Question:
Have you'all seen what has been happening on eBay with the Bernina Artiste 200E sewing machines? The below one.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=8136012762

Just take look at the list of closed auctions with all the NARU'd sellers.

It's disgusting how many crooks are out there. I've been watching this for about 3 months now. They just change their user ID's. And, if you bid and win, they do not give you feedback if you don't pay. Crooks, crooks, crooks.

eBay needs a full staff just to take care of these people.
Answer:
ElizDale,
I've been looking through those closed (and current) auctions and I can't really see what's going on.
I do see that some are being sold from Rome and London.
And that the same photo is being used by the one you linked to as a NARU'd previous one.
Why would anyone buy such a high-priced item from a seller with no feedback? Strange.
I noticed that one buyer has purchased more than one of the machines. I wonder if they are doing a sting operation or something.
I have heard (Creative Machine Newsletter - an impeccable source) that some US dealers (nobody openly represented by any of the auctions that I looked at here) do sell (without Bernina corporate approval) some of their top-of-the-line machines to some mailorder companies in the US. The serial numbers of those machines are removed or altered so they can't be traced back to the original dealer.
Anyway, I'd love you to explain more about what you see happening with the sales of this machine on ebay, if you don't mind taking the time.
Is the suggested retail price around $6000.00 or more? If not, why would someone risk that much money to buy one on ebay?
Elaine
Answer:
Elaine,

A few months ago, my sister decided to join eBay just to purchase a Bernina 200E. She bid and won several sewing machines. Immediately, eBay sent her, "do not pay" notices. Then she would notice that the seller was NARU'd. She won several of these machines after contacting the sellers, before she bid, to see if they would take Escrow. The sellers said, Yes, but after the auctions ended, the sellers refused to take Escrow. Sis never got a negative f/b for not paying for any of the sewing machines that she won.

She's adamant about using eBay's Escrow service, but many sellers are also adamant about not using Escrow.

These bogus sellers are not only in Italy and England, but in the USA also, one in FL. The "O" f/b sellers seem to pop up after the sale of all high-dollar items. Many are using the same photo over and over. They get NARU'd and come back with new ID's.

During the past few months, some of the sellers have never sold these sewing machines and have pretty good f/b, so one would suspect a high-jacked account.

The suggested retail for the Bernina 200E is $7,999, so Sis was trying to save a few dollars. She's a Home Economics teacher and can get a Teacher's discount from the Bernina Dealerships in her area. She hasn't tried to purchase one from eBay in a couple of months. She decided to go the retail route.
Answer:
Thanks for explaining all that.
I now see what has probably happened to some of the buyers (multiple purchases of the machine within days of each other.)
I'm glad your sister was informed enough to insist on escrow.
That IS a pricey machine. I love a bargain as much as the next person, but knowing what I've learned over the past 10 years or so (stories like yours and others,) if I were in the market for a new machine, I'd definitely look for a good retailer. I purchased a TOL 'floor/demo model' from the retailer way back in 1977. Unfortunately that Bernina dealer went out of business a couple years later... By the way, the 200E is exactly 8 times the list price of the 830E
This type of problem (the high-priced scams on ebay) is likely one of the reasons so many sellers seem to be NARU'd even if they've done nothing wrong. Ebay needs to shut down these scams and some innocent folks get in harms way while they're doing it....
Anyhow, thanks for the education!
Elaine
Answer:
Maybe I'm just über cautious, but I would never ever even LOOK for that kind of merchandise on eBay.
There are some things that I just believe one is better off buying IN person - cars, homes, state of the art computers and electronics, expensive sewing machines, high-priced diamond jewelry just being the short list. (and yet, I just sold an old car on eBay - guess I don't always take my own advice, do I?)
Ever read the threads over on the Trust and Safe Harbor Board? Probably 90% of them deal with these high dollar transactions that are not legit. It's a very sad thing and something that eBay may soon have to deal with (depending upon the outcome of Tiffany's suit against eBay).
I'm glad your sister went the 'in-person' route and got her sewing machine that way.
As much as I love eBay (and I do), I also say that we ALL have to remember to read the entire item descriptions and be HIGHLY cautious when looking for 'big ticket' items on eBay... One thing one can do is use eBay for price comparison - sometimes one can get a better price by saying they saw it cheaper on eBay... although that can backfire if the local merchant says 'fine, then go buy it off eBay'...when we really had no intentions of doing so.
--K