1. No one gives away outrageously valuable pianos. Scammers will sometimes claim they’re doctors trying to find a loving home for their 2014 Steinway or a big Yamaha grand. While there are occasionally nicer pianos that are given away, 99% of the time they’re not given away to strangers. It’s overall very rare to find a super valuable instrument for free.
2. A lack of logistics and contact information is sketchy. No specifics of what town the piano is in, a date the piano must be moved by, why it must be given away, nothing? Most of the time when people want to give us a piano that’s worth taking in, they give a ton of info. Moreover, no phone number can be shady too. 99% of the time, real people would prefer to just hash this out over the phone.
3. Using copypasta that’s already been reported on on the Internet. Scammers aren’t creative: they copy and paste their emails, and send them to hundreds of people. If you’re getting the same email multiple times, it’s probably a scam. Moreover, Reddit and Piano Forum will sometimes have posts from users who’ve received the same scam emails. And they also use weird spam phrasing like “so sorry to infringe on your privacy.” Try to Google strange text from the phishy email, and it may very well come up.
4. Avoid pianos out of the local area. Most times scammers won’t state this information up front. So if you’re not sure, you can entertain the scammer and ask. If it’s out of the area, there’s a 99% probability it’s a scam.
5. Do not send any private seller money for a move. If someone wants you to coordinate with their mover to deliver the piano to you, then it’s 1000% definitely a scam. In private sales, you can work with any professional piano mover you want directly, and have the mover call the seller to coordinate pickup. It’s standard practice for dealerships, and any legitimate seller won’t mind you do the same.
6. Don’t send any private seller money unless you’ve seen the piano yourself. Buying a piano online can be scary since you haven’t yet seen it. You should feel the same about any piano, even if it’s free. Ideally when working with private sellers, you’re bringing a technician to the deal so they can evaluate the instrument’s quality. No possibility of an evaluation, no deal. Simple as that.
7. Be wary of giving any personal information. Most scammers do want money. However, you should also be careful about giving them sensitive information. Definitely don’t give them a delivery address!
8. Be wary of the payment methods. We recommend only using PayPal Goods & Services if you’re working with a private seller. That way your purchase is protected, and you can easily get your money back in the case it’s a clever scam. Zelle, Venmo, Cash App and even Apple Pay don’t give you the same luxury.