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Facebook Marketplace tips for meeting in person
We suggest following the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for how to stay healthy and help prevent the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) while buying and selling.
If you see any signs of suspicious activity, immediately cancel the transaction, report the listing or person and call the local authorities if necessary.
To help promote your safety, we encourage you to review the following tips for meeting a buyer or seller in person, in addition to using your best judgment:
Share carefully
- Use your best judgment when communicating with the other person.
- Don't share personal information like your home address.
Plan accordingly
- Create a meeting plan and share it with a trusted friend or family member. You can tap Send plan in Messenger to send your meeting plan to someone in your Facebook Friends list so they know the location, time and date of when you’re planning to meet. Plans are removed from the Messenger thread with your friend or family member after the scheduled meeting time.
- Once you and the buyer or seller have agreed on a meetup location, do not change this location.
- Bring your mobile phone with you, and make sure that the battery is charged.
- Save the phone number for local authorities in the speed dial of your mobile phone.
- Message the other person to tell them when you're on your way, or if you're going to be late.
- Avoid carrying excessively large amounts of cash with you.
- You can find a local law enforcement agency near you in the United States from the USACOPS directory
Meeting up
- Be sure to check and follow local laws and directives that may be in place during this time.
- If you're meeting someone in person, we recommend arranging your meeting in a public, well-lit area.
- Create and share your meeting plan with a trusted friend or family member through Messenger.
- Use a live location sharing app or function on your mobile phone to share your location with a family member or friend during your scheduled meetup.
Consider delivery options for items
- Some Marketplace items are eligible for shipping. This means that you can buy and sell items from all over the United States, not just near your location. The seller directly ships items to the buyer. Learn about the different ways to buy and sell.
- If shipping isn't available for an item, you can use a pick-up or drop-off service that works for you.
Read more tips for staying safe on Marketplace, or learn how to report someone on Marketplace.
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