Staying safe
Last updated 1 July 2026
Millions of second-hand deals happen smoothly every year — and a few simple habits keep it that way. Your safety matters to us: follow these steps to buy and sell with confidence.
Meet in a safe place
Where possible, meet in daylight in a public place — a supermarket car park or a busy café works well. If an item has to be seen at a home, take someone with you and tell a friend where you’re going. Selling from home? Keep the exchange at the door where you can, and have the item ready. Trust your instincts: if something feels off, it’s fine to cancel.
Inspect before you pay
Check the item matches the listing before handing over any money — and test it. Plug electricals in, ride the bike, open and close the pram. Never pay in advance for something you haven’t seen; if the item isn’t as described you can simply walk away.
Pay safely
Cash on collection, once you’ve seen and checked the item, is the simplest and safest way to pay for most second-hand purchases. Avoid bank transfers to people you don’t know, and never pay with gift cards, vouchers or cryptocurrency — no genuine seller asks for those. For higher-value items, consider a payment service with buyer protection.
Keep chats on Preloved
Message through Preloved so there’s a record of the conversation. Scammers almost always try to move you to email or WhatsApp quickly — that’s a warning sign in itself. We’ll never ask for your bank details, and nor should any genuine buyer or seller.
Spot the classic scams
Watch for: a price that’s too good to be true; pressure to ‘secure’ an item with a deposit; a courier or shipping company the other person insists on; and overpayment ‘by mistake’ with a request to refund the difference. The safest pattern is simple — view the item in person, and pay when you collect it.
Buying a pet? Extra care
Always see the animal with its mother, in the place where it was raised — never agree to meet halfway or have a puppy or kitten delivered sight unseen. Check the paperwork: microchip details, vaccination records and, where relevant, KC registration. Puppies and kittens must be at least eight weeks old before they leave their mother. If anything worries you, walk away and report the advert — you may be that animal’s best chance.
Report anything suspicious
If an advert looks fraudulent or a member behaves badly in messages, please report it — it takes a moment and protects everyone. Use the report option on the advert or conversation, or contact our support team with a link to what you’ve seen. We review every report. You can find more answers in our help centre.