Buyer scam??

[wet77]

I have my 18' jet boat posted for sale on a few different sites, I just got this e-mail from a guy who wants to buy it. But he lives in Devonport Australia, he then says he wants it and will send me a certified cheque for the boat, then his buyer over here will pick it up??:confused: :(
I think this is a scam, has any one else heard of this Peter Smith:confused:
Thanks

[hack job]

jet boats are a growing think down under i would certify the funds ( cash the check) before i gave any thing. if it works out to be on the up and up then you have sold your boat. if it works out to be bs. well your out nothing but your time;)
just make sure you have the money in your account and maybe even move to anther acount ( not the one you deposited it in) and go form there:D

[PLACECRAFT20]

I got the same replys on a couple of atvs I had for sale. I told them great. when the check clears you can pick it up. I never got another reply.

[Chris J]

While not on the same scale as selling a boat. I just sold a guy in Austrialia a used H-bar for $65. even though it cost an addition $56 to ship. he still wanted it. I think the internet has opened up a new world for these guys. Once impossible parts/cars/toys are now readily available to them. Just verify the funds before letting the boat go. If he's legit he'll have no problem with this.
Not sure if Western Union has an upper $ limit, but it's still the fastest most secure way to send money around the world. You and his buyer could complete the transaction in about 10 minutes at any Western Union outlet. This way you don't have to provide any account info.

[Sniper4x4]

Wet77, if I were you I'd tell this guy to pay it to his friend & have his friend cash it once he has the cash in hand they can take it away. Safest way for you cause nowadays these fake checks sometimes they will go through w/ the funds in your account & then a few days later end up a bad one & the bank charges you the fees & reverses the deposit from your account.
check this out:
http://www.craigslist.org/about/scams.html

[wet77]

thats what I have heard but I e-mailed the guy the price I would take for it and he has not replied back yet.
thanks for all the advice and help in this matter guys!:D

[LakesOnly]

I just sold a car to a guy in Antwerp, Belgium. Payment was by way of wiring the cash into my account. Takes a few days, but once it's in there it's a done deal. See if he'll wire the money.
LO

[flat broke]

I'm with Lakes on this. I have a separate sub account I use specifically for wire transfers. That way if someone gets the info they can't do much with it. Once the money hits my acct by wire, it's moved to a different account. So if they get my account info, they have access to an account with a 0 balance.
As far as wiring and vehicle sales, I've sold a quad and a Porsche to out of state buyers and used wired funds to secure the vehicles. So far, so good (knock on wood).
If the guy will wire into your account, the funds go from his bank, through the federal banking system, into your account. Bottom line the funds HAVE to be there for it to work, so you don't run the risk you now have with cashier's checks.
Get the money, ship the goods.
Chris

[Ken F]

Originally posted by wet77
I have my 18' jet boat posted for sale on a few different sites, I just got this e-mail from a guy who wants to buy it. But he lives in Devonport Australia, he then says he wants it and will send me a certified cheque for the boat, then his buyer over here will pick it up??:confused: :(
I think this is a scam, has any one else heard of this Peter Smith:confused:
Thanks
I just found this thread.
I too have my boat posted on the net, and heard from him two days ago, wanting more pics. I sent them, and he riplied back this AM with the same senerio. Gave the same city in Australia also. I told him to have his buyer get in touch with me and send me a cashiers check, but that the boat stayed in my posession until the funds were available to me.
Maybe he's legit & a boat dealer? Or maybe he has lots of friends who want boats too?
It does cast a bit of suspicion doesn't it? I've also been contacted by a lady from Holland who says she is interested in having it shipped from the east coast.
Ken F

[King Kuracz]

Before you do anything, READ THIS FIRST!!!
Classified Scams (http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=253)
Better to be safe than be out both a boat and the cash.

[mickeyfinn]

May be a scam but could be legit. Just protect yourself. I agree with the above:
Have him send the certified check to his friend and have his friend cash it and pay you with cash..

[shaun]

I would have him wire the money, once the money is wired there is no taking it back. As for giving the customer your bank account information.... your giving them the same info that you would be giving anybody you give a check to (routing number, account number, bank name, branch number, etc) So there isnt really much they can do with it except transfer more money into your account via ACH :)
If you are going to take a certified check make sure it's from the US.

[shaun]

oh ya, moving the funds from account to account will accomplish nothing... The bank will just take there money back leaving you with a negitive balance if they needed to anyway. And if you say F it, you'll just leave it that way, they will submit you to checksystems and all of your bank accounts will be terminated and you will have problems for another 5 years.
A friend of mine got nailed by wells fargo because he had cash advance, didnt use the account anymore and it had a negitive balance. One week he got letters from all his banks stating they have closed his accounts.

