Classified Scam

[Lovey2]

Good Morning! I know this is an old story, just figured another heads-up might be needed. I had a response to a classified ad posted on TOTV last week. The responder was wanting to know if the item was still available. Mind you, this response came to my private email address, via TOTV. When I told him yes, in fact, it was still available and he could come see it, I got the old story he was unavailable to see it but would send me a cashier's check and have his "mover" pick it up. I never responded to him, blocked his email address, and wrote to TOTV, reporting the incident and asking how this person is on TOTV, etc. I'm gonna say, my biggest disappointment is the fact that I got nothing back from TOTV. So, just be aware people, this scam is still going on. It must be working somewhere, because they keep trying it. :) Have a great day!

[Jamescarriker]

The exact same thing happen to me when I advertised a used car. I immediately notice a big RED FLAG when he didn't even want to see it and would make arrangements to have the car shipped. I immediately blocked his call. Sad the world is coming to this sort of of thing. and what's even more disturbing is that some poor people fall for this.

[oot]

Same thing happened to me as well. Same story - also wrote but did not hear back from TOTV, maybe they just blocked him. He said he was in a meeting in another country so he could not see it in person.

I ignored him as well.

[Lovey2]

Same thing happened to me as well. Same story - also wrote but did not hear back from TOTV, maybe they just blocked him. He said he was in a meeting in another country so he could not see it in person.

I ignored him as well.

Same story. In a meeting in London, and perusing the adds for used furniture? Hahahaha...ludicrous....

[Arctic Fox]

Why not insist on cashing the cashier's check before handing over the goods?

If the "mover" turns that idea down then make a note of his license plate number and report him for what is, then, clearly a scam.

[aninjamom]

Sadly, this scam has another wrinkle; my daughter responded to a "casting call" for a modeling job. She was told they would come here to shoot, but she needed to order the wardrobe direct from the designer so that they would have her measurements. Then they told her that they were sending ONE check to cover her initial payment AND the wardrobe. My alarm bells went off, and the info I found on them was sketchy. She would have paid for a "wardrobe" with her real money, and they would have disappeared. A job should NEVER involve you paying anything up front, and a legit company has more than one check!

[villagetinker]

Good Morning! I know this is an old story, just figured another heads-up might be needed. I had a response to a classified ad posted on TOTV last week. The responder was wanting to know if the item was still available. Mind you, this response came to my private email address, via TOTV. When I told him yes, in fact, it was still available and he could come see it, I got the old story he was unavailable to see it but would send me a cashier's check and have his "mover" pick it up. I never responded to him, blocked his email address, and wrote to TOTV, reporting the incident and asking how this person is on TOTV, etc. I'm gonna say, my biggest disappointment is the fact that I got nothing back from TOTV. So, just be aware people, this scam is still going on. It must be working somewhere, because they keep trying it. :) Have a great day!

I just checked, you do not need to be a member of ToTV to see the classifieds, these are open to anyone that goes to the site. They do NOT need to login, the same is true for Craigslist, so anyone selling something on ToTV can and will be subject to the same abuses that occur on CL. We all need to be very careful, selling items.
Hope this helps.

[Lovey2]

I just checked, you do not need to be a member of ToTV to see the classifieds, these are open to anyone that goes to the site. They do NOT need to login, the same is true for Craigslist, so anyone selling something on ToTV can and will be subject to the same abuses that occur on CL. We all need to be very careful, selling items.
Hope this helps.

Thanks...good info to have. I'm not sure I care for that, tho. I mat just stick to our Nextdoor sites for my classifieds from here on in.

[villagetinker]

Actually, Lovey2, I suspected that anyone could see the ads, but I had never checked until this thread came up.

ADMIN, could you do a poll to see if the users of ToTV would like the classified to be hidden to outsiders and only visible to members? IMHO, since we all have access to CL, I will start this off with a vote to keep classifieds private, for registered members of ToTV only.

[dwbevan]

Exact same story on OfferUp app. Red flags all over!

[Uberschaf]

You can cash a cashier's check at the bank,take the money and spend it. The next week the bank will call and say the cashier's check bounced. Now the merchandise you sold and the money are gone.
What good are cashier's checks if the bank does not check them out when you deposit them? I would say it's the banks problem and they have to own up to their mistake.

[retiredguy123]

Call me insensitive, but some of these scams that prey on people's greed are so ridiculous, that it is difficult to feel sorry for the victim.

[Arctic Fox]

ADMIN, could you do a poll to see if the users of ToTV would like the classified to be hidden to outsiders and only visible to members? IMHO, since we all have access to CL, I will start this off with a vote to keep classifieds private, for registered members of ToTV only.

