Giving out Serial Number on Ebay?

[djs1934]

Morning from the UK!

Quick question. I am selling a Rolex on ebay and someone has asked me for the Serial Number. I have only given the first four letter and numbers on ebay as I was wary of putting the whole number on there. Am I OK to give this out to a prospective buyer?

Very many thanks in advance.

Bit more info... He writes:

"is it possible to have the serial number so i can check it out with rolex? "

[Sub4Life]

Originally Posted by djs1934

Bit more info... He writes:

"is it possible to have the serial number so i can check it out with rolex? "

FYI: From what I've read here on the forums, Rolex will not verify serial numbers. I would personally not disclose the number due to scamming. YMMV and good luck.

[djs1934]

THANK YOU. I thought it might be a bad idea. Great to have it confirmed :-)

Must admit that I am finding selling this watch rather scary due to the small risks of being scammed!

[Sub4Life]

Originally Posted by djs1934

THANK YOU. I thought it might be a bad idea. Great to have it confirmed :-)

Must admit that I am finding selling this watch rather scary due to the small risks of being scammed!

I'd stay away from using paypal and would only accept a wire transfer or meet at a bank or at a rolex dealer to sell. I would not even take a cashiers check.

[djs1934]

OK. This is now a little worrying as I have specified PayPal is OK on the listing. I guess as the auction hasn't ended I can amend this to say transfer only. But why no Paypal? As for cash, that too could be dodgy and I would need to see it come from a bank, as you suggest.

It's giving me sleepless nights!!!!

Thank you for your help. Really do appreciate it.

OK, have amended listing to say payment via Bank Transfer unless alternative method agreed prior to listing ending ;-)

Sorry everyone! Me again!

The other thing is that I have had a few offers. It is getting confusing. I am guessing that I should ignore these and wait until the Auction is over? and that this is a good sign the watch will sell?

[joseluu]

Don´t be overparanoid.

Thousands of things sell everyday on ebay without a problem. Just be careful. Document your watch before you send it with pictures (good) from all angles so you can prove your watch is genuine. The most common scam by far is the buyer pretending that the watch you sent is fake.

[djs1934]

Thank you joseluu. Will take those photos as you suggest. Many apologies for being a bit wet, I know that I am being exactly that ;-)

[77T]

If you are new to selling on eBay, a Rolex is not your best item for a first listing. There are many doubters of a seller who has low feedback selling Rolex on eBay - so you'll get challenges, weird offers, strange questions, etc.

Then there are payment scams, shipments "lost" and other issues.

My best advice is to consider the eventual buyer's reputation before you complete a transaction. If he/she has excellent track record maybe not a problem - but if Zero Feedback from a country without reciprocal legal standing with the UK then be very careful.

[Speed]

You could also sell to a local dealer. You may not pocket as much money, but much more peace of mind.

[Armyguy03]

I sold a Seiko on eBay and the winner decided to attempt to say the package was not delivered. Silly him, I went to the USPS office and got a print out stating the exact time the package was delivered. I emailed him back, providing the information, and his response: "Oh, I got it, thanks for checking." Still havent recieved any feedback from the excellent sale. Some people will try ANYTHING. Sad really when you think of the bigger picture. However, I have sold, and purchased other things on eBay, to include my last Rolex without a hitch. I am partial to doing cash only transactions unless I can physically see, touch, and have the item inspected. Harder to get back cash, than a CC transaction.

[Speed]

Ouch. Have only purchased off eBay 3 times. Never had the nerve to sell.

[joseluu]

Originally Posted by Speed

Ouch. Have only purchased off eBay 3 times. Never had the nerve to sell.

There are people with hundreds or even thousands of sales (even expensive watches). It it was so terrible no one would have gone that far.

[Spunga]

Just indicate a six digit serial as 214XXX or seven digit as 2145XXX.

If matching this with papers showing the same serial, show the numbers on the certificate omitting the last three digits.

Rolex won't indulged anybody to check a serial, although there are databases that some commercial buyers/sellers (and private buyers/sellers) can use to check for registered stolen watches, in this instance it could be valid reason to ask for the full serial, but that is not a common request and normally would be exercised by the buyer after the transaction under the protection of the PayPal protection scheme.

