I got a call from a lady in Southern California asking about an
inspection that, it was claimed, I had done on a Steinway grand in
Florida.  We were out of town so it went on our message machine.
When we returned home I called the lady and we discussed the matter.

She had answered an ad on Craigslist and since I was not available she
called several piano techs in Florida to inspect the piano for her.
The seller was never able to make time for a tech to see the piano and
he eventually disappeared into the woodwork.

The lady could get no information from the seller other than his first
name, "Alan".  He claimed that I lived in Arizona and had inspected the
piano in Florida on August 29.  The telephone number he gave her was
mine in Reno, Nevada.  The ad disappeared shortly after she couldn't
arrange an inspection, and she didn't think to file a complaint with
Craig's list.

We discussed at some length how to buy a piano, with my main advice,
"See the piano and play it before you buy," followed by, "Buy one from
the same climate you live in."

Bob Billings
Reno, Nevada

 [ At http://www.craigslist.org/about/scams :
 [   Deal locally with folks you can meet in person -- follow this
 [   one simple rule and you will avoid 99% of the scam attempts
 [   on craigslist
 [ and
 [   Most scams involve ... inability or refusal to meet face-to-face
 [   before consummating the transaction.
 [ -- Robbie