Last Updated: December 23, 2022
Interested in buying or selling on Mercari but afraid of getting scammed?
You’ve come to the right place!
In this article, you’ll learn EXACTLY whether it is a legit platform or a scam and the things you need to be AWARE of before buying or selling anything there.
Let’s jump right in.
Is Mercari Legit?
Mercari itself is a legit e-commerce marketplace to buy and sell products. However, there is no guarantee that the people buying and selling on it are also legitimate which means you must verify the buyer or seller before dealing.
Although it’s a legit platform, there are definitely possibilities of getting scammed by sellers and buyers on Mercari.
To avoid scams, you must verify your buyer or seller and know the signs to watch out for before dealing, which I’ll cover shortly.
But first, let me clarify one question just in case you’re asking:
What are the proofs that Mercari is a legit platform?
First and foremost, Mercari has been in business since 2013 and if it weren’t a legit platform, it probably wouldn’t be around today.
Secondly, they are not running their business anonymously.
Mercari was founded by a Japanese serial entrepreneur, Shintaro Yamada, and their offices are located in Japan, United States, and India.
Furthermore, Mercari has over 20 million monthly active users.
Apart from that, their mobile app has been downloaded over 100 million times worldwide, of which 50M+ are from the U.S. alone, and has been rated 4.8+ on the App Store and 4.5+ on Google Play Store.
On top of all that, their marketplace contains over 2 billion listings, with 350K+ listings added daily by sellers.
So to conclude the question, is Mercari legit? I would say:
An online marketplace that has been around for over nine years, not operating its business anonymously, used by millions of people, downloaded over 100 million times, and has positive ratings on its mobile app is certainly a legitimate platform.
Despite Mercari being a legitimate platform, this doesn’t mean there are not any drawbacks and you’re completely safe to buy or sell there.
Then, How Safe Is Mercari For Buying And Selling?
To understand that, you must know that Mercari is not an online shopping website that sells its own goods, but rather an e-commerce marketplace which means it just connects sellers and buyers.
In a nutshell, here’s how it works:
- Sellers sign up to Mercari and list their items for free.
- Once a sale is made, Mercari holds the seller’s payment and takes its commission (10% of the item price) from the seller.
- Now, the seller has 3 days to ship the item to the buyer.
- Once shipped, the seller confirms the shipment.
- Upon receiving an order, the buyer has 3 days to confirm the order to either accept it or request a refund if the item is not as described, damaged, or missing.
- Until then, Mercari holds the seller’s payment but if the buyer fails to confirm the order within 3 days of delivery, Mercari will release the payment to the seller.
If the buyer requests a refund for a valid reason (item not as described, damaged, etc.), Mercari will refund him or her.
On the other hand, if the product is as described in the seller’s listing and the buyer confirms the order then both parties rate each other, and the payment is released to the seller.
Basically, Mercari works as a middle-man between the buyer and seller, providing an environment for both parties to trade safely and securely for a percentage of the fee.
Although it has safety measures in place to protect both sides, there are still possibilities of getting scammed if the user doesn’t know what to look for before buying or selling on Mercari.
And the answer to the question, how safe is Mercari largely depends on how good you are at verifying your seller or buyer when dealing.
Luckily, you don’t need to worry!
I am going to share my top tips with you that will help you prevent getting scammed when buying and selling on Mercari.
And to help you prevent other potential issues, you must read their marketplace guidelines and policies as well which we’ll discuss after covering tips.
Firstly, here are the:
7 Tips For Buyers To Avoid Scams
The first tip for you is to:
1. Never Buy If The Price Seems “Too Good To Be True”
One of the most common methods scammers use to attract buyers is by keeping their item’s prices too low.
At first glance, you might think you’re getting a great deal, but you’re probably looking at a scam. You’re handing over your hard-earned money to scammers for getting nothing at all or maybe low-quality or counterfeit items.
Of course, you’ll find great deals on Mercari but if the price for the item seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Therefore, you should always avoid buying if you see an item on Mercari selling for an extremely low price than the retail price.
Once you found an item selling for a reasonable price then you should:
2. Check The Product Photos
The second safety measure you should keep in mind is to check the photos of the product.
Always buy from sellers who uploaded multiple photos of their item from different angles and the images appear to be real.
After that, you should:
3. Carefully Read The Description
Sometimes scammers try to trick buyers with misleading or vague descriptions. Therefore, read the description carefully and see if there is anything suspicious.
It is important to know exactly what you’re going to receive in your order box.
Avoid sellers whose listings lack enough details about their items.
Okay, so you came across an item not selling for an unbelievable price, checked the photos from different angles, read the description carefully and everything looks fine.
Now what?
Well, now you’ve to:
4. Verify The Seller
To verify a seller, here’s what you should look out for:
- Reviews and sales
- Seller Badges
- Profile verification
The first things you should look out for in the seller’s profile are reviews and sales.
You should check the reviews on the seller’s profile to see how he or she treated previous customers since reviews can only be submitted by buyers who made a purchase.
Generally, I recommend buying only from sellers who have at least 50+ reviews and sales, the more the better.
Next, check whether the sellers have earned any of these badges:
- Fast responder – As the name suggests, any seller with this badge means they respond fast to their buyers. The sellers earn this badge when they answer chats from shoppers in an average of 12 hours.
- Quick shipper – A seller with this badge means they ship off items within 24 hours, not including weekends or holidays. The badge is earned based on the tracking scan by the carriers.
- Reliable – The badge can be earned if the seller is completing the shopper’s orders as promised with fewer cancellation rates.
Sellers who meet the criteria are awarded these badges to help buyers recognize how hardworking and reliable a seller is.
Therefore, it is recommended to purchase from sellers who have earned all of the following badges:
Lastly, check whether the seller’s profile is verified and how long he or she has been on Mercari.
It is recommended to buy from sellers with verified profiles who has been a member of Mercari for at least a year.
Now that you’ve verified the seller and are ready to purchase your first item from him or her, it is recommended to:
5. Always Checkout with PayPal
Mercari does accept PayPal as a payment method, therefore, I suggest you to pay using PayPal because it provides an extra level of protection for buyers.
PayPal has buyer protection which helps in getting your money back if the payment made through their online payment system ends up being fraudulent. For example, you didn’t receive the item or it is not as described, etc.
Once you paid for the item via PayPal and the seller shipped the item, you must:
6. Ask For A Tracking Number
Always ask for a tracking number from the seller once you paid for the item.
There are times, however, when the seller forgets to update tracking details after confirming shipment, so it is best to message the seller and ask for the tracking number of your order.
In the event that your seller confirms shipment but does not provide a tracking number, please allow 7 days for your order to arrive.
However, if your order hasn’t arrived even after 7 days, you are eligible to cancel your order and get a refund even if the item is sent by the seller.
