Being paid by money order

[Beachkid23]

Has anyone ever had a bad experience with this? I've had people in the past send a US money order but it's always been for one or two items. I have a buyer now who's bidding on some things and has bought maybe $25 worth of other stuff by now. And wants to pay with a money order? He has feedback though if 1200 and also sells things as well. So part of me thinks don't worry about it then the other part of me says is this okay?

Thoughts? I'm assuming he's just buying stuff to resell in his store or however he does it but just curious.

 

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[Inspector]

I would request USPS money order, they are the safest money order. I have used them for years and have never had any peoblem

 

[jeff of pa]

yes as long as it's a post office money order you should be OK.

you can cash them at The Post office,
Or the Bank.

I don't want to say they Can't be counterfeited, But they are less likely
to be counterfeited then one picked up at a Gas station Etc.

 

[Indian Steve]

USPS money orders are great and no paypal fees. Just make sure you cash it before you ship.

 

[clovis97]

My policy is USPS MO only. No exceptions.

 

[Keppy]

Yes USPS money orders i will take them any time…And like ..Indian Steve .. said cash them before you ship..

 

[lost items recovery]

Be careful! That's a government check and we all know the country is in debt...it may bounce!

 

[Beachkid23]

I actually made him call me and I talked him on the phone for a half hour. And he is buying for his collections and he wanted to spend some money on himself because He just paid off the house. Seemed like a very nice guy.

 

[meanpc]

I bring the package and the money order to the post office. First I get the cash in hand, then I hand over the package.

 

[mugsisme]

I have a friend who sells millions of dollars a year on Ebay. She has been screwed several times with money orders. Just saying. Talking to the guy seems to bode well, IMHO, though.

 

[Beachkid23]

I have a friend who sells millions of dollars a year on Ebay. She has been screwed several times with money orders. Just saying. Talking to the guy seems to bode well, IMHO, though.

Wouldn't you cash it first though and then once it's cashed I would think really the ball would be in my court once I got the thing cashed it if I never mark the item is shipped but mail it to him. If I never mark as paid and I mail the stuff to him. If he had a dispute he cannot complain because one how would he get his money back it's never marked as paid? He bought everything in my store that's not jewelry, hats, or jerseys. Everything that is stuff actually stuff I have been wanting to get rid of for a long time. (Tools, vintage toys, collectibles, and a .3 gram pair of earrings)

Believe me something in my mind is telling me that this is strange but I talked to him on the phone for a while and he seem legit. I don't think a scammer would call me. Also he has a bout 10 things for sale on his site. With positive feedback of 1200 +

 

[jerseyben]

How are you even able to accept a money order?

Accepted payments policy

According to ebay policy it is restricted to a few categories, typically vehicles and boats.

It also seems strange to me that even though ebay is essentially set up to only allow for paypal transactions that a buyer would want to go around this setup and choose to use a money order. It would certainly raise red flags with me.

 

[gino22]

How are you even able to accept a money order? Accepted payments policy According to ebay policy it is restricted to a few categories, typically vehicles and boats. It also seems strange to me that even though ebay is essentially set up to only allow for paypal transactions that a buyer would want to go around this setup and choose to use a money order. It would certainly raise red flags with me.

I have had reputable-seeming buyers (many hundreds of positive feedback, good communication skills etc) absolutely beg to pay for a couple items via money order. Both were high dollar items and I was confident both would sell, so I politely told them I couldn't be bothered and to please pay via PayPal. They beat around the topic of why they didn't want to pay with PayPal until the items sold to other customers.

I'm with you on being confused about why they would want to use money orders when it is essentially a huge roll of the dice for them.

Is there a way sensitive personal information could become available thru the buyer's bank once the MO is cashed? Not sure there's really a scam they could pull aside from sending a fake MO. It's just weird .

 

[deserdog]

I have had no problems getting paid by USPS money orders, Canadian Postal Money orders, personal checks, cash, and even had buyers pay me by Western Union because they could not use Paypal in their country.

 

[Paleo_joe]

I have had no problems getting paid by USPS money orders, Canadian Postal Money orders, personal checks, cash, and even had buyers pay me by Western Union because they could not use Paypal in their country.

