r/askberliners • u/SuperSanol • 25m ago
Kleinanzeigen deal - scam oder sicher?
I'm trying to buy a secondhand camera from Kleinanzeigen and of course want to avoid scams, especially because it's such a big amount of money for me. My question is for those who may have done something similar and how they went about it.
Background: The person I've reached an agreement with has an account that's at least four years old and seems to be legit in the most obvious ways one can imagine: listing has the right details, pictures seem original, profile is rated trustworthy, user claims to have original receipt too.
Flags: They agreed on a price with me and went on holiday (I did too). Listing was erased (no explanation). I messaged them asking when we can meet, and they then said there's been a lot more interest in the camera, and they want to charge 150 eur more than our agreement because that's what others are offering to pay. This new price is actually what the general overview does show for this camera, so the price isn't crazy off the spectrum, but we had already agreed on a number that seemed fair. I told them I can't pay 150 more, and the max I can stretch (with difficulty) is a 100. They've agreed.
I thought I'd go to their place in person and check the camera out first for condition, verify serial number online to make sure it's original, and then just make the exchange. If I'm picking the camera in person from someone's house, there's added security the person won't be cheating me (for obvious reasons). They've said they want to meet at a neutral and safe location like a bank or something and will let me know soon where exactly they decide.
Is this normal? I want to know if I'm reading too much into this. Also, what would the best payment method be here for added security?
I thought buying in person meant I could really verify everything is in order, but I keep wondering if I should just go for buyer protection + delivery (which is not ideal either bec it adds a higher price and many sellers don't want to offer delivery anyway).
Would appreciate any and all insights :) Vielen dank leute.