ChickenStick Rick

My Feedback: (674)

Hey Guys,
Just got scammed by a guy in the marketplace. I paid him by USPS money order. Does anyone know how to file a mail fraud claim against someone like this. I know it is a felony, but how do you go about trying to get it done. Or am I just spinning my wheels? Thanks for any help.

CSR

Josey Wales

My Feedback: (61)

That sucks..can you tell us who it is so we dont get ripped off either...if not can you PM the name to me ? I buy/sell a lot and dont want to deal with someone like this...

kerrydel

My Feedback: (2)

You might try the USPS web site.

[link=http://www.usps.com/missingmoneyorders/welcome.htm]http://www.usps.com/missingmoneyorders/welcome.htm[/link]

Kerry

Tired Old Man

My Feedback: (1)

Take the copy of your money order and go down to the local post office. They will correctly direct you from there. It will be a long process, but may eventually work. Also take any other documentation that you may have. Make copies, don't take originals with the exception of the M/O copy. Keep a copy of that for your records. Anything that you leave with the post office you should get a name and signature for.

MikeL

My Feedback: (3)

Sometimes making the other party aware that you're intent on pursuing a mail fraud claim perks them up and motivates them. Write them a nice note, suggesting that they have their documentation well-prepared and their ducks in a row--just as you do. Offer the opportunity to make things right. If they don't take it, follow up.

I had to do that with a gal last month over a text book order. She was giving me the run around and making a great many excuses. Once I explained to her that my patience had come to an end and laid out how I intended to go about things... her tune changed. I had my refund the next day.

DavidAgar

My Feedback: (108)

If you made your offer using the RCU market place tools, you can rate the seller so that other members are aware of the person and will not buy from them again. Also let RCU Market Place moderator JWN know and they can lock the seller out of RCU. You can also contact the local police where this person lives and the FBI has an internet fraud unit that you can file a claim with. As Mike pointed out, all of this is very time consuming and if the seller had fraud in mind from the start, you can assume that your money is lost. Good Luck, Dave

hotrod_2wd trucks

sorry to hear this man i had this happen on ebay and just notified ebay who the person was and they took care of it for me and within 2 wks i had my purchase in my hands good luck on ur bad luck

jettstarblue

So, who was it?

BigSkyRCFlyer

My Feedback: (36)

Go to the post office as Silversurfer said, it works! I live in Montana, near a decent size town, but still small to many. We actually had a guy sell a fake item on Ebay here in this town, and the buyer in New York if memory serves me correctly ,filed a claim. The seller ended up going to court and got convicted for the crime. I do know the article in the local newspaper said the gentleman (buyer) called authorities here, and the DA was all over it. Don't give up! Scum like this needs to be brought to justice! Good Luck with your case!

Deadeye

Not meaning to hijack the thread, but Mark (BigSkyRC Flyer), HEY!!!! I need your new contact info so I can get you back on the club emailer!!! I've got some old friends that are nuts about the heli's! Gimme a call, bud.

LANNYBOB

SO WHO WAS IT?

DavidAgar

My Feedback: (108)

As a reminder, it is against the rules of RCU to name names in the discussion forums. Thanks Dave

ChickenStick Rick

My Feedback: (674)

Yes, I have only sent the name in private to those who asked.

NdFrSpeed

My Feedback: (1)

Yes and thats excactly whats wrong with RCU,,somebody gets ripped off and you cant worn the others..



NdFrSpeed

depfife

My Feedback: (14)

RCU encourages members to notify others of bad deals, but it needs to be done through the tools provided in the Marketplace, not in the discussion forums. In the days before the Marketplace, when selling was done in the forums, RCU had a forum called The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. It was dedicated to posting feedback and was a nightmare to moderate. In addition to the legitimate praise and warnings posted, there was a good bit of fiction.

If anyone has a suggestion on improvements to the system RCU has for leaving karma/feedback on deals in the Marketplace, we are always interested in a better mousetrap. In fact RCU has a SUGGESTIONS forum for just such things. http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/forumid_47/tt.htm

LSF2298

My Feedback: (4)

nightmare to moderate

"Many things worthwhile are difficult to accomplish"

MikeL

My Feedback: (3)

It's not as simple as it might appear at first. Sometimes "fraud" is a person being slow about communicating, or having events that are out of their control take place in their lives. Many bad deals aren't so much intentional as they are by happenstance--the item wasn't quite as NIB as the ad said, the MO turned out to be a personal check, the shipping didn't get done because that was a particularly bad week at work. The reason I mention these sorts of things is that with a little outside assistance they can sometimes be resolved to everyone's satisfaction.

When someone feels that a deal has gone south, they might be a bit quick to post in a GBU-type forum. Naturally the fellow on the other end of the deal has some sort of mitigating circumstance and doesn't want his name and reputation damaged. Feelings harden, and what would be reasonable compromises and resolutions become deals gone bad because of insults (real or perceived) and pride.

That's the sort of stuff depfife is talking about when he says GBU forums are a nightmare to moderate. It's my belief that a GBU forum can actually increase the number of deals gone bad, due to emotions getting involved as I mentioned above.

It is definitely not easy. Keep in mind that the RCU guys who are trying to help people get these things resolved are volunteers, too. Good guys trying their best to help out.

jettstarblue

Nappy time!