Facebook Marketplace weirdness and scamming making it not worth bothering with...

i kind of like facebook marketplace but i have rules i stick to:-

only list one item at a time, the reason for this is that scammers can see all items for sale, so if they are looking to nick something big they contact you about the small item, ask questions try and get your details, then come and steel the big thing, if you accuse them of theft they say no i was asking about the small item but changed my mind, 2 friends have been targeted with this approach, one was an attempted break in once details were provided, the other was a full on theft of an expensive bike. not to mention several customers having had this happen to them.

only give postcode and mobile phone number, agree a time, tell them to drive to that postcode and ring the number. don't say stuff like, "no i'll be at work then", the answer should always be "no i can't do that", you don't need to justify your answer as to why you can't do that time.

don't let that person in your house.

don't let them see the contents of your stuff in the garage.

they are not your friend, so don't treat them like one.

testride? no problem, cash in my hand first, especially if their mate is still sat in the drivers seat of the car.

meet at mutual location, i let customers meet at my shop, most genuine buyers and sellers will be ok with this, it shows they are an enthusiast and that they have a good relationship with their local shop enough for that shop to let them do it which wouldn't be allowed if that person was flogging stolen stuff.

if buying ask a few questions yes, of course, remember that the seller has to filter out scammers and numpties, ask for a rough area, you only really need to know the nearest town, the seller probably won't want to give any details of location until a price is agreed so get that sorted first, but point out that if collecting you have to take the cost of driving in to the purchase price but just ask for the town, it's less suspicious to them.


that's my rules.
 
I buy and sell on FB Marketplace now and then, and I pretty much adopt the same practices as @jonnyboy666 . I also ask buyers where they are coming from as it gives me an idea on realistically will they travel that distance for the item, and it makes sure they understand how far they are proposing to travel! I also filter positively on people who send relevant questions that show they've read the ad. Most scammers have a standard approach that demonstrates zero knowledge and engagement. If you recognise it is at times 'the wild west' and go in with your eyes open, then it's really not so bad! Don't expect someone to hold an item you have said you 'll buy for more than 24hrs. Check it's still available before travelling, especially if it's far and that's the sole purpose of your journey. I've had some good purchases, though a lot of bike sellers ask prices that are unrealistically high (higher than eBay), possibly because they don't check for similar items, or that they think they will need to give a large discount. In my experience, if you price correctly and you believe in what you are selling you can get asking price or within 10% of it, otherwise it just doesn't sell and you are left with the scammers who instantly want to buy your item and send a courier around to pay you cash, item unseen...! One to watch out for at the moment is the number of fake car sellers using FB; not sure if they are trying to scam money or just boost visits to their FB profile. If it's too cheap, beware. Check their other listings and you'll see a diverse range of cars/ bikes/ vans etc all at 50% market price...timewasters that FB really needs to start screening out.
 
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Anyway, it’s probably for the best because I spend too much time scrolling through the endless rusty Apollos and the like in search of a diamond in the rough 😂. I think I’m done with FB now.

Indeed. I've wasted hours on marketplace over the years - only to turn up one bike for £40 & a Kindle for a tenner. Sold one bike to a right wheeler dealer type and the shite he was coming out with was hilarious. Given lots of free stuff away which local FB groups are really good for. Overall, not a great return on time invested.

Living in a rural area does help with the scammers. The guy I bought the bike from was out so left it in his back garden, said pop around and have a look. I did and posted the cash through his letterbox. Everyone happy.
 
I think there’s really two things going on here, first of all the concern that thieves are using Marketplace as a shopping window, and secondly scammers trying to get personal details and of course money.

I’ve never understood people selling bikes for £2k or something on Marketplace - surely there’s not enough protection for buyers or sellers in that situation?

As for scams, they always seem easy to spot due to the odd questions where it’s obvious they haven’t even looked at the listing properly at all. I thought me asking for a postcode (not full address) was reasonable, but I obviously I underestimated just how wary some people are.