However, do the following if your order has arrived:
7. Confirm Your Order Within 3 Days
Lastly, you should confirm your order within 3 days and make sure it is the same item as described in the listing and looks like what you’ve ordered.
If you’ve received a fake, counterfeit, or not the same item then you have 3 days from the delivery date to request a return.
Otherwise, your order will be automatically confirmed by Mercari and they will release your payment to the seller.
You won’t be able to request a return or refund after that period.
That’s it!
By following these tips, you are unlikely to be scammed by sellers on Mercari.
However, it is extremely important for you to read Mercari’s marketplace guidelines and policies as well to avoid other potential issues.
Reading them is crucial for sellers as well but first, they should keep in mind these:
3 Tips To Sell Safely & Avoid Scams
First and foremost, the sellers should:
1. Never List Items Prohibited By Mercari
Listing any of the items that are on Mercari’s Prohibited items list can have massive consequences for you.
Whenever a seller lists a prohibited item, it will be against their Terms of Service regardless of whether the seller acted intentionally or not.
And, when Mercari determines that a listing is violating their terms of services, they will give the seller penalties such as cancellation of listings, cancellation of any related transactions, removal of listing privileges, termination, or suspension of an account.
Therefore, you should always avoid selling items that are not allowed by Mercari.
Keeping that in mind, you should also:
2. Ensure Your Product Listings Are Accurate
When listing an item, make sure all details in your listing are accurate such as:
- Photos
- Description
You should always use original photos of the products in natural light so that buyers can see the exact color of the items.
Apart from that, accurately describe your item thoroughly in the description and let the shopper know exactly what they’re purchasing.
- What will be included in their order
- The exact size, colors, prints, measurements, etc.
- Describe if there are any drawbacks to your item.
If you fail to do these even unintentionally, the buyer may open a dispute against you and claim that the received product is not as described.
In such a case, it is unlikely that Mercari will release the payment (paid by the buyer for your item) to you, and there are higher chances that the buyer will be given a full refund since their refund policy clearly states:
If the item is not as described, the buyer is eligible to open a dispute and get a full refund (more details later).
Therefore, make sure that your listing details are completely accurate to avoid such incidents.
Okay, so you listed an item that is not on Mercari’s prohibited items list and ensured your listing details are accurate then you should:
3. Keep These Things In Mind Once You Made A Sale
Got a sale? Here’s what you should keep in mind:
- Package the item with care
- Ship within 3 business days
- Provide a valid tracking number to the buyer
- Confirm your shipment
First and foremost, package the item you’re going to ship with care so it can be delivered to the buyer safely and you can avoid disputes over damaged items.
After that, you have to ship your order within 3 business days from the purchase date and if you fail to do so then the buyer will be eligible to cancel the order.
However, if you are experiencing a delay for fair reasons, let the buyer know why you need one or two more days to ship the item so that the buyer doesn’t cancel the order right away.
Once you have shipped the item and confirmed the shipment, you must provide a valid tracking number to the buyer within 1-7 business days.
Otherwise, buyer will be eligible to cancel the order even if sent by you.
Providing valid tracking details are also important in case the buyer opens an unnecessary dispute against you claiming of not receiving items but you’ve actually shipped the items.
In such a situation, Mercari will check the tracking details to make sure the item is delivered to the buyer and will release payment to you instead of forcing you to refund the buyer.
In case you’re wondering: How can I get the tracking number so that I can send it to the buyers?
When listing an item, you’ll have to choose whether you want to ship on your own or let Mercari handle shipping for you.
If you choose to ship on your own then you’ll have to get the tracking details from your courier and shipping service provider and give those tracking details to the buyer.
However, if you choose Mercari prepaid labels then you’ll get the tracking details from them straight to your inbox with tracking on the app and web included and you can provide those details to the buyer.
For more details, visit Mercari’s shipping page.
That’s it for sellers!
Keeping these tips in mind is crucial for you to sell safely and avoid getting scammed.
However, both sellers and buyers should carefully read their marketplace guidelines and policies as well to prevent other potential issues.
Let’s begin.
Mercari Guidelines To Be Aware Of
Their first marketplace guideline you should keep in mind is to:
1. Never Deal Outside of Mercari
Dealing outside of Mercari is against their marketplace guidelines. If anyone sends payment to the seller or a seller sends items to the buyer outside of their platform, Mercari is not responsible if it turns out to be a scam.
Therefore, all transactions or shipments must go through Mercari to keep both parties protected.
Secondly, both buyers and sellers should:
2. Treat Each Other with Respect & Honesty
It is important for buyers and sellers to treat each other with respect and honesty. Both parties should keep some of these commonly prohibited conducts in mind:
- Never create multiple listings of the same item
- Never list items glorifying violence or associated with hate groups
- Never provide false information in listings or messages
- Never abuse, threaten, troll, degrade, or harass your buyer or seller
- Never the buyer to rate before he or she received it
- Never encourage buyers or sellers to deal outside of Mercari
- Never send items directly from the manufacturer (avoid drop shipping).
- Never provide an invalid tracking number
- Never ask for personal information no matter whether you are a buyer or a seller
- Never provide false information for tax-related inquiries
- Never open a dispute against a seller without any fair reason
In the event that you engage in any of these prohibited conducts, your account may be suspended or terminated.
For more details, check out their full list of Prohibited Conduct page.
On top of all that, sellers should avoid listing items that are on Mercari’s prohibited items list.
Now that you know their marketplace guidelines, let’s get to know their policies.
Mercari Policies To Be Aware Of
When buying and selling on Mercari, it’s crucial for both parties to know these two policies to prevent issues later on:
- Cancellation Policy
- Returns and Refunds Policy
First, let’s talk about the…
Cancellation Policy
Mercari has different cancellation policies for both buyers and sellers. First of all, let’s get to know the:
Cancellation Policy For Buyers
As a buyer, you can request cancellation until the seller hasn’t shipped the items. However, it’s up to the seller to either accept your cancellation request or reject it.
If the seller agrees and Mercari confirms that the order hasn’t shipped, you’ll get a refund.
On the contrary, if the seller denies your cancellation request then you can’t do anything to cancel your order.
However, if the seller didn’t respond to your cancellation request within 24 hours then Mercari will automatically refund you.
In the event that the seller confirms the shipment but you haven’t received the tracking details from the seller after 7 days of purchase, you are eligible to immediately cancel your order from your Order Status page.
So this was the cancellation policy for buyers, now let’s get to know them:
Cancellation Policy For Sellers
Cancellation requests are usually made by buyers but sometimes sellers also have to cancel the order.
The seller can cancel the order by selecting one of these reasons:
- Unable to ship
- Item is damaged/defective
- The item is on hold for someone else
- Item not available
- Change shipping options
- Accidental purchase by the buyer
- Bundling items for buyers
- Incorrect buyer shipping address
However, Mercari may charge you a cancellation fee of 5% of the item price (maximum of $25) to cover the cost of transaction fees and/or shipping labels.