I agree - a potential client base of 120,000 is more than enough and we would at least have some idea of with whom we are dealing...

...although maybe doing so would give us a false sense of security, since it is so easy to register for TOTV, with no background checking

[Lovey2]

Well...as usual, I spoke too soon! :) I got 2 responses from TOTV admin yesterday, and they have blocked this user. But I agree that outsiders should be hidden from the classifieds. This is a Villages website and should be kept as such...all around. My opinion. As I mentioned before, I will not use this classifieds again if it stays this way. I responded to that man, and he now has my email address. I'm not happy about that.

[retiredguy123]

You can cash a cashier's check at the bank,take the money and spend it. The next week the bank will call and say the cashier's check bounced. Now the merchandise you sold and the money are gone.
What good are cashier's checks if the bank does not check them out when you deposit them? I would say it's the banks problem and they have to own up to their mistake.
I think a bank will only cash a cashier's check immediately if you have an account with them. The bank's position is that they are acting as your agent to attempt to retrieve the money from the original bank, and you are responsible if the check is fraudulent. Otherwise, the bank would have to contact every originating bank for every check they cash. Way too time consuming, and customers would take their business elsewhere. Anybody can print out or copy a fraudulent cashier's check.

[BobnBev]

Hide the classifieds!!! Should be available to members only.

[Arctic Fox]

I think a bank will only cash a cashier's check immediately if you have an account with them. The bank's position is that they are acting as your agent to attempt to retrieve the money from the original bank, and you are responsible if the check is fraudulent. Otherwise, the bank would have to contact every originating bank for every check they cash. Way too time consuming, and customers would take their business elsewhere. Anybody can print out or copy a fraudulent cashier's check.

but presumably the buyer will be using a cashier's check issued by a bank that is nearby (or that would be very suspicious) so you can go to a branch of that bank and they should be able to tell you there and then whether or not it is fake?

[Lovey2]

I'm not really sure the logistics of it. I think they send you a check for too much, ask you to give the overage to the "mover" and they get the $$ and the item? My guy only offered $50 over and the item was inexpensive ($100), so he wouldn't have gotten much. He did say after I cashed the cashier's check, so I presume the check is fake, and the bank comes back to me for the money. Anyhow, as I said the amount was inconsequential. I'd rather donate the item to charity than get ripped off by some con-man.

[Henryk]

You can cash a cashier's check at the bank,take the money and spend it. The next week the bank will call and say the cashier's check bounced. Now the merchandise you sold and the money are gone.
What good are cashier's checks if the bank does not check them out when you deposit them? I would say it's the banks problem and they have to own up to their mistake.

If you have the check and are trying to deposit it, you've already lost your money. Virtually anyone can fabricate a cashier's check on a decent printer.

[Henryk]

but presumably the buyer will be using a cashier's check issued by a bank that is nearby (or that would be very suspicious) so you can go to a branch of that bank and they should be able to tell you there and then whether or not it is fake?
It's too late. You think the crook will accompany you to the bank? Cash only. And if it's a lot, do it at the police station.

[Arctic Fox]

It's too late. You think the crook will accompany you to the bank? Cash only. And if it's a lot, do it at the police station.

I did say not to hand over the goods until he had accompanied you to the bank, so you haven't lost out. I suspect he will refuse, so you note his car license number and report him to the police. Once they receive several such reports they will follow up, so either the crook gets nailed or he wises up the first time and moves on.

Just pointing out the scam on TOTV only alerts those of us who read the post. Actually doing something about it would help everyone in The Villages trying to sell items.

[TheDude]

Sorry TOTV, but do not trust this place for items. Most people are good, but no one is vetted so there are always scammers. be safe.

[Laf4574]

Same here just last week.

[claricecolin]

I think I have said before this a very common scam unless you are in a closed group. I often sell items for my clients and I have potential buyers contact me. There was a close call once when a client almost went for the scam they were excited about getting more money than was asked. I said why would someone want to pay more without even seeing the item; then in clicked. My rules for my clients is cash only sales and I have to talk to person. You have to ask yourself does this make sense and trust your instincts.

[Arctic Fox]

If you only want to sell to fellow Villagers you can always ask to see their Villages ID card

[TOTV Team]

You have to be a registered user on TOTV to contact a seller.

We do not recommend putting your contact info in the body of the ad, but use only the contact fields. If you do this then ONLY registered users on the site can contact you.

If you put an email or phone number in the body of any ad on any site then it is exposed to anyone to contact you.

Regards,

TOTV Team