so i was cruising ebay and saw a 138 watson Fly for $300 as the starting bid, so i put a bid in without any thought. <BR>today i got an email saying that i won the board, so i looked into it a little more. <BR>first of all, the person i bought it from had zero feedback and the account was created in the middle of last month. this made me think a little bit, especially because there really wasnt much description on his account or about the board itself. <BR>secondly, the board was a blem board, so i emailed the guy and asked what the blem was and he got back to me pretty quick, which made me feel a little better about the situation. <BR>BUT, i just got like 7 emails from the guy saying that he is currently in the United Kingdom sighing a "business contract" and paypal doesnt work for him and i have to do a money transferr. this is the first part of the email <BR>-"Unfortunately, after the listing closed I got Notification from both, eBay and Paypal and I must warn you that you cannot pay thru Paypal as usual. Had I known there's was going to be a problem with my account, I wouldn't have put paypal in my listing, so once again I apologize for the inconvenience this may caused you. For the moment I am located in United Kingdom because I have to sign a contract with a company and I know the mainspring of the paypal problem was caused because my account was accessed from different locations, while traveling to UK. Because I am located in United Kingdom one of my employees will take care about the shipping process or he can bring the item to your address." <BR> <BR>i did get emails from paypal telling me this same thing, but this whole situation seems kindof sketchy. <BR>im an Ebay rookie, so any assistance on this would be awesome. <BR>thanks a lot!

1-st What does the description say as a method of payment ? <BR> <BR>2-nd Try to tell him that you changed your mind because you only pay by paypal. <BR> <BR>3- If he dont want dont pay and get a negative feedback its better like that than loosing 300$ IMO. <BR> <BR>4- But i think you can contact Ebay or paypal telling them what he tell you, and sent them the email they will see right away it look like a scam and they will help you, they always push for paypal first, and in this case you should get their help.

ahh if possible please post us the ebay link or item number.... thnx

just don't pay for it, when I end up winning shady auctions or sellers, jsut take the negative feedback. Some sellers even give you good feedback if you let them know or just so you don't give them negative feedback in return

That sucks man I told you that you shouldn't have placed a bid on that super sketch auction!

sometimes i offer seller to pay for insertion fees, and if you both agreed to not complete the transaction he will not have to pay the final fees. Then you exchange feedbacks

yeh idk what to say...i have had really good luck with ebay until last week when i bought something and still two weeks later have yet to get it...luckily it was only 8 dollars hah but i would just say dont pay for it

I would just tell him you are only comfortable paying through paypal and since that is not an option you don't want the item.

if he said his employee can deliver it to you, I'd arrange to pay cash on delivery. that way you get to see the board and know it's real before you shell over any cash...

SCAM!!! i saw those on ebay. what are the chances he has that many "fly" boards and there all blems. I dont think liquid force even made as many as hes advertizing.....jk. Typical scam for alot of online transactions these days. They always want you to wire transfer funds and it seems like there always out of the country, but they have an employee that will pick it up in person. Dont do it, especially if you havent technically "WON" the auction yet. RUN!!!!! report it to ebay. i guarantee the auctions will be gone in a day. Ebay is actually really good about getting rid of that crap. A couple years ago it was on alot of the dirt bikes and quads. Im selling a board and have it listed on craigslist less than 12 hours after listing it someone wanted to pay full pop and hmmm what a suprize he wanted to use a cashiers check for some lame reason. told them cash or paypal only and they dissappeared quick. <BR> <BR>(Message edited by sxjunky on August 11, 2009)

Sounds obviously like a scam to me; I'd wager money on it. Just the language he's using is enough evidence... horribly broken English and the use of words like "mainspring". If he actually has any employees, they are his scammer assistants.

Like everyone said, just don't pay and take the negative feedback rather than losing your money. Ebay used to be a fairly reputable site, but now it's pretty much full BS. I went like 5 years without a bad experience, but now it's like playing Russian roulette.

This seller has multiple listings on ebay. I was watching his auction on some Vantages. <BR> <BR>Seller can non longer leave negative feedback for buyers on ebay.

Bail. It's a scam. No Paypal, no pay. Done deal.

Yep scammers are screwing ebay up all over. Run from that crap. Ebay should work with you to get that neg feedback off.

thanks guys. heres the link to the item if you wanted a look <BR><a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&amp;item=320409327675&amp;s sPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT#ht_708wt_1167" target="_blank">http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&amp;item=320409327675&amp;s sPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT#ht_708wt_1167</a>

Walk away from that one.

Dont worry about the negative feedback cause like Brandon said, he can't give it to you.

