BEWARE- there is a scam going around Craigslist for festool products.

[jackandhenry]

I was scammed and this guy is still at it. Read this posting another person wrote in jersey. Just trying to watch out for all the good folks here. Not sure if I should post this here? But wanted all you to know.

Claims he makes Adirondack chairs and he got a big order to fulfill, but his bandsaw broke and he has all his money tied up in the order so he has to sell some tools. Says he lives in Concord MA.
But you can't come pick the stuff up because he needs the money right away so he buy the bandsaw to fulfill the order, he than suggest shipping it to you but he wants you to send him the money Western Union or Money Gram. What a scumbag!!!

 

[jackandhenry]

This isn't just the east coast. Now he's posting ads in California, Oregon, etc. Really clever guy who has new stories (aka lies) and insanely cheap festool products for sale. Also says his uncle was a baseball legend. Be careful because he has several tactics to make you feel your money is safe and the transaction is safe. DO NOT TRUST!!!

J

 

[BCConstruction]

Never ever ever send money via western union or money gram. They are scams 99.999999999% of the time. It still amazes me people still get caught out by these people. Make sure you report him too.

 

[hockey_magnet]

+1 - NEVER NEVER NEVER USE WESTERN UNION FOR A TRANSACTION WHERE YOU DO NOT KNOW THE OTHER PARTY 100%!!!

Never ever ever send money via western union or money gram. They are scams 99.999999999% of the time. It still amazes me people still get caught out by these people. Make sure you report him too.

 

[NYC Tiny Shop]

I was scammed and this guy is still at it. Read this posting another person wrote in jersey. Just trying to watch out for all the good folks here. Not sure if I should post this here? But wanted all you to know.

Claims he makes Adirondack chairs and he got a big order to fulfill, but his bandsaw broke and he has all his money tied up in the order so he has to sell some tools. Says he lives in Concord MA.
But you can't come pick the stuff up because he needs the money right away so he buy the bandsaw to fulfill the order, he than suggest shipping it to you but he wants you to send him the money Western Union or Money Gram. What a scumbag!!!

Sorry to hear that you got suckered.  Craigslist is notorious for scams. All transactions have to be in person.

 

[fritter63]

"Hello, I am the son of deposed  Nigerian millionaire and tool collector . I am needing your help to export the large collection of rare Festools (many secret prototypes) that were left behind when my family was forced to flee...."

 

[sancho57]

Lessons learned,

1) Buy from a reputable dealer either on line or brick and mortar.

2) No such thing as a good deal with festools.  A $100 off the new price for a newer used tool w/ systainer is about the best you can get.

(Caveat to this is the CT 22 I bought for $200. But it worked good bought from a guy at his house and the body was pretty thrashed but worked great which is all I require).

3) When Its to good to be true, it is.

 

[Caly]

Same situation across the pond, more or less, same type of plausible pathetic  story, this was on  On Gum Tree.

Some how I sniffed it out and I didnt get stung, it purported to be a woman selling it for her boyfriend (bitch)...think my fessie intuition  kicked in,

Do you think there is a forum these guys (or women guys!) join to set these scams up.

 

[AlexThePalex]

Sorry to hear you got scammed. Sites for used stuff are notorious for this and a buyer should always be very aware. Before buying, try to get as many details as possible from the seller, like bank accounts, home adres, phone numbers. The moment Western Union and Money Gram were mentioned all alarmbells should have started ringing, they are like a scammer's signature.

Lesson learned, and I hope there's some way you can get your money back and bring this guy to justice, but hopes are slim. But you should always notify the police.

 

[DaveZ]

On Craigslist home page, they post a link to tips to prevent being scammed (listed below).  I think they line up with what people here have already said and I agree with them as well. 

I'd also add that whenever I do a transaction, I do it in a very public place, like a home improvement store parking lot during daylight hours.  I've heard another recommendation to finish transactions in the local police department parking lot, but I've never gone quite that far.

******

Avoiding Scams

You can avoid would-be scammers by following these common-sense rules:

DEAL LOCALLY WITH FOLKS YOU CAN MEET IN PERSON—follow this one rule and avoid 99% of scam attempts.

NEVER WIRE FUNDS VIA WESTERN UNION, MONEYGRAM or other wire service - anyone who asks you to do so is likely a scammer.

FAKE CASHIER CHECKS & MONEY ORDERS ARE COMMON—BANKS WILL HOLD YOU RESPONSIBLE when the fake is discovered weeks later.

CRAIGSLIST IS NOT INVOLVED IN ANY TRANSACTION, and does not handle payments, provide escrow, "buyer protection" or "seller certification."

NEVER GIVE OUT FINANCIAL INFORMATION (bank account number, social security number, eBay/PayPal info, etc.).

AVOID DEALS INVOLVING SHIPPING OR ESCROW SERVICES and know that ONLY A SCAMMER WILL "GUARANTEE" YOUR TRANSACTION.

DO NOT RENT HOUSING OR PURCHASE GOODS SIGHT-UNSEEN—that amazing rental or cheap item may not exist.

DO NOT SUBMIT TO CREDIT OR BACKGROUND CHECKS until you have met the job interviewer or landlord/agent in person.

 

[shed9]

Sorry to hear you got scammed. Sites for used stuff are notorious for this and a buyer should always be very aware. Before buying, try to get as many details as possible from the seller, like bank accounts, home adres, phone numbers. The moment Western Union and Money Gram were mentioned all alarmbells should have started ringing, they are like a scammer's signature.

Lesson learned, and I hope there's some way you can get your money back and bring this guy to justice, but hopes are slim. But you should always notify the police.

This is clearly sound advice to get as much info as possible, but bear in mind that unless you use this info prior to purchase its often part of the scam. With VOIP these days its laughably simple to acquire a telephone number (and local code) for anywhere in the world and route to anywhere else in the world.

It's often the back stories and ironically the overload of info that trips people up. I've seen scams where people have been given telephone numbers, a full address, bank account numbers and still sent their money via money gram services (Paypal-Gift is another one) without checking the other 'false' info.

If someone is selling their kit online, you don't need to know if there is a sad story or some business justification behind the sale on the sellers part, especially for power tools.

 

[SittingElf]

The easiest way to get a scammer packing and running is to ask for the serial number of the product and a picture of the label.

Easy enough to send an email to Shane to check the number against existing product and registrations. Same with most other manufacturers.

I once was interested in purchasing a $4000 Neumann microphone off of eBay. Stopped cold when the "dealer" was in Indonesia; wanted Western Union; claimed that he didn't have a digital camera; and finally said he didn't want to "open" the box and hurt the packaging to read the serial number!  I had fun stretching that out for almost a month...taunting the scammer by making him think that I was right on the verge of sending him $$. Fun! [tongue]

 

[Woody13]

Sounds like the same guy who is listing a new Festool  Kapex on Atlanta Craigslist for $800.  Says he needs the money for a car payment and lives in concord ma.  Initially he was going to have me send the money to a paypal account in Ayer, Ma but said he did not want to use paypal because it takes too long to get his money.  Wanted the money sent moneygram or western Union. He sent me a drivers license to proves it is not a scam.  Fortunately I did not fall for it.  I have his phone number and a number for the person he is working with, I can provide the info if you want to guy after him to try to get him stopped.