Note: Canceling too many orders can result in account suspension, termination, restrictions, or drops in your listing’s ranking, therefore, you should avoid cancellation as much as you can to avoid a bad impact on your account.
Now let’s take a look at their:
Refund and Return Policy
The most important thing buyers should be aware of is that they can only return and request refunds within 3 days of delivery and only if they haven’t submitted the rating yet.
As a buyer, you won’t be able to request a refund after those 3 days or if you already rated the buyer for your order.
Furthermore, buyers are eligible to get the refunds for fair reasons such as:
- Item not as described
- Item is prohibited
- Not authentic or counterfeit
- Item is damaged or doesn’t work
- Item is incomplete
- Received the wrong item
However, Mercari will deny the buyer’s request for reasons like:
- Change of mind
- Mistakenly selected the wrong size and color
- Bought it offline and don’t need the item anymore
For valid reasons, can request a return from their item’s Order Status page.
Once submitted, sellers will have 24 hours to provide feedback and/or accept the buyer’s return request and if the seller didn’t respond to the buyer’s return request, they will be refunded by Mercari.
However, if the seller didn’t accept the return and provided feedback, Mercari will handle the rest of the situation between both parties by reviewing the evidence of the buyer and the feedback provided by the seller.
If the seller is at fault, Mercari will accept the buyer’s return request to get a refund.
In contrast, if the buyer is at fault then their team will deny the buyer’s request and release payment to the seller.
In the event that the seller accepts the buyer’s return request then the buyer will have to return the item to the seller within 3 days of approval.
However, the seller will be paid if the return doesn’t receive a tracking scan by the buyer within 7 days of approval.
Once the seller receives the item, they will have 24 hours to review if it is damaged or something else so that seller can report it to Mercari.
In contrast, if the seller confirms everything is fine then the buyer will be refunded by Mercari.
Conclusion
Mercari itself is definitely a legit e-commerce marketplace for buying and selling products. However, there is no guarantee that the people who buy and sell on it are also legitimate since Mercari just connects buyers and sellers through their platform.
However, it has buyer and seller protection in place to keep both parties protected but it’s your responsibility as well to keep in mind the tips I listed above as well as Mercari’s guidelines and policies to avoid scams and other issues.
By doing that, you are unlikely to be scammed or encounter any other problems when buying and selling on Mercari.
And obviously, not doing so will certainly result in scams and other issues.
Got any questions or want to share your own experiences with Mercari?
Please, let me know in the comments below.
Mercari FAQs
Is Mercari Safe?
Mercari is generally safe but it is not completely risk-free. You need to understand that Mercari is just a marketplace where buyers and sellers meet. So, while you can trust that Mercari is safe, you must do your due diligence about the buyer/seller before dealing.
Is Mercari a Scam?
Mercari itself is not a scam. It is a legitimate e-commerce marketplace that connects buyers and sellers. However, there are possibilities of getting scammed by buyers/sellers if you fail to do your due diligence before dealing.
Is Mercari Trustworthy?
Mercari itself is definitely a trustworthy e-commerce marketplace. However, there is no guarantee that the sellers and buyers on it are also trustworthy. Therefore, you have to ensure that the buyer/seller is trustworthy.
Can You Get Scammed On Mercari?
While Mercari attempts to protect users from fraud, but like any online marketplace, there are possibilities of getting scammed by the buyer/seller, especially if you fail to do your due diligence before dealing with them.
Is Mercari Reliable?
Mercari itself is a reliable platform but the sellers/buyers on it might not be reliable. Therefore, you need to make sure that the buyers/sellers are also reliable.
Is Mercari Safe For Credit Card?
Mercari is indeed a safe and secure platform for credit cards as it processes all payments through fully secure, compliant, and rigorously audited payment systems that are recognized by financial regulators all over the world.
Does Mercari Have Buyer Protection?
Mercari has buyer protection in place to keep the buyers safe. It does not release payment to the seller until the buyer confirms that the item is delivered and it is as described.
If you’ve received a fake, counterfeit, or not the same item as described in the listing, Mercari allows you to request a refund within 3 days from the delivery date.
Can You Trust Mercari?
Yes, you can trust Mercari but not the sellers/buyers on their platform. Before buying or selling anything, it is extremely important to ensure that the buyer or seller you are dealing with is trustworthy.
You have so many different sellers selling bootleg copies of movies and tv shows. It’s pretty sad you guys do not police it better. I’ve reported it to Disney, Hulu and Netflix.
Hopefully they contact you about it. Terrible.
Wow! What a well organized, completely thorough, tutorial! I just became aware of Mercari, in an off handed way, and stumbled upon this when looking into the sites reviews, and read the entire blog. Not because I had any immediate intension to start using Mercari, but because this instructional narrative was so engaging. I only noticed two, maybe three, apparent misstatements, the like of which would be caught by an editor, or a fresh set of eyes, e.g.. referencing “Buyer”, when “seller” seems to be what’s indicated. Nothing another read through won’t catch. And, given your blog is
of highest caliber, I thought you might want know, and move to correct these minor blemishes. Please know, how much I really enjoyed your class! Thank you!
THESE PEOPLE ARE FULL OF SHIT AND NOTHING BUT SCAMMERS AND COWARDS AND LYING THUGS.
IM SURE THEYLL DELETE MY COMMENT BUT I TRIED BUYING SOME NIKES AND THEY TOOK MY MONEY NO PROBLEM. AFTER 2 DAYS THEY SAY THEY CANT FIND MY ACCOUNT. IVE HAD TO CONTACT MY BANK AND LET THEM HANDLE IT. IVE BEEN SCAMMED AND STILL WAITING FOR 2 MOS FOR MY MONEY.
I have an item I want to return for the reason “it is not as described”. The seller failed to disclose damages to this item. In comparison to every other online selling site, Mercari’s pictures are just awful. So far, I have been happy with my purchases. This one time I want to return this item. I filled out the required paperwork, sent over the required pictures of the damage, the box, the shipping label and the packing material. This item was not damaged in shipping. It was damaged when the seller listed it. Mercari is still asking for more pictures. Just the fact that I am not happy with this item, should be enough. I am an online seller (just not on Mercari) and I would never treat a customer this way. Nor would the platforms I sell on tolerate this bullshit behavior. I guess I got lucky with my first 20 purchases. I still do not know if I will be reimbursed. I guess I am done with this site.
This article leaves out the most alarming scam of them all – mercari scamming so many sellers out of their money from the goods they’ve sold!! Truly unexpected and it seems to have ramped up since December 2021. Mercarii may try to find or fabricate a reason for them to keep your money such as you sold counterfeit airpods but they can’t throw that on everyone whose money they keep / steal sometimes they have no TOS violations at all so they make up reasons usually around ID verification. The S&P index shows Mercari in a steep downward decline. They’re out of compliance with the regulatory government agency that oversees businesses that handle people’s money.
