ebay question

[Drowned Rat]

Hi guys,

So I bid on an item but ended up being outbid and lost the auction. After the auction was over I get an email from the seller stating that if I still wanted the item, I could have it for my highest bid. It was an email sent through the ebay system and not an email from the sellers personal account. The email also shows up in the "Messages" tab on the "My ebay" page. This is one indication that ebay says it's a legitimate offer.

So anyway, we agree on a price using the ebay email system and now I'm to pay using Paypal to an email address they provided.

My question is this. Is this the correct way to complete this transaction? It seems I remember a situation like this years ago where the seller reposted the item somehow and I bought like a regular ebay item using "buy it now" or something.

Does this sound right to anyone or is it some kind of scam or under the table deal?

Thanks!

 

[scipper77]

Re: ebay question

A good friend of mine got burned like this. I really can't remember how the scam worked but I remember him telling the exact same story as you. I'm not sure if he used paypal however.

Just be careful!!!

 

[achris]

Re: ebay question

It's called a 'second chance offer'. Usually offered to the second highest bidder because the winning bidder couldn't complete the transaction.

HTH,

Chris..........

 

[QC]

Re: ebay question

What does his feedback look like? A through eBay PayPal transaction is kinda covered I think. I do recall problems with second chance offers though . . .

 

[arks]

Re: ebay question

In a situation like this I always check the sellers feedback rating AS WELL as their PayPal account. If they have near 100% positive feedback and are PayPal "Verified" then I'm usually OK with the transaction.
BUT.....
even with this -seemingly- positive information, I still got burned by an ebay member a few years back, to the tune of $140 bucks. It still hurts.

Bottom line, it's a bit of a gamble. If it's something of fairly high value, you can always go thru a third party source to hold the funds until you receive the goods and approve it. I forget what that service is called but I've used them with good success in the past.

 

[Rocky_Road]

Re: ebay question

A good friend of mine got burned like this. I really can't remember how the scam worked but I remember him telling the exact same story as you. I'm not sure if he used paypal however.

Just be careful!!!

Oldest trick on eBay...!

The seller has a friend (ghost bidder is the proper term) help him run the price up. If the 'friend' ends up winning, the seller sends the Second Chance Offer to the next legitimate bidder. The clue to this being done, is when you get the Second Chance Offer way too soon for the seller to learn that there is a problem with the high bid...such as the several days that would have normally elapsed, for all of the 'back and forth' discussions between the winner, and seller.

If you are still happy with the price...and don't mind having your bid artificially run up...then finish the deal! Second Chance Offers are legit on eBay, and you will get your item, from an honest seller.

As for me...I always say 'Thanks...but go ahead and sell it to your buddy'.

 

[Shizzy]

Re: ebay question

sounds like the buyer backed out or the seller had 2 of the item. as long as its a low dollar item (Ive never bought anything over $25 on ebay) I would go for it.

 

[JB]

Re: ebay question

Probably a scam. Stay away.

 

[a70eliminator]

Re: ebay question

Second chance offers are legit, it's a selling tool and you should be presented with a buy now option available for 24hrs. It will be a complete with photos auction just like the original one. The guy may have had more than 1 item.

 

[triumphrick]

Re: ebay question

I just received an item I got through the "second chance" offer. Seller indicated he had another of the items and would accept my high bid. It is a legitimate ebay transaction.

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: ebay question

Thanks for the great information.

Rocky Road, what you're saying sounds like what is happening. Somebody's bid was obviously preset very high (don't know how high) because everytime I would bid, I was instantly outbid. I got the "second chance" offer within an hour of the auction ending.

I negotiated a cheaper price for the second chance and I'm happy with the price, but here's the thing. What does a legitimate second chance offer look like? The guy just emailed me asking if I wanted to purchase. That was it.

His feedback is 98%, haven't checked the Paypal account though.

It's a $300 item, so I want to be careful, but it's also a great price so I want it to go through too.

Thanks for the help.

 

[Rocky_Road]

Re: ebay question

Thanks for the great information.

Rocky Road, what you're saying sounds like what is happening. Somebody's bid was obviously preset very high (don't know how high) because everytime I would bid, I was instantly outbid. I got the "second chance" offer within an hour of the auction ending.