Me either. I take it all. I did a LOT of business with checks and cash before paypal, and never had an issue. I just had an ebay buyer who wanted to pay with an MO. I ended the auction, waited for his payment to arrive, and shipped. Didn't get around to cashing it for a week later. But I am dealing in collectibles where people are not likely to try and rip you off. Might be different if I were selling jewelry or iphones.

 

[Edmundruffin]

PayPal and Ebay.What a double dipping scam. They own a lot of stock in Craigslist. Hummm a triple dipping scam. Did I say PayPal suucckkiss. Deception, you have to like, to do business. Kiss on up, I refuse. Not to mention the IRS trail. I'll not fire the first shot this time. ......I lost last time.

 

[NHBandit]

Those of us who remember the old days of selling on Ebay prior to being forced to accept Paypal had little if any problems with USPS money orders. If anyone is taking a risk it's the buyer because he is giving up his option of being able to cancel the transaction for some silly reason and get refunded via Paypal. Contrary to what Ben says, LOTS of people still use postal money orders everyday and don't lose sleep worrying about the Ebay police catching them. On the gun boards such as gunbroker where thousands of dollars change hands just like on Ebay Paypal isn't even usually an option due to their anti-gun policies. Don't sweat it. Like Edmundruffin said, Forcing people to use Paypal is just Ebays way of picking your pocket twice on every sale you make..

 

[mugsisme]

Wouldn't you cash it first though and then once it's cashed I would think really the ball would be in my court once I got the thing cashed it if I never mark the item is shipped but mail it to him. If I never mark as paid and I mail the stuff to him. If he had a dispute he cannot complain because one how would he get his money back it's never marked as paid? He bought everything in my store that's not jewelry, hats, or jerseys. Everything that is stuff actually stuff I have been wanting to get rid of for a long time. (Tools, vintage toys, collectibles, and a .3 gram pair of earrings)

Believe me something in my mind is telling me that this is strange but I talked to him on the phone for a while and he seem legit. I don't think a scammer would call me. Also he has a bout 10 things for sale on his site. With positive feedback of 1200 +

She cashed it, and three weeks later the bank told her they were counterfeit and pulled the money from her account. I think she said it had happened like 3 times maybe? She does so much business that she doesn't care. (How is THAT for you? Ebay flew her and her husband out to some convention last year and put her up in a hotel for the weekend. Cool, huh?)
I probably would have done the same thing you did, given all the other information. I was just tossing out a general warning, it can happen.

 

[Oregon Viking]

Those of us who remember the old days of selling on Ebay prior to being forced to accept Paypal had little if any problems with USPS money orders. If anyone is taking a risk it's the buyer because he is giving up his option of being able to cancel the transaction for some silly reason and get refunded via Paypal. Contrary to what Ben says, LOTS of people still use postal money orders everyday and don't lose sleep worrying about the Ebay police catching them. On the gun boards such as gunbroker where thousands of dollars change hands just like on Ebay Paypal isn't even usually an option due to their anti-gun policies. Don't sweat it. Like Edmundruffin said, Forcing people to use Paypal is just Ebays way of picking your pocket twice on every sale you make..

I have accepted USPS money orders many times. The buyer has had problems with PayPal etc. So far, so good!

 

[diggummup]

I haven't had any problems with postal money orders or checks (even cash a time or two) in the past. Though it has been a year or more. Also, I think it's ridiculous that a buyer can't choose to pay in whatever form they want to. That decision should be up to the seller and the buyer, not eBay. I haven't read the "accepted payments policy" for a few years I guess. I don't recall the restrictions being so limiting even after the "paypal only" fiasco several years ago. I agree that eBay uses the paypal security excuse (money back guarantee) as their platform/umbrella to restrict/limit buyers and sellers of their payment options to only paypal. Seems that ought to be against the law to me. Telling someone they can't use another form of payment for something? Where the hell are we living again? America? I thought it was cold war Russia for a minute, I'm sorry.


I know, I know... eBay can do whatever they want, it's their website, blah, blah, blah. This doesn't mean we have to like it or accept it. I'll take any form of payment that inevitably gets me cash in hand, regardless of the "policy". I don't like debit/credit cards, electronic payments, I don't like banks even. However, in today's world I am forced to use these options because that's the way it is done unfortunately.