With everything getting rather expensive these days, it’s not surprising when someone jumps on a seemingly great bargain. A young man named Wyatt posted in a recent TikTok video, that he found himself a sweet deal on the Facebook Marketplace. The seller had some tires that he claimed still had about 70% tread left. When Wyatt went to purchase them, they looked good. He spent around $500 and took them to Discount Tire to get them balanced. Unfortunately, the tires were bad and unusable. Wyatt ended up spending additional money to get a brand new set of tires anyway.
As it turns out this isn’t that unique of an experience. There are absolutely great deals to be had on Facebook Marketplace and similar sites. Sadly, experiences like Wyatt are more common than you might think. AARP, a non profit that advocates for people over 50, reported that from July to September in 2023, Facebook removed 827 million fake Facebook accounts.
There is incredible convenience in purchasing online. It’s definitely a growing trend and may completely transform purchases in the near future. Consumer Reports released a study showing over the course of a year, 90% of Americans will make at least one purchase online. Experts warn for buyers to beware. An article in The Guardian reported the most common scam involved receiving the wrong purchase or nothing at all.
What’s more troubling is there isn’t much recourse action to take in many circumstances. A Manager of Safety Advocacy at Consumer Reports, Oriene Shin said, “Our laws and policies were written for a very different shopping landscape and should be updated to better reflect current realities. CR’s report outlines key steps policymakers and regulators can take to ensure that when consumers shop online, they are protected from dangerous products, no matter who the seller is.”
Convenience
It’s incredibly easy to boot up a computer, go to a site, enter your credit card information, and have an item purchased and then delivered in days. The ability to shop anytime and virtually anywhere is enticing. There’s such a broad variety of selections and price deals. The ease in which to research a product and gather feedback through reviews and comments is extremely helpful. Payments are convenient, and there is less fuss without unwanted interactions with sales people. But, all this comes with an extra price.
Items demanding extra caution
Cosmetics and skincare products can not only be counterfeit, they can be toxic. The Times reported that online marketplaces often sold competitively priced products that appear like an amazing deal. They referenced a study by Which? that found 67 percent of beauty products were likely imitations and not the true product. The The Scottish Sun reported over half of kid’s toys purchased through online markets over the winter holidays posed serious risks to children.
Other items to be more cautious about when purchasing online: automobile parts, electronics, furniture, baby gear and accessories, and event tickets. In one story published in The U.S. Sun, a man thought he was getting a fantastic deal on a pickup truck. After flying out of state, exchanging paperwork which looked legitimate, and purchasing the vehicle, some problems at the DMV revealed the truck had been stolen. The man lost out on thousands of dollars.
Best places to buy tires
Aftermarket Matters posted a study from 2024, and the results landed where Wyatt ended up to solve his problem. Discount tire holds the largest market share at 33.8%. Other reputable dealers of tires were Walmart 17.7%, Costco 16.9%, and other major brands like Goodyear and Firestone holding a 14.3% share of the market. Many of these major franchises do sell online and will deliver your tire purchase to your home.
Some lessons are rougher than others. Nobody likes to be swindled out of their hard earned dollars. In the shared comments for the TikTok video, some people offered their own experience, support, and some were just judgmental:
“Or just inspect the tires before you buy Them? I’ve boughten 5 used tires off marketplace No issues at all you just have to know what’s a good tire and what’s not”
“you can easily tell they only have 20% left lol”
“posting this should embarrasse the average person”
“It’s called cupping. It’s common on Offroad/All Terrain tires if they aren’t rotated properly.”
“So sorry this happened to you. Ignore all the haters. You’re saved many people a lot of heartache.”
“you can get a tire depth measurement thing from a parts store and Google the tire size+brand and see what the safe measurements are”
Protect yourself
Here are some helpful suggestions for your online purchases:
- Only shop on secure sites.
- Use a credit card instead of cash or debit because you have added protection.
- Have some healthy skepticism because there are people out there trying to take advantage.
- Remember the saying ‘if it looks to good to be true, it probably is.’
- Any sort of fraud you can and should report to your credit card company.
