Am I being scammed?

[BrandonJF]

Originally Posted by SONICobra

looks like its still available on prime1's site so good chance of your WL converting i would think, not going to be $300 though lol

Yeah, I've been debating whether to order it from P1's site or wait to see if Sideshow gets more. I can't tell what's going on with Sideshow - they show an estimated date of December/January for it even though it came out a long time ago. My assumption is that they took orders for another batch and expect that batch in in December/January and the wait list is there in case any current orders cancel or they have extras.

I tried confirming with Sideshow, but I got a lengthy response about why they can't give me any info on the possibility of wait list conversions - I really just wanted to know if they were expecting another batch. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother with the wait list... although, I did sit on a wait list for a PF for quite awhile once and it eventually shipped. I'm guessing that was something held for replacements, which I don't think is applicable with a P1 statue.

I'm not sure what Sideshow would charge for shipping, but I would bet it would be half what it would cost from P1's site.... and then I'd have to hope I wouldn't get hit with customs fees.

I do wonder what this seller being discussed in this thread would end up sending with a $50 shipping charge. I would think an empty statue-sized box would cost more than that (and this is supposed to be sent in two boxes, but who knows how far the seller would go to try and make it look legit).

[jadekite22]

Originally Posted by BrandonJF

Yeah, I've been debating whether to order it from P1's site or wait to see if Sideshow gets more. I can't tell what's going on with Sideshow - they show an estimated date of December/January for it even though it came out a long time ago. My assumption is that they took orders for another batch and expect that batch in in December/January and the wait list is there in case any current orders cancel or they have extras.

I tried confirming with Sideshow, but I got a lengthy response about why they can't give me any info on the possibility of wait list conversions - I really just wanted to know if they were expecting another batch. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother with the wait list... although, I did sit on a wait list for a PF for quite awhile once and it eventually shipped. I'm guessing that was something held for replacements, which I don't think is applicable with a P1 statue.

I'm not sure what Sideshow would charge for shipping, but I would bet it would be half what it would cost from P1's site.... and then I'd have to hope I wouldn't get hit with customs fees.

I do wonder what this seller being discussed in this thread would end up sending with a $50 shipping charge. I would think an empty statue-sized box would cost more than that (and this is supposed to be sent in two boxes, but who knows how far the seller would go to try and make it look legit).

I've only been scammed once on a smaller statue (Diamond Select) purchase from a third-party Amazon seller who said they were shipping from Virginia but sent me a Chinese tracking number (which still appeared to be fake.) I don't know that scammers go through any effort other than to reply to messages. The idea is that the low price will incentivize you play the process by ear until your usual 30-day money back guarantee expires. It works especially well for international scammers because they can blame slow shipping and ask for your patience while they "figure out" what happened.

[House]

Originally Posted by DrJ

Been really stoked all day as I recently won a Prime 1 Studio 1/2 scale Batman statue on a heck of a deal! Well. A couple hours ago the seller messages me letting me know my payment has been refunded due to his PayPal account no longer taking international funds.

I’m like, okay...just link up a new PayPal account and I’ll pay you. But he/she wants to send me a new invoice via PayPal.

Not really sure what to do. If legit, this is seriously one of my dream statues I’ve been drooling over. But, if they’re wanting a transaction outside eBay, my spidey sense is going through the roof! Just afraid it’s a scam. This seller has recently sold a bunch of other statues. Every one I got outbid on but this one. Lucky me since this was THE ONE I wanted. But, I’m now hesitant on the whole deal.

Yeah, had something similar happen to me.. Hate to say it but don't trust them. My seller told me that, he could'nt see the funds in his paypal. So he refunded me and asked that i send paypal payment again. So if he cant see the funds, how did he refund the money lol... was trying to avoid fees and ebays seller agreements. Paypal and ebay work together, but i didn't want to chance it.

[dao2]

definitely sounds like a scam, had a similar thing happen with a different payment service that ebay was using at the time, the guy scammed a bunch of ppl when I checked his feedback later (it was pretty good before then, guess his account got hijacked or he just changed his ways).

[Enforcer]

Originally Posted by DrJ

Been really stoked all day as I recently won a Prime 1 Studio 1/2 scale Batman statue on a heck of a deal! Well. A couple hours ago the seller messages me letting me know my payment has been refunded due to his PayPal account no longer taking international funds.

I’m like, okay...just link up a new PayPal account and I’ll pay you. But he/she wants to send me a new invoice via PayPal.

Not really sure what to do. If legit, this is seriously one of my dream statues I’ve been drooling over. But, if they’re wanting a transaction outside eBay, my spidey sense is going through the roof! Just afraid it’s a scam. This seller has recently sold a bunch of other statues. Every one I got outbid on but this one. Lucky me since this was THE ONE I wanted. But, I’m now hesitant on the whole deal.

Basically what House said. Obviously the paypal account has the funds or else there would be no way a refund can happen. Always walk away from shady business. Also don't be afraid to do business outside of eBay through Paypal(I do business with an eBay blacksmith seller all the time outside of auctions and I pay with paypal, even communicating through the ebay message system, for example) but always be afraid of sellers asking you to do business outside of eBay/Paypal protection.

And at first I would have said to do business with the seller because you're still using paypal, but what others are saying is very true. Paypal requires you to ship the item back and when they track it to be delivered, they will refund you. Which leaves you out of alot of shipping money in the case of large collectibles. These collectibles and overseas shipping are not friendly to this hobby. Never do business for large statues from across the ocean unless you are buying direct from maker or reseller where you know the product is not a fake. I think we've all heard the line "im very sorry product is not to your liking. I give 10%<or insert figure here> refund if you keep it" enough times to not care to hear it more from asian sellers with broken or lazy english.

[WolverineFan]

PayPal is 100% safe and I wouldn’t be worried about it at all. I’ve bought thousands of items over the years through PayPal and whenever there was a problem, I never had a issue getting a refund. If you want the statue, go for it. I will say though, don’t pay through gift otherwise you don’t have any coverage from PayPal. You have to pay through goods and services and he eats the PayPal fee like he was supposed to do through eBay.

[aa909]

use PayPal and link it to an Amex card. you are doubly covered if the item is damaged, fake or never delivered.

[Indomitus]

If you have to ask, then the answer is high probability yes. Or just ask your gut which told you to ask.

[eternalblue02]

DrJ run away as fast as you can. As for reporting deadbeats just open a support ticket through Ebay. It should be in a dropdown box linked to your item. Just explain everything you mentioned here. Also add that the seller basically changed their payment rules etc after you won the auction. I would also suggest call Ebays customer support number. They can help you set up the claim/complaint, do this to cover your feedback.

Any time you buy a statue on Ebay make sure they’ve got lots of feedback in selling and all the feedback is A+ if there’s any suspect feedback look it over. Good luck!