Beware Suspicious Seller that Act like King and think he's super great

[eosdigital]

Met this seller who think he's a royal Emperor of India

Agreed to a deal and meet at the West Coast Plaza today. After agreement, claim dry box was spoilt just 30 mins before the meetup. No big deal over a dry box. Upon arrival - refuse to meet elsewhere other than carpark. Handed over the dSLR for inspection, but acted suspiciously while prompted with standard questions regarding the camera. Lost box and receipts and not even any printout of warranty info as stated on website - just a vague yes. With a lot of standard things missing, looks like a stolen set to me. Thats when the seller started acting more suspicious and noticeably rushing to close the deal(even before i finished inspecitng everything).

As a courtesy, I offered to finish inspecting the rest of the stuff within 5 minute. Everything seems to check out okay - asked him if he had change for $25($825, but I had only 50s) and thats when he think he's the Emperor and cancelled the deal just like that. Sorry, this is Singapore, not the Royal india u think ur family come from.

---- Seller's details censored. TS did not show proof of wrong doing. ----------

 

[eosdigital]

Oh, and to that fella. Actually meeting u at carpark was a good idea. I now have ur licence plate.

 

[Kit-Kat-Lover]

Thanks for sharing .. u r luck u r not rob at the carpark ..

 

[ricohflex]

Oh, and to that fella. Actually meeting u at carpark was a good idea. I now have ur licence plate.

But what if not just the camera, but the car was also stolen?

There may be security cameras in the car park. Both of you are now recorded on video.

The two of you suspiciously doing a deal in car park may invite the attention of CNB.

By the way, maybe he was not being acsi. Maybe for unknown reasons, he was extremely nervous and frightened.
You must have looked like an undercover police inspector to him.

Actually I do not keep boxes also. If I did , my place would look like a karang guni store. No sentiments - just throw.
Yes, I know....some people keep the boxes.... just for the day they resell the cameras/lenses years later.
Receipts....most of the time keep but not 100%.

So it does not mean equipment without box and receipt are likely stolen goods.

 

[9V-Orion Images]

Just a small issue, seller probably just impatient. Perhaps the King of West Coast Plaza Carpark felt in his mind that OP / TS is just too choosy, nit-picking and his time is being wasted from being enquired with too many irrelevant questions.

Don't have to kick up a hoo-hah, close one eye and move on.

 

[Blakewolf]

Well for one standard things missing doesn't mean stolen. it could just mean he decides to keep the stuff. I believe on his ad he didn't include standard stuff. So don't assume.

It's normal to lose all the papers. Why not? Not everyone is as meticulous and organized like you.

Buyers who know the exact price and don't even bother to bring the exact amount, well......I guess it's more of a case of emperor of China rather than India.

Just saying, he even took time to take pictures of the item and put on Flickr. Not just for one item but for all he was selling.

Can't take it when kings of China like you act all big and mighty.

Get a straw and suck on it. Glad he didn't sell it to you.

 

[Bukitimah]

It is like that when dealing with human. Sometimes people act very strangely but to them, it is perfectly normal or we are the abnormal ones. Haha.

Don't get yourself so work up over a failed deal, there are plenty more better deals out there. Just treat it as a waste of time and move on.

 

[catchlights]

Be serious.

you post thread at Kopitiam, how serious you want it to be?

and FYI, you are the bother line of racist comments, and you should thankfully that no one takes your bother line racist comment seriously so far.

 

[Big Kahuna]

You should make a call to Tanglin police station to veify if it's stolen good and watch his reaction

 

[trd2970]

Sorry to hear that the deal did not proceed smoothly. But I feel it may be unfair to allege the seller was selling stolen goods based on the lack of box, receipt etc. And since you strongly felt that it was stolen goods, why did you even continue to offer payment to close the transaction?

 

[Shizuma]

You should make a call to Tanglin police station to veify if it's stolen good and watch his reaction

that is the correct thing to do, in all seriousness. I ended up with stolen goods before but the deal was at an outrageous price though... many red flags

did you see any red flags other than perhaps your seller's anxiety? I know some camera owners think their equipment is made of tofu and fine wine and must exactly keep in x% humidity and y-degrees of coolness. If his box really did get messed up, it may have really messed with his head.

 

[daredevil123]

Moved to consumer's corner.

