Money Order Scams - Should I worry?

So I listed one of my Turn Tables on USAudiomart.com.

Today I was offered full price for it, but the buyer wants to send me a money order AND have it shipped to his neighbor as he he heading out of country. This makes me a tad leary.

To cover myself, I am doing the following:

USPS money order only, that way I can just cash it at the PO. I figure they would verify it's legit or not right there and then.

Further, I will ship it insured with adult signature required.

Anything else you might recommend?

 

http://banking.about.com/od/MoneyOrders/a/Money-Order-Scams.htm

http://www.lookstoogoodtobetrue.com/fraudtypes/counterfeitmoneyorder.aspx

http://www.fraudguides.com/internet/counterfeit-money-orders/

 

Thanks for the links....should have this in a couple of days. We shall see.

 

I wouldn't do it if your gut tells you not to.

 

Come on. No. Do not ship. End of story.

Or the end of the story will be a sad one for you.

 

What happened to the whole "Item ships when money clears" thing? Doesn't seem that risky to me. The money orders busts, then you simply don't ship it. Or am I missing something?

 

Well....That's the plan. I will cash it at the post office.

 

I believe sometimes these money orders are cashed and deposited in a bank account, and then the seller ships the item. A few days later the bank discovers they are not legal money orders and withdraws the money from your account. You are now out the money plus you've shipped the item off and no longer have it either.

That situation is described in some of the links I posted.

 

Wow. Rookie move by me. That's lame.

 

But then again (sorry I haven't even read the links yet), if one were to simply cash it at the post office (granted it's a PO MO), is there still risk involved?

 

Money Orders are not as risky for the seller as Paypal is. You cash the MO at the post office and if it clears you send the item insured and you are done with it. If the deal goes sour for the buyer, then they must accept your solution to fix.

With Paypal you can end up having to refund the price just because buyer found a better deal, or did a switcheroo, and you might not get your item back. Paypal says this in the fine print, or was it ebay, sometimes item is not returned after refund.

Take the postal MO and be glad if it clears.

 

YES!!!!

the whole scenario sounds phishy

 

The PO accepts the MO and pays the cash at the counter. I would say the risk is over at that point.

 

something doesn't sound right
but you plan may be OK
http://fox6now.com/2014/01/07/750-victimized-in-scam-involving-counterfeit-money-orders/
Postal inspectors say if you ever want to verify a money order is real — you can take it to a post office, as employees have been trained to detect counterfeits.

https://mois.usps.com/pls/pmoisnp/mois_external_pkg.main
The official online way to search for information
money order inquiry page
just enter the serial number

 

There are cases where a counterfeit money order is cashed at the Post Office and they don't catch it at the time it's cashed.. That's a federal offense, and they will follow up.

 

I would wait a week to ship just to make sure

 

Well....MO has arrived and has the watermarks......I called the verification number service from their website - 1-866-459-7822 - it's stating it's legit and was issued by the post office. Looks like it's all good. Still going to cash it at the PO, but my fears have subsided.

 

hope you're right
keep us updated

 

What happens if he never receives it because you sent the item to the wrong address? (namely, his neighbor's place?)

 

Well, MO cashed....no problems at all from the PO - they even verified it within their systems for me, and I got a manager to approve (who was walking by the counter). @ivan_wemple - I have the email chain saved and he asked me in there to ship to his neighbor. I will ship it insured with adult signature required.

Whatever happens after the neighbor signs for it isn't on me, but I will pack it for spaced travel anyway to ensure it's safe and sound during transit.

 

Good luck buddy. You will probably be ok, but you never know. Just don't ship it immediately.

 

Maybe the neighbor will be come a vinyl junkie, I hope there's no issues OP.

 

Think again

 

Elaborate please

 

One question about this deal. Wby doesn't the buyer wait for you to ship the turntable until he is back in the country? He obviously can't use it until he's back in the US. If you waited to ship until then, then he'd have to sign for it.

Beyond that one logistics question, I'm coming in late to the conversation but I had to take many fishy deals in my 30 years of retail. I've accepted a wrist watch as a down payment on a stereo, cashed two party checks from "mom," and held checks until there were sufficient funds in the bank. While I agreed to all of these conditions, usually because there was additional confirmation they were valid deals (I got "mom" on the phone to verify the purchase), I've also turned down deals. The one I should have backed away from was a $6,000 credit card fraud that took me months and a lawyer to get paid for.

adamdube, it sounds like you are doing your due diligence although my radar, like yours, would have scared me off initially. I can't judge this deal from here but I found one thing governed these situations. I used to work with a land developer who was very successful but on a small scale way. He made more than enough money for himself and his family but didn't own a yacht or a palatial home. That was because he had, in bold type, written on the wall facing his desk, the following phrase. You couldn't see it when you were negotiating with him but he could. It was his mantra:

Never risk more than you are willing to lose.

At some gut level you have to accept that you might get screwed on this offer. There is a damn good reason you've gone to all these lengths to verify this deal. It does sound fishy. Something you haven't considered could still come up and bite you in the ass. You could lose both the money and the turntable. It may not be likely but it can happen. If you are OK with that situation, in other words if you get screwed, you will be pissed for a day or two but not devastated, then go ahead and finish the transaction. Ship out the turntable. If not, refund the guy's money. It's not to late to back out from this purchase.