Help i've been scammed what can i do?

I saw a siberian Husky that was for sale in the Isle of Man for £220. I didn't think much of it and thought thats a good price, his email address is [email protected] he had then emailed me back asking me questions like why do you like the breed, are you going to love and spoil him, and loads of other questions. I have saved all the emails that have been sent to me. Yesterday i got a phone call from Uship.com saying they were going to deliver my puppy to my doorstep but in order for the progress to go on any further i was asked to pay the £230 to western Union in a shop that they had provided for me again i was totaly oblivious about it and never heard these were scamers, like an idiot i paid it and then gave the guy at Uship a call back to say payment went through he had asked for the MTCN numer and also the exchange rate and said that a confirmation will be sent to me via email. I heard nothing for 2 hours, so i contacted seller via email he then said puppy will be delivered tomorrow morning (Today 11th September 2011) at 9:42, i then got an email back from Uship to say puppy will be delivered at 9:45 tomorrow morning (Today 11th September 2011) i have been waiting at home all day and no sign of puppy. I have emailed both seller and Uship but had no reply from them at all, I have got a receipt for the money i have transfered over, in total i was to pay £257. i have never seen husky which now i wish i should of done , i am new to all of this and never thought that it would happen to me.

If anyone can help me please email me as i think this should not carry on and let anyone else be scammed by these horrible people.

Hi there

I'm sorry that you have been scammed. Unfortunately there is next to no chance of getting your money back. Please drop all contact with the scammer and be wary of other emails which say there has been a "problem" with delivering the puppy to you and that there is a further sum to pay. If the scammer emails or phones you just ignore it.

Thank you for posting here as this will help other victims and potential victims. If you could post up details of all emails you received, this will help bring people here if they google the contents. ANY transaction which involves Western Union/Money Gram is likely to be a scam, I'm afraid.

Martha

You may like to read this page.
http://blog.uship.com/uk/2011/05/ushipscam.html

Sorry to read your story cindyw1981.
You may also need to read http://uship.pissedconsumer.com/ to prepare for any future occurences.
Yes I agree in the fact they are horrible people. uship.com seems a legitimate site. Obviously the scammers are using it like piggyback.

If anyone claiming to be in the UK asks for payment by Western Union, it's a scam, as we all use bank accounts. It's painful way to learn a lesson, but this isn't the way to buy a pet - from a stranger without seeing the pet or knowing anything about the health and character of the animal, especially not a working dog that could turn out to be a handful in many ways if you don't know what you're getting.

The internet has allowed 419 scammers to fill sale ads with their scams, so you have to be very careful, and they also respond to genuine ads with another scam proposition. The only way to protect yourself is to learn the signs and risks.

Hi cindyw1981,

uShip is an online marketplace where those that need shipping services can list their needs and receive bids from independent transporters. uShip is not involved in the actual shipment of any items, and we are not involved in the purchase or sale of any items. We have been made aware of scams occurring on various online classified sites where the seller of an item makes false and fraudulent claims about uShip and/or impersonates a uShip representative in an attempt to trick individuals into sending them a wire transfer payment for non-existent goods. It appears that you may have come across one of these scams.

uShip does not ship any items - we are simply an online marketplace. I would encourage you to not engage in any transactions with this individual and to contact the site where you found the ad to report it as being fraudulent, as well as the Internet Crime Complaint Center (www.ic3.gov) .

Best,

Jami at uShip

Welcome Jami!

Thank you for taking the time to post here to explain the nature of your marketplace.
This is valuable advice that will be useful in future cases.

Did you consider putting a warning on your homepage? It might help if a victim decides to check before proceeding with a scammer.