How To Avoid Getting Scammed When Buying Collectibles

Welcome to our comprehensive guide on how to avoid getting scammed when purchasing collectibles. Scammers have become increasingly crafty in the digital age, making it crucial to stay informed and protect yourself. In this video, we will provide you with invaluable tips and insights to ensure a scam-free collectibles buying experience that you can trust.
We acknowledge the rampant fraudulent activities surrounding the collectibles market, which can be disheartening for enthusiasts and collectors alike. However, armed with the right knowledge and precautions, you can confidently navigate through this minefield. From vintage toys to rare memorabilia, we will cover various types of collectibles and the red flags to watch out for.
Join us as we delve into the realm of scams, starting with common tactics used by fraudsters. Discover how deceitful sellers manipulate listing descriptions, fake provenance documents, and counterfeit items. We will help you develop a critical eye to identify these warning signs, empowering you to make informed decisions.
Furthermore, we will explore reliable platforms and reputable sellers who prioritize authenticity and transparency. You'll gain insights into conducting thorough research, verifying seller credibility, and safely completing transactions. We'll introduce you to reliable authentication services, expert appraisers, and trustworthy online marketplaces to enhance your buying confidence.
Our comprehensive guide also addresses practical aspects such as payment methods, secure shipping, and insuring your valuable purchases. With our tips, you'll create a protective shield around your investments, minimizing the risk of falling victim to scams.
Whether you're a seasoned collector or just starting out, this video is a must-watch to safeguard your hard-earned money and keep your collectibles collection scam-free. Don't let scammers taint your passion - empower yourself with knowledge and secure your buying experience today.
Remember, knowledge is your armor against scams. Stay one step ahead of scammers and take full control of your collectibles buying journey. Together, let's build a community that embraces trust, authenticity, and genuine love for collectibles. #collectibles #buyingguide #scamfree #comprehensive #ensuring #youtubevideo #top20 #ranking #mustwatch #collector #trustedbuying #antiques #authenticity #educational #helpful #informative #expertadvice #valuables #protection #knowledgeable

[@AspenKaraZor-El]

This is a very interesting topic. It's always a shame that something that should be fun is derstroyed by people who only want to make fast money. One of the rules that I always tell myself " if a deal seems to good to be true, then 9/10 times it's a scam" And it's a shame, but these of kinds don't only happens on Facebook, there are also sellers with a fully operated webstore who scammed many collectors. It's a shame. And sometimes with a payment trough a banktransfer the buyers are not protected. So indeed always buy with a protected payment. And do you reasearch before you buy. Or only biying direct from the manufacturer. But indeed that is not always possible. But indeed my tips are also: -paypal protection if possible -do you reserach as much as you can -buy as much direct from the manufacturer as possible -if the deal seems to good to be true then step away -if in the conversation you get a bad feeling about the seller then step away -if a second hand statue is too hard to get, don't be sad about it -there is always a new statue on the horizon that you will like even much

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Very good advice across the board!!

[@kaneweatherall]

Toys wonderland are the biggest scammers

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

I've been really sad to hear that people are having trouble getting their money back. So freaking frustrating!

[@dcmarvelunited5529]

They were ok about 2 years ago. I have just filed 6 disputes for preorders with my credit card company. Toyswonderland has stopped responding to my emails and haven't shipped out my orders that's been in stock for over a year

[@jeffteunissen5487]

And I have ordered with them without troubles. But you hear so much complaints about them

[@Fr33climb]

Simplest answer is usually the best…Only buy from the manufactures.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Thats the best way for sure. You can however get some great deals on the used market, just hard to know who to trust

[@user-hx4br8to3q]

That is no guarantee either. Plenty of those have scammed people or gone out of business without giving people their money back.

[@chrislogan4280]

Good advice Chris thanks!

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

My pleasure 🙏

[@paulwalker5005]

Great advice Chris, thankyou.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

ABSOLUTELY

[@EmmanuelDELCOUR]

Awesome that helps a lot

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

I hope it helps a lot of collectors

[@mostndokk1880]

that background is awesome!

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Thank you so much

[@thenamek1351]

I have used Mercari to sell collectibles. I worry about scammers so I avoided FB to sell. I think your ideas are great.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Thank you

[@charlesanthony1532]

How does Mercari work ?Is it like ebay ? How are you protected as a seller and what form of payment do they accept ?

