How to Buy Cards and Collectables Safely Online (and Avoid Scams)

MV Guides · Buying safely

Most collectors are honest, but the hobby attracts scammers because the items are small, valuable and easy to post. The good news is that nearly every scam relies on the same few tricks. Know them and you'll avoid almost all of them.

1. Pay the safe way, every time

The most common scam is simple: a seller asks you to pay by PayPal Friends and Family, bank transfer, PayID, crypto or gift cards, "to save on fees". All of these are like handing over cash. If the item never turns up, you usually can't get your money back.

Pay with PayPal Goods & Services, which comes with PayPal's buyer protection. If the item doesn't arrive, or isn't as described, you can open a claim with PayPal. On MVCollect, every purchase is paid through PayPal Goods & Services, and messages asking you to pay another way are blocked. If anyone asks, report it.

2. Too good to be true usually is

A big card or a rare figure at well under what it normally sells for, often with pressure to "pay now before someone else does", is the classic setup. Check what it actually sells for first. Our guide to checking sold prices shows how.

3. Check graded slabs

Fake slabs exist for valuable cards. Always look up the certification number on the grading company's own website, and check the card, year and grade on the record match the slab in the photos. Our guide to checking a slab is genuine goes through it. On MVCollect, the same cert number can't be listed twice.

4. Resealed and weighed product

Booster boxes and packs can be opened, searched for the good cards and resealed. Check the wrapping closely, and be wary of loose packs at good prices from unknown sellers. Our guide to spotting resealed product has the details.

5. Stolen photos

Some scammers list items they don't own, using photos copied from other listings. If you're spending real money, ask the seller for a photo of the item next to a piece of paper with today's date and your name. A genuine seller can do it in a minute.

6. Fake emails and messages

• Emails pretending to be PayPal or MVCollect, saying a payment is "on hold" or your account needs "verifying", with a link to log in. Don't click it. Go to the website yourself.
• MVCollect will never ask for your password, and nobody genuine will ask you to pay outside the site.
• Turn on two-step login (2FA) for your email and PayPal. It stops most account takeovers.

7. If something goes wrong

• Talk to the seller first. Most problems are honest mistakes or slow postage.
• Open a PayPal claim if it isn't sorted out. PayPal gives you 180 days from payment to open one.
• On MVCollect, you can open a dispute from the order and report a listing or a member.
• Keep everything: messages, photos, tracking numbers and an unboxing video if you can. Filming yourself opening a valuable parcel is the best evidence there is.

What MVCollect does to keep buying safe

• Every purchase is paid by PayPal Goods & Services, straight to the seller.
• Checks against shill bidding (sellers bidding up their own items), including linked accounts.
• Graded cert numbers are shown with a link to the grader's lookup, and duplicates are blocked.
• Signed memorabilia must be certified.
• Messages asking for other payment methods, or containing outside links, are blocked.