Worried I may have been scammed

I buy and sell a lot on these forums and have never had any problems, till now.

Two weeks ago I purchased two RX 480s from a member here. (VRT)

I purchased the two cards on Friday (the 2nd). At the time of purchase I was told that the cards would go out the following Monday.

Monday comes around, but no word. Tuesday, still nothing. I sent him some messages, but he never responded. It didnt even look like he had logged in since Saturday (the 3rd).

Later on in the week I was contacted by another [H] member. This person also purchased some hardware from the seller and also hadnt heard anything.

Apparently this member had bought some items from the seller, which arrived on memorial day as described. (So thats good right?) The [H] member then bought more hardware from the seller, which has not been received.

This forum member was able to get the seller on the phone. He was then told that the seller got into an accident, and would ship both his and my hardware on Friday or by Monday (today)

This weekend I was contacted by another [H] member. Same story, they had purchased parts from seller, but heard nothing for a whole week.

The member with sellers phone number has tried contacting seller again, but nothing.

The worst thing is that I paid using google wallet.., so im not even sure I have any kind of recourse.

I'm hoping seller ships the cards but.., idk.., it just does not lopk good.

What should I do if seller doesnt come through? Am i screwed?

I'll call my bank first thing in the morning. Hopefully they can do something.

Still have heard nothing from him

I made a trade with this same person... no response at all. My part of the trade was delivered on the 9th.

It's been almost 2 weeks since this trade initiated, so I think it's time to put this person's name out there.
if they have a legitimate reason for the delay,(the accident) they can explain it here if need be and if they don't, you can help other members to not get caught up in this potential mess.

Without releasing the seller's name ... how does their Heat look? Things happen and it is quite possible that they are out of action ATM. If their Heat is good/great and something like this happens it usually means a "life event" occurred that precluded them from shipping in a timely manner. As for using Google Wallet ... I've passed on some great deals here and on other forums because the seller dealt only through GW. As much as I dislike PP as a seller I would use nothing else as a buyer.

Good luck ...

harddud said:

Without releasing the seller's name ... how does their Heat look? Things happen and it is quite possible that they are out of action ATM.

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It's a 2 months old account with 3 positive evals..

They also have not signed onto the forum in 8 days.....not very confidence inspiring in my book.

Crosshairs said:

It's been almost 2 weeks since this trade initiated, so I think it's time to put this person's name out there.
if they have a legitimate reason for the delay,(the accident) they can explain it here if need be and if they don't, you can help other members to not get caught up in this potential mess.

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Fair enough. The seller im dealing with is VRT.

As stated, he only has a few evals on his heat. He's been a member of these forums for almost one year. I probably shouldn't have done business with someone with such low heat, I just figured you have to start somewhere.

The only reason im slightly still optimistic is because I have another member telling me VRT shipped him 6 cpus and several sets of memory. I don't know why he would do that if he is a scammer.

Talking to VRT before the purchase made him seem like a good guy. He was freindly, and convinced me to use google wallet because he "had been burned by paypal in the past"

I just got his number from the member who talked to him on the phone. I'll try calling him today.

Crosshairs said:

It's a 2 months old account with 3 positive evals..

They also have not signed onto the forum in 8 days.....not very confidence inspiring in my book.

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Wow, just wow. Paying via Google wallet to an established trader is one thing ... but using it for a new seller with little/no rep is a huge risk.

Ouch ...

Thanks Crosshairs for the info.

tacohunter52 said:

Fair enough. The seller im dealing with is VRT.

As stated, he only has a few evals on his heat. He's been a member of these forums for almost one year. I probably shouldn't have done business with someone with such low heat, I just figured you have to start somewhere.

The only reason im slightly still optimistic is because I have another member telling me VRT shipped him 6 cpus and several sets of memory. I don't know why he would do that if he is a scammer.

