Last year, I published the article Craigslist Scams To Avoid, and I knew I had to do a follow-up. There are just so many crazy Craigslist scams out there, so I want to keep you all informed.
I am a constant Craigslist “browser,” but I have never actually bought or sold anything on the website. However, I know of many others (both friends and family) who use Craigslist nearly every single month, and some even use it to buy and sell every single week.
Even though I have never used it for my own gain, I have seen many scams on the website. It is very crazy that there are so many scams out there. Below are my tips to avoid common Craigslist scams.
Don’t show up by yourself.
If you are going to do an in-person trade, please bring someone with you and make sure to go to a somewhat crowded place. Some scammers will either try to sell you something or buy something from you, but when you show up all they do is steal everything that you have on you. This is something that you do not want to happen to you at all.
Also, just to be extra careful, if the person has a van with a sliding door, please DO NOT park your car right next to the door. Park a few spaces down or have your car facing another way so that it is not easy to kidnap you or steal your things.
Be careful before you accept a job on Craigslist.
There are several legitimate job listings on Craigslist, but there are also several fake ones. Before you accept the job, you should do your research on the company and make sure that the company is real.
Also, if the job asks you to pay money to them before you can start working, then it may be a scam. Remember to do your research!
Check the cash before you fully accept it.
If you are selling a big-ticket item, then you really need to make sure that the cash is real. Someone may try to buy something high dollar from you and then give you a bunch of fake money, which is a double loss for you because you have no real money and now you don’t have the product either.
What Craigslist scams have you seen? Have you ever fallen for one?
Image via Flickr by blmurch
Leave a Reply