<a href="http://wakefirst.ning.com/profile/IslandSkiandBoardShop" target="_blank">http://wakefirst.ning.com/profile/IslandSkiandBoardShop</a> <BR> <BR>before you jump to conclusions. <BR> <BR>you sure it's not legit? seems like a big can of worms and messy but They ARE an actual shop. <BR>B

<a href="http://wakefirst.ning.com/profile/IslandSkiandBoardShop" target="_blank">http://wakefirst.ning.com/profile/IslandSkiandBoardShop</a> <BR> <BR>before you jump to conclusions. <BR> <BR>you sure it's not legit? seems like a big can of worms and messy but They ARE an actual shop. <BR> <BR>phone number as well 208.666.1626 <BR>B

So I'd just give them a call and make sure it's legit. <BR> <BR>That someone hasn't stolen the eBay account, etc and get all the info you can to be reassured it's the real deal. <BR> <BR>A lot of shops can get blems in numbers so it's no wonder.

The seller not accepting PayPal after putting it in the listing is a fair and valid reason to back out of the deal. <BR> <BR>I would be VERY skeptical of this. The email from the seller doesn't make sense to me. <BR> <BR>First off, how does PayPal know where you are when you access your account? The seller's email implies that his PayPal account encountered a problem because he accessed it from many locations. I doubt this is true. <BR> <BR>Second, the fact that there is zero feedback is of concern. I might be willing to risk a few dollars on someone with zero feedback but $300 is a bit more than I would want to risk. <BR> <BR>I am also surprised that a seller with zero feedback has 30 items currently listed on Ebay. He isn't starting his Ebay business in a small way. <BR> <BR>Those other items he has listed still have PayPal in the listing. If this PayPay problem just came up then he has had time to go and modify the listings he currently has running. Listings that have not had any bids could simply be changed, and those that had a bid he could add a note indicating that there was a problem with PayPal. He hasn't done this so his integrity is in serious doubt. <BR> <BR>His email also said that he could have an employee bring the board to you. OK, take him up on that. Offer to exchange the cash for the board in person. I bet that there will be some different story then. <BR> <BR>Brennan pointed out a link to a page that menstions "Island Ski And Board Shop". That link, however, is on a forum based website, it is NOT a web page for Island Ski and Board Shop. In other words, it would be easy to fake such a page. I looked in the online yellow pages and I could not find an "Island Ski and Board" business in Coeur D Alene, Idaho. <BR> <BR>This smells of a scam to me. Create a profile to make things look legit. Jump on Ebay and list a whole bunch of things all at once. Free shipping, low prices, great deals! Opps, problem with Paypal, please send a check. Shipping takes 10 business days so you won't be missing your product for two weeks. In two weeks he will have had time to collect payments from a lot of buyers before the first negative feedback is posted. And then what do you do? Oh, wait, he is in the UK, hard to do anything. <BR> <BR>No, I would walk away from this one

If he doesn't take PayPal (the auction says it is accepted) then you walk away. If neg feedback shows up, forward eBay the email from the seller and it will be removed. DO NOT BUY THIS BOARD WITHOUT PAYPAL!

scam. contact ebay and let them know what's going on. like Mark said, if a neg feedback shows up, it will be removed. i've been there done that

Not sure if it's a scam or not, that board shop is definitely not on LF's website as an authorized dealer though, but it could be a new shop. I bid on some bindings earlier tonight before I saw this thread. Definitely don't send money unless it's VIA paypal, that way you're protected. <BR> <BR>There is a phone number at this site: <BR><a href="http://www.wakefirst.com/events/island-ski-and-board-demo-day-1" target="_blank">http://www.wakefirst.com/events/island-ski-and-board-demo-day-1</a> <BR> <BR>208-666-1626 <BR>I just tried calling and did get an answering machine that had a pretty proper sounding message about waverunner rentals and some other services they offered as well as selling wakeboards. There is also another LF authorized dealer in that town. Could possibly be a new shop or they changed their name, the being in England thing sounds sketchy though. Maybe try calling LF tomorrow to find out... I'd imagine the MAP agreements with LF may be up for 09 gear so it is possible to list and sell stuff at these prices, they won't be making much though.

Since I too placed a bid, I did a little more homework. at <a href="http://www.wakefirst.com/photo/photo/listForContributor?screenName=0xy2hy1luqexs" target="_blank">http://www.wakefirst.com/photo/photo/listForContributor?screenName=0xy2hy1luqexs</a> <BR>there are 6 photos, zoom in on a couple and there are some Ride Snowboard binding, looked it up on the Ride website, they're an authorized dealer... The photo's from the inside of the store, also match the street view on googlemaps. <BR> <BR>Attached is a screenshot from the Ride site, check it out yourself if you wish. As for the whole England thing, maybe it's legit, I still wouldn't do anything other than paypal, wait till he gets back from England if that's the case. It's better to ease on the side of caution with stuff like this, but some of you guys jumped to a pretty quick conclusion... <BR> <BR><img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/65919/725828.jpg" alt="Upload">

edit: i'm watching bindings, I bid on a board...

spotts - I'm pretty sure its a scam man; I've heard this story time and time again. Not trying to be a jerk but you're more than likely wasting your time doing this research.

