Did i just get scammed?

[d1abolic]

Ok this is very disturbing. I just bought a "brand new" receiver from eBay and it came in today. Underneath the wrapping paper, i found the original box, but it was pretty obvious that it's been re-sealed. The first thing i thought is that the bastard sold me a used drive, but when i opened the box, I noticed that the receiver was in plastic and so was the remote, cables and manuals. I also noticed a 2" vertical cut in the plastic on the left side of the package, but didn't think much of it at the time. I unwrapped the receiver, examined it and found it to be in perfect condition - it's new, for sure. That's when i pulled out the card. Strange... it doesn't look new. It's in excellent condition, but i just couldn't help but think that it doesn't look new. And then it hit me. That cut in the plastic was exactly on top of the card slot.

Ok, now what? I can't test if it works because the dishes won't be installed for at least another week. Great. What should i do?

 

[woodly6]

Sounds fishy to me, those cards can fetch a pretty good price, contact the seller and inquire about it would the only and best advice I could give.

 

[kranky]

Well, assuming the card was removed for some reason, what is the worst that could happen?

 

[d1abolic]

Thats what i'm trying to find out.

 

[NakaNaka]

just dont leave him feedback and wait. test it out when you can. if something is wrong with it get e-bay or the guy to refund you. nothing else you can really go for now.

 

[Looney]

Well, assuming the card was removed for some reason, what is the worst that could happen?


If this is a DSS receiver, the worst thing that could happen is that the card that is replaced is a permanently looped one that is useless.

Ebay is absolutely the worst place to buy satellite equipment, especially the access cards. I would say more than 3/4 of the sales on there are scams.

 

[MrBond]

Did you get this from a company or an indvidual? When I bought my Dishnetwork system, the system came opened, because the company I bought it from had activated it for me (they have to pull the smartcard to get some numbers from it.) If there was some sort of requirment that you activate it for a minimum of X months, then this is probably the case

 

[royaldank]

Many of the new DirecTV systems don't come with cards anymore...you have to call and have them sent to you. Too many people buying the systems for the card and not activating it. So, to avoid this, DTV makes you activate it and then mails it to you. Maybe he just threw in an HU card for you.

Is it an HU or an H card?

I'm sure DTV would send you another card if you called and activated the service. Tell them you bought it used.

 

[wedi42]

i've sold dss receivers on ebay and have done exactly what this seller did. i've pullled the card out just to make sure it's there and to see which one it was.
then i add additional packing material then reseal the box.

 

[Saltin]

Perhaps the unit was stolen. The cards are very easy to program yourself with the right equipment and image. Is it Direct TV Diabolic? I bet it is.

 

[Murpheeee]

How did I know this was a Ebay thread before I even clicked on it

If I were you, I would email the seller and explain that it is opened and ask - why was card removed & replaced.
If you don't get a satisfactory explanation, then you can demand a refund or discount, as it was sold as brand new.

Hows his feedback?

 

[tcsenter]

I don't know if you got scammed, but your post reminded me of a friend who definitely did. Check this out:

First, this guy is like 40, has been married with children since he was 20, makes very good money and is about as straight of a shooter as you find. I KNOW he wouldn't lie about this.

He purchased a new 27" television from Circuit City, they loaded it into his van, and off he drove. When he got it home, he noticed the box wasn't in real great shape. It wasn't damaged, it just looked as if it had been handled a lot. Scuff marks, smeared areas of printing, etc. He opened the box and what did he find? An OLD television, I mean like someone put their 5 year-old TV in the box, closed it back up very carefully, and returned it to the place they bought it. It wasn't even the same model or manufacturer. He called Circuit City, and they said bring it back. So, he did.

When he got there, they didn't believe him. They flat-out said, we think you're trying to scam us, and if you don't leave, we'll call the police. He was like, WTF! He called his credit card company, and they contacted Circuit City. After talking with Circuit City, his credit card company didn't believe him, either. So, his only choice is to sue Circuit City, but really, would you believe this?

The question is not whether this could happen, but HOW you could prove you were telling the truth if it did happen! He just decided to eat the $250 bucks he paid for the television, and insists on opening anything before he buys it.

 

[TallBill]

damn, that blows for your friend... me and a fellow employee at a video store considered buying a n64 game from best buy or somethin, replacing the game with something comical, resealing the box with our store equipment and returning the box to best buy... can you imagine the look on the face of the person opening their new game... we never did it tho obviously because we are not mean people... plus we figured that best buy would never believe anybody that when they opened their game they found a super nintendo game in there..

 

[d1abolic]

Well the person i bought it from has like 1500 feedback rating, so he seems reliable. I'll talk to him.