As you all know, I love love love Poshmark!! It’s been fun for me to sell to other people and make a little money on the side doing it. However, anytime you have a lot of greatness going on, there are bound to be a small population of bad apples attempting to spoil the whole bunch.

Most of my buyers have been absolutely top notch and thankfully I have never been at the receiving end of what I would call a scam. However, recently I had a close encounter with the sketchy kind. The situation led me to vent and voice how I have handled, what I learned, and tips to help my fellow Posh sellers. I hope to use this post to help us all be more shrewd in our dealings and keep the fun alive. Hang on, it’s about to get deep!

***Let me first preface that people who choose to scam make a bad name for a fun place like Posh. Poshmark will protect sellers in some cases, but I also want to find ways to help myself.***

So the scenario went like this:

The buyer had submitted an offer on my item and we tethered back and forth until finding a price we both agreed on. Minutes after accepting the final offer I see a note from the buyer that they used the wrong card and asked if I could cancel the order so they could buy with a different card.

I didn’t hugely mind since I’m not ever in a hurry to sell so I agreed to it. I recreated the listing fully aware the buyer might just walk away and I gave them a potential out. Thankfully they did repurchase and I promptly wrapped the package and dropped it off at the post.

About an hour later I log back in to let the buyer know the package is on its way to only to be met with a string of old messages from the buyer once again requesting me to cancel for the second time!

At this point there’s nothing I can do since the package is no longer in my possession and it isn’t officially tracking by usps. I immediately respond with an update to the buyer and Posh to see if anything can be done.

While waiting for a response from Posh, things get even more odd due to the slew of excuses as to why the cancel is needed by the buyer. There is also a request that maybe I should cancel anyway so they can be refunded and they state they will send my package as soon as it’s received by them. I’m no Einstein, but cancelling an item without it physically present sounds like a bad call and of course I decline that option.

While still waiting to hear from Posh the buyer suggests they will just open a case and “find something wrong” so they can still return. At this point I’m quite upset because that would make me look like a shady seller and I am certainly not! I respond that I don’t think that’s a good idea and I’ll let them know as soon as I hear from Posh.

On the day usps had marked my item as “delivered”, the buyer made a claim they did not receive the item and I get an email from Posh that they are working on the issue and looking into it. *I must note that at this point I am hugely skeptical that the buyer is being truthful seeing as how up until now some very odd behavior has been going on.

All in all the buyer, after first claiming to have not received the package, must have eventually found it and marked it as accepted. I’m not sure if Posh took over or urged them to look harder, but the entire experience left me wanting to give some tips about how to avoid getting involved in shady dealings and scams.

Here are some quick tips on how to handle and in some cases avoid bad buys:

1. Allow the regular transaction window to pass before shipping an item. On regular purchases (items that are not negotiated), there is a 3 hour window where the buyer is able to cancel if they choose. Allow this time to pass before actually dropping the package at the post office. I’ve heard of buyers cancelling while a package is in this gray area window causing the item to still be shipped to them. What ends up happening is the buyer receives the free item (unless they chose to return of their own merit) and they get their money refunded back. The seller will have to contact Poshmark and explain what happened and get their funds.

2. Check out who you’re selling to. Look at the Posher’s “About Me” and the comments made on items they’ve sold. Are you seeing a lot of drama? Are they repeatedly shipping late or having issues? Are they selling fakes or taking transactions offline? All these are red flags that this might be a buyer you don’t want to get involved with and maybe someone you want to avoid selling to. I’d rather wait and sell to someone who is going to make the process simple rather than get involved in drama for a sell.

3. Send each item per tracking number given. Sometimes shady buyers will purchase multiple items from your closet but not bundle. This will cause multiple shipping labels to be sent to your email. Then what can happen is they might request you send everything in one box and they will claim the other items as “Not Shipped” even though technically it was shipped.

4. Videotape high dollar items or bundles as you wrap and take them to the post. I do this for every item over $50 in my closet. This is just my own insurance policy for peace of mind. That way any claims about condition can be proven accurate just in case.

5. Keep Posh involved! The moment I sensed something fishy with my buyer, I got Posh involved. I sent a note explaining what was happening and asked what to do. It’s a lot easier to let Posh handle things that are starting to get messy.

6. Videotape the receipt and opening of returned packages!!! I cannot stress this enough. Let’s say a case is opened by the buyer and Posh sides with them about the item and they are to send it back to you. It’s in your best interest to video yourself opening the package to make 100% sure it is what you sent. Also, if it’s not what you sent, you have absolute video proof.

7. Potentially ward off scammers in the first place by including your own personal safety measures in your “About Me” listing. This is a proactive approach I’m probably going to end up using now that my following is larger. This is helpful to let everyone know you’re a serious seller and you take precautions with every sell. Who knows, that might just be enough to make a potential bad buyer not even fool with you.

Well there you have it, several tips on how to potentially avoid scammers and ward off bad buyers. I hope this has been educational and helpful. And just as a quick note, I did get my full payment for this sale. As always, thoughts, comments, and questions welcomed! Until next time, happy Poshing 😃