You can always use an escrow service. <BR> <BR>I agree that if the guy had paypal on the listing and won't take it after the fact, there should be no issue of neg feedback if you back out. <BR> <BR>(Message edited by texastbird on August 14, 2009)

SCAM. Never complete a deal outside Paypal, you will get screwed.

Scammers are getting smarter and smarter. They will go WAY out of their way to ensure that those doing research are left with some sort of hope that it MIGHT be true. There are plenty of Ebay auctions out there that will not feel sketchy so why waste your time with one that is?

A couple other things bother me about the Seller: <BR> <BR>a) he currently has 30 items that are listed with an end date only two minutes apart. That implies that he used some program to create the Ebay listings for him as if you did it manually it would take some amount of time for each listing. Such applications are common for retailers selling a lot of product on Ebay but that isn't consistent with zero feedback. <BR> <BR>b) Not only does the seller have 0 feedback received he also has left 0 feedback for others. Some sellers don't leave feedback until they get feedback but it doesn't help with the warm cozies. <BR> <BR>I would go ahead and call a number for the board shop, preferably a number you didn't get from the email.

MONEY TRANSFERS ARE ALL FAKE. <BR> <BR>don't do it. <BR> <BR>My roomate made the same mistake as you except it was around 1200 for a bike frame for a guy that was on business in italy......he sent payment before he asked me if it was a good idea....OUCH!

Bought the Watson Fly and bindings from that same shop on eBay without checking this site first. The auction allowed me to use PayPal unlike Alex. I was worried about the a seller without feedback, so I looked around and found a few sites that reference the shop. I called them on Friday and talked to some kid in the shop. He had my order info and said they shipped it out on Thursday via Fedex. Will let you know if I receive the stuff...

Calling BS on Pay Pal not working in England. <BR> <BR>There is a link to the United Kingdon page that comes up when Googling Pay Pal. <BR> <BR><a href="https://www.paypal.com/uk/cgi-bin/webscr" target="_blank">https://www.paypal.com/uk/cgi-bin/webscr</a> <BR> <BR>Looked into that a little bit more and found this. <BR> <BR>In which countries does PayPal exist? <BR> <BR>PayPal is available in 190 countries and regions. <BR> <BR>Currently, PayPal offers localized websites for the following countries: <BR>Australia- https://www.paypal.com/au <BR>Austria- https://www.paypal.com/at <BR>Belgium - https://www.paypal.com/be <BR>Canada - https://www.paypal.com/ca <BR>China - https://www.paypal.com/cn <BR>Germany - https://www.paypal.com/de <BR>France - https://www.paypal.com/fr <BR>Hong Kong - https://www.paypal.com/hk <BR>Ireland - https://www.paypal.com/ie <BR>Italy - https://www.paypal.com/it <BR>Mexico - https://www.paypal.com/mx <BR>Netherlands - https://www.paypal.com/nl <BR>Poland - https://www.paypal.com/pl <BR>Singapore - https://www.paypal.com/sg <BR>Spain - https://www.paypal.com/es <BR>Switzerland - https://www.paypal.com/ch <BR>United Kingdom - https://www.paypal.com/uk <BR> <BR>(Message edited by jtnz on August 17, 2009)

It isn't that PayPal doesn't work in UK, it is that PayPal can tell you are off shore or even just out of town by using your TCP/IP address.

Well, I have the tracking numbers for the 2 Fedex shipments and it looks legit. They are scheduled for delivery on Thursday. Seems like I got a great deal on the board.

I too won an auction and have a tracking number with an expected delivery date of Friday, package is in Chicago now. He took paypal and was verified and now has a positive feedback of 4. Like I said, I think some of you jumped to conclusions, but you should never wire or western union money if there's any doubt in your mind.

Just came via Fedex. SIck setup, and cheap!

ya i called the dude at the shop and he had no idea what those email were about. dude was super nice and said the emails had to have come from somewhere else and they werent him. board came yesturday. cant wait to use it.

Good deal Alex - enjoy your new ride!!!

Is it possible that the auction was legit and after it ended, someone sent you an email posing as the seller, directing you to send money offshore? <BR>You are fortunate that you were cautious in any case. <BR>As many of you probably know, jurisdiction of what police department can prosecute is dependent on where the money changes hands. That's why most scammers use foreign money orders. Escrow services can be phony also.

BTW If you still have those emails, do an IP trace and see if they were sent from UK (or likely Nigeria).

Just got my board, looks perfect...

Just received my Vantages this morning. Great deal and fast shipping. Everything is legit.