The author should link to law firms that cover class action or help put people together who’ve been wronged and their money withheld. Many complaints are for 1000s of dollars
The remedy is apparently to never leave even $10 in your Mercari account Deposit to your bank account every sale because….
Look. What this business is doing to its clients!
There is no buyer protection on this site. I made a purchase the person only shipped part of the order, then they delayed by saying they were going to check with UPS. Then Mercari pushed through a rating that I didn’t give, then finalized the sale and sent my money to the seller without resolution to the missing part of my sale. So even if you raise an issue with your purchase they do not stop moving through their process while it is being resolved and give money to the seller for a partial order. It is not a safe platform for buying.
I have bought items then find out the seller collects but does not ship the same item 10 times they do it again Mercado gives them thumbs up, someone sells fraudulent items you can get a refund jumping through hoops then they will sell it again, fraud
I finally filled out a W9. They kept asking for it so I wanted the page to stop coming up.
They say it s being reviewed.
I can not do an offer nor accept one now. My site is up with over 400. That I earned .
Every time I try to sell the page “ you have reached 600. You have to fill out. . . Come up. I did not reach 600. And I did for fill out form
I have ordered twice now from this site and both times the buyer never shipped the item. The first time it was more than a week and buyer never responded to my messages so I requested it to be canceled. The second time the buyer canceled it on the 3rd day but no reason provided. I then saw they relisted the same item with a 20% discount. Why would they do that? I think I’m done with this site.
Do you work for EBay?
Never used Mecari but had two fraudulent items charged to my card. Still waiting for an explanation of how my card was used. Text messages only. No in person customer service response. They simply issued a credit and well, done!
This company is nothing but a scam. I purchased an item that was damaged beyond repair. I attempted to work with the seller and received no response. I went to customer service and essentially was shut down telling me there was nothing they could do. They wouldn’t refund my money nor would they allow me to rate the seller with negative feedback. I now have to go through the process of rejected the charge on my credit card. DO NOT EVER buy using this platform. They have set it up so that the customer is not protected in any way, even when it’s clearly fraudulent.
It wasnt Mercari fault it was the seller
did you get tjos
The story sounds fishy-If you’ve made a purchase your feedback is just that-yours (so give it, they can’t slap your hands) and btw don’t be naïve use PayPal!
I have taken in all aspects of Mercari. I have not done any buying or selling on the web,. This will be my first-time. (You’ve got to taste it defore you buy IT) With Mercari I am going to go for it. Bob Taylor (Keep on Punching)
Hey Bob, I have had very good experiences with Mercari so far. I have sold 4 items in a very short time. Good Luck to you.
I purchased an item off Mercari from some person in New Hampshire. It was a fair price at $170 and some change. The fellow would never ship the item. He even went so far as having the post office send me a tracking number which turned out to be invalid. The seller kept asking me if I would like to cancel. No I replied I want my item. The seller went on to tell a lie about how it had been shipped and he didn’t know how this problem keeps cropping up where it doesn’t list the item is being shipped. To make a long story short, mercari cancel my item. Now of course I can’t even leave feedback about this seller. I don’t even know how to find the seller on mercari anymore. The bad thing is this seller had over 50 completed transactions with fairly good feedback. So beware everyone, since it seems positive feedback doesn’t necessarily mean that you will get a fair completed transaction. As far as I’m concerned Mercari is the pits.
Mercari provides labels for the…
Mercari provides labels for the shipping chosen by the buyer when your item sells. If the shipping is late due to no fault of your own, people can then leave the review on your page when it does not reflect the seller but the carrier. As a seller once your item is in the carriers hands, it’s out of your control. I recently was given a bad rating because fedex was running behind like I control their business. It’s an unfair practice in my opinion. I give this app 1 star and that is being generous.
Mercari is NOT SAFE. Sellers and scammers can exploit the policy. Their product just needs to be believable for 3 days. Means if item is fake enough to convince u for 3 days you just lost ur money. Mercari doesn’t go the extra mile to ban or punish scammers. And if ur saying 3 days is plenty of time, you’ve obviously never seen a fake Luis Vuitton belt. Mercari fucked me over I had proof I was sold fraud shit and they just laughed and walked away with my money. Both seller and Mercari profit off corny scams. Policies are misleading and they don’t follow through with buyer protection. Again MERCARI IS NOT SAFE. Save yourself some real money and buy on eBay. They actually follow through with their protection.
Don’t buy from Mercari. My products came smashed they insisted I send them 10 pictures of the smash cups with the bits falling everywhere got cut on one. Then told me I would only get a refund after I sent the items back and were received by the seller, they also told me that I better get a receipt! They have wasting my time, tape, and energy etc. After that they state that if you leave a bad review for the seller your refund will be voided… amazing so no bad reviews can ever made for these sellers. Should it ne bad Enoch to warrant a refund. There is absolutely zero customer service absolutely no concern for their customers which are being put in to dangerous situations. Don’t ever buy from this place buy from a legit marketplace! BUYER BEWARE!
Obviously you know nothing about the truth behind Mercari. I am confident that your site is to get ahold of emails, addresses, phone numbers etc. I will be reviewing every email after sending this information.
Mercari a complete scam for buyers. The app won’t load pictures to show damage, the customer support is a voicemail and their email support just recycles the oh can’t help you this is the wrong email associated with your account when it is.
Their 3 day window is also riddiculous if you complain on a Friday and they don’t get back to you.
I will never ever use it again
I bought 2 computers on Mercari. Shipping was slow. One arrived, dead. It would not power up. It also did not have as much memory or hard drive space as advertised. I informed Mercari, who sent me an email, late on a Friday night requesting photos from every possible angle. To be submitted within 24 hrs. Did not see the email right away. Because it was the weekend, I was not able to take the photos. So because I didnt meet their request for photos in time they denied my return request. I paid $500 and checked out the sellers reviews before purchasing. The second computer still hasnt arrived. Mercari says it has credited my account with credits to be spent at Mercari for other merch but they do not show up in my profile on the Mercari app. I feel as if I have been scammed not only by the seller, but Mercari too! They refuse to cooperate and insist that the credits are there, but they arent. And the seller, who has obviously broken all of Mercari’s rules, is still being allowed to sell items on Mercari. I was scammed all the way around and am now out $500. Mercari sucks IMHO!
Happened to me too. Pretty much the same thing. I’m more mad at Mercari than the seller at this point.
Mercari suck. Full of scams.
On 07/19/21 I made 3 purchases of 3 video cards on the Mercari.com internet site, which added up to $1,696.00.
The next day, I received information that 2 video cards were sent to me by the USPS with tracking code.
In the afternoon of the same day I received another message from mercari.com that my purchases were cancelled, and I was suspended from the site, I contacted them and they just said that their attitude was correct. And today 21/07/21 I am surprised to receive the 2 goods, but they were 2 iphone 6 cell phone cases that should cost less than $10 each.