[@thenamek1351]

Mercari is similar to eBay. Buyer gets notified when item is shipped and delivered. Buyer must accept package before payment is released. I have had positive experience with using them as both buyer and seller.

[@thelobs]

Perhaps you could create some rules for selling on Batman buy & sell that could be pinned to the top of the chat group. 1. At least 5 photos with today’s date & name of seller 2. A video showing today’s date and name of seller. 3. Payment by PayPal G&S. Etc. may ensure everyone follows the rules and keep buyers safe.

[@extremegamercollector425]

I agree I sold an anime statue to someone and they asked me for a video and I took a quick 10 second video with my name and date on it. It’s not that hard if you really wanna sell you will do it.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Absolutely 💯

[@charlesanthony1532]

Good video for buying a statue . Did you have any advice or could you do a video about how to sell without getting scammed by electronic payment methods or PayPal asking false claims to get their money back and keeping the statue ?

[@TheRoleplayer40k]

Cash in person basically….

[@shafserious2805]

Takes a second to send a video! Busy is never an excuse!

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Agree 💯

[@MsBLACKSCREEN]

Yep, seen one a week ago, selling the older Hush; using the photos of the piece from Chris/ You old Batcave, said let me send these pictures to Chris and see what He has to say about you using photos from His Channel to try and sell your statue. The post/ ads was gone in minutes. !!😂😂

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Wow that's just crazy!

[@craigwhitley1529]

Yeah, that dude tried to scam me and several other people. I called him out on the fact he was using another member's photos and then he had the gall to photoshop his hand into one of them when he was trying to scam somebody else... As you always say, if the deal looks too good to be true, it probably is... He even made up a fake profile, giving him a good review as a trusted seller and sent me a photo of that as though I would trust that versus asking the group... The one thing that threw me is he did say he was willing to take goods and services paymeant, and I'm not sure if he would have changed that had I not called him out on being a scammer to requesting friends and family or not but I don't see how he would get his money. If I had paid in using goods and services.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Thank you for sharing your experience and warning us about this scammer. It's important for the community to look out for each other and spread awareness. Stay safe and keep collecting those awesome items!

[@ThuyNguyen-ek4pz]

Ive seen that Facebook post and way too many others it making things way too difficult and risky to buy.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Its really sad this is where we are at

[@michaelcallahan6591]

I just got a statue off FB marketplace but it was in person and cash so it ended up working out. Got Thor breaker of brimstone. Dude sold him for 300 but there were minor chips that you can’t really tell. However I realized after the fact that he’s missing one wing on his helmet! I had a friend do the transaction You thing 300 was a good deal on the 700 dollar statue considering the only main damage is that the helmet on has one of the two wings?

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Ah, the classic "hidden wing" scam! At least you can say you got a unique piece of art, right?

[@michaelcallahan6591]

@@BatmanStatueCollector honestly it’s kind of on me. He was honest about a few chips but never mentioned the wing missing. After I looked at all the pics he posted he wasn’t hiding it I just never noticed! So my friend picked it up and noticed after he got it home At least I got it for 60 percent off right??

[@jamesdrake3651]

I have yet to buy a statue on the Facebook groups due to the lack of professionalism of many of the sellers. Many of these guys can't be bothered to take pics of the actual statue they are selling.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Pics used to be enough, but not in 2023!!

[@dickfacealvaro]

Cheap is expensive. Collectors try to save money by not buying on Ebay, and this is what happens.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Exactly

[@Supermanfan99]

I once agreed to buy a statue from a collector on Facebook. I paid via PayPal using goods & services. He immediately refunded me and asked to resend it using friends & family. 🤣

[@dickfacealvaro]

And? Tell the rest of the story.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

If you don't know them or trust, them do not use F&F!

[@Supermanfan99]

@@dickfacealvaro That was it. I didn’t resend it. I’m not an idiot! I asked around and he had scammed another person apparently. The GI Joe Classified groups have a problem with scammers too.

