Buying on EBay

[+C&H Caching Inc.]

Is there any way to know if the coin has ever been activated before you buy?

[LoriDarlin]

It should be posted. If its not and you want to know...email them!!

[+Scoutbound]

It's amazing how much stuff on ebay can go for.

[+Renegade Knight]

It's amazing how much stuff on ebay can go for.

It's also amazing how little it can go for. I just sold some trading cards with a few hundred. They only got 86 bucks. Such is life.

[+Team JSAM]

It's amazing how much stuff on ebay can go for.

It's also amazing how little it can go for. I just sold some trading cards with a few hundred. They only got 86 bucks. Such is life.

 

It's amazing how people bid for things on eBay, I don’t know how many times I have seen two identical times listed one after another selling 30 mins apart and one item goes for twice as much as the one listed just below....

 

Back on topic, just make sure to read the description of the coin you are wanting to buy, it should clearly state that it is unactivated or activated but can be adopted.

[+AtlantaGal]

It's amazing how people bid for things on eBay, I don’t know how many times I have seen two identical times listed one after another selling 30 mins apart and one item goes for twice as much as the one listed just below....

 

Actually, this is not that surprising. Many buyers have "favorite sellers" checked off in their "my ebay account" and when those sellers list, they get email notifications of all of that seller's listings. Some folks prefer to buy from established sellers they have a relationship with, which is a complement to the seller actually Then again, some buyers simply are not looking at eBay at the time the other item is closing and miss the less expensive listing.

 

Regarding the topic, it should be in the auction listing copy and if it isn't, definitely email the seller before placing a bid. I've seen some shady selling practices lately with the fact that a coin is activated being in a real teenie tiny font, banking on the fact that many buyers do not read the listing copy.

[+FlyinV]

Regarding the topic, it should be in the auction listing copy and if it isn't, definitely email the seller before placing a bid. I've seen some shady selling practices lately with the fact that a coin is activated being in a real teenie tiny font, banking on the fact that many buyers do not read the listing copy.

 

[+UOTrackers]

Is there any way to know if the coin has ever been activated before you buy?

I can only speak for myself, MOST of the coins I sell are unactivated and say so. The few I have sold activated I fully explain that they are activated and can be adopted. However, if the coin is listed as unactivated and you receive it activated I would try reconciling with the seller first, accidents do happen. If it's not resolved to your (the buyers) satisfaction there are several measures in place for that too, use them, it's not being mean it's getting what you paid for! Several years ago when I was planning my wedding, I bought a tiara off ebay,months in advance, every time I wrote to the seller she had a new story as to why I didn't have it. Soon several buyers were talking about their purchases and that they had not received what they bought, we all together had to take action against the seller. We felt bad, but we didn't get what we purchased and that was the bottom line. If it were a local store you would just bring it back, so this works similarly, it just takes longer. Good luck with your purchases!

[+Rattlingcrew]

It is a great place to find coins that have sold out or come from unknown sources. There are pricing extremes in both directions. Sometimes a single coin can be bought very close or under the original price. I buy and sell a lot of coins there. I buy for various reasons, sometimes I do not keep up on the forums and miss the coins. A lot of coins were minted before I started collecting them. You do have to watch though, some sellers will break up a coin set and sell the freebies that came with the original coin. Some are selling activated coins without describing them that way. I almost sold an activated coin that was supposed to be on a journey in Rome. I decided to activate one for my collection and was quite surprised to find it had already been activated. The coin came in a bag of 20 that I bought from the supplier, an honest mistake that could have been ugly. If you check their feedback and they have been selling coins for a while, you can bid with relative confidence. Glen

[+Ryder3 & Better Half]

We sell and buy alot on E-Bay. We don't sell any activated coins, and so far, (knock on wood!) we haven't had a problem with any of the coins we have purchased. There are a few shady people out there who will try to get top dollar for an activated coin. You just have to do a little research. Look the coin up n the search feature, read the listings of ALL the coins of that type that are up for auction, and finally, ALWAYS check the seller's feedback.

[+0R0B0RUS]

We sell and buy alot on E-Bay. We don't sell any activated coins, and so far, (knock on wood!) we haven't had a problem with any of the coins we have purchased. There are a few shady people out there who will try to get top dollar for an activated coin. You just have to do a little research. Look the coin up n the search feature, read the listings of ALL the coins of that type that are up for auction, and finally, ALWAYS check the seller's feedback.

 

Very sound advice! Feedback is one of the best consumer tools on eBay. I have purchased a few activated coins no problemo. In each case, the seller's clearly stated the coin was activated and facillitated the adoption process.