PAMP Suisse Gold bar ebay sale-need advice

Ok, I'm still a relatively new seller on ebay, and recently sold a 10 gram PAMP Suisse Gold bar that is still in it's original packaging. The buyer sent me an e-check, along with this message,

"hi, i appreciate your business. i am looking forward to receiving the 10g gold bar. i have made payment via paypal. when i receive the bar, i will have it examined by a jeweler to determine the worth. if the bar is 10g of pure 24K gold and worth its weight, i will gladly submit payment without any problems. if i find the bar to be FAKE or NOT worth its weight, i will dispute all charges and file reports with ebay and paypal. if this bar is REAL, you have my business. if the bar is FAKE or not worth its weight, inform me, and we can cancel the transaction. no action will be taken. make no mistake, i WILL have this bar examined to its worth. please do not try and scam me.."

I understand his concerns, and wanting to make sure that the bar is genuine; however, his message poses several concerns to me. My main concern is that he is asking me to send the bar before the payment clears(at least that is the way I interpret it). I have no doubt the bar is genuine, but does it not pose a clear risk to me(the seller) if I ship something W/O a cleared payment?? Also, he(the buyer) plans to take it out of the packaging to "assay" it; which also concerns me if he decides to return it (how do I know it's the same one?) I have not responded to him yet and am open to any/all advice. Is it common to send an item before the e-check clears? Here was the listing...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140386489648&ssPageName=ADME:X:AAQ:US:1123

thanks,
John

 

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I'd reply to him that it is real. Payment needs to be made before sending it out and that if it is taken out of it's original package then he has no return privledges. And if he wants to cancel now then he should do so.

And G/L

 

I think he worries about your rating history. As you are new, you've yet to actually get one, I'm guessing. If you have done business before on E-bay, you should have a favorable listing. I don't do business over the internet, but I can understand his concern. I agree with John Wayne above.

 

John Wayne

He actually has a feedback of 471 with 100% but the buyer only has a 33 feedback with 100% also.

 

Yeah, I've actually sold a bit on ebay, and a fair amount of gold without issue....but I'm still relatively new and this is the first time I've encountered a buyer with this type of request. Thanks for the advice Duke. That was the direction I was leaning too, but I wanted to make sure that I wasn't being unreasonable.

 

Nope not unreasonable at all.

That is the way Ebay is set up.

Seller lists item
Buyer picks and wins auction.
Buyer pays
Seller sends item

He has recourse if there are problems so I'd make sure to send it an insured/signature way. But there is no way I'd send til I recieved payment first.

 

471 items with 100% feedback!!!!! I'd tell him your previous business should speak for itself. Like I said, I don't do business by internet, but I do understand kind of how it works. BTW, I like the mayo!

I just saw the winning bid was $390. He should be very happy. I do agree, if he takes it out of the packaging and fingers it up, its his with no return.

 

I sell on E-Bay and I don't take e-checks... never will to easy to get ripped by buyer... Nothing leaves my hands until payment cross's my hands... same as in a coin store.... You wouldn't get it to check it out... He's trying to bluff you into getting ripped off.... Z

 

Speaking only as a buyer, I would not want to buy a Pamp Suisse bar that did not have its original packaging. So if he takes this out of the original packaging how is he going to ever resell it? One reason people buy these bars is because of the packaging and the assay cards. It doesn't make any sense to me.

 

Strange skeptical buyer sends quasi-accusatory message. I guess that would kind of tick me off. How dare he question my integrity? It would be all I could do to refrain from blasting his rump off the map. Better yet, I would try to cancel the sale and relist the bar.

 

You nailed it... this is exactly what you should do. He should have brought up his concerns BEFORE he bid on your auction, not afterwards.

No shipping before payment is in your hand (technically, he can file a dispute with paypal and tie up the funds once he has the bar), and no return of the bar if removed from the PAMP assay card.

He agreed to your your terms when he bid, not the other way around. However, the sellers tend to be at the mercy of buyers due to the feedback rules.

I would tell him the above... you cannot/will not eat it if he removes the bar from the packaging. If he is not comfortable with that... you should let him out of the bid, and resell.

 

Alot of these issues come up when dealing with e-bay and pay-pal
As a former seller, Its very concerning!!

 

John:

Be very explicit and detailed in your policies regarding the terms and conditions, especially with returns, even more so with coins and precious metals and also with these that are sealed/authentic by a third party.

Never send an item until the payment clears.

There are hostile and malicious Buyers out there, Seller beware.

Good luck to you and your sales efforts!

 

I Agree!! One of the scams going om now, Is people will pay
Using pay-pal and have the item sent somewhere else other
Then there posted address, Then make a charge back!!
In a word, You not only lose your money but your merchandise!!:headbang:

 

mpcusa: Indeed!

I'm sure most Sellers know this but, NEVER ship to an unconfirmed address! ONLY accept payment via PayPal for your protection in the event of a problem and state in your item description/selling policy that you will ONLY ship to the confirmed PayPal address.

You've gotta do everything you know how to do to cut off the ploys of those scammers at every turn.

 

I would just respond: "It is against our policy to ship gold products prior to receiving payment. We are sorry that our procedures do not meet your requirements. As you requested, your transaction has been cancelled."

Non-standard Ebay transactions are a big red flag in my opinion.

 

well, i talked with him, and he is fine with waiting until the payment clears. However, he still insists in removing it from the package to "assay" it. If he's on the up and up, I have nothing to worry about, but........

 

Here,s another one! If the item is over $200 you need signature confirmation
Delivery confirmation wont do! This happened to a friend of mine boy
Was he flaming!!

 

Another consideration is that the assay will damage the bar. I think you have plenty to worry about if you deal with this person.

 

Thank you for all of the advice! I decided to cancel the transaction.