chances are high you get either no instrument at all for your money, or a stolen one...
Greetings, johan.
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Author: Alseg
Date: 2007-05-27 15:30
Soliciting to sell like that is a violation of that auction site's terms of service.
Here is what a report generates:
" If we determine that the
listing violates eBay policy, we may:
1. Send the seller an informational alert;
2. Remove the listing; or
3. Suspend the seller.
Account suspensions are usually reserved for those sellers that
continuously disregard policy."
Former creator of CUSTOM CLARINET TUNING BARRELS by DR. ALLAN SEGAL
-Where the Sound Matters Most(tm)-
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Author: Sarah Elbaz
Date: 2007-05-28 09:44
Few years ago, two contra bass clarinets were stolen fron Don Foster from LA. Maybe some one can contact him .
Sarah
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Author: rsholmes
Date: 2007-05-28 11:49
I've seen that eBay listing two or three times, under different seller's names; each time the auction was invalidated by eBay. It's obviously a scam.
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Author: EuGeneSee
Date: 2007-05-28 15:00
By the time I went to check out the listing it had already been removed. What was it about the listing that made it suspicious? That would be nice to know as something to be aware of lest one unwittingly get scammed by such an offer. Eu
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-05-28 15:10
If someone offers to "buy now" outside of eBay at a ridiculously low price ($1000 IIRC), then all alarm bells should go off.
--
Ben
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Author: EuGeneSee
Date: 2007-05-28 15:17
Ben, since I didn't have an opportunity to check out that listing before it was removed, I didn't know what the problem was that set off an alarm. How did the listing offer an off-line BIN? Did the seller actually give an e-mail address and tell bidders to contact him directly? Eu
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-05-28 15:48
Eu, my response was of a generic nature.
And yes, the seller offered to contact him offline about settling a buy-now deal - there was no eBay "buy now" feature active.
--
Ben
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Author: LeeB
Date: 2007-05-28 16:31
I saw the auction before it was removed. I was going to comment, but I know this forum has a strict policy about not commenting on auctions that are active.
It was completely obvious to me that the auction in question was a scam and that the instrument didn't exist. I really doubt anyone here would have been fooled. (FWIW, if anyone here was seriously thinking of buying that contra bass clarinet, they really need to do some research on how to spot these types of scams.)
First of all, any large statement in a listing about contacting the seller about buying the item outside of eBay is a sure sign of fraud. If you ever see this, go no further, and do everybody else a favor by reporting the seller. eBay will take listings like that down ASAP. In this case, everything was extremely blatant.
Another thing to ALWAYS do is to check a seller's other items for sale. I checked out this seller's other items, and it was completely ridiculous. He/she was selling yard tractors, commercial ditch witches (heavy equipment for digging trenches), commercial printing presses, enormous metal stamping machines, many valuable musical instruments, etc., etc., etc. It was a crazy quilt collection of items, and I'm sure he/she had none of them. There were many, many pages of unrelated items, another tip-off. The descriptions and images were undoubtedly lifted from old auctions. EVERY item he/she was selling was listed at $11, and had the same offer of being able to be bought for $1,000 off eBay by contacting him/her directly.
Glaring grammatical and syntax errors in a listing supposedly from someplace in the U.S. should set off another warning bell.
It wasn't the case in this situation, but another mode of operation that you'll sometimes find are extensive auction listings where all the information (pictures and descriptions) is lifted out of some online catalog from a legitimate sales site.
Finally, keep in mind that a lot of these types of scams often pop up around holiday weekends. The thieves that do this sort of thing figure that the policing staff at eBay is lower over holidays, and that the listings won't be taken down as fast.
I wonder if anyone actually contacted that seller and sent money directly for any of those auctions. If they did, they are about to learn an expensive lesson. If they sent credit card information, they are about to learn a REALLY big lesson.
Post Edited (2007-05-28 16:43)
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-05-28 17:23
In addition to LeeB's comment, one thing that caught my attention was that the PayPal transmission was only insured up to 200$ - in most of the cheapo Bundy etc auctions, there was a "secured up to 2000$" or 500$ or whatever.
Now if the PayPal guarantee is significantly lower than any kind of buy-now deal or the expected bidding value (some $3000+ in that case), simply do.not.bid.
--
Ben
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Author: kuteclar
Date: 2007-05-28 18:08
I saw the same type of scam deal for two Festival clarinets - buy outside ebay for $1000. Item number: 330124841290. It was listed as being shipped in the US, but she was in Englad. I wanted to see how "real" the whole deal would sound because tihs seller had many instruments for sale. Other instruments that I have not recently seen on e*** . Here was her reply:
"The buy it now price including shipping fees is $1000.I am locate in Uk london.The item will come with 3 Days Return Policy (in this 3 Days you can check the item and if you don't like it you can return it back on my cost).Please let me know if you agree with my price and if you are ready to purchase this item now
Let me know"
After that, I was positive it was a scam. It's a good thing I didn't use my good email accounts right away - still not safe, but knowing this is surely a scam, I will now keep a close eye on my accoutns!! I'm sure there would be no clarinets coming in the mail. I thought I would share this so anyone looking at auctions on any site that sound amazingly too good to be true would have a little more knowledge.
Another thing that tipped me off right away - the auction kept disappearing and coming back randomly throughout the day. Also, I received an email from ebay saying that this person had contacted me, etc, and do not bid from them.
Post Edited (2007-05-29 17:09)
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Author: susieray
Date: 2007-05-28 21:01
I checked it out yesterday, and the "seller" of that contra bass also had over 400 other items listed, ranging from a 1956 Stratocaster to a John Deere tractor and even a boat. Every one of them was a 1 day listing, started at $11 and no reserve, and all had the same message, "no need to bid, just contact me and you can buy it now for $1000." I believe what happened was someone in good standing had their account hacked and used by this scammer. Of course none of those items is stolen, he doesn't even have them. He just copied photos from the internet.
Post Edited (2007-05-28 21:06)
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Author: LeeB
Date: 2007-05-28 22:50
<<<I wanted to see how "real" the whole deal would sound because tihs seller had many instruments "for sale." (probably not the best or smartest decision, but I thought I'd share how they run things). Here was her reply:>>>
In all seriousness, I think it's prudent not to establish any communication channel with these obvious scammers. You might be the next victim to have an account hacked. Best to stay off their radar screen entirely.
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Author: William Hughes ★2017
Date: 2007-05-29 13:06
Timeless words of wisdom: If it looks too good to be true, it is too good to be true.
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2007-05-29 13:14
I sold a clarinet on e*** about a month ago and had someone copy my auction and run it under their id. I notified e*** authorities right away, but hopefully no one was taken in by the counterfeit auction site. This kind of fraud is also rampant right now on e***
Once again the warning to be careful when buying stuff online should be made. Thanks for bringing this up. I think many of us enjoy purchasing things from that site and we need to be aware of this kind of fraud.
It's an old warning, but also remember not to get trapped into wiring money or giving out bank account numbers or credit card numbers, etc. unless you are sure you are dealing with a reputable person or company.
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Author: kuteclar
Date: 2007-05-29 17:05
...and probably still best to use a 'junker' email to deal with things not associated with business/work/school.
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Author: LeeB
Date: 2007-05-30 22:33
kuteclar wrote:
> ...and probably still best to use a 'junker' email to deal with
> things not associated with business/work/school.
Although if you're the seller, using a "junker" email account can raise concerns with buyers.
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