I negotiated a cheaper price for the second chance and I'm happy with the price, but here's the thing. What does a legitimate second chance offer look like? The guy just emailed me asking if I wanted to purchase. That was it.

His feedback is 98%, haven't checked the Paypal account though.

It's a $300 item, so I want to be careful, but it's also a great price so I want it to go through too.

Thanks for the help.

"...within an hour of the auction ending." Yep...ghost bidding, all the way!

Go to your eBay home page, and look at your 'Watch' list. This auction should show up as 'Ended'. Open the auction, and you should see an elert from EBay telling you that you have been given a Second Chance Offer'. That would be the normal Second Chance Offer scenerio.

However...you stated that you "negotiated" a price lower than your last bid. I am not sure how this could work with the Second Chance Offer...since the price that would be used for the buying screen, would normally reflect your last bid. There IS a way to get around this highest bid price...you would just have to make a direct PayPal payment to the seller (you would have to use his e-mail address, not pay through the Second Chance Offer screen)...mark the item as "paid" at your end...and the seller would make the same "payment received" at his end. Now, eBay asssumes that everyone is happy with the transaction...and you both can do the feedback thing.

The only downside could be that you may lose some of the built in eBay Buyer's Protection...that goes with a normal full payment, using the Pay Now button on the Second Chance Offer screen.

Let us all know how this goes...!

And...Happy New Year, to all!

 

[QC]

Re: ebay question

The seller can also add a discount to the transaction and keep it all within an eBay transaction. I think that's part of the Send an Invoice thing . . .

 

[HVSTRINE]

Re: ebay question

If you are doing anything outside of the E-bay system, like paying less than the 2nd chance offer sent through E-bay, you are risking a scam. It could be on the up and up but you will have no protection or recourse if you choose that route. There are some very sophisticated crooks that have developed many methods of bilking buyers out of their money. BEWARE!

 

[greasemonkeyjmj]

Re: ebay question

i have had this happen to me before also. but i have told the sellers that i would purchase his item if he would list it with my offer price as a buy now price. some will do this and some will not. if they accept it,they usually email me a auction link so i can do a buy now on it. this way i am covered by all of ebays protection.

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: ebay question

Okay, this was for sure not an official second chance offer. Just an offer to sell via email. The guy has lots of positive feedback selling this exact same item so that made me feel a little better. I emailed him and told him I was warned about scams that look like this and asked him to re-post it on ebay with a "buy it now" price and I would immediately purchase it. So, that's what he did (at my negotiated price by the way ) and I bought it. Thanks for the great advice, you guys are awesome!

btw the "item" is 4 Abyss Underwater lights, Blue 18 watts each. I'll take a photo when I get them installed.

 

[jonesg]

Re: ebay question

I almost got taken for a $1500 commercial dishwasher machine on a second offer deal, I was told to send funds to a London address, that was too obvious.

Ebay said they had broken into someones ebay account and were using their password...somehow,
so I kept telling them I had sent the funds, they kept going to western union.
Then I told them I was going on vacation for 3 weeks but the money was sent. They seemed to lose interest after a while.

If approached with a second chance deal I'd tell them to put it up for auction again.

 

[rwise]

Re: ebay question

I was given a second chance on an item, I was the high bidder, when it came time to pay there were at least 6 folks claiming the money! Even at my work e-mail addy (How did they get that??). I emailed the seller through ebay and told her that I would only pay the person that could give payment instructions through ebay. I payed through ebay and my Harley got here a few days early
Scams are everywhere!

 

[patrickray]

Re: ebay question

Second chance offers are legit, it's a selling tool and you should be presented with a buy now option available for 24hrs. It will be a complete with photos auction just like the original one. The guy may have had more than 1 item.

You are correct a70eliminator. A second chance offer will look just like the original listing except it will show a "Buy it Now" price on it. The person who receives the second chance offer is the only one (besides the seller) that can view it.

 

[v1_0]

Re: ebay question

What does his feedback look like? A through eBay PayPal transaction is kinda covered I think. I do recall problems with second chance offers though . . .

The only thing that paypal does is cover themselves... I've had a bad experience with them personally. There are also some posts in this forum with similar experiences. Please don't rely on paypal as granting you any security.