Ebay Scams - a solution?

[rcdice]

Not a week goes by anymore without some sort of Viper scam add on Ebay. If this is that prevalent with Vipers, it has to be just as much of a problem for any higher end car. So how about this possible, easy, low cost solution:

When a seller submits a car to be listed on Ebay, they MUST also provide a pic of the registration AND pic of the VIN plate on the car. These pics are ONLY for Ebay internal use and are never to be listed in the add. If the "seller" doesn't really have the car, he won't be able to obtain the above pics. Ebay has a few minions check the VIN's as they are received against some sort of DMV database to verify that VIN xyz actually matches the under 1,000 mile 1996 GTS the seller claims to have.

While I'm sure some crooks will find ways to get this info also, it would certainly cut down on every Habib and Ali doing this crap. Oh yeah, this plan only works if Ebay gives a damn. If they don't, they better start soon as this is becoming an increasingly large problem.

My .02

 

[STUGOTS]

be nice but I doubt E-bay will do it.

 

[Dv8tor]

Not a bad idea, but that cost money in manpower and would drive the ad cost up.

 

[FrankBarba]

Why doesn't the VCA & this website create a ebay type site? I do believe that this would be benificial to everyone. Not saying that a scam might not happen, but i do think it would be a great benefit to us as members.

 

[David]

Since most of the scams use "recycled" pics, sellers could just emboss the pics with the auction number or auction end date... Many sellers use 3rd party image hosting services, so they would have to do this themselves or eBay could provide this capability in their TurboLister.

Unfortunately, eBay doesn't want to hear outside suggestions for fear that they'd be similar to their own ideas. Makes patenting more difficult.

 

[Carleton]

If sellers would water stain there pics with their name/logo that might help.

Carleton

 

[rcdice]

Personally, I would never buy a car online without at a minimum, talking to the "owner" on the phone first. More likely, I would make the trip or trust someone I know to check it out as a final condition of sale. The one car I have bought online I did both. I think most people here are smart enough to protect themselves from getting scammed on the higher $$ items, like a car.

It just seems to me that if Ebay doesn't address the problem themselves, it will eventually be addressed for them, through litigation. It IS a problem. They ARE aware of it. If they do not take proactive steps to curtail it, some hot shot attorney general somewhere is going to try and make a name for himself go after them.

Not really my problem I guess, just thinking out loud.

 

[2BADD 4U]

Why doesn't the VCA & this website create a ebay type site? I do believe that this would be benificial to everyone. Not saying that a scam might not happen, but i do think it would be a great benefit to us as members.

Never Happen....It really does NOT matter WHO creates a site..it can and will invite scammers...

 

[jimster]

I've bought two cars on ebay and never had a problem.

The problem is human nature, not with eBay.

 

[DLTARNU]

Why doesn't the VCA & this website create a ebay type site? I do believe that this would be benificial to everyone. Not saying that a scam might not happen, but i do think it would be a great benefit to us as members.

As opposed to the VCA creating a site to compete with eBay, it would be better to use the VCA as a 'portal' of sorts where eBay could have a VCA authorized section for Vipers. That way, the classifieds here and the eBay auctions could be cross-referenced, i.e. when you click Classifieds here you see all pertinent eBay auctions and vice-versa.

This would lead to peer review, something like Wikipedia has. They estimate that almost all false entries made to Wikipedia are corrected within two hours; far and away better than eBay.

Most members of this forum can spot a Viper scam a mile away, but novice buyers won't necessarily have that ability.

Fact is, eBay draws more eyeballs than every other auction site combined. Don't fight them, use them to the Viper crowd's advantage.

FWIW, I found my Viper on eBay, though the deal was closed outside of eBay. There are some good cars on there, along with the not-so-good and downright shitpiles. It would be nice of the Viper community to do the sorting for the unsavvy.

The VCA would benefit by having its site linked to every eBay auction, meaning every buyer and potential buyer would be made aware of the VCA's existence.

 

[ViperJohn]

Your idea would help reduce the amount of vehicle sales fraud, however it would do nothing for all Viper parts and accesories, which I see ten times more of.

It would be a start.

 

[DLTARNU]

Could be done with parts as well. Just need to synch the VCA classifieds with eBay's database.

 

[Jay Herbert]

Why doesn't the VCA & this website create a ebay type site? I do believe that this would be benificial to everyone. Not saying that a scam might not happen, but i do think it would be a great benefit to us as members.

Never Happen....It really does NOT matter WHO creates a site..it can and will invite scammers...

Actually, this is on the to-do list. We have already ID'ed the software, and are working onthe logistics. The VCA get a lot of neat items from Dodge and it plans to action them of to raise funds for improving the regional rendezvous and such. No target date for implementation.

FYI, the Scams on EBay are the same that have been around in newspaper, Auto Trader and even Hemming's since they began..... The precautions have not changed either, no matter what EBay say's about how safe it is to buy a car site unseen from them. They are: See the car in person, or have it inspected by a reputable dealer prior to buying, and never, never, NEVER pay without the (CLEAR!) title and the car being in your pocession.