This kind of stuff has been going on since the inception of eBay. Here is a story, and every word true. I feel that I might be responsible for an eBay policy change. Some years back before I retired from the Navy, I watched several bidders go into a feeding frenzy over a book I owned, entitled "Battle Report - Pearl Harbor to the Coral Sea", which I bought for something like $10 in mint condition with dust jacket. It was and still is a common and available book. These people finally concluded bidding at $610. I contacted the runner-up bidder, and via PM's, he aggressively stated he wanted my book. When I asked what price, he said, well, since the eBay bidding went to $610, how about $600? I agreed, and sure enough, he sent a cashier's check in that amount. I could not in clear conscience cash that check. I returned the check, and the book, to him along with a letter stating the facts about this book, it's true value, and a request for the $10 I paid for the book. The lesson learned here is an old one, a fool and his money are soon parted. They are surely out there, and unscrupulous sellers on eBay only hope they come along. More often than not, they do.
|