Is this a scam?
 

I'm currently bidding on an item on ebay, ipaq 2210 pda with satnav and memory card.
I got an email from a hong kong email address saying that I could purchase the same unit from him for only £200.
emailed back to ask how that would work and got this reply:
Dear sir,
We have and we want to inform you that I am currently in
Spain where me and my partner supplied capital for the purchase
of a bankrupt store stock. Now we are trying to sell the remaining
stock. This is preaproved auction,that
means that you are not allowed to bid or buy the item until payment is
confirmed. I have preffered this special type of auction because of the
multiple problems I've had in the past with non-paying bidders.

The unit(s) are brand new still in their original package factory sealed.
They ship with all the accessories provided by the manufacturer and
have international warranty . All the manuals and the original
documentation are in English language.

As soon as we agree upon the trasaction terms I will make the S&H
arrangements and schedule a pickup with UPS. You will receive your
package in 4 working days at most. We sh ip all packages having written
on them "display unit, no comercial value" or as a gift so you don't
have to pay any additional taxes like customs or dutys.
As a payment method we have chosen WesternUnion's services because
they always served our interests in a professional manner and helped us
gain buyers. We consider promptitude a vital condition on the modern
eCommerce markets and a guarantee of quality. Here are the main
advantages WesternUnion provides over other payment solutions:
- years of experience in the Money Transfer business
- locations worldwide in more than 186 countries
- transfer fee may be charged to the receiver
- always local currency (usually cash)
- easy - no bank accounts or lengthy procedures
- reliable - proven track record
- convenient - open 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, 364 days of the year
- high level of security - authorized users onl y

We cover the shiping fees + insurance if you cover the western union
fees.

Mail me back!

Is this a scam? That is a great price to pay for the kit in question, and I would consider taking another unit for that price, and selling it on here for a profit.

what would you do?
the auction on ebay ends in a while, but I think I'm going to lose that, and the cost of these things in this country is around the £500 mark, so a substantial saving to be had.

chris.

Chris, I do remember someone on here saying somthing about the same sort of thing, if i were you I wouldn't gamble unless you can aford to loose the money.

Almost certainly.

how can I lose the money though bybyr1? if I transfer funds to western union, I can surely get my money back through their insurance if the guy doesnt deliver!
anymore comments would be helpful for a balanced view of this situation,
chris.

Has'nt there been this SCAM on e-bay for some time now? I don't like the 'As soon as we agree on transaction' bit, they have your money, you have no goods for that money.

BE ALARMED AS I WOULD BE, if it was me i'd leave well alone.

Things to check=

Is there a return address for you to send goods back to if they don't work?

Is there any terms of sale?

Is the transaction secured in any way, if you dont get the goods do you get your money back?

IT IS A SCAM.

western union transfers are well known and used by scammers.

google for western union ebay.

its a scam yes mate, definate!

jamo :D

scoobynet saves me money yet again
thanks guys, hence the reason why I was so suspicious in the first place,
the power of the net prevails yet again :)
chris.

report the seller to e-bay.

will do philA, thanks,
chris.

bargains. always great til they bite you in the arse. as they inevitably do.

there are some good prices on ipaqs out there chris, appreciate you want the satnav bits but why not look at the next model up the ipaq range, which I think has WiFi as well as bluetooth (if you're in to that sort of thing)

try www.expansys.com and www.ebuyer.com

simon;)

hi simon, the 2210 has bluetooth, not sure about wi-fi though.
cheapest I've found so far for all the bits is around £500 in the uk, currently bidding on ebay for one @ £365 with 12 minutes to go! :)
chris

Good luck with bidding Chris, but it is usually the last 2 seconds that anything is won and lost in my experience!

Glad you were not taken in by the scam. There have been several threads about this type of thing, and all are payment by Western Union. Usual rule is that if the offer is too good to be true, then it probably is.

Can't wait to have a play with your new toy. I can point you at the Speed Camera database that I use if you want. It works well with IPAQs etc. apparently.

Or last 30 seconds!

ask the seller to use an ESCROW service - a third party who holds the money until you receive the goods - if you get it ok the seller gets paid, if not you get your money back. No risk apart from the fee (no idea what it is).

If you agree to set it up and pay the fee and the seller refuses, then must be dodgy.

https://www.escrow.com/index.asp

Never used it btw

*Edit - just checked the fee - on £200 it would be 15 quid - well worth it as it's such a good price anyway and better than loosing £200

lost the bid :(
still looking now, off to work,
chris.

so i've got an ipaq, what's the satnav deal then?

<edit> havin checked it out, this semms to be the shiznit :)

http://www.handtec.co.uk/moreinfo.asp?ProductID=139 (under £200 if you have a pocket pc and it does GPS speed camera tracking in a road angel stylie.

hmmmmmmmm.......

chris,

The old 'Ive got one of them if you're interested' as a long running scam. What model are you looking for? I dont think they are particularly cheap on ebay anyway. I was looking at 2210 and they were around the £200 which is almost what they are new, spoke to a friend who's got a 4150 (which has got built in bluetooth and 802.11b by the way) and he said check out expansys.com, I did a nd whoa they just done a big price drop so he said, can get a 4150 for £245 inc. vat!!!! stuff ebay :)

Gary