I am the seller.
Someone has offered to pay for my car by PayPal gift. Buyer seems ‘legit’.

Now I wouldn’t normally buy something using PayPal Gift as I have no rights as a buyer if the seller doesn’t deliver.

However I’m not sure if there’s any risk to me as seller. Am I missing something?

Can a PayPal Gift be clawed back once sent?

Why does he want to do a gift?
Is he asking for a better deal with it?

Don’t believe there is any risk to you but there is a limit on a paypal gift (not sure what the limit is though)

Yes, to save me fees.
His offer is roughly halfway between what the full price and what I’ll get after fees.

He pays less, I get more.

Here’s some recent correspondence that I’ve had:

EDIT: I love fact that he managed you use the phrase “squeezed out”!

Perhaps I should send you a medal for your hard work? If you PayPal me £700 I’ll send you a medal, that seems fair.

Edd

—–Original Message—–
From: David **** [mailto:****@gmail.com]
Sent: 28 May 2012 17:03
To: Edd ****
Subject: Re: Clio

Due to the nature of my work,phone calls making and visiting of website are restricted but i squeezed out time to check this advert and send you an email regarding it.

On 5/28/12, Edd **** <***@hotmail.com> wrote:
> No problems. I will sell to someone else.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Edd
>
> —–Original Message—–
> From: David *** [mailto:***@gmail.com]
> Sent: 28 May 2012 15:47
> To: Edd *****
> Subject: Re: Clio
>
> i can only do paypal.
>
> On 5/28/12, Edd *** <***@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> Cash on collection only. Sorry. Edd
>>
>>
>>
>> On 26 May 2012, at 10:00 PM, “David *** <***@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Thanks for the email, do let me know how much you are willing to sell
>> to me and you need to assure that it is in perfect condition and i
>> would love to see any pictures if you have. I will be paying with my
>> paypal account which is the safest online payment mode. So please do
>> reply me asap with your paypal account or send me a payment request
>> from your paypal account so i can effect payment to you rightaway.
>> You can easily open an account with paypal if you don’t have one at
>> http://www.paypal.co.uk. its safe, simple and reliable also do get back to
>> me so we can arrange for pick up as i will like it to be picked by my
>> pick up agent, so no shipping included. I await your reply. Hope to
>> hear from you soon.
>>
>> Thanks.

Out of interest Edd, why would you not accept PayPal?
Was it any PayPal payment you didn’t like or just ‘gift’?

that edd one must be phishing WhoTF writes like that?

Must be some scam for eed

With the OP as you have to meet to give them the car why not cash when you meet?

Edd-

its fake.

Walk away.

higgo – I use PayPal when buying and selling stuff on eBay and here. What put me off was “so we can arrange for pick up as i will like it to be picked by my pick up agent, so no shipping included” in “David’s” opening e-mail.

codybrennan – thanks, I agree, that’s why I offer him a medal in my last e-mail.

Sorry Edd, meant to point that at Higgo.

Higgo: I’ve had a similar “offer” on cars in the past, and I’ll bet that, as Edd has illustrated, the tell-tale language cues are all there- wanting the photos for “inspection” (they haven’t asked for a picture of the engine, I see, as they did with mine) and the “agent” being mentioned as the likely pick-up.

It’s a scam.

Just Google ‘PayPal car scam’, loads of info out there

higgo – your buyer might not be a scammer, but even so, don’t part with the car until the cash is in your hand, or better still, paid into your bank account, not a PayPal account. PayPal are always on the buyer’s side, particularly if you bend their rules, even slightly.

I’m 99.99% sure the guy is not a scammer. He’s got quite an Ebay presence as a seller and I’m sure he’s just got more funds in PayPal than in cash. Also, he didn’t suggest gifting it until I asked for some of the payment in cash to keep fees down.

However….. for a few quid in fees I think I’ve decided I’ll ask for a normal PayPal sale.

Its a scam, no one genuine would word the first email like that.
Walk away, you’ll find a genuine buyer.

I’m 99.99% sure the guy is not a scammer.

It’s scammier than a scam dressed in scam paste. Re-read the main text – the syntax is like it’s been fabricated from something fed through an online translator. It just stinks of fraud.

