Buying online is generally a very safe process, as long as you know what to look out for and are always willing to do a little homework about your seller first.

The key is making sure the risk factor is as low as possible. Here are some of the basic checks all buyers new or experienced should make before even thinking about biding or buying.

1. CHECK FEEDBACK

Everyone has to start at zero so don’t let it put you off, However always check a sellers feedback and be more alert with sellers that have below 1+ or the low feedback icon feed_shades especially for high priced and popular goods such as the latest games consoles, tv’s and mobile phones, this is what I call “high risk items”.

The majority of online scammers do not like selling cheap or unpopular items so the risk factor for this type of item is very low.

It’s been proven that some scammers use multiple, separate accounts to buy from them self’s in order to gain false positive feedback or increase bid amounts to help give the impression they are a trusted seller, Here are a list of checks you can do.

  • Most sellers have accounts and feedback on other auction sites so ask about this and take time to check ( a google search of the sellers name is a good start ).
  • If a seller claims to have good feedback on another auction site contact them on the other site to check it is actually them.
  • Check out the seller’s previous buyers, if they have all joined at a similar time to the seller, have low feedback, similar location, and they have only bought from that seller I would consider this suspicious.
  • Check if the seller posts in the eBid forum, It has been proven that scammers are less likely to post in a public forum for obvious reasons.
  • How long has it has been since the seller joined the site, I would consider under a mouth a higher risk seller.
  • If a seller has a store storetag you can check there last seen/login date ( Date can be seen by visiting the sellers store and looking top right under “ABOUT THIS STORE” ), if it has been a while this is a good indication of an inactive or “dump and forget” seller.
  • What is the seller selling? If the sellers items are all Brand New high price popular items well below the recommended retail price with no cheaper items listed I would consider this suspicious.

2. ASK A QUESTION

Before biding or buying, ask the seller a quick question to check the seller is alive and active, if you get no response after 24 hrs ‘warning bell” move on ( Remember some sellers do not work at the weekend’s so keep this in mind ).

3. WAIT FOR CONTACT

If you win an auction or use the “buy now” facility, Wait for the seller to contact you first before making any payment, unless you are sure the seller is active or have purchased from the seller before, Use the AAL (after auction log) drop down to ask the seller to send you an invoice, Most sellers will send you a invoice 1-24hrs after the auction ( this counts as contact ).

If you have had no contact from the seller then contact eBid support after a few days.

4. ALL ABOUT ME PAGE

Check the sellers all about me page and if it’s empty and you see, “No Details Added about this User Yet.” then please note that an empty page has been associated with bad sellers in the past.

5. PAYMENTS

For higher price items (over £ $ € 100) it’s good practice to pay by credit card or debit card with Paypal, or better still Google Checkout, in the event of fraud you have more chance of getting your money back by making a card charge back with your credit card or debit card company. (Be warned that making a uncalled for card charge back against a good seller can end up costing you a lot extra in penalty fees so try and work problems out with the seller first)

It also a good idea to check if your credit / debit card covers you from fraud and from what amount does this protection start?, Some cards do not cover you for single purchases under £ $ € 100 so check out the small print, Do not pay for high price items by cheque (aka check), postal orders or bank transfer if you do not fully trust the seller.

6. ADDRESS VERIFIED

Check for the green AV address verified logo pc_match next to the seller’s name as this logo means the seller’s postcode matches there card postcode (This is not a foolproof guarantee of a trusted seller!)

7. ITEM IMAGES

If the item image is a stock image ask the seller for a image of the actual item, if you get no response or a poor excuse such as “I don’t have a camera” move on.

8. RE-READ THE DISCRIPTION

Read then re-read the auction description, including any details on returns, shipping etc, I’m always surprised by the amount of important info that is not picked up first time so always re-read through the whole description.

Always check any seller notes that appear at the top of the auction page, these notes can often get over looked and could have very important info from the seller.

Well that is the basics, I hope this information is helpful to you, I’m sure most of you will agree it’s just simple common sense, Remember the eBid forums are open 24/7 and are a great resource for extra updated information on buying and selling safely online, and a great place to ask any questions you may have.

Keep safe and if you ever see a suspicious auction and are beyond reasonable doubt it’s a scam, fake, or is illegal please contact eBid support or report the auction (Log in to eBid and use the report link at left side of auction). NOTE please do not abuse this system or you will lose your account and could be banned from the site.

If you are ever the victim of a fraud on eBid, please contact eBid support supporterimmediately giving them as much details as you can.