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Hello everyone, my wife works for a bank and she has helped me develop a check & money order hold policy that works well. I have ebayers ask if they can send money orders, cashiers checks, as well as personal or business checks. After being burned a few times with fraudulent and stolen money orders, I have developed a check hold policy that works, and is fair for the buyer of my items. THE KEY IS TO COMMUNICATE TO YOUR BUYERS what kind of check-money order hold policy you have, and why. This is a must for all eBay sellers since new AND experienced ebayers get taken advantage of every once in a while. So I have decided to write a guide for other ebayers, so you don't get ripped off like I did before I started using a check hold policy with all online sales. I now state on my ebay buy it now and auction pages:
I HOLD ALL CHECKS, MONEY ORDERS, and CASHIERS CHECKS FOR A MINIMUM OF 10 BUSINESS DAYS! If you need your item immediately, please pay with PAYPAL. I ship by the next business day with confirmed paypal addresses, so for FASTEST DELIVERY, PLEASE USE PAYPAL!
Some ebayers do not like using paypal, which I respect. I can process payments via credit cards using a MOTO terminal which costs me a lot each month, and unless you are doing 10,000 bucks of business every month, it wouldn't be worth having! For those who do not have a credit card, or do not want to use them online or over the phone, they will pay with a money order, cashiers check or other check that they mail in. Some buyers will say they are ok with the hold period and will send in their payment. Sometimes buyers will ask why I have a hold period, or if I can waive this hold time for them. I usually respond with this information:
I have had some bidders send NSF and Closed Account checks to me. So I decided to stick with Paypal and money orders. But then I had a few bidders send fraudulent money orders to me, so I started being extra careful with money orders or cashiers checks since some had been fake in the past. I recall a few being folded alot or have a crumpled appearance, like it had been in someones pocket for too long. What takes the cake is the person who sent a legit POSTAL MONEY ORDER, that had the correct printing, the correct water marks or heat marks, etc. I deposited the money order, and waited a week (5 business days) until shipping the item. About 2 weeks later (11 business days including the day I deposited the M.O.) they money order came back as being STOLEN! I had no clue that US Postal Offices have been robbed or burglerized and USPS money orders have been stolen!?!?!?! I was shocked to find that it had taken so long for my bank to post it against my account. Their explanation on the long period of time was that most stolen checks take longer to show up since they usually have a valid account at a valid bank. Fraudulent drafts are usually easier to catch due to a lack of security markings and other tell-tail signs that they are fake, such as a non existant routing number or account #. They said this took longer to show up since the stolen money order was out of state, which automatically adds a week right there! So they said that it can take up to 11 business days for banks to process everything and have it come back to you! So now I hold all payments that are mailed in for a minimum of 10 business days! The banks sure are quick to pull out funds that I pay with a check, but when it comes to deposits, they sure can take a looong time to show up, and STAY in the account!
Be aware that when you make a deposit, your bank may show that the deposit went through since the $$$ you just deposited is available to withdraw in just a few days... Don't be fooled since it can show that you have $, but then they pull it out later once the NSF, Closed Account or Stolen item hits their system and comes back to you. Beware, because this can cause you to bounce checks in your account, be held liable for the amount of the item, PLUS the bank fees for a NSF against your account! You will have to pay the bank fees, and the person that ripped you off isn't going to help you out with one penny! Another situation is when the buyer brings a cashiers check. DO NOT SHIP OR RELEASE the item unless you are able to go to the bank that issued the cashiers check! I have heard of people going to my wifes bank after a buyer has showed up to pick up the item they won, they try to deposit the cashiers check but the bank denies it since the cashiers check is a phony! They look real, but many times they are NOT! Cashiers checks usually are more expensive to buy than a money order, so are not a likely method of payment. Beware if someone shows up to pick up an item after a bank closes with a cashiers check, it's better to be safe than sorry. The best thing to do is inform the buyer of your policy, and if they insist on payment via money order or cashiers check for an item that they are picking up, see if they will be willing to go with you to the issuing location to cash the check.
Another common SCAM is where the "buyer" says they have a friend or relative that is local and they want you to deliver or mail the item to them, plus send a little extra cash for whatever reason. They send EXTRA payment and ask you to send the excess to the person, sometimes keeping a little tip for your troubles. DO NOT DO THIS, the person is sending stolen or fake payment, and 99.9999% of the time you will be held liable for ALL of the payment being charged back to your account, PLUS BANK FEES! I heard of one person actually getting a fraud investigation done on them, even though they were the victim! Beware of international deals that sound too good to be true, promises that sound great or even local people asking if they can pick an item up and pay with a check. YOU WILL GET RIPPED OFF, AND NEVER SEE THEM AGAIN!
