Would it be safe buying from a TRF member?

[baamvino]

Hi,

There is a watch that I really like on TRF, but the seller seems to have no transaction history and he would only prefer wire transfer.


Is there any for me to know if seller is legit?
If he's a pledge member, does that mean that he is a legit seller?

[DESH]

always trust your gut- no references or history is a red flag

[Calatrava r]

The seller is wise to request a wire transfer. Its the best way to ensure a proper payment. I would not view this as a red flag.

[got369]

No way would I do a wire transfer. No way to get your money back if something goes wrong…..

I only do PayPal or credit card.

[envuks]

You still need to vet the seller. The wire will protect them, but how do you protect yourself with no references?

Get a photo of their drivers license. Ensure the name and address match the account details provided by the wire. Worst case scenario, if they didn’t send the watch after payment, you have all their personal info to contact their local authorities on a wire fraud case.

You can also get their work contact info and LinkedIn profile info in addition to their drivers license. Just another way to potentially hedge risk


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[ks58]

All buyers need to protect themselves and get the information from the seller to involve the local authorities if there is fraud.

[Kiddodoc]

I would never do a transaction without references. Too much money at stake.

[BobMartian]

Because you felt you should ask, you've answered your own question

[bwdellorf76]

I am all for new members listing their watches. We have all been there at some point. Simply ask the seller to do a call or facetime to view the watch and talk with the seller. If they do not want to talk with you, red flag. As mentioned, grab a copy of photo id and make sure it matches bank account or business account. Do not send to wife's account, friend account, etc.

[77T]

Originally Posted by baamvino

Hi,

There is a watch that I really like on TRF, but the seller seems to have no transaction history and he would only prefer wire transfer.


Is there any for me to know if seller is legit?
If he's a pledge member, does that mean that he is a legit seller?

Working from the bottom up…
All sellers must be a pledge member to offer a watch in the classifieds. Therefore that isn’t a guarantee of legitimacy in and of itself.

Next…
Look for the name of the seller in Who’s Who or WatchOut sections to learn more about the seller. You can use the search function to speed up your efforts. That’s the best way to know if a seller is legit - but be sure any references are from legit members and not new members without a history of their own.

Lastly…
Wire transfers are commonplace among trusted sellers and trusted buyers. But if you can’t vet the seller, don’t wire funds.


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[slus]

Is the sale across state lines? I'm no expert, I'm just married to one, but federal wire fraud charges sound like no joke to me. He's not wrong to ask for a wire transfer though. Get all the sellers information verified (you'll need most of it for the wire transfer anyway), ask for references in other areas of sale, possibly write a simple purchase agreement to prove intent, and go with your gut from there.

I'd honestly rather do an interstate wire transfer than a face to face cash sale with an unknown party, no chance of getting knifed on top of losing the money/watch and getting a local recently defunded police department saying "well that sucks for you" with no real recourse.

[ltmgeller]

No reference no sale

[Nikrnic]

I wouldn't do a wire transfer or pay by any friends and family type purchase without a guarantee of funds unless you really know the seller. You should have more than one or two references as well being some scammers work together. This happened to me recently on a vintage car forum trying to buy parts. Scammers are everywhere so do your due dillegance..

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[Doc Savage]

Originally Posted by 77T

Working from the bottom up…
All sellers must be a pledge member to offer a watch in the classifieds. Therefore that isn’t a guarantee of legitimacy in and of itself.

Next…
Look for the name of the seller in Who’s Who or WatchOut sections to learn more about the seller. You can use the search function to speed up your efforts. That’s the best way to know if a seller is legit - but be sure any references are from legit members and not new members without a history of their own.

Lastly…
Wire transfers are commonplace among trusted sellers and trusted buyers. But if you can’t vet the seller, don’t wire funds.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Great advice here. Buy the seller.

Also, wire fraud or not, you will likely never recover any money lost via a single fraudulent watch purchase based on police involvement. There is way too much online fraud going on today, so law enforcement generally focuses on the larger fraudulent transactions.

[RJRJRJ]

If he's a new seller, he needs to suck it up and accept that he's going to get less for his watch than a well established seller. And if that means eating the PayPal fees, so be it.

[TswaneNguni]

I dont buy a watch I dont see in the metal .New,used,doesnt matter .

[Tensai]

No.

[Tools]

Originally Posted by baamvino

. . .
Is there any for me to know if seller is legit?
If he's a pledge member, does that mean that he is a legit seller?

No. It is just a method to keep the Bots away; TRF doesn't know or endorse any sellers.

Sellers with a proven track record can apply for a spot on the TRF Boutique sub-board that we hope can be helpful to members in their research efforts.

[swaini3]

When checking references , make sure they are legit..... Many happy transactions here by members but also many gone wrong. Good luck ;)

[tike71]

Originally Posted by swaini3

When checking references , make sure they are legit..... Many happy transactions here by members but also many gone wrong. Good luck ;)

Yup, watch out for feedback such as this

How can a buyer leave positive feedback for somebody that's never listed a watch for sale?

[swaini3]

Originally Posted by tike71

Yup, watch out for feedback such as this

How can a buyer leave positive feedback for somebody that's never listed a watch for sale?

Good one....

[joli160]

Check his posts and you know soon enough who the seller is.
I would have no problem wiring money to some of the members here

[1William]

When in doubt, don't.

[Sgooter]

A while back I was a "first time" seller on TRF. I and my eventual buyer went thru many iterations of messages, telecons, photos, copies of IDs, sales/service receipts, etc., all toward attaining a necessary level of mutual trust and confidence. Once this was achieved, he wired all money and I packaged the watch for shipment...but then I decided to catch a flight and deliver the watch to the buyer in person at his local airport. It was a great experience for both of us.

[NickD1975]

While I'm sure they majority of sellers on here are reputable and honest, 20 years of posting on internet forums has shown me that you should NEVER pay to an unknown person over the internet without the ability to claim it back if there is an issue. Paypal or no sale for me.

[mkruger311]

Unless it's some rare and unique watch, many trusted sellers will have a similar model available.