SCAM ALERT! - A Public Service Announcement
Oh god, how I hate scamsters.
Here is my good deed for the day...
Do not purchase Josef Originals, or any other items, from marie185antiques on Ebay.
Miss Marie buys items that are knowingly damaged, and then resells them for an inflated price, but does not disclose the damage. She describes them as being "in good vintage condition, as shown." But then she goes on to photograph the figures in such a way that the damage cannot be seen.
She is a Grade A scam artist if I've ever seen one.
Example...Here is an item she purchased from another seller on Ebay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/391777610222?_trksid=p2471758.m4704
Notice how the listing calls out the damage to the hair? You know, like any honest seller should and would?
And here is the item again, but now being resold by marie185antiques herself:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/401331643399?ul_noapp=true
Note the conveniently blurry photos and the super vague description.
She says "as shown", while showing you very little. She makes sure you see only what she wants you to see. And she avoids committing to any actual stated condition by saying "good vintage condition" because it is all relative. Oh, how many people she has scammed over the years with this tactic!
Because I am who I am, and I know what I know, I sent her a question about this item asking if there was any damage, and pointed out that her photos were blurry, making it hard to see for myself, and she responded with:
Sorry, but I use a high resolution camera to take my photos and it appears that you seem to find fault with other items that I have listed and sold. You can use the enlargement adapter to view the photos.
Since I do not have a comparison figurine and it appears fine to me, it is being sold AS-IS.
I have fallen for her scheme once myself. The "other items" that I have "found fault with" that she is referring to was actually an item I purchased from her that, surprise surprise, had undisclosed damage. And then when I messaged her about it saying I wanted to return it, but didn't feel I should have to pay the return shipping, she accused me of damaging it myself. Because, you know, I just love handing over my money to people for perfectly undamaged items that I'd like to add to my collection, and then break them immediately upon opening them, just so I can have the pleasure of working through a return with a rude seller like her. All the while, mind you, she still has my money in her pocket.
Yep. It makes perfect sense!
And of course, when I went back and reviewed all the photos of the item I bought, what do you think I found? In the pictures, the item was blurred in all the right places, and angled just so as to hide the damage. The only clear photos were of angles that did not contain any damage. See how devious and sneaky she is?
And of course, the most damning nail in the coffin....I sold her a Josef myself from my own collection ("Autumn" from the Four Seasons series) that had damage, and was sold as such, and I saw her immediately turn around and relist it at double the price, but of course she did not mention any of the chips and photographed it so they would not show. I feel very sorry for whoever pays the price she's asking, thinking they are getting an undamaged item. Or anyone who has to, god forbid, deal with a return or try to get their money back from her. (Needless to say, I immediately blocked her from bidding on, or buying my items, after I saw this. I will not be a part of this scheme of hers.)
When I responded to her above message regarding the Kabuki figurine, telling her plainly that I know she is not disclosing the damage, and that I've seen her do it before with items I've both purchased from her, and sold to her, and this was her other charming response:
My agenda?
It's simple...Calling out lying scum.
In her mind, to her, it is the "people like me"...the knowledgeable buyers... the ones who actually notice the hidden damages, that will ruin her reputation.
Not her own dishonesty.
There you have it. This grimy bitch is a scamster, through and through.
Consider yourself warned.
Here is a little tip when buying Josefs on Ebay: Every seller gets to add up to 12 photos to their listing for free. If a seller, like marie185antiques, only has 4 or 5 pictures of the item up, AND half of those are blurry, they are more than likely hiding something.
Be safe out there, kiddies!
Here is my good deed for the day...
Do not purchase Josef Originals, or any other items, from marie185antiques on Ebay.
Miss Marie buys items that are knowingly damaged, and then resells them for an inflated price, but does not disclose the damage. She describes them as being "in good vintage condition, as shown." But then she goes on to photograph the figures in such a way that the damage cannot be seen.
She is a Grade A scam artist if I've ever seen one.
Example...Here is an item she purchased from another seller on Ebay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/391777610222?_trksid=p2471758.m4704
Notice how the listing calls out the damage to the hair? You know, like any honest seller should and would?
And here is the item again, but now being resold by marie185antiques herself:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/401331643399?ul_noapp=true
Note the conveniently blurry photos and the super vague description.
She says "as shown", while showing you very little. She makes sure you see only what she wants you to see. And she avoids committing to any actual stated condition by saying "good vintage condition" because it is all relative. Oh, how many people she has scammed over the years with this tactic!
Because I am who I am, and I know what I know, I sent her a question about this item asking if there was any damage, and pointed out that her photos were blurry, making it hard to see for myself, and she responded with:
Sorry, but I use a high resolution camera to take my photos and it appears that you seem to find fault with other items that I have listed and sold. You can use the enlargement adapter to view the photos.
Since I do not have a comparison figurine and it appears fine to me, it is being sold AS-IS.
I have fallen for her scheme once myself. The "other items" that I have "found fault with" that she is referring to was actually an item I purchased from her that, surprise surprise, had undisclosed damage. And then when I messaged her about it saying I wanted to return it, but didn't feel I should have to pay the return shipping, she accused me of damaging it myself. Because, you know, I just love handing over my money to people for perfectly undamaged items that I'd like to add to my collection, and then break them immediately upon opening them, just so I can have the pleasure of working through a return with a rude seller like her. All the while, mind you, she still has my money in her pocket.
Yep. It makes perfect sense!
And of course, when I went back and reviewed all the photos of the item I bought, what do you think I found? In the pictures, the item was blurred in all the right places, and angled just so as to hide the damage. The only clear photos were of angles that did not contain any damage. See how devious and sneaky she is?
And of course, the most damning nail in the coffin....I sold her a Josef myself from my own collection ("Autumn" from the Four Seasons series) that had damage, and was sold as such, and I saw her immediately turn around and relist it at double the price, but of course she did not mention any of the chips and photographed it so they would not show. I feel very sorry for whoever pays the price she's asking, thinking they are getting an undamaged item. Or anyone who has to, god forbid, deal with a return or try to get their money back from her. (Needless to say, I immediately blocked her from bidding on, or buying my items, after I saw this. I will not be a part of this scheme of hers.)
When I responded to her above message regarding the Kabuki figurine, telling her plainly that I know she is not disclosing the damage, and that I've seen her do it before with items I've both purchased from her, and sold to her, and this was her other charming response:
My agenda?
It's simple...Calling out lying scum.
In her mind, to her, it is the "people like me"...the knowledgeable buyers... the ones who actually notice the hidden damages, that will ruin her reputation.
Not her own dishonesty.
There you have it. This grimy bitch is a scamster, through and through.
Consider yourself warned.
Here is a little tip when buying Josefs on Ebay: Every seller gets to add up to 12 photos to their listing for free. If a seller, like marie185antiques, only has 4 or 5 pictures of the item up, AND half of those are blurry, they are more than likely hiding something.
Be safe out there, kiddies!
Oh, I am SO over the lies! I just another package in the mail with yet another repaired figurine that was in "mint" condition. Huge repair at the waist and very visible upon holding it -but not at all in the photos. Thank you for the warning on the other eBay member. Her stuff is usually overpriced anyways.
ReplyDeleteYep, I see it ALL the time from an alarming amount of sellers.
ReplyDelete(Even after me calling her out, marie185antiques is STILL up to her old tricks today. What a peach!)
Some sellers, I'm sure make honest mistakes, but others are either intentional and hoping to just make a quick buck, or are just plain too lazy to look over an item carefully. Whatever the case, it is super frustrating and exhausting to deal with.