Since this is no longer in Kopitiam, all senseless posts deleted.

Next time, post serious topics outside away from Kopitiam.

 

[daredevil123]

As buyers there are always things you can do to protect yourself:

1. Note down serial numbers and do an on the spot check on the serial numbers using google. We have a lost equipment registry here where serial numbers are listed.
2. If your instinct tells you there is a problem, then don't buy. Just walk away.

And TS, please refrain from calling people names before you have absolute proof. Take this as a warning.

Thanks.

 

[rhino123]

Met this seller who think he's a royal Emperor of India

Agreed to a deal and meet at the West Coast Plaza today. After agreement, claim dry box was spoilt just 30 mins before the meetup. No big deal over a dry box. Upon arrival - refuse to meet elsewhere other than carpark. Handed over the dSLR for inspection, but acted suspiciously while prompted with standard questions regarding the camera. Lost box and receipts and not even any printout of warranty info as stated on website - just a vague yes. With a lot of standard things missing, looks like a stolen set to me. Thats when the seller started acting more suspicious and noticeably rushing to close the deal(even before i finished inspecitng everything).

As a courtesy, I offered to finish inspecting the rest of the stuff within 5 minute. Everything seems to check out okay - asked him if he had change for $25($825, but I had only 50s) and thats when he think he's the Emperor and cancelled the deal just like that. Sorry, this is Singapore, not the Royal india u think ur family come from.

Hmm... sorry when reading through ur thread... something don't make sense to me.

1) What do you mean by the seller acting suspiciously when ask about standard questions regarding the camera?
2) What are the supposedly standard questions?
3) When you say there are lost box and receipts and any printout of warranty info as stated on the website... does this mean that the seller had agree to provide these document in the website?
4) What are the items that are missing - and do the seller mentioned those in the advertisement?
5) Prior to you requesting those 'standard' items and document, the seller was not acting too suspiciously and rushing to close the deal? Or was he rushing to close the deal from the beginning of the transaction?
6) How to you determine that the goods are stolen?
7) Granted that you suspect that the goods are stolen, why do you still proceed to wanting to close the deal with the seller?

Well... with the above questions still hanging in the air, I think I am going to take this story with a large cup of salt.

 

[rhino123]

Oh... I came across advertisement of a 7D that costed S$825, which I think this is what TS is referring to.

Additional Comments:
No manual, no neck strap, No box - misplaced during house move.

The seller had mentioned that there will not be a box, neck strap and manual involved.

Body only (6.2K certified shutter count) with
- 3 batteries
- Charger
- Toyogo dry box
- 32 Gb CF card X2 nos
- CF card reader
- cables
- rain cover
- Cleaning kit

Other than the body, the above mentioned will be there, and if I was to do a transaction or even approach the seller, I think I would expect that other than the body, there will only be the abovementioned items, I will not assume any other things that are supposed to be inside.

So I would advise that next time before wanting to get anything online, read the advistisement carefully.

 

[Turbonetics]

you post thread at Kopitiam, how serious you want it to be?

and FYI, you are the bother line of racist comments, and you should thankfully that no one takes your bother line racist comment seriously so far.

maybe he asked too serious questions that scared the sh!t out of the seller..haha

 

[shierwin]

TS. If seller comes across this thread, he may seek legal advice on allegations fringing on libel.

 

[eosdigital]

Point taken Mods.

Rhino: At point of closing the deal, I have taken note of all the accessories to be included, and yes I knew the neck strap and box are not included("lost"). Like I stated, 30 mins prior to agreed meeting time, he told me that the dry box was spoilt. I am not that petty to cancel a deal over a cheap dry box. The main point is not about my expectation of the items in the list, but rather his behaviour and etiquette of a seller.

From the start of the meeting he was acting rushed and would only permit a short duration for the dealing. I asked if he want to deal somewhere where I could do a proper check(note: carpark is dim and may conceal any imperfection not declared). He said no, I said fine. I repeated some questions I asked him over SMS - such as confirming the box and receipts to be lost because of "moving house", and asked him to be understanding while I did checking of the dSLR and to make sure nothing is illicit. If you have done purchases from sellers before, you know very well what the question are typically about - regarding the items in question. He did not even have any hard copy documents like warranty printout or whatever proof of ownership he has(apart from a few digital images which can be faked anyway). If you are buying something, you will typically insists on something hardcopy even if its not a receipt or a box.

