Question on forum buying precautions

[fade2b14ck]

Hi Softies,

This question is posed to people who have the experience of buying from overseas based forums/forumers. I have been off GAS for quite awhile, but recently I have been looking at the possibility of purchasing from a forumer in located in the US. I was wondering, what are the necessary precautions I should take to protect myself?

I know that paypal payments methods are preferred, but are there any charges involved using paypal? In addition, I couldn't find any exchange rates on the paypal website too. I do have an account I can use to send currency to a US account, but would I be exposing myself to any fraud risk etc?

Thanks for your help guys, I tried searching google, soft and the relevant websites for answers but unfortunately I couldn't find anything.

 

[Ratboy]

My only advise is to request for full insurance coverage on the item purchased
( that would include cost of the item + shipping + a margin to cover misc items )
It would cost you more, but if anything goes wrong, you can claim back the whole $

as opposed to trying to under-declare the value (maybe to avoid gst etc)
and if anything goes wrong ... your claim is up to the declared value only.

When you are paying via paypal, the charges is on the recipients side.
(not 100% sure, but quite certain)

Exchange rate is computed on the fly before you ok the transaction.
You should be able to see it in the first fee "clicks" during the pymt process.

Finally, you are dealing with a total unknown in another country
unless the saving is great, or the item is really un-obtainable here
might not be worth the transactions.

That said, i buy/sell lots with overseas and still do .......

 

[fade2b14ck]

Hi Ratboy,

I understand the bit about shipping insurance, and I think I should be getting full insurance coverage.

But I'm also concerned about buyer protection. It seems like when it comes to these transactions, it is really difficult to trace what both parties agreed upon and even ebay and paypal prolly would not be able to do much about it. If say, the instrument I purchased is not as the seller described it to be, what would be my right as a buyer? What then are the best common practices and procedures to reduce risk of such purchases from the US?

 

[Jumpin'Jellybean]

Keep all transaction details, such as emails and PMs, best if you take screenshots and keep them until the deal clears.
Another would be not to use PayPal gifting (a common method to avoid the PayPal fee) because when gift is used, PayPal is not liable for any dodgy transactions. Split or foot the 3% fee (iirc).
Clear pictures would help.
Buyer protection is provided by PayPal or any other company which you use their services. however you have to understand that should there be a fraud, they would likely take little interest (generally) as they have already collected their money and pursuing the matter is not in their best interests...
Caveat emptor, good luck bro.

 

[Ratboy]

this one not proven
but if you use paypal, make sure the source of your funds is a credit card
so you MIGHT have the option to get the cc company to reverse the charges.
but only use this if there is fraud etc ... don't misuse yr cc privileges

 

[Namrehs]

I guess it's basically just taking a risk as anything might go wrong since you haven't and will not be seeing the seller and item face to face until you finally receive it. If it's possible, try checking the background/previous items sold/forum posts and such before you confirm buying anything from him? See if he has had any bad dealings before.
Like what Jumpin'Jellybean suggested, keep all information and screenshots to protect yourself. At least you have evidence of the deal and all information provided. Still, it's such a hassle to report and go through all that nonsense if anything goes wrong..

All the best for your deal!

 

[relinquish69]

end of the day, buying from a forumer from a different country is taking a huge risk. what you are doing is sending money over to some random guy & there is a very huge possibility that he might just run with the money. usually they would send you the item after the money from paypal is transferred to their bank. for buyers, it's extremely risky. do eBay if you want reassurance. at least they protect their buyers.

 

[Ratboy]

do eBay if you want reassurance. at least they protect their buyers.

After they protect THEMSELVES ... then comes the buyer ... then the seller ....

 

[ShredAddict]

better than no protection at all though. I bought a set of pickups from a Jemsite user. It's been 3 years since I made the payment via paypal and nope, I never got the package.