[Ken F]

Okay guys, thanks for the input.
I heard from him again today, and he said that he will have his agent (he gave the name & email address) contact me and that the agent would send me a cashiers check
I know they are easy to forge. Would the opinion be that it would be better to have cash sent by western union, than a cashiers check? How does a cashiers check work? Can that come back on me?
May never hear another word, but would like to be forearmed!
Thanks,
Ken F

[Squirtcha?]

I'd say go with Mickeyfinn's idea.
Have him send the certified check to his agent and have his agent cash it and pay you with cash..
Can't go wrong with the ol frog pelts!

[flat broke]

Originally posted by Shaun
oh ya, moving the funds from account to account will accomplish nothing... The bank will just take there money back leaving you with a negitive balance if they needed to anyway. And if you say F it, you'll just leave it that way, they will submit you to checksystems and all of your bank accounts will be terminated and you will have problems for another 5 years.
A friend of mine got nailed by wells fargo because he had cash advance, didnt use the account anymore and it had a negitive balance. One week he got letters from all his banks stating they have closed his accounts.
Shaun,
That's just not how wire transfer's work. Once the funds hit your account, they are irrevocable. The orriginating funds are verified prior to transmittal. If the funds hit your account, it is because they were legitimately there to begin with. Having worked for a correspondent bank and handling far larger sums of money via transfer than this, I have seen times when the credit line the funds were to be drawn from was over extended, and the wire won't even get off the ground and into the federal banking system, let alone from there to your bank.
As for the satement about going account to account not mattering, the reason it is done is because my ingress account information is public (no shit cause I gave it to whoever wired me the funds) but my holding account information stays between me, my bank, and my file cabinet.
I think we may be talking about two different situations, but to be clear if someone wires you money, the money won't be going anywhere unless you send it there.
Chris

[Ken F]

Frogpelts...you know that idea never even crossed my mind!
thanks Dan!
Ken

[BrendellaJet]

Originally posted by flat broke
The orriginating funds are verified prior to transmittal. If the funds hit your account, it is because they were legitimately there to begin with. , but to be clear if someone wires you money, the money won't be going anywhere unless you send it there.
Not entirely true, but for the most part you're right. There is a technicality which would allow a recall. I placed one on a wire last week, although I doubt anyone here would encounter the circumstance I did to enable the reversal. Certainly nobody who is buying something on ebay can stop a wire...
Also-Cashiers checks can have a stop payment placed on them, if the drawer is crooked enough. Anyone can do it though. Best bet is to let the funds clear, and then deliver product, or take cash-although it could be counterfeit. Also, if the dollars are big enough, an escrow agreement is a safe way to go.

[stump]

I got a e-mail from that same guy in australia about my mandella i have for sale .I e-mailed him how we can let the bank handle the entire transaction. He hasnt responded back he wanted his associate to bring me a check,i said nope cash or let my bank handel a wire transfer.I think he's full of crap.

[HM]

Tell the guy wire transfer or nothing. Even with a cashiers check, they can come back 2 weeks later - after they have "cleared" - the reason being is that it was written against real funds, but was a counterfit check - which they don't always know until the originating bank gets it. What happens is that they have an inside person at a bank who sees all the details of an existing cashiers check - and then counterfit it for the same amount - hence why many of them want to give you a cashiers check for an amount different from your deal. This couterfit check will many times make it through many checks and balances along the way - until it hits the originating bank - then bam - you're ****ed.
If you tell him wire transfer (which is very very standard for international transactions) and he continues to tell you that his associate will bring you a check....then he is trying to scam you. Especially, if he tells you that the check is more than you asked and he wants you to refund him the difference.
Just insist on wire transfer. Did I mention to insist on a wire transfer?
P.S. Insist on a wire transfer.

[Ken F]

Well, it hit this morning. This is what I was waiting on...its a scam. I really wish I was smart enough to figure out how to screw this asshole legally.
Ken F
>hello,
I received the details sent,but I'm afraid there's a little problem here;I communicated my associate concerning the arrangement;that is he settling his debt by raising the payment for the order and the freighting cost.He agreed though,but insisted on raising just a single cheque payment for every
thing..Please advise if there is any way we can stil do this transaction, Meanwhile,I'm howeverof the opinion we could still successfully bring the transaction to fruition;if after you receive the cheque which could be drawn on a local bank so that
the funds can be easily verified and the difference forwarded to my shipping agent in london before pickup. once payment is verified by you send it to my
shipping agent in London throuhg westernunion money transfer for the paperwork and pickup and the transaction completed without further delay.Please do get back to me AS AP as I do not want to miss the Boat going by it's details. Anticipating your usual cooperation i n advance.
Thanks and Godbless.
smith<