Gumtree Scam Recovery: Letter of Demand (Australia)

Gumtree scams follow a predictable script: an attractive listing, urgent pressure to pay by bank transfer or PayID, a promise to ship “tomorrow”, and then total silence. Many victims assume nothing can be done. That’s only half right.

The legal context

If the seller is identifiable — real name, Australian bank account, verified phone — you have a contract claim and, where they sell regularly, a claim under the Australian Consumer Law. Misrepresentation about the existence or condition of goods is also actionable as deceit at common law.

Report the listing to Gumtree, lodge a ReportCyber report, and contact your bank within 24 hours to attempt a recall under the ePayments Code.

Realistic outcomes

Anonymous overseas scammers using mule accounts are effectively untouchable. Be candid with yourself about which type of seller you dealt with. But many Gumtree scams involve Australians — sometimes opportunists, sometimes serial offenders — whose details are recoverable from the bank account that received your money. If you can identify an Australian seller, a Letter of Demand to them is a separate option.

The document approach

The written demand goes to your own bank, the one the money left from. It sets out the listing URL, the messages exchanged, the payment evidence and when you reported the scam, and asks the bank to reimburse you within 30 days, citing its scam obligations. If the bank refuses or does not respond within that time, you take the complaint to AFCA, which is free for you.

What Claim Done delivers

For a flat fee, Claim Done drafts a written demand to your own bank to reimburse you, citing its scam obligations (the ePayments Code, the Banking Code of Practice and, where it applies, the Scams Prevention Framework), plus an AFCA complaint if the bank refuses. If the seller is an identifiable Australian, a Letter of Demand to them is a separate option.

What to expect after

Send by email and registered post. Continue parallel actions: bank recall, Gumtree report, ReportCyber, Scamwatch. If your bank refuses to reimburse you, lodge the AFCA complaint.