Selling/shipping to Thailand

[kennydoe]

Hey fellas.

I just listed my purple Rg550 on the 'bay. I got an email (within 2 hours of listing) that said:

"Dear kennydoe,

Could you ship to Bangkok, Thailand? I'd pay for extra shipping cost. My payment will be done through Paypal in US dollar"

i've read so many threads on this forum about shady dealings in that part of the world, but not necessarily Thailand specifically.

What's my answer to this person? I don't mind telling him no but I need to do so in a tactful way...that is, if you think it's fishy.

~Kenny

[kennydoe]

PS: I just check the user's feedback - it's (28 ) with no negatives.

I'm a generally trusting person, which I think in this case could get me screwed.
Still waiting for replies. RICH!?

[Rich]

Well, you have to trust somebody sometime or the world would just stop.

"Could" be a compromised account using a new Paypal account opened with a stolen card. That's doubtful though and the extreme of my paranoia. Check and make sure there's at least a recent feedback, look at what he's bidding on, just see if he's "active".

99.9% of the people in the world wear white hats.

[kennydoe]

Thanks for replying Rich.

I checked the feedback activity. Plenty of recent stuff, including a couple of ibanez Guitars and a dimarzio pickup (or two), along with a cell phone. ABout 6-8 auctions won since Jan 1. A member for 8 months. Verifies he's from Thailand.

Checked the items he's bid on/is bidding on. TONS of guitars and guitar related stuff. The name is liquid_nitrite if anybody wants to look him up.

How safe is PayPal? Can he pay and then turn around and cancel after the guitar is shipped?

It doesn't look or smell like any of the other scams I've seen people write about here.

~K

[Rich]

Honestly, I got a very wierd vibe from the guy. [I near positive this is the same guy]. Claimed he had a Rainforest, and knew a store that had a JS 3, 4, 5, and 10th in stock. He had a digi cam but for a whole week he never sent even a single pic while he was "checking" into the guitars at the shop for me. Then after he knows that the reason I need the serial numbers is because I can tell if they're real or not, all of a suddent he finds out not only his, but all the ones the shop had were copies. Yea, right. And I'm 99.99% sure that's the guy.

But, you're not buying from him, you're selling to him. AFAIK there's no provisions to reverse the payment once it's made, AFAIK.....

[kennydoe]

It almost seems like he's trying to build stock for a store...all the feedback is positive and from the US.

I sent out emails to some of the sellers in the auctions he's won and asked them about their experience in dealing with him. These people left positive feedback, so I assume they're going to come back okay.

Maybe I'll just give a reserved 'yes' and hope that he doesn't win.
~K

[jim777]

I guess (obviously) just make sure he's not using a credit card through Paypal, and you should be fine. "In US Dollar" doesn't necessarily mean he's using a bank transfer.

jim

[bpd111]

Originally Posted by kennydoe

How safe is PayPal? Can he pay and then turn around and cancel after the guitar is shipped?

I don't really know about this, but if someone sent the money to my Paypal account, I would then transfer it to my real account. I haven't read the rules, but I would think that they'd have a tough time getting back from you if he did reneg at that point.

Escrow is an option too...

[caprile]

Just ask him to pay using Western Union. If he's willing to pay extra for shipping, he'll pay WU's comission.