Is every Ebay listing a dropshipper?

[Damnation666]

It seems as of late, that almost every listing with Modulars or some other valuable Lego set, that starts well below MSRP is a scam. Anybody else feel that way?

[StarCityBrickCompany]

Many are stolen credit cards from overseas - They will take your order, use the CC to purchase the item through Lego.com. You may get you item, but the actual CC owner gets screwed. Lego & eBay are cracking down on this & can/will suspend your Lego account if it happens multiple times, with items shipped to your address.

[Damnation666]

Many are stolen credit cards from overseas - They will take your order, use the CC to purchase the item through Lego.com. You may get you item, but the actual CC owner gets screwed. Lego & eBay are cracking down on this & can/will suspend your Lego account if it happens multiple times, with items shipped to your address.

It just seems a lot of the popular sets have deals that are too good to be true. I guess they are.

[quakerlaker91]

This happened to me a few times. Last Christmas I bought a few sets well below retail price and thought I had hit the jackpot. Then a month later when I tried to buy from LEGO.com it said my address had been blacklisted. I had to call LEGO and explain what happened and they removed me from the blacklist, but said if it happened again it would be permanent. Now I pretty much avoid listings for new sets that are currently in production.

[Sflego86]

What are the warning signs so I can stay informed?

[quakerlaker91]

What are the warning signs so I can stay informed?

There a few ways to tell if someone is dropshipping. Basically if a seller lists multiples of an item that is still currently in production, it is probably not a legitimate listing. You'll notice that these items sell for significantly below retail price, which is usually too good to be true. Also these listings tend to use a generic picture of the item and description. Sometimes there a few sellers that work for the same dropshipper, and they will use the same picture and description for all their items.

[Sflego86]

Good to know. Looks like I won a few the other night. Ill be sure not to do it again.

[Ed Mack]

What are the warning signs so I can stay informed?

Most important red flag is a seller with low feedback, like a 10 or 20, with few or no previous sales. This seller would have bought a lot of low cost items to build some BS feedback. Also, when a deal is too good(usually with free shipping) to be true.

[Sflego86]

Most important red flag is a seller with low feedback, like a 10 or 20, with few or no previous sales. This seller would have bought a lot of low cost items to build some BS feedback. Also, when a deal is too good(usually with free shipping) to be true.

Hoping I don't get blacklisted, because I bought a few the other night. Now I'm kind of freaking out :-/

[Mos_Eisley]

The only clue you need is if the seller is selling a large exclusive for far below retail price. Huge retailers like Amazon, TRU, Target, etc. get some of the large exclusives, but other than that, there is now way for a regular seller to legitimately get these sets at a price low enough that would allow them to sell a set significantly below retail and still make a profit after fees and shipping. Sure, there are probably some people who wind up with a set and just need some money real quick so they'll take a loss, but those people are going to be rare. If you don't want to risk getting blacklisted or buying stolen merchandise and you want to pay less than retail, then the only thing you can do is wait for one the online sites to have a sale. You can also wait until Shop At Home has double VIP points like they will next month. I haven't really paid attention to the value of VIP points lately, but I'm pretty sure that the current structure is equal to around 7.5%, so double points puts you at 15%. That means if you buy a $150 set, you'll get $22.50 to put toward something else.

[ViciousBrick]

The only clue you need is if the seller is selling a large exclusive for far below retail price. Huge retailers like Amazon, TRU, Target, etc. get some of the large exclusives, but other than that, there is now way for a regular seller to legitimately get these sets at a price low enough that would allow them to sell a set significantly below retail and still make a profit after fees and shipping. Sure, there are probably some people who wind up with a set and just need some money real quick so they'll take a loss, but those people are going to be rare. If you don't want to risk getting blacklisted or buying stolen merchandise and you want to pay less than retail, then the only thing you can do is wait for one the online sites to have a sale. You can also wait until Shop At Home has double VIP points like they will next month. I haven't really paid attention to the value of VIP points lately, but I'm pretty sure that the current structure is equal to around 7.5%, so double points puts you at 15%. That means if you buy a $150 set, you'll get $22.50 to put toward something else.

I think VIP points is equal to 5%. You get $5 for 100 points.

[StarCityBrickCompany]

Hoping I don't get blacklisted, because I bought a few the other night. Now I'm kind of freaking out :-/

[stephen_rockefeller]

Exactly......LEGO could never blacklist you permanently for buying an item on eBay from someone. It is not like you knew it was a scam. Well maybe some of us know it is but still.

[Ed Mack]

Exactly......LEGO could never blacklist you permanently for buying an item on eBay from someone. It is not like you knew it was a scam. Well maybe some of us know it is but still.

LEGO will not blacklist you, but they will lock your account until you can show LEGO reps that you bought the set from EBAY and are not the dropshipper yourself.

[stephen_rockefeller]

I wish someone would dropship me a republic dropship with AT OT walker!!!