[@moneywastedcollecting]

I think in the group to sell maybe the seller should have to upload a video of themselves showing the statue with something that shows the date, I know it’s kind of a big ask but it verifies the person is the same as the picture and that the statue exists. I will not by secondary without driving the person nuts about a video conference and ton of pics. If you aren’t willing to do that then you lose my money. It’s not like a 20$ action figure it is a lot of money so people should understand the buyer wanting a safe sale.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

That's a great suggestion! It definitely adds an extra layer of security when buying collectibles online. It's important to take precautions to ensure a safe transaction, especially when dealing with higher-priced items.

[@moneywastedcollecting]

@@BatmanStatueCollector Absolutely 💯

[@user-hx4br8to3q]

Anyone know what is going on with Open Vault Collectibles, looks like they just folded

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

That's not good!

[@shafserious2805]

Hope all is well

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Same to you!

[@jorgrtrujillo]

Happy Thanksgiving to all

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Thank you for the kind wishes! Happy Thanksgiving to you as well!

[@InfamyOrDeath-__-]

Scammers are the scum of the earth, stealing from people trying to enjoy a hobby is just horrendously immoral. I only buy from companies, like big bad toy store, Spec, FavorGK, AmiAmi, Solaris. I don’t like buying from a person.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Thank you for the recommendations! It's always helpful to hear from fellow collectors who have found reliable sources for their purchases.

[@BrokeAssCollector]

Ebay people...

[@user-hx4br8to3q]

That is the best place to buy. Both buyer and seller have protections.

[@miragexl007]

Lol. Life is full of scammers/thiefs. I want to sell a lot of my huge collection... But what a pain.. Did a bunch this past Spring? met some nice people. One a little Off. And then of course scammers that just waste time. Did all my transaction in person carried no mailing et cetera. And of course, I'm well protected when I meet people.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

In person is certainly ideal.

[@derekhodges6545]

Considering ordering Ivan Reis Joker 1/3 scale from a company called Eight8Nine..have you heard of these guys before??

[@derekhodges6545]

Just placed my order so I guess we'll see how it goes🤞

[@aricliljegren890]

Any seller with the initials T.W. should be avoided at all costs.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Sounds like it

[@pishposh4506]

That photo was like 4 layers of photoshop. The outdoor backround, the picnic table the statue is sitting on, the statue itself, and the hand holding the paper. If that photo was real and he brought it all the way putside to take a picture a 30 second video should not be a big deal

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Agree 100% a video is not hard to do!

[@ramiedhail7474]

Toys wonderland and heroes collectibles

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

I feel really sorry for collectors stuck in the middle

[@aricliljegren890]

It's really a shame how many scammers there are out there. I've lost nearly a thousand dollars over my ten years of collecting as a buyer and nearly that much again as a seller. That said, demanding videos is also a bigger ask than you let on. Sure, the video is only 10-30 seconds long, but what about all the time to clear a space, unbox it, and set it up? That can be an hour or more - and with each unboxing, you risk damaging the piece. I don't know what the ultimate answer is to this growing problem but it likely involves truth serum 😅

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

Thank you so much for sharing your personal experience with us. It's disheartening to hear about the losses you've faced, but your input will definitely help others avoid similar situations. We appreciate your support!

[@josuesagastume2421]

I don't understand why they buy and sell statues. If you buy a statue, the healthiest thing is to keep it. and if you buy a statue, don't buy it used, it's not worth it. Better buy it directly from responsible stores that assure you.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

A lot of people miss out on a piece the first time, hence the secondary market.

[@user-hx4br8to3q]

Sorry, but that is terrible advice on so many levels.

[@CaliforniaSurfer-gc2xv]

I been cheated out of 4,000 in 18 years on ebay, some as buyer, many as seller,

[@jasonludwick3504]

Its obvious if it smells like poop its usually poop.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

#truth

[@film1201]

You have two first names. Just saying

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

I actually have 3 first names 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@film1201]

@@BatmanStatueCollector that makes you king of the pirates

[@jorgrtrujillo]

👍👍👍👍👍👍👍🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

[@miragexl007]

Lol. Tooo much talk/text. Red flag. I like the video thing. I personally don't buy off Facebook.. I can meet them with any reasonable distance. I've sold a lot of toys come up planning and selling a lot of toys. But face to face. No bs. But you have to be careful in that respect. I make sure I can take care of myself as best as I can... But not everybody is trained to protect themselves or make the right decision. Good luck out there.

[@BatmanStatueCollector]

#truth