Talking to VRT before the purchase made him seem like a good guy. He was freindly, and convinced me to use google wallet because he "had been burned by paypal in the past"

I just got his number from the member who talked to him on the phone. I'll try calling him today.

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He very well may be a stand up guy that is dealing with actual problems that prevent him from shipping......and hopefully that's all it is.

I'm assuming you paid a nice little chunk of change for 2 480's. I certainly hope everything works out in your favor. Good luck, bro : )

I'm really hoping he comes through and this is all just a fluke. Otherwise I'm out two SSDs. :|

Crosshairs said:

He very well may be a stand up guy that is dealing with actual problems that prevent him from shipping......and hopefully that's all it is.

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I want to give an update on this since I'm one of the people affected as well and referenced in the intro post by tacohunter52 and also made a big purchase that hasn't arrived

(FYI, My heatware is 128-0 and I have another 148 trades over at reddit hardwareswap, where I mod)

Anyways I initially purchased 2x i7-7700 and 4x i5-6400 and some ram all together in 1 bundle about 3 weeks back. They all shipped promptly and arrived as described.

He never took more than a few hours to respond by pm and would text/call often as well.

I don't do larger deals without getting a real cell phone number and speaking to someone as a rule... maybe I'm just old fashioned being an older member but it helps me feel out people.

We had spoken for a while and he had asked some medical advice from me as well for some health issues in the past (i'm a doctor)... anyways i placed another large order for processors from him (sizable $) almost the same time as tacohunter52 purchased some rx480s and Reanimation_LP purchased 2x ssds.

When he stopped responding over the weekend I tried to figure out who else he had sold to:

https://hardforum.com/threads/selli...of-stuff-2xrx480-8gb.1929402/#post-1043046268

And have kept tacohunter52 in the loop and shared everything i had with him as well.

So anyways.

From what he had told me, he was a department of defense contractor and I was actually easily able to confirm that as well with the company he worked for by checking his work email etc and matching things up.

So to be honest I was pretty sure he was just sick or something bad had happened to him. This wasn't some random teenager, I've checked up on him thoroughly and he's well established and in his 40s and very well educated.

Anyways... the weekend he stopped responding i called several times and got no answer. Everyday i tried a few times and got worried because he had already told me he was dealing with some health issues.

On Tuesday his wife finally picked up his phone, said he's really sick and she would have him call or contact me as soon as possible.

Nothing for 2 more days. Then on Thursday when I called, he picked up and sounded like he just got hit by a truck. Said to not worry and he would have everything out for not just me but everyone else very soon and he was just really sick.

Got nothing for several more days.

This morning i finally got a text message from him from a different cell. He told me he went out after Thursday when he felt slightly better and collapsed while going out, someone stole his laptop bag and cell when he collapsed and he was hospitalized and everything he had was secured with 2 step verification and because he had his laptop and cell missing he was having issues getting into anything. He also said he will be back shortly and provide tracking numbers.

So heres to hoping i get another update soon.

But that's where we are at, at the moment.

From what I can tell and from my experience modding at hardwareswap, I honestly do feel it was just him getting really sick and being hospitalized. I mean shit happens sometimes.
But yea. Hopefully this is all resolved soon.

Well real life does happen. Not saying I believe 100% that he's just deathly ill, but I try my hardest to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. Let's hope it's just health issues... that he gets better and all of this gets sorted out amicably

usyed1 said:

But that's where we are at, at the moment.

From what I can tell and from my experience modding at hardwareswap, I honestly do feel it was just him getting really sick and being hospitalized. I mean shit happens sometimes.
But yea. Hopefully this is all resolved soon.

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Wow, just wow.

To clarify I was trading two 480GB SSDs for 2 4x8GB 32GB DDR3 kits.

Hope he makes a speedy recovery.

Thank you for the info usyed1.
I have dealt you with many times and you are always top notch in your communication.

I would trust your judgement, and if you say you have been in some contact, I believe you and believe the guy is having a hard time of it.
As someone who had a health issue pop up out of no where, I can sympathize.

