Avoiding scams when buying cards
Buying and selling. . 1 min read.
Almost all of it is preventable, and the prevention is boring: pay in a way that has recourse, and insist on seeing the actual card.
Payment
A bank transfer to a stranger has no recovery route. Neither does a payment sent as friends and family on a payment platform, and a seller who insists on it is asking you to waive the only protection you have. The small fee on a protected payment is the price of being able to dispute.
A seller who explains that friends and family is fine because they are trustworthy is describing exactly the situation where you need the protection.
Photographs
- Stock images on a card worth faking are a warning, always.
- Ask for a photograph of the card next to a handwritten note with your name and the date. A seller who has the card can do this in a minute.
- Reverse image search the photographs. Lifted images are common and easily caught.
The card itself
A price well below every recent completed sale is not a bargain, it is information. Either the card is not what it appears, or the sale is not real. The checks for the first case are in how to spot a reprint, and establishing what the price should be is how to price a sports card.
Graded cards
Every grading company publishes a certificate lookup. Enter the number from the label and check that the card shown matches the card in front of you. Counterfeit slabs exist and the lookup is free.