Thanks for reading this, and if you have found any information in this guide useful please vote for this guide by saying it is helpful! Ebay does NOT allow ebayers below a feedback rating of 5 to vote. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding this guide, I will be more than happy to help out! Thanks, and happy ebaying!
I HOLD ALL CHECKS, MONEY ORDERS, and CASHIERS CHECKS FOR A MINIMUM OF 10 BUSINESS DAYS! If you need your item immediately, please pay with PAYPAL. I ship by the next business day with confirmed paypal addresses, so for FASTEST DELIVERY, PLEASE USE PAYPAL!
Some ebayers do not like using paypal, which I respect. I can process payments via credit cards using a MOTO terminal which costs me a lot each month, and unless you are doing 10,000 bucks of business every month, it wouldn't be worth having! For those who do not have a credit card, or do not want to use them online or over the phone, they will pay with a money order, cashiers check or other check that they mail in. Some buyers will say they are ok with the hold period and will send in their payment. Sometimes buyers will ask why I have a hold period, or if I can waive this hold time for them. I usually respond with this information:
I have had some bidders send NSF and Closed Account checks to me. So I decided to stick with Paypal and money orders. But then I had a few bidders send fraudulent money orders to me, so I started being extra careful with money orders or cashiers checks since some had been fake in the past. I recall a few being folded alot or have a crumpled appearance, like it had been in someones pocket for too long. What takes the cake is the person who sent a legit POSTAL MONEY ORDER, that had the correct printing, the correct water marks or heat marks, etc. I deposited the money order, and waited a week (5 business days) until shipping the item. About 2 weeks later (11 business days including the day I deposited the M.O.) they money order came back as being STOLEN! I had no clue that US Postal Offices have been robbed or burglerized and USPS money orders have been stolen!?!?!?! I was shocked to find that it had taken so long for my bank to post it against my account. Their explanation on the long period of time was that most stolen checks take longer to show up since they usually have a valid account at a valid bank. Fraudulent drafts are usually easier to catch due to a lack of security markings and other tell-tail signs that they are fake, such as a non existant routing number or account #. They said this took longer to show up since the stolen money order was out of state, which automatically adds a week right there! So they said that it can take up to 11 business days for banks to process everything and have it come back to you! So now I hold all payments that are mailed in for a minimum of 10 business days! The banks sure are quick to pull out funds that I pay with a check, but when it comes to deposits, they sure can take a looong time to show up, and STAY in the account!
Be aware that when you make a deposit, your bank may show that the deposit went through since the $$$ you just deposited is available to withdraw in just a few days... Don't be fooled since it can show that you have $, but then they pull it out later once the NSF, Closed Account or Stolen item hits their system and comes back to you. Beware, because this can cause you to bounce checks in your account, be held liable for the amount of the item, PLUS the bank fees for a NSF against your account! You will have to pay the bank fees, and the person that ripped you off isn't going to help you out with one penny! Another situation is when the buyer brings a cashiers check. DO NOT SHIP OR RELEASE the item unless you are able to go to the bank that issued the cashiers check! I have heard of people going to my wifes bank after a buyer has showed up to pick up the item they won, they try to deposit the cashiers check but the bank denies it since the cashiers check is a phony! They look real, but many times they are NOT! Cashiers checks usually are more expensive to buy than a money order, so are not a likely method of payment. Beware if someone shows up to pick up an item after a bank closes with a cashiers check, it's better to be safe than sorry. The best thing to do is inform the buyer of your policy, and if they insist on payment via money order or cashiers check for an item that they are picking up, see if they will be willing to go with you to the issuing location to cash the check.
Another common SCAM is where the "buyer" says they have a friend or relative that is local and they want you to deliver or mail the item to them, plus send a little extra cash for whatever reason. They send EXTRA payment and ask you to send the excess to the person, sometimes keeping a little tip for your troubles. DO NOT DO THIS, the person is sending stolen or fake payment, and 99.9999% of the time you will be held liable for ALL of the payment being charged back to your account, PLUS BANK FEES! I heard of one person actually getting a fraud investigation done on them, even though they were the victim! Beware of international deals that sound too good to be true, promises that sound great or even local people asking if they can pick an item up and pay with a check. YOU WILL GET RIPPED OFF, AND NEVER SEE THEM AGAIN!
Thanks for reading this, and if you have found any information in this guide useful please vote for this guide by saying it is helpful! Ebay does NOT allow ebayers below a feedback rating of 5 to vote. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding this guide, I will be more than happy to help out! Thanks, and happy ebaying!
Guide created: 11/24/06 (updated 07/02/08)
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