There is no easier way to launder money than paying by cash. Electronic fund transfers, direct wired, PayPal or Escrow give some safeguards against this.

If your watch sells for more than 10K GBP, then payment by PayPal is not possible and wired transfer would be the best option.

[rmfnla]

Originally Posted by Sub4Life

I'd stay away from using paypal and would only accept a wire transfer or meet at a bank or at a rolex dealer to sell. I would not even take a cashiers check.

Wire transfers are scammers' favorite way to get paid because the funds cannot be traced or recovered once they have been collected.

ebay and PayPal have numerous guarantees in place that protect both buyer and seller. I have bought and sold LOTS on ebay; there have been a few snags and their protection policies have come through on every one one.

I know it's popular to bash ebay on TRF but if you use a little common sense and don't get greedy (as in, If it sounds too good to be true...) you will do just fine.

[aardvarkbark]

Originally Posted by djs1934

Bit more info... He writes:

"is it possible to have the serial number so i can check it out with rolex? "

I should think that a reasonable concern by the prospective buyer is whether the watch has been reported as stolen and whether it is a legitimate Rolex, both for which he'd need the serial #. I've only purchased one Rolex off ebay and the seller was offering full refund if not as represented. So I asked him if he was the original owner and to confirm it was a 100% genuine Rolex, which he did. I then obtained a 7-day return period and used that time to confirm these with Rolex once I had the watch and the complete serial #. I live in Dallas, so could walk into the RSC and have that done within 20 minutes, but don't know how easy it would be to obtain that info otherwise. Maybe offer the same terms to your prospective buyer if this is his concern, especially, as already noted, with your limited sales history and feedback.

[Roma315]

Watch out with paypal from some countries and buyers, check their ebay rating, and paypal if available. When in doubt don't sell

[Speed]

Originally Posted by joseluu

There are people with hundreds or even thousands of sales (even expensive watches). It it was so terrible no one would have gone that far.

Understood. Lott of business being done. Just not for me.

Too much to go awry for a watch sale IMO.

[KnitScarf07]

Originally Posted by djs1934

OK. This is now a little worrying as I have specified PayPal is OK on the listing. I guess as the auction hasn't ended I can amend this to say transfer only. But why no Paypal? As for cash, that too could be dodgy and I would need to see it come from a bank, as you suggest.

I attempted to sell a watch last year and receive payment via paypal. I had a "buyer" lined up and he said he would send me the money via paypal first, then I would mail the watch. I figured this seemed pretty safe so I provided him the link to send me money. A few hours later, I received what appeared to be a very legit email from paypal saying the money had been deposited in my account. I went to check it on the site, and the money wasn't there. I checked the email address and it did say paypal, but it was something like paypal.co/xxxxx something and while it did say paypal, I started to smell something wrong. I called paypal customer service and they verified it was a scam.

That's why I would say perhaps stay away. I was careful and made sure to double and triple check something that appeared to be very legitimate, otherwise I would have been out a watch

[How]

No to showing the full serial number.

You don't want people cloning your watch...

[joseluu]

Originally Posted by KnitScarf07

I attempted to sell a watch last year and receive payment via paypal. I had a "buyer" lined up and he said he would send me the money via paypal first, then I would mail the watch. I figured this seemed pretty safe so I provided him the link to send me money. A few hours later, I received what appeared to be a very legit email from paypal saying the money had been deposited in my account. I went to check it on the site, and the money wasn't there. I checked the email address and it did say paypal, but it was something like paypal.co/xxxxx something and while it did say paypal, I started to smell something wrong. I called paypal customer service and they verified it was a scam.

That's why I would say perhaps stay away. I was careful and made sure to double and triple check something that appeared to be very legitimate, otherwise I would have been out a watch

One never stops learning. We are privileged to be able to attend to this "University" full of the best teachers in one of the subjects of a career called "life".

