Ebay Deceptions
Updated 5/10

If you see a scam on ebay let us know. We will investigate.

Seller ID =golden-hoarde- Status = Active

I have recieved several letters about Golden Hoarde, this one is typical...

I wanted to inform you of my experience with golden-hoarde.

I followed your procedure and contacted the seller (Golden-hoarde) on another item (140388414181). They asked me to send back the stamp (a 10-cent supposed imperforate US stamp, but it is almost likely a 10-cent perforated that was cut down - the three pearls were missing). A stamp expert looked at my pictures and stated it is definitely a cut #35. I sent it back around 2 April 2010. They received by 11 April 2010 and asked for some time to review it (3 weeks). Of course this took it past the time window for me to open a case. They still have not rectified it. I have just now asked them to rectify my original query.

I have all the original correspondence to and from them. Additionally, eBay felt qualified to give them a "Top-rated seller" rating - it continues at this time. You should therefore be willing to look into this matter more closely. I followed your procedures, was a willing buyer on eBay, but now it appears that I am "too late."

I have retained all correspondence with this seller.

Seller ID = - Status = Active

Discovered by Bill Boender

Look at his feedback as seller and the items sold. Every item he has sold is the same Special Delivery scam. He has only succeeded twice in duping the innocent, but he keeps on trying.

All are newer Rotary Press cheap items listed as old high value Flat Plates and he ignores emails to him highlighting this.

An example of the listing is shown below. 

The block being sold by the scammer is actualy E15
The retail value is approximately $2

E15 is a ROTARY press printing and can be easily identified by the
11 x 10 1/2 perforations. An example of E12 is shown below

E12 is a FLAT press printing and is easily identified by the
11 x 11 perforations. It's retail value is $100.

It should be noted that the scammer also does with E13 and E16, the 15c
Orange Special Delivery. Listing and selling E16's as E13's. These
two stamps share the same difference in perforations.

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Seller ID = - Status = Active

Discoveries by Bill Boender and Ray Carr

STORY #1

I constantly warn against purchasing high value perf variation stamps when the same design was made in either a coil or an imperf. In fact many of my listings will state certificate required. Well here is a smart buyer, after purchasing a stamp from a dealer on ebay that has a feedback higher than 99% (you would think that would be good, would'nt you?) he thought that he should at least double check it. Readers of this web site will know about my tales of caution with Ruby Stamps, and this gentleman heeded them. So he submitted the stamp for a certificate and lo and behold, it is a fake. The buyer wrote to Ruby Stamps with a copy of the certificate requesting a refund, and as I so often here the refund was refused. Although ebay has a policy against selling faked items it is inexcusable that their top stamp seller is consistantly allowed to break this rule.

STORY #2

There has been no proofs issued on cards for the last fifty years, yet Ruby Stamps claims to have found one, and it could be yours, all for the humble price of $39.99. On closer examination of the stamp (shown below) you can see the impression is not the best, you can even see perforations on the proof. Quite the bargain.

There is a small chance that this is in fact a photocopy of a block of #1622 that has been pasted to a piece of card. Two emails to Rubystamps and they stubbornly refuse to concede, that maybe all is not what is seems.


An example of the listing is shown below. 

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Seller ID = Unknown

There are only two 85A's, the most famous grill of all, a 1c Z grill. Only one of them is not in a museum and it is insured for two million dollars. The insurance company may be interested to know that it found its way into a rather rubbish general US collection sold by a seller on ebay in late March. Not only did the seller show the stamp, but displayed a large image of the back of the stamp showing the correct Z grill. This cannot really be called a scam, as it is a joke to attempt to sell a $2,000,000 stamp on ebay. But it does illustrate that one should check before buying, even the most experienced seller can miss one!


An example of the listing is shown below. 

Seller ID = - Status = Active

Discovered by John White

Classic to his method, the top item (shown below) is a ‘legit’ Glen Cachets FDC, while the other three are his clipart Add-On cachets.  And his description about the add-ons?: " Some are beautiful add on cachets very attractively done". That would include the fake cancels. Ebays policy is to clearly mark Fake items with the words to that effect, indelibly on the item so they cannot be removed.

An example of the listing is shown below.