Short answer
A fake rendez-vous is a meetup for a replica watch where the seller does not hand over the watch in the photos. Three common versions: the seller takes a deposit before the meeting and blocks your number; the seller arrives with a lower grade model than the one advertised; two people arrive and one stands behind your car while the other asks for cash. Losses run from a $50 deposit to $1,500 in cash.
Red flags before the meetup
- Deposit requests by gift card, crypto, or wire. The FTC reported $217 million in gift card payments to scams in 2023.
- Photos that appear on other listings. Run a reverse image search on each file.
- A meeting spot with no cameras: a dead-end street, an empty lot, or a parking deck stairwell.
- A price below the going rate for the grade. A Swiss ETA clone at $60 is a $15 quartz watch in a steel case.
- The seller refuses a photo of the movement, caseback, or serial number.
- Pressure to meet within the hour.
Checks that take 10 minutes
- Ask for a timestamped photo: the watch next to a handwritten date and the seller's username.
- Ask for the movement photo. Compare jewel count, rotor engraving, and balance wheel shape.
- Save the listing ID and the seller handle. Marketplace listings get deleted after a scam report.
- Search the handle plus the word scam on watch forums.
- Ask for a video call with the watch running. A stutter in the second hand points to a low grade movement.
- Set the meetup in daylight at a police station lobby or a bank lobby.
At the meetup
Bring one other person. Keep the cash in the car. Inspect the watch for 5 minutes: caseback threads, crown action, bezel clicks, lume, and the date flip. Check the serial number against the photo you were sent. If the watch does not match the photo, hand it back and leave. Do not negotiate at the curb.
Pay after inspection. Cash leaves no record. A bank transfer leaves a trail that your bank can dispute in some cases. Gift cards leave no trail and no refund. A card payment through a marketplace platform is the safest option when the platform offers it.
If the meetup goes wrong
File a report with your local police and the FBI IC3. The IC3 logged $12.5 billion in reported losses in 2023. Give the case number to your bank the same day. Keep the chat log, the listing, the photos, and the phone number. Report the listing to the platform.
Customs and seizure risk
Replica watches are counterfeits under US law. CBP seized about 23,000 shipments of counterfeit goods in FY2023 with a manufacturer's suggested retail value of $2.7 billion. A seized parcel is a loss for the buyer, and sellers rarely refund it.