Now I realize I’ve fallen for a blow.
I ordered an item and they said they notified the seller and I’m out my money because they never sent it
I DID THE SAME THING AND I WISH I HAD A PHYSICAL ADDRESS WE COULD GO VISIT THESE THUGS AND SEE WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY.
Here’s the real Scam… If they don’t ship, and you get angry and want to write a bad review, you can’t. You can’t write a review until you confirmed receipt. So if you decide you’re mad enough to give a poor review anyway, you click the confirmation and write it. But by clicking the confirmation, that means the seller gets to keep your money WITHOUT shipping your product. Mercari will tell you that enough canceled orders will make an account look bad, but that’s impossible because all the person has to do to boost their ratings is make a heap of really small purchases. They get rated as buyers to. It is pointless for a buy buyer get rated. They Lump together seller and buyer ratings to deceive you. So here I am trying to express my issue with my purchase, but Mercari tells me that I can just cancel. Here’s the next problem… if I cancel, it indicates that it was MY decision to not purchase the item. It does not reflect poorly on the seller who did not provide the product. I am severely dismayed to find that, if you do not receive the item, there is no way to provide a review. The way Mercari operates is deceitful and evasive.
I am currently dealing with this issue. The seller dropped off the item to USPS instead of UPS. All she did was apologize… but now I have to wait to cancel my order because she stopped responding and Mercari won’t let me cancel until it’s been 7 days with no tracking updates. I’m annoyed because I’m out the money and now I have to wait to get it back for HER mistake.
I may have hit the buy button twice nobody to con contact I will contact pay pal
the automatic rate by Mercari is a problem.There are many things that can stop someone from asking for a refund within 3 days, including mistakes made when claiming something was delivered and time waiting for the seller to communicate.Mercari doesnt help much, after 3 days the seller is paid and you have lost your money
I was only given 24 hrs to provide photos from every angle of a dead computer. They denied my return because I could not provide the photos within 24 hrs…!
Thank you using it works easily for me did have one scammer buyer mecari will not get back with me on the matter. Left three messages two emails.
Just wanted first to thank you for your comprehensive but “clean” explanation of Mercari.
Regarding buying on Mercari…I have purchased a number of items (maybe 12?) and have been 100% satisfied with every purchase. Exactly what I had wanted at great price. Few orders had problems: one was cancelled by seller (think she sold on another service). My payment was refunded just like it supposed to be. Another situation the seller did not send – I cancelled and got the refund. Seller wrote me an apology saying she missed the order! No problem I could probably repurchase if I wanted to (haven’t yet).
Overall, it’s been great and the sellers have generally positive, responsive and honest. I am very impressed with the platform and those the sellers so far.
Thanks for sharing your experience with Mercari 🙂
Good info. Short and to the point and understandable in layman’s terms. Thank you.
You’re welcome. 🙂
I was scammed by a seller on Mercari. She sent me damaged goods and Mercari protected her
Mercari worst than a bee wax they cancel my account with out telling me what was the reason they also wanted take my money away I ask what was the reason for closing my account never got a correct answer but pure lies.
I paid $26 (w/shipping) for a puzzle of a Mustang car. The box was a Mustang puzzle box, but the puzzle inside was a kitten. I initiated a return. They needed pictures, so we had to put the puzzle together – which took a few days to do (since I work full time and we had no picture of what the puzzle was to look like). Then Mercari said it was over their 3 day allowance for returns. They refused to send a return label and THEY rated the seller ON MY BEHALF!!!! – WHICH IN TURN CLOSED THE CASE. I WILL NEVER ORDER THRU MERCARI EVER AGAIN. AND I WILL MAKE SURE PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT THEIR BUSINESS PRACTICES. MY REVIEWS WILL NOT BE KIND.
That makes my blood boil for you …
same with me, except i never got it and wasted 11 dollars
same with me, but it never came instead of being different
They did the same to me! I purchased 2 “working” computers, got one, it was dead. Second one never arrived. Denied return because I could not give them their pictures in 24 hrs…
Same thing happened to me. Bought 2 computers. First one arrived and would not power up. Notified Mercari. They wanted photos from every possible angle within 24 hrs! It was the weekend and I could not do it. So they have denied my return and refund request. The second computer has never arrived. And the seller is still selling on Mercari…
Mercari steals your shipping insurance money. Do not use them.
Mercari are crooked Japanese sellers…Suing & bringing criminal charges of fraud
I am completely committing too spearheading a class action suit. I have the know how and they owe me $69 I am no victim and never will be. Anyone that would be interested in sending a complaint my address is 6712 Tower Ave Superior WI 54880 phone 715-919-3755.
Mercari executives including John Langerling are millionaires! At the cost of those of us that have not stood up and challenged them. I am filing small claims in my state of Wisconsin. I have the legal right to do so, although Mercari tries to say different in their contract. To make it clear any illegal condition in a contract is a VOIDED CONTRACT!
Do not be bullied. They are laughing all the way to the bank!
They have kept money owed to me, suspended my account, I gave no means to contact them AND they continue to bombard me with emails for offers! I have unsubscribed three times( documented).
I am simply making this rip off business my cause and I am calling in ever Favor I have ever earned in my 53 years.
This is fraud and theft protected by a big “platform.”
I am as I said no victim.
I am bringing class action, please join in.
Mercari let seller keep my printer he claimed he wanted to return AND CLOSED MY ACCOUNT with out resolving this matter.
How does one contact Mercari for non receipt of the package I ordered
BEWARE OF SELLER “CLOSET ROUSS” ON MERCARI!
I wanted to add my negative review here along with ALL the other bad reviews of Mercari. I wish I had seen these reviews prior to ordering from this site. I had this similar problem happen to me once before with Mercari and I wish I should have learned my lesson the first time. “Fool me once…” I guess!
I purchased a pair of boots on the Mercari site that were list men’s size 9. When I got them I immediately noticed they were not men’s boots but women’s boots. How did I know they were women’s and not men’s? I already had a men’s size 9 boot and ordered these because they were a different color. I submitted a request for a refund to Mercari support but it was denied. I had several back and forth emails with them but they would not grant me a refund. They said basically, it was my fault I did not verify with the seller these were indeed men’s boots, prior to purchasing these boot.
After refusing to refund my money for a item that turned out to be broken I reached out to the mercari team. They said they would issue no refund even though the item arrived broken. I went ahead and called my credit card company and they began a dispute process. As soon as I did that I received a message in mercari stating I must stop the charge dispute or they would cancel my account. Until I proved I had stopped the dispute my account was frozen. This has been the continued statement from them when I reach out- cancel the dispute or the account will be canceled, till then the account is frozen. They are the worst.
