The Marketplace deal seemed legit. It wasn't.

I listed a sofa on Facebook Marketplace before a move; a buyer messaged quickly, offered full price, and said a shipper would collect it.

They sent a Zelle screenshot showing an overpayment and asked me to refund the difference to the courier.

The image looked legitimate on my phone, so I sent about three hundred pounds from my own balance while the “extra” was supposedly clearing.

The buyer went quiet, the shipper number never answered, and my bank showed no incoming Zelle at all.

Fake payment screenshots plus refund pressure are a common seller scam; real funds do not move because the proof is edited.

I still had the sofa and was out the “change” I had voluntarily sent.

While I rushed the refund I was thinking about the moving date, not about waiting for cleared funds in the app.

The bank’s fraud team pulled transaction logs—no deposit matched the screenshot—and showed me how the metadata on the image had been altered.

Moving costs were already tight; losing the three hundred on top stung, and I met buyers only in cash after that.

I confirm money inside my banking app only; I never refund overpayments from screenshots, and for local sales I prefer cash on pickup.

• Meet in person for local Marketplace sales when you can; insist on cleared payment before releasing goods or refunds.
• Report fraud through the platform and your bank.

For more help, see our Report a scam page and Spot and avoid scams guide.