What are the most common scam patterns reported by scrap sellers, so I know what to watch for?
Short answer: Commonly reported patterns include quoted prices dropping significantly on arrival with vague justification, buyers who avoid any documentation or receipt, requests to meet somewhere other than a proper business premises, high-pressure tactics to decide immediately, and payment that's promised but never actually arrives after material has already been handed over.
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List Free →The bait-and-switch price drop
An attractive phone quote followed by a significantly lower on-arrival offer, with a vague or unconvincing explanation, is one of the most commonly reported patterns — it works because leaving with your material once you’ve already made the trip feels inconvenient.
Avoiding documentation entirely
A buyer who won’t provide any receipt, won’t let you see a scale reading, and generally avoids anything that would create a record of the transaction is showing a pattern worth taking seriously.
Payment that never arrives
Perhaps the most damaging pattern: a buyer takes possession of material with a promise to pay after — via invoice, credit terms, or “I’ll transfer it tonight” — and then simply doesn’t follow through, leaving you with no material and no payment.
How ScrapTrade Makes This Easier
ScrapTrade’s escrow-protected structure is specifically designed to prevent the payment-never-arrives pattern, since funds are secured before material changes hands rather than promised after the fact.
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