I'd like to offer some suggestions that may reduce your future risk in these types of transactions. I was the lucky one who got the opportunity to purchase the Roman Conqueror. Believe it or not, some scummy criminal sent me a second chance offer, after I had received the bass! Since I was contacted originally by a second chance offer, through E-bay My Message, this is what I did, to confirm that the seller was legitimate. Again it's not perfect, but at least some prudent steps may ward off a crook:
I first confirmed with the seller that the second chance offer was legitimate. Since he was using a service to sell his instrument, I contacted the service directly as well. The seller did confirm that the second chance offer was legitimate, and we have struck up a cordial e-mail friendship. After buzzing with the seller, I then contacted the vendor, and asked for a phone number. I confirmed that the phone number was legitimate, and the vendor's address for the seller was also legitimate. I spoke with them directly, and again have developed a good relationship with them. It should be mentioned that E-bay sends legitimate second chance offers only through your My E-Bay section. I also researched the vendor independently to confirm his address and phone number, to further assure myself that these people seemd to be legit, which they are to this day. If you receive a second chance offer directly with you regular e-mail and not via the My message in E-bay, the chances are that it would be a bogus offer.
My heartfelt wishes for justice go out to this fellow club member, it is here that I feel E-bay is shielded because of the industry they are in. If the auto or Pharmeceutical industry got away with what e-commerce and software vendors did, we'd have to walk everywhere and eat natual products to heal (love tha voodoo an aloe vera).
We need to somehow come up with a mechanism to better protect the innocent well-intentioned members of the on-line community. Maybe E-bay needs to take a case on the chin via the courts because if they did, you can rest assured they would spend more resources cleaning up the crap. I have been the intended victim of credit card fraud, but thank my lucky stars and the higher power that the credit card company checked on whether I was purchasing a large amount of jewelry in another city from where I lived. I even had my credit card with me at home at the time of purchase/fraud, but somehow the criminals got access to my number!
Bottom line, know your vendor, and if they do not give you a verifiable address, phone and fax, I would be very wary. If is sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Just thought I'd offer some thoughts to try to protect us.
Now let's get back to Feral fenders and Scary Alembics! And good luck/condolences to Mica. I hope she finds peace, as we all learn to deal with the cycle of life.