Mercari is not a good place to buy sneakers if you are a collector.The site is full of fake jordans and nikes and pretty much any other brands that are expensive. I would say that 50 percent maybe more of the jordans on mercari are fakes. BEWARE BUYERS!!!!;
I had an account about a lot of stuff off in Kearny I was happy with my items I got a notice to change my password and my email do you change my email I tried to put in new passwords it would not allow me I have stuff in my cart waiting to pay forward I had talked to one lady the last one I bought things from she asked me my name and want to be my friend on Facebook may be an elderly person excepted that gave her my name which is the same name that muchThat my stuff is melting now I cannot get back into my account to pay for my stuff or order my stuff I don’t know if this person has stole my debit card from my bank information I don’t know what went wrong I’m trying to put in a new password and I can’t so I guess my days of buying is over any clues as to how to fix this anybody need help
“According to Mercari, they’ll not release payments until the buyer receives the item, confirm and rate the seller.”
This does not hold true in my three purchases on Mercari… @ least in regard to Mercari withdrawing funds from PayPal. The funds have been withdrawn from my banking account through PayPal immediately after purchase receipt of items. In one instance, Mercari withdrew funds THREE times for the SAME transaction, and it took multiple contacts with customer service to rectify. And this particular seller STILL has not sent my items after four days! Another purchase I made just today has been cancelled by the seller because she says she made a mistake, but the funds have ALREADY been withdrawn from my account and Mercari only says sorry, but it will take up to FIVE business days to return my money! Both of these sellers have excellent ratings : /.
Thank you for this article. I actually made an error and did not put in a tracking number once I had shipped an item, (well within Mercari’s Requirement period). The Buyer had received the item, and also cancelled the sell, the same day. Mercari handled the situation, was very empathetic, explained where I made the mistake, and actual gave me credit for the item, as well as the buyer was able to keep the item. That, my friends, is AWESOME customer service!
Mercari is total crap. I would not recommend it to anyone. They have ZERO support. Any issues or concerns are met with a canned response. You WILL NEVER, NEVER get actual help. Sellers have no protections. I have been swindled out of funds by buyers claiming issues with orders. They get to keep items, Get them for free and MEcari does nothing to protect the seller. DON’T USE!!!
Where do you recommend to sell instead?
Hey Jessica, It depends! Let me know what items you wanna sell?
ebay. it is larger, and not a scam
All we did was to buy a product off of the Mercari platform…we were required to create an account. I was not satisfied with the purchase so I have been trying for two days to delete my account and STOP all the Mercari marketing emails…and to date after several emails back and forth I have been unable to delete my account. Any outfit that locks you in this tightly can’t be trusted in my opinion! I would not do business with them even if I could save a ton of money. Something is not right here!
You can unsubscribe from Mercari emails by clicking on an email sent by them and scrolling to the bottom and looking for “unsubscribe” and then uncheck the boxes. Easy as that.
Exactly no not as easy as that! And that is why for every single email they continue to send me, they are going to pay for.???? Know the laws in your state!????????
yep, something is not right. do not buy on Mercari. you will get the wrong item or it won’t come
I just sold my first item on there, an 800.00 ring and they buyer says they didn’t get it, but I sent it by certified mail and I contacted the US postal inspectors who are investigating it. I had 500 in insurance, but the US postal inspectors are the best bet to take them down.
Just got burned by the Mercari system. Placed an order, received a tracking number and a few days later received a message saying my package had been delivered. Not delivered, so opened tracking , which said delivered to NY. I live in ID and that was the address on the order. Tried to contact Mercari through the website, but it said they would not take my request, I needed to wait 48 hrs. to see if the package showed up. After 48 hrs, the system allowed me to send an email about the problem. Received a response a day later saying they would check into it. A day after that received a response that they had resolved my issue with seller and I should let them know if I did not receive a new tracking number. New tracking did not show up, so emailed again. Again, a wait of over 24 hours for a response, then an email popped up that they had marked my transaction as complete. Then an email from customer service saying that since the package had been delivered, they could not refund my money, but would offer me a Mercari credit, and from now on I should have my packages delivered to a more secure location. Sigh. Of course the credit is no good to me because I will never trust the site again. Now I searched and see on Reddit that this scam has been going on since 2018 and obviously Mercari has not fixed it. Just a heads-up. Buyer beware.
I buy through Marcari & have purchased many items ( women’s clothing, shoes & accessories ) over the past 3 years. They have some great deals on designer jeans & clothing.
But buyers BEWARE because I got scammed not once but TWICE, latest being today when I received synthetic hair extension not worth more than $10 which I paid $135 + shipping for!
First scam was BAD ENOUGH, I received jeans containing human blood in the crotch area NOT A STAIN, ACTUAL BLOOD. MERCARI refused to refund me because 3 days passed but I was away and on day 4 I got my package. They refused despite just receiving my order. Their customer service is HORRIBLE AND THEY ARE ASININE & GREEDY so know this going in.
Today I learned, IF YOU mark an item “received” & rate the seller, the payment is released…so if you rate the seller a horrible one with 1 star, they get paid and you lose out!
LUCKILY, I did not mark the item delivered only by pure chance. Mercari sends you a message upon receipt telling you to confirm and rate but they do not tell you the rating will nullify any warranty / refunds.
So I’m sitting here now thinking what my best option is as far as how to report this so I get reimbursed.
Your information was really helpful. I have several items I need to sell. How do I sign up?
You’re welcome, Deborah. Take a look at this quick guide about selling on Mercari.
do not sell on Mercari. places like Ebay are better
Hi all , I have been shopping and selling on Mercari for few years
I only buy and sale luxury items
I have sold more then buy
So far I have no bad experience
Hopefully never
Tip always ask questions and more pictures if needed
Only buy from seller have all 5 stars review at least a few review
Check out seller item for sale
I also shop on eBay pretty often
I do love eBay money back quarantine , but I never sale on eBay only as a buyer
And I do like as seller on Mercari that buyer have 3 days to rate after received item once rate transaction is complete, also Mercari items n shipping fee a lot cheaper compared eBay
Hi,
Do you know if Mercari authenticate is legitimate? Can they ever accidentally authenticate a fake bag?
I didn’t see anywhere how I get paid when an item sells.
Mercari sounds like a big scam site! I will look elsewhere for the items I am in need of.
Really? How do? Where in the article and comments do you see anything that would cause you to come to your conclusion? Just curious.
yep, it is
I have, in the last week, attempted to purchase three different listings. On the first, I never heard from the seller so I cancelled the transaction (4 days). On the second and third listings, I clicked add to cart, checked out immediately, and then the sellers cancelled the transactions within minutes of paying the full asking price. At least one of them has been relisted at a higher price. I am starting to think it’s a site even worse than ebay!
Short story is Mercari’s customer support, especially for a buyer, has got worse over time. I just got burned on an item with a bad description because they would not approve the return. If they disagree with your return request they immediately close the transaction and you own it. You cannot leave a negative review for a bad seller in that situation. I’ve stopped buying or selling on Mercari.
