chelseabelle wrote the statement below and I was wondering if any of you buy on line, especially from E-Bay. If you do, could you give us some tips on the best way to buy online and how to protect ourselves?

I bought my nephew a load of signed baseball memorabilia at E-Bay mostly signed photos and one team-signed bat.I tried to be very careful about who I bought from, and I tried to avoid items that seemed like obvious fakes. Then I saw a story on 20/20 that suggested that a high percentage of the autographed baseball memorabilia sold on E-Bay was fake.I feel awful, and feel like I may have been duped. Anyone else buy this sort of thing at E-Bay? Is there any way to buy genuine merchandise of this sort--short of having the player sign it right in front of you?

If you want to buy sports memoribilia over the internet, I suggest steering clear of anything that has been "signed". If you want to get signed items, inspect them in person before deciding if it is worth it. I have bought many items over the internet and have only been unhappy with one purchase. I would say that most people out there are honest about what they are trying to sell.

Thank you for the advice butterflysm, please keep us informed as to your experiences buying online. Maybe our little (not so little anymore) family here at FunTrivia can help each other to avoid the bad sites and the bad guys.

I hope chelseabelle got the real thing. I wonder if there is a way to verify it. If you have any suggestions, please let us know.

There are ways to authenticate these things--although in my case I'm not sure it's worth doing.One of the items I bought did come with a letter from an independent "examiner of documents"--so, maybe that one is real.A few came with obviously suspect certificates of authenticity that the seller printed up himself on his computer.When I have bought similar items in person in sports memorabilia stores near me I really have no way of knowing whether the items were authentic either.In the future I will steer clear of buying anything that is signed.
I did check the listings on e-bay recently and I noticed that the prices of autographed baseball memorabiia have skyrocketed in the past several months. Maybe that is because the current merchandise is authentic.At this point I am a skeptic and my bidding days are over.

I just want to say I have no quibble with e-bay.It is a fun way to buy a lot of unusual items.They warn people--caveat emptor--so the buyer knows they might be taking a risk.
With only one exception, the sellers I dealt with were all polite,responsive, prompt, and sent merchandise which was exactly as described (except, maybe for the authenticity ).In the one case that I returned a baseball jersey because it didn't fit my nephew, the seller promptly refunded my money.So I'm not knocking e-bay or most of the people who list items there.

JoJo2, I doubt there is a way to authenticate something over the internet. Unfortunately, certificates of authentication don't really mean much either. I was watching a 60 Minutes report on this subject at school, and from what i understood, you just had to pay someone 5 bucks, and they gave a certificate. No proof, and you didn't even have to show them the memorabillia.

I think the only way to be sure on Ebay, is to buy from those featured auctions, not the one individuals pay for, but ones like Rosie O'Donnell. But those are so absurdly priced anyway, its probably not worth it.

Derk, I tend to agree with you although, I still am not brave enough to buy anything off the internet yet.

What about those poor people who ordered Christmas gifts for their kids from Toys-R-US and then did not get them time. I thought that was pretty sad.

BTW, I used to work for two Derk's, Derk Jr. and Derk III when I worked at ITT. They were the only Derk's I have ever known before you. Nice name.

JoJo...

I have exactly one purchasing experience on the internet. Just before Christmas I came across a site that had discontinued items of all kinds, and one of them was my love's favorite aftershave. The price was really great so I ordered him 1/2 dozen as a Christmas present. That was a Saturday night and by Tuesday I had received them! However, I, too, am kind of skeptical. My son-in-law on the other hand, does ALL of his shopping, banking, etc. on the internet and has never had a bad experience. Go figure.

You know BrideLady, it must be a great convenience to shop online. I can understand why your son-in-law would want to do so. Maybe I am like the old dog that you can't teach a new trick to. I'm usually not close minded about things, I guess maybe giving out that old credit card number makes me feed kind of queezy.

That is terrible about the love of your life not getting his present on time. I wouldn't order anything online for your wedding if it is too close to the date.

Well, you have an excuse in your pocket. If you ever forget a birthday or an anniversary, instead of blaming it on El Nino you can blame on the internet

JoJo....His gift DID arrive in time...I ordered it on a Saturday night and got it the FOLLOWING Tuesday...sorry if I made it sound like I didn't get it in time. I was actually quite astonished to get it so quickly to tell you the truth....but very pleased.

Don't be sorry, It's me not you. I just read your post again and it made perfect sense. My poor little brain must have just skipped a beat.

JoJo--Like you I am reluctant to give my creditcard number on-line (in fact, see the topic Internet Crime in Current Affairs for some of the dangers) but I have purchased from several on-line merchants.I pick out my order on-line but then I actually place the order by phone with an 800 (toll free) number.I only buy from Web sites that have this feature.I sent some steaks from Omaha Steaks (omahasteaks.com) as a Christmas gift. I picked out the gift package on-line and placed the order by phone.They e-mailed me an order receipt which even included a copy of the wording of the gift card! They sent me another e-mail a day later confirming shipment of the order.The steaks arrived within 3 days of ordering them (packed well in dry ice) and the recipient said they were delicious.I placed the order during Christmas week when things were very hectic--but the whole process was smooth and fast and the items were delivered very promptly.So, it was a very good experience

I know that Omaha Steaks has a good reputation. This is exactly why I wanted to open this thread for people to post their good and bad experiences, so that we can have an idea of what companies are the best to go through. Thanks (as always) for your input chelseabelle.

(chelseabelle go to the staff room to find out what ahctog means)

[This message has been edited by JoJo2 (edited 01-18-2000).]

JoJo2,
Gunslinger and I bought my sister's Christmas presents from Amazon.com and they arrived within the week that they were ordered. Couldn't have been easier.

I'd like to pass on a tip about buying over the Internet which I heard recently (I have posted it somewhere on FT but can't remember where). Keep a special credit card with an extra low credit limit then if the worst happens you will only be liable for up to the credit limit.