SCAM LIBRARY · BUYING & SELLING

The marketplace overpayment

In this scam, someone buys an item from you and sends more money than agreed, then pressures you to refund the overage—but the payment was never genuine.

Documented by the FTC & FBI IC3 · reviewed 2026-07-06

How it works

You list something for sale online, and a buyer quickly agrees to purchase it. They send a payment that appears to go through, but claim they accidentally paid too much. They ask you to send back the difference right away, often with a reason why they need it urgently. By the time you discover the original payment was fake, you've already sent your own real money out.

Red flags

• A buyer agrees too quickly without asking questions or negotiating.
• The payment amount is noticeably higher than the price you listed.
• You're pressured to refund the overage immediately, or the buyer seems anxious about timing.
• The refund request comes before delivery or before you've had time to verify the payment cleared your bank.

What to do

• Never refund money until the original payment has fully cleared in your actual bank account—not just appeared in an app—which can take several business days.
• If something feels off, cancel the transaction and ask the buyer to resend the correct amount.
• Report the suspicious transaction at reportfraud.ftc.gov.