[james1787]

I bought my one and only Rolex off ebay. The seller had a very low feedback, but the price was enticing. I contacted him before bidding and indicated I was being very cautious, I was very new to the world of Rolex. As I had an established 100% feedback, he put his trust in me and offered to send me the watch BEFORE I paid him so that I could take it to Rolex NY and have it authenticated. The seller lived nowhere near me. The watch was about a year old and essentially brand new. He had only worn it a few times, there wasn't a scratch or a mark on it. I would up paying about $1000 less for it and I've had it the past 12 years. I of course paid him the moment the watch was authenticated (I forget what was the quickest payment form back then). The transaction went well. I'm not so sure I would do it that way again, nor am I sure I'd ever find a seller willing to do that again. I think for Rolex #2 whenever that will be I'll just walk into an AD and buy a new one.. unless lured somewhere by a vintage Rolex..

[joseluu]

Originally Posted by james1787

I bought my one and only Rolex off ebay. The seller had a very low feedback, but the price was enticing. I contacted him before bidding and indicated I was being very cautious, I was very new to the world of Rolex. As I had an established 100% feedback, he put his trust in me and offered to send me the watch BEFORE I paid him so that I could take it to Rolex NY and have it authenticated. The seller lived nowhere near me. The watch was about a year old and essentially brand new. He had only worn it a few times, there wasn't a scratch or a mark on it. I would up paying about $1000 less for it and I've had it the past 12 years. I of course paid him the moment the watch was authenticated (I forget what was the quickest payment form back then). The transaction went well. I'm not so sure I would do it that way again, nor am I sure I'd ever find a seller willing to do that again. I think for Rolex #2 whenever that will be I'll just walk into an AD and buy a new one.. unless lured somewhere by a vintage Rolex..

Well, I guess buying the way you did is even safer than buying from an AD!

[jlc123]

Originally Posted by james1787

I bought my one and only Rolex off ebay. The seller had a very low feedback, but the price was enticing. I contacted him before bidding and indicated I was being very cautious, I was very new to the world of Rolex. As I had an established 100% feedback, he put his trust in me and offered to send me the watch BEFORE I paid him so that I could take it to Rolex NY and have it authenticated. The seller lived nowhere near me. The watch was about a year old and essentially brand new. He had only worn it a few times, there wasn't a scratch or a mark on it. I would up paying about $1000 less for it and I've had it the past 12 years. I of course paid him the moment the watch was authenticated (I forget what was the quickest payment form back then). The transaction went well. I'm not so sure I would do it that way again, nor am I sure I'd ever find a seller willing to do that again. I think for Rolex #2 whenever that will be I'll just walk into an AD and buy a new one.. unless lured somewhere by a vintage Rolex..

I recently did a great trade in which the other guy offered to send me his ~1k watch first so I could examine it. We ended up just sending them simultaneously and it went well, but it shows that there are some VERY trustworthy people out there.

[reecester]

I have sold my IWC, DSSD, on ebay and purchased a rolex from ebay as well. Both were smooth transactions the buyers contacted me before hand to make sure I sent overnight. The only thing I would say is to make sure you package the item properly, bubble wrap, duck etc.

D

[Jsan20]

Trade it to Davidsw he will take care of you.

[T. Ferguson]

Originally Posted by djs1934

OK. ...But why no Paypal?...

From what I understand the problem with paypal from the sellers perspective is there are scamming buyers out there and paypal seems more inclined to side with the buyer since it traditionally is seen as buyer protection.

You can probably provide proof of shipment/signature but if the buyer claims he received a box of marbles and not a watch your money will be tied up until they get to the bottom of it. And it could easily end up your word against theirs, which then becomes a crap shoot.

I'd try some of the trusted sellers on here and see if you can get an acceptable price that way.

[djs1934]

Thank you all so much for your help and advice.

I have sold many items on ebay. Have a 700+ good feedback but this is all from low value (£20 and under) work items. Selling something like a rolex with the high value attached to it is new to me.

Must admit I didn't give it a second thought until I found this forum after listing the watch and then read some horror stories about sellers being scammed! However, that is no bad thing as it has enlightened me and hopefully with your excellent advice I am now going to minimise any risks.

I have put on the listing Bank transfer only unless another method e.g. paypal is agreed prior to listing ending - that way I can hopefully check out any potential buyers and their feedback history and make a more informed decision.

Only 2 days to run. I will let you know how the transaction, if there is one, pans out shall I?

If the watch fails to sell then I will definitely list it on here I think.

Again, thank you all very, very much.