What precautions do you take when buying online?

Daniel@R2R · Oct 28, 2015

REEF2REEF is a great community, and I've found reefers in general are a great group of people who will go out of their way to help one another (and...like I said, R2R is the best of the best IMHO), but like any group there are occasional "bad apples" that aren't on the up and up (this could be anything from misrepresentation to outright scam). It pays to be cautious when buying anything "sight unseen," so there are some steps that are just helpful to take and ways to be sure you are buying with confidence. What are your steps? What do you look for that gives you confidence in a purchase? What are some "red flags" that you watch out for?

Let's share our tips with each other here. By sharing your own process, you may help another member of the community avoid a bad experience.

Btw, here's a link to some tips that we recommend everyone be aware of at R2R: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/watch-out-before-buying-or-selling.201631/

TheEngineer · Oct 28, 2015

I usually only buy from someone who is active on the forum with at least 100 posts. For payment I prefer to use something with protection like Paypal.

Daniel@R2R · Oct 28, 2015

A big one for me is NEVER pay for something you're buying with the PayPal gift/family option. Not only does it cheat PayPal out of the fees they charge for their services, it also removes any protection or recourse available you as a buyer.

Reef Pets · Oct 28, 2015

Just so you guys know, there's no protection from PayPal when it comes to live animals. Dry goods, yes but not coral. So do yourself a favor and ONLY buy and trade from those that have a good reputation. Otherwise, you're on your own.

joshkirkland83 · Oct 28, 2015

I just get mdbannister to check out the pics...[emoji6]

ProjectAnemone · Oct 28, 2015

Only buy from sponsors or members that have a several positive feedback posts.

TomatoSauceTy · Oct 28, 2015

I won't buy corals that are pictured on black sand or have a black background, or the colors look so enhanced they are saturated.

I don't care about enhanced pictures, I'm not viewing my tank with a camera.