How to Buy Safely on Facebook Marketplace in Australia
Buying second-hand in Australia is massive. Facebook Marketplace is where a lot of it happens. But for every genuine seller, there's someone trying to take your money and disappear. Whether you're buying your first item or your fiftieth, this checklist will help you spot the fakes, protect your money, and actually get what you paid for.
Before You Message
Before you even message a seller, look at their profile. How old is the account? Do they have friends, photos, and activity that looks real? A brand new account with no history and one listing is a red flag.
- Account created in the last few weeks
- No profile photo or a stock image
- Zero friends or connections
- Only one listing with an unusually low price
Does the listing use stock photos or images that look like they've been pulled from Google? Do a reverse image search (right click the photo, search Google for image). If the same photo shows up on other sites or listings, it's likely a scam.
- Multiple photos from different angles
- Photos taken in someone's actual home, not a studio
- Detailed description including condition, brand, and size
- Reasonable pricing (if it seems too good to be true, it probably is)
Scammers tend to keep descriptions vague on purpose. A genuine seller will include details like the brand, model, condition, reason for selling, and any flaws. If the description is one sentence or just "message me for details," be cautious.
When You Message
A genuine seller won't have a problem sending you extra photos or a quick video of the item working. If they refuse, get defensive, or send you the same stock photos again, walk away.
This is the biggest one. If a seller pushes you to pay by bank transfer or PayID before you've received anything, you have no protection. Once that money leaves your account, there's no dispute process and no undo button. Getting it back depends entirely on whether your bank can recover it before the scammer moves it on.
- "Just send a bank transfer and I'll post it today"
- Refusing any form of protected payment
- Asking for a deposit before you've even seen the item
- Sending a fake "payment received" screenshot and asking you to ship first
- Asking you to pay through a "friends and family" mode with no buyer protection
A seller doesn't need your full name, home address, date of birth, or ID. All they need is a way to get you the item. If someone starts asking for personal details beyond what's needed for the transaction, end the conversation.
When You Pay
The safest way to pay is through a service that keeps your payment secured until you have the item in your hands and have confirmed it's what the seller said it was. That way the seller can't take your money and disappear.
Bank transfers and PayID are free but give you no protection. If the item never turns up or isn't what was described, your money is gone.
This applies to in person deals too. Cash gives you nothing to fall back on. Once you've handed it over, you have no record and no recourse. A protected payment works the same way whether the item is posted to you or handed to you at a meet up.
When you pay through Dela, your payment is processed securely by Stripe. Nothing goes to the seller until you have the item and have confirmed it matches the description.
You get the item one of two ways. The seller ships it, using Dela's in-app shipping or their own tracked courier, and you both follow it in the app. Or you meet in person and use Handover: you show the seller a unique code from the app, they enter it to confirm the exchange, and no cash changes hands.
Either way, you then have 24 hours to check the item over. If it's not as described, damaged, or faulty, you can reject it in the app within that window and Dela support will work through it with you. If you don't action anything within 24 hours, the deal completes automatically and the seller is paid.
After You Receive
As soon as you have the item, check it against the listing. Does it match the photos? Is it the right model, size, and condition? If anything is off, document it with photos straight away.
Don't sit on it. Protected payment methods have a window to raise a problem, and Dela's is 24 hours from delivery or handover. Miss it and the deal completes on its own.
If everything went well, great. If the seller tried something shady, report them. On Facebook Marketplace you can report the listing and the profile. If enough people report the same seller, the account gets removed. You're not just protecting yourself, you're protecting the next person.
Check the seller's profile before messaging. Look for real photos, not stock images. Ask questions and request extra photos. Never pay by bank transfer, PayID, or cash to someone you don't know. Use a payment method that keeps your money secured until you have the item. Inspect it the moment you get it, whether it's posted or handed over. Report dodgy sellers so they can't scam the next person.
Buy with confidence on any marketplace
Your payment is secured until you confirm the item is all good. Sellers are ID verified. Ship it or hand it over in person. And sellers pay nothing.
Try Dela. It's Free for Sellers