I received synthetic hair today not worth more than $10. I paid $135+shipping for the hair. I have not taken any action this just happened. What is my best course of action to get my money back?
i don’t think you can
Coach Purse
I brought a coach purse from Katherin Aucoin. #m13166668176 for $ 27.00 plus tax and shipping cost. I received the purse and immediately opened it up and expected it right away it was a little dirty and l notice on the back of the purse the handles at the bottom that connects the purse handle where cracked. I contacted the seller about another coach purse and asked to see the handle do to the fact l purchased a another purse with cracked handles . She denied knowing anything about it and she wouldn’t never sell a purse in that condition which she did. I think of her as a unprofessional seller who didn’t disclose in discription the wear and tear on the handles. She went as far as blaming me for cracked handles that l have not used and clearly seen it when l removed it from box. What outrageous lie and l want something done. I will never buy or use Mercari App ever…… I will donate it too Goodwill were it belongs and the money l paid for it as charity… They have at Mercari low class sellers and high tax and shipping cost LESSON Learned!! If Katherin Aucoin is selling anything especially a coach purse carefully look at it and my recommendation is never buy from her lying rude self
Thanks for your article! Lots of good info.
You’re welcome, Amy 🙂
MERCARI REVIEW – Just go to The California.(San Francisco) Better Business Bureau and after reading the reviews and you go ahead and do business with this site you will deserve all the bad things that will happen to you.
I was swindled and scammed. Customer Service did nothing but give me a run around for weeks and weeks.
Counterfeit items, misrepresented items. etc., etc………..
It seems that all of the rotten sellers that were thrown off of Ebay and other like sites are scamming people on this site.
STAY AWAY! NOT WORTH THE AGGRAVATION THAT YOU WILL ENCOUNTER!
Hey Benjamin, Sad to hear that however thank you for sharing your bad experience with others.
Thanks Benjamin for posting your experience on Mercari. I’m downsizing and thinking of online selling but didn’t know much about it or this site. I think I’ll look into E-bay.
I’m also so grateful that Arslan posted such detailed info. on this subject with an avenue for everyone’s feedback. Thanks again Benjamin and everyone!
You’re welcome, Michelle 🙂
That goes both way. Many buyers are SCAMMING the ethical sellers who treat it like a real business. The customer service is TERRIBLE and they will allow people to scam you, stalk and now apparently you must RE-verify your device, DESPITE BEING a Highly trusted seller! That platform comprises SELLER SAFETY, they ignore things like harassment, restraining orders and just tell you too bad. The GOOD sellers are at the mercy of the buyers, who have no clue how commerce works. If you have a top notch store, NEW everything, amazing packaging & are fast then you should not be treated like a dog. Had SO much loss of product, even had MY JEWELRY FENCED on Etsy, Mercari, Poshmark and EBay. They are ALL fencing chains, bought MY OWN STOLEN JEWELRY BACK. Huge federal crime, these platforms don’t care, anything to make a buck. Now they suddenly want to be “law abiding” I’m calling a spade a spade. They want to absolve themselves of liability and are just harvesting more info. If you don’t re-verify, download NEW app & accept new terms of service then you are locked out of your account. Everyone who has stolen from me there STILL has accounts. I’m moving to Amazon & Shopify. It’s DEFINITELY NOT WORTH IT for any Decent Seller. Thankless & they encourage you to literally give things away. Their shipping is HORRIBLE. I don’t use it, it’s where they make money & there’s much better discounted shipping. It’s a great place for people who don’t care. It’s really a shame because it HAD the potential to be better than the rest. But they blew it, what a waste.
yep, they had potential, but its just a scam site
I have an issue going on where the tracking number says the item was delivered, but nothing ever showed up. I notified them right away and even told them if I didn’t get the item in the next day or so that I wanted my money back. A couple of days go by and they released the money to the seller without confirming with me all because a computer says it was delivered. That computer could very easily be wrong but that doesn’t matter. So much confidence in technology is sickening. Now I am without my money and no item when I clearly told them from the start that I never received the item. Bunch of thieves that don’t give a f*** about you once they get your money.
If you received a tracking number..and it was stated as delivered by the service..then it was not the fault of the seller. The seller has no control at the delivery level and is not required to refund the seller. Theft at the delivery site is often the reason you did not get it. Shipping insurance covers damage and non delivered items. Often..if a seller issues an early refund under these conditions…the item may show up later….and he has already refunded the buyer! So….the seller not only refunded when he should not have..BUT..now..the buy also has the item!! The seller loses both ways.
EXACTLY. Thank you! Sellers get scammed constantly. My first 3 buyers pulled that move, Mercari didn’t do ANYTHING. Won’t even release funds for items people received. It’s not a good place to be a seller. If you’re good and neat & tight then the buyers will take advantage of you and many will try to price shame. They’ll look something up, see it on some crazy sale and rifle off that they want to pay those prices LOL! They know dam$ well that you’re PAYING, to sell & ship if you take those deals. They expect you to take whatever they offer. It’s ridiculous, I buy low & try to sell cheap but always NEW & perfect. And I have clean ratings, but some are sooooo thankless and won’t rate you just to punish you LOL. Like that $20-$100 is really going to break you. Please, I won’t even collect from some of them because they are so nasty it’s not worth it.
If it was marked “delivered” that is because the company who shipped the item, delivered the item ( they don’t lie ). What happened to the package once it left drivers hands is anybody’s guess. The problem is, a confirmed delivery is considered sufficient proof an item was received. This means the seller did their part.
same with me
Mercari is NOT a safe place to buy. I have personal experience with buying something not as described. I bought a camera lens and asked if it fit my camera. And it was not cheap. When it arrived I tried it and it didn’t fit. Oh, and they took out the money the same day I order it. So yes they do take the money before you rate the seller. Customer service is horrible. Mercari does not want to give a return shipping label and refund my money despite doing all that they asked me to do. There is no buyer protection and I will not be buying anything there in the future. Mercari failed to protect buyers despite what they claim. They are just into getting their share of the money from the sellers. It’s much better and safer for a buyer to shop at Amazon and EBay.
Thanks Sammi for sharing your experience!
They take out the money before they rate the Seller and Mercari holds it. Only after you rate they release it. But they give you 3 days to rate them. But after the 3rd day of not hearing from a Buyer they will release the funds minus the fees to the seller. Just like most other selling sites. They will hold your money until it gets to you. 3 days is your opportunity to say something. So, no, just because you paid to purchase something, since they do have to make sure the funds are in there in order For you to buy something, does not mean that it ever went to the seller. Mercari does take a percentage out so they deduct that and the shipping from what is made right off the bat. Never have they released money to a seller the day you bought it!! Mercari should have refunded you I think that’s wrong if you asked the questions to the seller of what specific lens it is. And they said yes it would fit yours. You should have received a refund for them misrepresenting it. They see what is being messaged between buyer and seller. They would have refunded it. What happened I can’t say.