Also, not too many people would sell 2x i7-7700 and 4x i5-6400, and after that deal was complete, turn shady. Not saying it hasn't happened, but it is rare.

Hopefully he can at least post somehow so people know their stuff is just delayed, and it was just real life getting in the way.

Its been two days since he told usyed1 that he would update us with tracking. I still have heard nothing

My bank is also not being very helpful...

Crosshairs tacohunter52 Reanimation_LP

I want to give a futher update. VRT texted me multiple times and called me on his own today. We spoke in detail. He's still dealing with serious health issues but he is well enough to get everything out in the next few days.

He spoke to me in a lot of detail and at length for over an hour on the phone and I am satisfied and confident that we (the 3 people that had orders with him) will have everything very soon.

Real life stuff happens sometimes, and medical issues can arise unexpectedly for anyone. Sometimes it can be deathly serious.

Last year I had 3 emergency surgeries for my kidneys within the space of 72 hours, I thank god that I didn't have any pending sales to attend to at that time because I would have been in this same scenario and quite possibly for much longer.

Looks like this will be resolved very shortly.

VRT said he will be responding back to this thread and to everyone very soon and will have everything out with tracking in the next few days.

Greetings, I am not taking this light hearted. First, I am sorry for any confusion, problems etc. this is not a complete post but to say I am alive.

I pretty much just returned yesterday back home. In under 14 days I have been hospitalized twice, and I am still out of it due to meds and not full. I thank you for understanding and you have to pardon me if I am a bit out of it. Just part of the medication that I am on is the absolute maximum dose of narcotics that one can take(over what is recommended). I am not supposed to drive among some other things once of which is any work until farther notice, which it looks like I am going to be in the territory of 90 days. Some of this is caused by stubbornness and/or stupidity I am not the type of person to run to the Doc and truly believe in a saying of you only need to go to the hospital when you are dead. I was raised by my grandparents, while my grandfather was an executive he was also a farm boy and we owned a large farm only about 20 miles from a hospital that the doc on the weekends had to be called if you went to the ER. The only real ER ready to go was 100 miles away. I am not trying to explain myself but hey what ever.

I will update Monday or Tuesday, I may try to play post or surf but I am going downhill quick, I had a test this afternoon, I couldn't take medication at all before taking it. I got home about 30-45 minutes ago, and had been told that I had kind of and this was un-intentional by me in every way had put someone on the spot, and I am truly sorry that I did that to usyed1. I didn't even know until today that he had posted that, I didn't ask him to post it. He semi knows my medical history because after speaking to him on the phone, I had a true concern about a medicine chance that a doctor here in Vegas had made. I also must say this, anyone that knows Vegas medical will know that it is a pure trash medical system. Coming from another area of the country that has a top level medical center just going in for aspirin scares me.

Here is the long story short, I didn't like the care I was getting got scared when I was in a hospital and basically left without giving a shet nor caring what they said. I relocated to where I knew there were good drs. I was walking, the only thing I had on me was a backpack that had my small mb, my iPhone, my iPad. I do not have all of the details yet but from the report and what a friend found out I collapsed and some jerk took said backpack leaving me rolling on the floor not saying a word just ran out of the building. I was taken in an ambulance this time to a hospital, LUCKILY I had a credit card in my money clip, and when they registered me my primary care physician was notified and moved me properly.

Ok, so I recover(and not fully, just where I am getting coherent), I am going nuts because. I didn't have my ID, iPhone(And they wouldn't give me another because of no id), iPad, MacBook. I knew I had outstanding stuff, which I couldn't get to, my friend went and bought me a cell phone, brought me some cash, a chrome book which I quickly broke. Let me give you a hint. HAVE ONE ACCOUNT THAT YOU CAN RESET YOUR ACCOUNTS WITHOUT TFA! Having Last Pass with TFA is a great thing, due to my work I must run TFA! The only manual password that I really know is my Lastpass and it is TFA, along with everything else.

