Dropshipping scam
A hidden reseller marks up or misrepresents goods shipped straight from a cheap third party.
Dropshipping itself is a legal retail model — a seller lists goods and, when you order, buys them from a third party who ships directly to you. It becomes a scam when a site hides that model to overcharge or deceive: taking your money for items marked up many times over their true cost, selling cheap goods dressed up with stolen photos and invented reviews, or simply never shipping at all.
You might wait weeks for something that arrives nothing like the pictures, straight from an overseas warehouse, with no realistic way to return it. Tell-tale signs include stock imagery lifted from other sites, prices and delivery times that do not add up, a brand-new domain, and a vague or missing UK business address. None of this is illegal on its own, which is why paying by a method you can dispute matters so much here. Check the shop the way our guide to recognising a scam website describes, and read how fake online shops are assembled so the pattern stands out before you buy.