I think this is a tough one personally since the seller is not a retailer or dealer of said product, how are they to know if it will fit a buyers equipment?
I would think it would be on the buyer to know beforehand exactly what type of lens they need.
My son sold an item on Mercari, described it accurately, shipped it on-time, and provided good photos. The buyer decided to return it for no reason, and Mercari approved it. We can’t reach Mercari by phone, and via chat Mercari is not being responsive at all. I WOULD NEVER RECOMMEND USING THIS SITE. My son does not have his item or the payment for it. There is a scam in process.
Sad to hear that, thank you Julie for sharing your son’s experience with Mercari.
Hello Julie if possible can you share, the outcome of your experience. I am actually in the middle of a similar situation, sent an item with a value of $250, buyer received it and a day later requested a to return the item back to me due to insufficient packaging. Can’t get a hold of Mercari via phone nor chat. Dont have the item nor the payment. I feel like i was scammed by the buyer and Mercari.
Thanks Erica (and Julie) for posting/sharing your experience. Sounds like Mercari fails to have a return clause process (that includes return labels with tracking and holding the buyers funds until the seller confirms their return). Then, if no return confirmation, releasing the funds to the seller.
I’ll definitely stay away from this site due to everyone’s feedback. Thank you!
Been there, it’s why I won’t list anything expensive anymore. No way! Too many times. So sorry, that’s a substantial loss, Etsy is just as bad. Etsy & Poshmark allowed a person who robbed me to fence my Jewelry there. Only EBay was willing to cooperate on ANY level. It costs a lot of time and money. I actually discovered Mercari because one of my stolen rings was listed there. Ended up buying one of my stolen necklaces from that seller. Bought MY stolen property off of Etsy and they knowingly facilitated this. Some of my items are STILL listed. People are going to prison, but I had to do most of the work myself. These people who fenced have felonies for theft. I even sent their rap sheets. It’s comical that any of these platforms have community guidelines, they do not enforce them.
oof, that’s sad.
Sounds like the scam already took place!
I was selling laptops on Mercari, every item has actual photos and very detailed description exactly matches the item.
A Chinese woman with the PO BOX address bought a laptop from me and lied to me about receiving the item. now returning it for no proper reason and they approved her request. But I lost a lot of time. I would have sold it locally even for higher price. I’m never gonna sell anything to people with PO BOX address again. No wonder eBay sellers hate people with PO BOX address.
Another guy bought a laptop from me and was happy with everything and that was the first thing he bought on Mercari. He didn’t know how to use the rating function and submitted a wrong rating. (I think they should improve this functionality of Mercari). now he’s been trying to fix the problem by sending emails to Mercari but got no response yet.
My experience with Mercari as a seller, NO GOOD! not going to use it again.
Sad to hear that, Brad.
Thank you for sharing your experience!
Your comment is confusing and unclear. You claim the buyer “lied to me about receiving the item.”
Huh? If they lied about receiving it then how did they send it back?
You claim buyer no is:
“now returning it for no proper reason and they approved her request”
Also, what do you consider a “proper reason”? Apparently no Mercari considers it a “proper reason” you mean a “valid reason” right?
Well my experience was mixed. One transaction was perfect. But the second time I never got the item, could not contact the seller (she did not reply) and there was NO customer service to help me out. Very annoying and frustrating and ultimately as big waste of time. I went through paypal to get my money back. I will not shop at mercari ever again, I will just stick to ebay where there is some actual oversight. Never had a problem with ebay!
Thank you Kitty for sharing your experience!
Thank You there was a lot of really good information to make a decision. I Appreciate your time and effort put into this article.
Hi Peggy, you’re welcome. 🙂
You’re right, Mercari is legitimate and secure but we need to be assured about the seller as well as a buyer when dealing.
Thank you for this helpful article!
Hi Jessica,
You’re welcome. Happy to help.
Informative article, as always! Thanks for all the solid advice Arslan.
You’re welcome, Tim.
I shipped a expensive item using the printed Mercari label. The package was picked up from my place of business that happens to video record all shipping and receiving for security reasons. The package was picked up by our regular USPS carrier on 9/28. USPS scans packages at pickup which in turn creates the manifesto and updates tracking info until it’s delivered. My package shows only the first shipped entry without any updates. I have no reason to mistrust the carrier, he is our regular carrier and has acknowledged he received the package. I have filed an inquiry with the post office and waiting for an update, the buyer is aware of the lost package and has been very understanding. I have been in constant contact with Mercari and received the following:
“No worries, if your order has not received any tracking updates by October 8, 2020, please let us know and we will revisit this case. “.
On the 9th Mercari responded the following:
“Having said that, we are unable to release funds until we can confirm delivery to the buyer”
I find it hard to believe the seller could have received the package without any tracking updates so the package seems to be lost or stolen.
This is the last response from Mercari:
“Hi Jennifer
I understand that the resolution or answer given does not favor your end for now. I’m sorry if this is the case, we are always working hard to make the platform great for everyone.
However, for this kind of situation, this is the path that we have to go through, based on our market guidelines.”
This is the WORST customer service I have ever seen. It appears to me that the seller has no protection for lost packages, any reputable company the size of Mercari should stand behind the sale and release funds.
Stay away from the site or be aware you have ABSOLUTELY no protection or help and will be out your money and item If anything goes wrong !!
Mercari is NOT a safe place to buy. I have personal experience with buying something not as described. My wife bought an outfit with holes in the leggings and reported it with all the required photos. Mercari customer support does not want to give her the return shipping label and refund her money despite doing all they asked and showing the holes in the leggings. There is no buyer protection and we will not be buying anything there in the future. Mercari failed to protect the buyer despite what they claim. Customer service is horrible at best. It’s much better and safer for a buyer to shop at eBay.
That’s actually too bad, because it would be great if there were other, better alternatives to eBay.
Hello John,
As I said already in the post, everyone that is buying and selling stuff has to be careful. Did you check the seller reviews and description before buying?
Bye the way, Thank you for sharing your experience.
John said there were photos, but the seller neglected to show photos of the holes, OR tell them about them so they could decide what to do. It is the fact that Mercari didn’t honor taking care of the customer that concerns me even more.
I tried that, this happened. trusted seller, item that I want, cheaper than normal but still reasonable; never comes. tracking number incorrect, ordered a few weeks ago, still hasn’t come. ask seller about it, gives a new tracking number, still doesn’t work ect… ect…
THAT is outrageous to buy something and NOT have the customer service to make it right. I was going to start listing with them, but think I’ll just stay with eBay…SO SORRY you got screwed…let’s hope KARMA catches up with the seller, SOON.
Great post!
Question for you: Can I pay or get paid with PayPal?
Thanks.
Thank you, Simon.
So, the answer to your question is that you can pay for items during checkout with PayPal but you can’t get paid with it.