He started becoming unreasonably urgent and acting suspiciously, giving me an ultimatum to buy it "right now" or the deal's off. I asked for 5 minutes to do a quick check and he obliged. Everything's in order, and as for serial number checking I do not know of any way to check the serial without plugging it into the PC or bringing to service centre, and the seller's rushing didnt help either. The final crux came when he did not even have change for $50, and decided to cancel off just like that. What kind of seller etiquette is that?

Within the span of 5 minutes, it is difficult to think it over and trust my own instinct. Only when it was over did I think that his behaviour over the course of dealing was suspicious as if he was trying to avoid me trying to find out something illicit about the deal and all. Only if u piece everything together, the lack of some thing can be suspicious

Daredevil: As u said, buyers have the right to walk away if their "instinct tells you there is a problem". I have buyer etiquette - I dont cancel the deal unless the condition of the product in question is not the same as declared(i.e undeclared dents etc). If miscellaneous items declared like the drybox is unavailable, I would typically try to negotiate a price cut to take into account the missing item. If i were to walk away just because I "feel" the deal is suspicious, the seller could very well turn the table against me, claiming I failed to uphold my end of the deal and so on. Since a mod like you have instructed members to walk away if their instinct tell otherwise, I wonder if it is an official policy stance for buyers to follow(and protecting their reputation if seller did what i just mentioned).

Anyway at the end of the day, it is up to potential buyers if they want to deal. For me I have his vehicle registration plate and can always forward ot to the Police if I want. After all, its easier to track than a telephone number.

 

[Shizuma]

Sometimes when I trade as seller in buy sell I don't carry change.

It may be unfair for either buyer overpay or seller under collect. Fortunately this can be easily resolved by
A. Communicating clearly to your counterparty whether or who will be bringing change. Text messages are relatively inexpensive.do make full use.
B. Taking initiative to ensure I carry change too.

Imagine how pleasant the world will be if everyone cooperated and put their egos aside

Lastly respect is a two way street and I discovered the best way to earn respect is by giving it.

Also please do not trouble the police with your lack of case. No done deal let alone any crime.

 

[daredevil123]

Daredevil: As u said, buyers have the right to walk away if their "instinct tells you there is a problem". I have buyer etiquette - I dont cancel the deal unless the condition of the product in question is not the same as declared(i.e undeclared dents etc). If miscellaneous items declared like the drybox is unavailable, I would typically try to negotiate a price cut to take into account the missing item. If i were to walk away just because I "feel" the deal is suspicious, the seller could very well turn the table against me, claiming I failed to uphold my end of the deal and so on. Since a mod like you have instructed members to walk away if their instinct tell otherwise, I wonder if it is an official policy stance for buyers to follow(and protecting their reputation if seller did what i just mentioned).

There is NO official policy. There is NO POLICY, in fact, official or unofficial. BnS meetups and transactions are soley between 2 private parties. ClubSNAP just provides the instrument for people to list their products. Just like how strait times classified ads. Strait times is not responsible for any of the transactions that result from response to the classified ads.

The seller has the right not to sell at any time. The buyer has the right not to buy at any time. There is no turning tables or anything. and know that there is NO DEAL, until money has exchanged hands. That is common sense.

And I did not instruct anything, I am merely saying you have the option to do that. So don't put it on me for something that is common sense and the responsibility of the people in the transaction. People need to grow up and understand how the world works, and that not everything is rosy and perfect. Have a sense of protecting yourself and we will not have as much complaints as we have in Consumer corners.

and your deal did not go through, the seller cancelled at the last min. Don't you think that if the seller has something to hide, he would be glad you pulled out the money to buy? If he was a criminal, he wound jumped at it, even forgoing that $25. Maybe it is a good thing that you did not proceed with the sale since you felt something wrong. But to make assumptions and post details of the seller with NO PROOF whatsoever, is also wrong. If you know FOR SURE, then go ahead and post and warn. But so far, I have not read or seen any solid piece of evidence from you. It is all assumptions. And you went on to post details and give him names. Totally unacceptable. By your logic, I can also assume, just like you did, that the seller did not want to deal with you because you are a real piece of work?