Do you think this is a scam??

[candles by lisa]

......... remember I told you about the person asking if I take money order/cashiers cheque. Well e-mails have been going backwards and forwards. They want me to supply them with £300 worth of candles however I got the attached e-mail.

I think it is a scam because I am sure I heard somewhere of someone selling a telly and this guy got back to her to buy it. Said he would arrange for a courier to uplift it. He would send her a cheque to cover the tv and the courier but she was to pay the courier when he picked up the telly. She got the cheque, let the cheque clear, the courier came picked up the telly and took the £100 for courier charges. The cheque got stopped (even though it had cleared) the woman lost the telly and had to pay the £100 she paid to the courier.

I think this is the same and I have replyed saying I will only deal with PAYPAL, a personal cheque with guarantee card, a business cheque with full banking clearance and I will arrange shipping from here. I think I have done the right thing. What do you think.

Here is the e-mail I got:
>
>
Goodevening Mrs Lisa
Thanks very much for your email, The reason I am
sending you this email is to make final reconfirmation of
the (Qoute) and also to let you know that payment will be made to you through theMoneyOrder. In view of this I need you to email me any
information that may be required to send the Money Order,
as I do not want to send the Money Orders to a wrong
location lets they gets into the wrong hands.
Regarding the shipping, I have a company that
takes care of the pick up of my consignments for me and
ship to my destination anywhere in the U.S.A, you do not
worry about shipping, the company will send down a
representative to arrange the sales documentation and the
pick up from your end for onward transfer to my
destination.
I also want to alert you on the fact that you
will be recieving an overdraft Money Order, which will
cover the money for the pickup (pickup and shipping to the
final destination) as well as the money to be paid to the
company that will take care of the pickup and the Items
with you. So please, as soon as you receive the Money Orders
, get them acessed at your bank for a quick avalability of funds,You are to deduct the money that accrues to you, and send the balance to the Head Office of the company that handles the shipment via the nearest
Western Union agent in your area. Note All Transfer charges are to be deucted from the original funds after you migth have deducted the money for the products i bougth from you.
The Money Order will be in your name to
make it easier for you to receive payment, you are to deduct the
money for the products and get the remaining funds wire to our shippers headquaters as soon as posible as regards my earlier direction, please reconfirm your details ones
more . I will Provide You With the information of my shipping company as soon as you receive the payments.
Once the money is received by the shipping company, the
shipping company will contact you immediately to arrange the
documentation as well as the pick up immediately. So in
view of the above, here are some of the details I will
need for final issuance of the Money Order to you.
(1) Full Name
(2) Mailing address, no p.o.box please
(3) your direct telephone number
(4) acceptance of my offer
Once you get back to me with all the above, the Money
Order will be issued out immediately and it will be sent
to you . Hope to hear from you immediately.
Regards
Mara Allen

:frusty:

[Katianne]

Lisa - that sounds really dodgy to me. I'd be extremely careful if I were you too.

[candles by lisa]

Yep, I think so myself, when I think of the time I have wasted, getting her prices, giving her wholesale prices and the rest!!!!! I had a gut feeling the minute she asked about money orders but thought I would go along with it and see what they would do. Unless they pay through paypal etc I am not enteratining them.

I pretty much told them that due to fraudulent shipping transactions they would have to use my terms (just to let them know that I know there is scamming going on with the shipping) does that make sense.

Cheers Kate.

Lisa

[Snow angel]

I dont like the sound of it all i think it could be a scam

[Katianne]

Unless they pay through paypal etc I am not enteratining them.


Absolutely - anyone can pay through Paypal so if they are for real, it shouldn't be a problem.

[Heart and Design]

Hi, this definitely sounds like a scam, I cant post links yet but if you type "overpayment western union transfer" into google just about all the links that come up are relating to scams. I dont really understand how western union works and how they could scam you but I dont think its worth the risk.
Best wishes
Paula

[Potter Doodle Doo]

Sorry, But I don't like the sound of all this either. For them to ask you to pay the cheque in and then YOU pay a courier that they have arranged is just not right. I've worked for a courier company in the past and we would always invoice a 'third party collection' not request them to send money before any collection be arranged. Maybe I'm just a little pessimistic, but I get the impression that they'll send you the money, you bank the cheque and pay the courier, then a few weeks down the line when they trace it through, it will bounce sky high. By which time, you've actually paid for your goods to be sent to the scammer.

My advice would be to stick to accepting Paypal for overseas customers unless you have previously done business with them. Also insist that you send to a Paypal verified address. This then covers you in the event of fraud.