If you want to try an exercise in humility, no id, no phone, all accounts on TFA, also with randomized passwords, and be very far from home.

Lastly, calling someone 4-5 times in under 5 minutes without leaving a message is BULL****! And you wonder why I texted you I am blocking you and I will talk to you later! I was in a Doctors office having more tests done because they still don't know exactly what has happened, when you get that sense of mortality you could give a shit less for a few days.

Well one more thing.

If you want to tear me apart feel free! But as for now I have ran out of juice and really don't feel like rambling because I am mentally out of it and this post has taken me over 45 minutes or so to write.

FYI:

This is a lot of the reasons that my spares that I can't reuse for clients I do not post on eBay, Amazon, and will no longer post here unless I know the people.

I would rather just sell the 10 procs a week we have spare, video cards etc as a bulk lot to one person, even if I get 50% less.

I can't deal with this stress sorry guys.

I run a small consulting company, some of my contracts are with companies, in which I will have a bill outstanding every time for at least 60 days if not 180 days. Most of this sale money ends up with trips me and my boys take, our Christmas party and bonuses.

I feel compelled to comment that you chose to begin selling to individuals on here. They have no way of knowing that you may go missing for extended periods due to health concerns. You have to understand that they thought they where being taken for large sums of cash! I'm absolutely certain that these individuals will retract any previous comments that may have been rude... just as I'm certain that they will feel horrible for hounding your phone number! But to return and so vehemently chide them for their actions is quite uncalled for! That being said: I'm thinking that maybe you should rest up a little longer, heal up a little more and return when your heads a little clearer. I'm sure you are on a lot of meds and this whole ordeal has taken a lot out of you. Get well soon : )

I don't have any past dealings with VRT. This situation does prove that human nature - wanting to trust people - can lead quickly into anger, paranoia, and distrust.

It seems that this VRT chap is being honest. And that's great. But I'm sure that many people have been scammed on HardOCP over the years.

What have been the results in the past? I mean serious offenders. How could somebody like that play HardOCP to the point where they are pilfering thousands of dollars?


Just curious.

I just reread my post above. I didn't mean to imply that getting scammed should get you labeled as gullible. We all want to be able to trust.

Not sure how to respond to this. Sorry to hear about your health issues, I'm glad to see you posting again as well.

I'm sure you can understand where I'm coming from as well, because until you posted in this thread I had not heard anything since sending you your money. Can be a little nerve racking.

Anyway, I'll await your update.

Even after the update, this doesn't pass the smell test.

I still believe "this person", however, I suggest everyone just ask for refund at this point, as it should be easier for the seller to hit a few buttons and send the money back to each buyer then to try and pack and ship everything.
Just my .02

tacohunter52 said:

Not sure how to respond to this. Sorry to hear about your health issues, I'm glad to see you posting again as well.

I'm sure you can understand where I'm coming from as well, because until you posted in this thread I had not heard anything since sending you your money. Can be a little nerve racking.

Anyway, I'll await your update.

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Thanks, I will be in touch tomorrow afternoon or Tuesday with what you would like for me to do. I will drop a PM.

DPOSCORP said:

I still believe him, however, I suggest everyone just ask for refund at this, as it should be easier for the seller to hit a few buttons and send the money back to each buyer then to try and pack and ship everything.
Just my .02

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Thanks, I will give the option. How do you know I am a he, not an it or a she?

Reanimation_LP said:

To clarify I was trading two 480GB SSDs for 2 4x8GB 32GB DDR3 kits.

Hope he makes a speedy recovery.

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I saw the package for the drives, haven't even opened them. Will drop you a PM.

FYI: I will be away until either very late today or tomorrow.

VRT said:

Thanks, I will give the option. How do you know I am a he, not an it or a she?

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LOL fixed

Just to update everyone, My Cards did finally show up today. Both work and arrived as described.