Not so Fast, Karma part 2

Yesterday, I thought the apple vessel I had donated to help raise funds for Robin Whittemore's cancer treatment had been sold. Sadly, that is no longer the case. EBay is known for scams, and apparently we were subject to one of them. The buyer had gotten their eBay ID that same day, and chose the "Buy It Now" option. They had no feedback, and no apparent history. But when we tried to bill them, we learned that their ID had been suspended due to unresolved issues with eBay.

So it is back on the block. And I hope we only recieve genuine bids this time around. After doing a little poking around on eBay this afternoon, this is a new "game" on eBay. People set up a new ID, buy lots of things with the Buy It Now option, with no intention of paying....and then the seller is stuck with listing fees for an item that never sold. In some cases it seems, people will swoop in at the last minute and get an item, only to stiff the seller. The usual items that are targeted in these scams are electronics: cell phones, cameras, computers, video games, etc. I guess eBay is getting smarter about stopping this activity earlier. The sad thing is, these people are like the Whack a Mole game. They will just pop up again in a new way.

Ebay has such potential to be a great place to buy and sell. Now it seems to be a place with many cautionary tales. I am not saying I will never use eBay to buy or sell anything. Only that it is a sad commentary on the world that such a marketplace attracts so many looking to con or scam. Especially when one considers the innocent beginnings of eBay....a place for Pez collectors to buy and sell their peices.

You can see what items are listed to sell for Robin by searching "4Robin".