Maybe we're all wrong and it's genuine, but it just doesn't sound like it.

[candles by lisa]

Hi all,

Thanks for the Hearts for the Western Transfer info. Did a google search and it is even in Wikipedia about scams. So I think Ms Mara Allen can go and kiss by lilly white ass if she thinks she is getting a thing out of me. Ow I am so annoyed pissing about getting prices for this lot AAARRRRRGGGHHHH I could actually have been making bloody candles to sell AARRRRRGGGHHHHH.

Cheers again all.

Lisa

[Potter Doodle Doo]

Lisa, Just be thankful that you've found out now before you send any goods out and haven't got pulled into the scam.

[littlesnuggler]

Ooh Lisa, I'm so glad you've got a brain. A lot of gullable people would just go along with this. I know that Ebay tells people never to deal with Western Union transfers. Put it down experiance and that fact that you still have your hundred candles and they haven't :mf:

[icecreamgirl]

Sounds like a right load of old waffle to me, i mean who needs the hassle, even if it wasn't a scam which i'm sure it is, the way they telling you what to do i'd tell them where to stick the candles:eek:
Sorry, i found the chilled bottle of Rose......

[candles by lisa]

Told you leave the wine alone little snuggler, give it to the needy (me) you have too much sewing to do.

Thanks everyone. Nearly set fire to the house there, forgot I had left wax on with all this. Just remembered, bolted down the stairs just in time. The water had boiled away in the boiler and the wax was left directly over the heat (a huge no no) it was just ready to catch fire, when wax bubbles it is really not a very good sign. And ow what a smell (how I didn't smell it before I will never know). Got my knuckles well and truely raped for that from a very smoke choked hubby!!!! I will never get the smell out the house and it was a beautiful Fresh Cut Roses smell to. More like freshly laid manure now - AARRRGGGHHHHH that's one ruined because of these tossers.

Sorry I am off on one again. Thanks for all the support, I am so wary about anything out of the ordinary and I think the way they went about it was plenty out of the ordinary.

Going to go and drown my sorrows.

Lisa

[kipper workshops]

Definate scam if you ask me.

So frustrating for you, but pat yourself on the bag for not getting sucked in. It's all good knowledge for the next time!! Hope tha candles have not been ruined!

Steve:)

[EMEvans]

God that could have been a real blow to the pocket if you wouldn't have sussed them.

I agree with you - it's your business, you decide how transactions/delivery takes place. If they're not happy with it then theres something wrong.

Thanks for sharing it with us all as you never know it could happen to anyone, now we're all aware of the scammers.

[candles by lisa]

God that could have been a real blow to the pocket if you wouldn't have sussed them.

I agree with you - it's your business, you decide how transactions/delivery takes place. If they're not happy with it then theres something wrong.

Thanks for sharing it with us all as you never know it could happen to anyone, now we're all aware of the scammers.

I know just be careful. It wasn't until I started to read the google articles on the Western Union Scam I even knew there was one!! I think if something doesn't feel right or is too good to be true, it generally is but it is so easy to get taken in. If alarm bells hadn't been ringing from the start then I would probably have went and sent them to them, but I always think if someone you don't know asks you something you don't normally do be on your toes.

Thanks for all the support guys - and the house still stinks from the burnt wax but by god was I lucky, just in the nick of time.

Cheers.

Lisa

[Apple Tree Crafts]

Lisa, eBay is full to the gunwhales with these Nigerian scams. Never ever ever pay for anything by money transfer involving Western Union.

Take a look at the eBay community boards and you'll soon by wise to the scammers, and all the latest scams being tried. The first place they go is eBay so they get spotted and outed quickly there!

Jules

[candles by lisa]

Cheers Jules, will have a look see.

Lisa

[Funkyhand]

Just wanted to put my good wishes in. Good for you recognising this scam. The fact that there were spelling mistakes in the email sort of gives you a heads up.
I have a number of these things each week but the funniest one was when they sent me a message to 'Dear Mrs Funkyhand'.. made me laugh!
Anice xx:):)

[Tip Top]

Just wanted to put my good wishes in. Good for you recognising this scam. The fact that there were spelling mistakes in the email sort of gives you a heads up.


Yep I agree - anything with bad grammar and spelling mistakes is not good - my husband trades on ebay and the amount of junk and ****e that comes our way trying to rip us off is scary and its on a daily basis :horse:

So good for you that you were not ripped off!

[michelleC]

Good for you!!!!!!
I would say you have spotted a scam.
http://butterbeandesigns.co.uk/