Virtual markets for buying and selling products, connecting vendors and interested buyers, and increasing the radius of customer reach through one click and a feasible platform are something we all needed. Offer up is one of those virtual c2c local markets founded in 2011 by Nick huzar competing against companies like Carousell, eBay, and Craigslist. Let us know ‘Is Offerup Legit?’.
Debate on the legitimacy of Offerup
The decline in customer ratings, dissatisfaction with services, and some severe scams have resulted in the question of the legitimacy of the marketplace offerup. The company, on the other hand, has been working hard with safety features and attempting to provide better and safe services to the customer base.
Safety measures by offerup
User verification
Offerup focuses on checking the authenticity of the seller where they have to submit a copy of their identification along with email ids, mobile numbers, and other necessary details which are later verified through their “truyou “technology. A seller can only add their items after they have verified. The buyer’s verification is also a part of their safety measures.
Ratings and tips
Offer up has a feature of ratings exchanged between buyer and seller allowing them to accept or decline their offer based on past reviews. The number of products sold before is also visible for the better judgment of the deal. Catalog images, stock images, and low seller ratings are examples of red flags suggested by the company to the buyers.
Privacy and safety
Offerup has an inbuilt messaging service to avoid the sharing of personal details. This information can also be reviewed later in case of any transactional dispute and miscommunication in the deal. Community meetup spots are planned, and meeting tips are also provided to make the product exchange meetings safe.
Scams on Offerup
Free items
Scammers often use tactics like posting their item for ‘0’ $ to the needy ones and end up fooling them by asking just for delivery charges. People often fall for these click baits.
Shipping charges and advances
Shipping charges are another way people get scammed, sellers ask them to transfer a certain amount for the delivery charges and their product never gets delivered. Other charges or sometimes half payments are requested by the seller to fool the buyer.
Criminal activity
Registered Stolen items
People often post theft products online as an easy way of the transaction resulting in increased criminal activities.
Robbery
There have been many instances reported where the seller has been robbed at the gunpoint
Threats
If the seller/buyer is fooled into sharing personal or sensitive information, they can be later threatened or blackmailed.
Reviews of offerup
Offerup has a rating of 1.2/5 on Sitejabber after 730 reviews,1.2 on Trustpilot, and 1.3 on Trustindex indicating the anger and huge disappointment of the customers. Recently Offerup has been ranked further low in the marketplaces and the number of negative reviews is also shooting up. Price ranges are also observed to be on the higher side.
Better business bureau review – there have been 1112 business complaints of all kinds against the company offerup, offerup has a 1-star rating along with the ‘f’ grading.
Should we be worried about being scammed?
All the transactions virtual or not, including buyer and seller has some chance of having a scam, and it’s always better to rely on our common sense and take necessary precautions and safety measures. It’s the same with the offerup. The company even after putting all the effort expects the user to follow basic transaction measures and tips.
Some of the buyer tips are as follows:-
- Avoid cashless transactions
- Have meetings in a public place
- Do not share personal information
- Check reviews of the seller before buying
- Ensure the authenticity of the product before giving money
Conclusion: Is offerup legit?
Offerup as a company is supposed to be legitimate because of all the safeguards they took into consideration and have been trying to implement since then. However, user experience, the result of all their efforts, have not been worth it so far. Results are the only visible so the legitimacy of the company is blurred and hampered until they put themselves back on their two feet, work on their reviews, and interact with the seller ensuring the authenticity themselves. Negative reviews have been overshadowing their notable achievements like recognition by Forbes and fortunes and 90 million downloads across the world. Offerup legit depends on the effort they will put on the verge of their reputation going down every day.
Frequently asked questions-
- who can use offerup?
Ans- OfferUp doesn’t currently serve areas outside of the US.
- Are offerup and letgo the same?
Ans- letgo is now part of the company offerup.
- What are some alternatives to offerup?
Ans- eBay, Craiglist,oodle,yerdle, recycler, and OLX are some of the alternatives of the offerup.
