It's nothing new on eBay, but unfortunately not everyone knows about it: the high shipping price scam. Be careful whenever you are thinking of buying or bidding on an item that has a much larger shipping price than you'd expect.

Some scammers out there will sell below-average or defective products -even knock-offs- knowingly, and then charge a lot more for shipping than the item really costs. They may even mention how flexible they are on returns in the auction. What happens is such though: the buyer gets the item, only to realize it's not what he thought it was, or it doesn't work like it should, etc. He goes to return it, and the seller says "no problem!" and takes it back, and refunds the customer the money....minus the shipping and handling. They are not obligated to refund the shipping and handling, so they can make a profit off an item, even by getting returns.

A classic example of this scheme is WW2 Samurai Katanas.  You'll see that a LOT of them sell for around $0.99 at the auction, and then charge well over $100 for shipping! A lot of these swords are not as authentic as the seller may claim them to be, and once a buyer gets it, he's more or less stuck with it, since if he asked to return it for a refund, he would only get the $0.99 back, and be out the $100+.

Ways to avoid this: Use your best judgement. Take a careful look at what you're interested in buying. Is it new or used? Used products are more likely to have a problem than new, sealed product.

Does it seem like the price is super low? Possibly there is something that other bidders have noticed about it to make them stay away. Take another look. You may be getting a steller deal, or you may be getting scammed. Compare prices on other auctions from other sellers, who are selling the same type of item. What price does it normally sell for? Take a look at that feedback score too, but keep this in mind (especially with anything collectable): a lot of buyers leave feedback once they see that they have the item and see that it's not been damaged in transit. They may not find out until after the feedback has been left if the item is genuine or not.

Does the shipping price seem high? Take a look at where the package would be shipped from, and make a rough calculation on how much it would cost to ship it to you. UPS and Fedex's websites both provide a shipping calculator, which should give you a ballpark figure. If the shipping is a lot higher than your ballpark, you may want to reconsider.

Trust your gut instinct. If something about it doesn't feel quite right to you, then you'd probably be better off not bothering. Remember, "if it seems to good to be true, it probably is."

Taking a bit more time in simply considering the outcome may save you from a headache, and a nasty buying experience.