Sounds properly dodgy

quick google found this wording from 2009

I’m 99.99% sure the guy is not a scammer. He’s got quite an Ebay presence as a seller and I’m sure he’s just got more funds in PayPal than in cash. Also, he didn’t suggest gifting it until I asked for some of the payment in cash to keep fees down.

You want to sell the car so you want to believe he is geniune buyer, HE ISN’T!!!

I’ve seen this scam many times, and as mentioned above, people in this country don’t talk like that.

My Brother in Law sold his Freelander to a chap from Poland. (As in actually in Poland). He sent him £200 by Paypal(Gift I think), & the chap turned up with the cash a few days later. He had actually flown over, & was going to drive it home.

Higgo, this has scam written all over it, he’s talking about a collection agent, his English is poor (not always a guarantee but, as all the words are spent correctly I’d suggest it’s a pre written text taken from a translation site), he has given you paypals sales pitch, rather than just asking is you are ok using paypal.

Good eBay feedback? That can be bought too, do a search… Or just a group of scammers working to up each others feedback.

Bet you he asks to ‘pay’ more than the asking price then you refund the difference in cash to the ‘collection agent’

Your thought that he might just have more money in paypal? Why can’t he transfer to his bank then pay you cash?

I really can’t stress how much you shouldn’t be dealing with this guy unless you actually meet, face to face. There will be other buyers along soon enough.

EDIT balls! Thought Edds mail was the mail the OP got…. Sentiments stand though!

You want to sell the car so you want to believe he is geniune buyer, HE ISN’T!!!

I’ve seen this scam many times, and as mentioned above, people in this country don’t talk like that.

The email chain posted by Edd isn’t from my buyer.

The email chain posted by Edd isn’t from my buyer

😳

Still, it’s bloody odd to me that they can’t get the cash out of paypal to the bank, or else their bank direct

I just wouldn’t do it

(can’t see how/why it helps you for it NOT to be PP gift though – that protection’s all for the buyer isn’t it ?)

He’s bringing cash now anyway.

He wont. Its a scam-had the same thing numerous times last year selling the wifes MX5

selling a very rare triumph engine now on ebay.. the leading bider despite will only sell for cash in uk is a nice lady from spain who says she ll pay by ebay and will send someone for it within two days..

Quality thread!

I’d put money on your buyer not showing.

Higgo, I’m afraid to say that your naivity is all at once hilarious, sad and scary. No one is coming with cash to buy your car, well not this ‘buyer’ anyhow. Please heed the advice of those of us on here who’ve encountered this before…

With cars I only take cash (money checked with pen bought from Staples) or (rarely) bankers draft. I met the buyer at a bank to pick it up/saw him receive over the counter.

This thread is BRILLIANT

Almost all the people giving Higgo “advice” about his car sale, have totally misread the thread and think the emails posted by Edd are from Higgo’s buyer.

Brilliant.

So funny how people are in such a rush to show that they know something that you don’t, that they can’t even read the thread properly before jumping in and waving their “knowledge” about.

(ps, Higgo, your buyer seems pretty genuine to me, he maybe sells a lot and has Paypal funds available but is overdrawn in “real” money at the bank, or he wants to fund the purchase on a credit card.)

Nice edit 😉

I’ve not read Edd’s posts but cash talks IMO.

go on then nealglover – put your money where your mouth is and underwrite any loss that the OP might suffer 😀

Yes I do indeed see the error of my ways…

hora – Member
I’d put money on your buyer not showing.

£10 to NW Air Ambulance?

go on then nealglover – put your money where your mouth is and underwrite any loss that the OP might suffer

The buyer is turning up and buying with cash.

Why would I need to underwrite any losses ?

(read the thread properly please)

Why would I need to underwrite any losses ?

because OPs initial suggestion was to use paypal and you’d allow him to return to that option, safe in the knowledge that payment was already secure

Higgo – run away now!

Not from the buyer though – he’s probably a great human being, but from the madness of this thread!

because OPs initial suggestion was to use paypal and you’d allow him to return to that option, safe in the knowledge that payment was already secure

Well, that’s not what I said…..
But if it helps to deflect to your embarrassment at reading the thread wrong onto me, you go ahead 😉