Ah well, I guess I’ll stick to the joys of eBay instead…
 
I think there’s really two things going on here, first of all the concern that thieves are using Marketplace as a shopping window, and secondly scammers trying to get personal details and of course money.

I’ve never understood people selling bikes for £2k or something on Marketplace - surely there’s not enough protection for buyers or sellers in that situation?

As for scams, they always seem easy to spot due to the odd questions where it’s obvious they haven’t even looked at the listing properly at all. I thought me asking for a postcode (not full address) was reasonable, but I obviously I underestimated just how wary some people are.

Ah well, I guess I’ll stick to the joys of eBay instead…
As most buyers collect in person only, cash transactions are the norm so buyer checks the goods at the time, and seller thoroughly checks each and every note (yes there are fakes of every denomination in circulation)-be prepared if it's a high value item -this takes time and let the buyer know you will take that time. Rules and regs aren't there, so it's also about building a level of trust in all the exchanges leading to the sale. We are more perceptive and instinctive than we give ourselves credit for- we were successfully bartering and trading well before any of these platforms appeared!

One of my FB purchases. The nice thing is that most bike sellers are pretty decent people to deal with-even on FB!
 

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I've made some great purchases on Marketplace, but it is a bit of a risk. I think if you are buying a bike then it is easy to do cash in hand or even PayPal in person... In quite a number of purchases, I've only been caught out a couple of times when buying parts, thankfully relatively low value. One happened very recently, bought and paid for some Shimano M732 pedals and they've never arrived, bloke promised to send tracking number, then seemed confused about when he had sent them, then promised he would get the tracking number.... It has been almost a month, and I'm now pretty sure he's just stringing me along hoping I will forget about it.

The thing is he seems to be a straight-up sort of chap - has a range of bike items for sale, including a couple of high end retro bikes for over 2k. My item cost was small in comparison. His facebook profile is open and he just seems like a regular family guy.

I could be wrong of course and the pedals might arrive tomorrow ;-) but nah!

It's put me off of FB a bit, I'll be honest.

But I'd rather go through life expecting the best of people, and accept the occasional and inevitable disappointment, than treat everyone with distrust.
 
I prefer buying on Marketplace compared to selling. It is usually relatively easy to spot something that is too good to be true (stolen/non-existent?) or a pile of poop being passed off as a gem.......in fact the latter can be an endless source of amusement to me (bent forks, forks on backwards, rusty/dented/worn out tat described as rare/vintage/great condition etc.) Although sometimes I wonder if there are naive buyers out there that get suckered and it tempers my amusement 😔

Selling, now there's the rub. So many f'wits, scammers, dreamers and psychopaths have acces to it and waste everybody's time and energy. My rules for FB selling when I can be bothered.......
1. If it is worth little give it away to a charity shop or an acquaintance/friend/friend of a friend. If I give it away via FB i follow my same rules as for selling as there are just as many f'wits looking for free stuff.......
2. FB self imposed selling rules........
- I only put my town in the add, plenty enough for a genuine buyer to know if they are local enough to buy/collect
- If a buyer responds I will ask where they are coming from to gauge whether they are local enough to be a realistic buyer (check it correlates with their facebook profile!)
- If they cant collect within 5 days advise that the listing will remain open and will be sold to anyone who can collect/pay quicker
- My golden rule is not to give the full address until the day of collection when they confirm they ate on the way and nearby, i can give them a postcode of my local co-op to help out
- Never, ever, give any answers/details that can be used to confirm my pattern for when i am not at home!!

Why do I use these "rules"?
Because the first few times i tried to sell on FB all "buyers" agreed a date/time. Took my addressed then vanished.....
To weed out the dreamers 100+ miles away who swear they will pick up and pay next month if i hold it for them.....
To weed out the dreamers who want it held for them for ages and inevitably change their minds
Etc.

Cheers all
 
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