Marketplace
Hello everyone, I am extremely angry right now, so I have to share and expose some fraudulent practices by sellers on eBay to a wider audience.
Recently, I was scammed by two eBay sellers using the same tactics. Their usernames are aussie_outback and elites.world, but I strongly suspect that both accounts are being operated by the same scammer. Neither account is new, and both have sales records of over a hundred transactions.
Two weeks ago, I came across a deal for a Steam Deck on OzBargain: a Steam Deck OLED version for $750. The sellers were the two eBay accounts mentioned earlier: "aussie_outback" and "elites.world." Excited by the offer, I quickly placed orders with both sellers: one from the first seller and two from the second.
At first, everything seemed like a typical eBay purchase. The only slightly unusual thing was that all three items were marked as "sent (untracked)" upon shipping. Normally, eBay items are marked as "tracking available" once dispatched. I didn’t think too much of it since I’d received untracked parcels before without any issue.
As time passed and the delivery window closed, I still hadn’t received the items. I filed "item not arrived" claims for two of the orders. Up to this point, everything seemed routine. But then came the scammer’s move.
Shortly after I filed the claims, both orders uploaded their tracking numbers. Strangely, these tracking numbers were already marked as "delivered" when uploaded. I immediately realized it was a scam. What confirmed my suspicion was that one of the tracking numbers showed tracking information available on November 26th but claimed the item was delivered on the 23rd — a clear impossibility in the timeline.
With this evidence, I thought I had sufficient grounds for eBay to refund me and take action against these sellers.
Next, I filed a claim for the third item, purchased from the other seller. In my request, I explicitly stated that I bet the seller would upload a tracking number marked as delivered shortly after I filed the claim. Unsurprisingly, this prediction came true after a few hours.
By the way, when a tracking number is updated to "delivered," the "item not arrived" claim is automatically closed, forcing buyers to appeal. I filed the appeal but then encountered the most frustrating part of the experience: dealing with eBay's customer support.
So today, from 10:30 AM to 4:00 PM, I repeatedly contacted eBay support, speaking to four or five different agents. Each time, I patiently explained the situation and how I was scammed. I believed my evidence was clear: the sellers only updated the tracking information after I filed the claims. However, the support agents failed to grasp this logic.
I even offered to provide 24-hour surveillance footage of my front door to prove I hadn’t received any packages. I also mentioned knowing the local AU Post carrier, who would confirm they hadn’t delivered such packages to me. Yet the agents were unwilling to consider these offers.
Finally, one agent seemed slightly more helpful and asked me to contact AU Post for evidence of non-delivery. Initially, I resisted as I was working and didn’t want to spend more time proving my innocence. But after some thought, I contacted AU Post. Their staff quickly confirmed that while the tracking numbers belonged to my suburb, none matched my name or address.
Armed with this proof from AU Post, I reached out to eBay support again. I thought this would be enough, but I overestimated eBay’s ability to evaluate evidence. Despite uploading clear proof that the tracking numbers did not correspond to my items, I kept hearing the same infuriating responses:
- Agent: "I see your packages are marked as delivered, so we can’t issue a refund."
- Me: "I’ve explained for 20 minutes how I was scammed. Those tracking numbers are fake and don’t belong to my items."
- Agent: "We can’t handle cases of incorrect delivery addresses. I suggest you contact the seller."
- Me: "The seller never responds to my messages!"
- Agent: "You can contact the postal service to see how they mishandled the address."
- Me: "I’ve already provided proof from AU Post showing those tracking numbers don’t match my name or address!"
- Agent: "But your packages are marked as delivered, so we can’t issue a refund."
- Me: "… Please escalate this to your manager."
- Agent: "My manager is busy."
- Me: "As a victim with solid evidence, how much more time and effort do I need to spend proving I was scammed while the sellers get away scot-free?"
- Agent: [Leaves chat]
After wasting hours and questioning my sanity, I finally reached the fifth agent. They said they would escalate the case to the back office for review, and I would receive an email once a decision was made.
By around 5 PM, I received emails related to the appeals. These emails were chaotic and unclear, with four emails concerning two items. The emails instructed me to print out a template and swear under oath that I hadn’t received the items, citing loss or theft as the reason (omitting fraud by the seller as an option). I was also required to sign the document and have a witness sign it to validate my claim, with eBay bearing the potential financial loss.
I can’t imagine a more absurd shopping experience than this. Despite the overwhelming evidence, the scammers remain at large. They don’t even need to spend more than a few minutes to carry out their fraud, and any negative feedback I leave for them is conveniently set to private. Meanwhile, I’ve spent an entire day communicating with various parties just to prove that I didn’t receive my items — all while fully aware that the sellers are scammers.
You can probably imagine how angry and helpless I feel. The issue still hasn’t been resolved, and tomorrow I have to sign documents to prove that I didn’t receive the packages.
Reflecting on the entire process, I realize that there was no obvious way to detect the sellers’ fraudulent tactics beforehand. eBay has significant loopholes that enable such incidents to happen. As a buyer, I’m forced to spend an entire day, or even longer, to prove my innocence. It’s absolutely outrageous.
Maybe I'm really shit at searching but I can't find either of those users accounts on eBay.