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How do you pay? Why?


I thought maybe some light should be shed on how we pay for our purchases here and why we do them the way we do.

Personally I’m not very enthusiastic about paying extra for convenience via Paypal. It’s really no quicker as the following transfer of funds to the bank being used takes 3-5 business days after the funds hit your Paypal account… and there's that sur charge as well.

Postal money orders are fine enough but depending on the price tag, several need be acquired very often.

Cashiers check (certified funds) is my pref. One stop shopping. Right at my banking facility and the funds are secured, if lost or stolen I have but to make a call to my bank. Ever try calling the Post office? You can't. Not directly anyhow

The problem I continue to see is the ‘time frames’ being reported by sellers about how long Postal money orders, and/or cashiers checks take to be posted. I keep hearing from one day to a week or more by some accounts for these MO’s and CC’s to be posted.

Maybe my bank is special, I don’t know, hence this thread. Always when I deposit MO’s or CC’s, the funds are posted to my account within 24hr, or the next business day… sometimes immediately, depending on the time of day they are presented…. Which is fine.

Personal checks do however take lots longer. I’ve been told as much as two to four weeks by my bank.

How does your financial institution handle receipt of certified monies like Postal M.O. & Cashiers checks?

Have you asked lately, or just go online later and take a peek?

These more secured funds should surely involve less time to post than personal checks... or why bother with them in the first place?
blindjim

Showing 2 responses by dbphd

dbphd
1,632 posts
 
Most of these posts seem to be by sellers eager to protect themselves from buyers. As a buyer, who with one exception has paid by BoA cashiers check, I recognize that the risk is entirely with me. If the seller cashes the check and sends nothing or a defective unit, I have no practical recourse. As I understand it, PayPal acts as an escrow.

So far, every purchase I've made has been an exemplary experience. I thank all those on Audiogon who continually seek the holy grail of audiodom, thus making nice used equipment available at reasonable cost to the rest of us. My next purchase will by an Ayre C-5xe, and Esoteric AV 60, or a Sony XA-9000ES. Hope I don't get screwed.

db
dbphd
1,632 posts
 
Tvad, John, & Raquel,

Thanks for the warning re PayPal. I used it for my first purchase but not since. OTOH, I have paid with cashiers checks, telling the seller to ship when the check clears. Obviously that leaves me wih no protection from a unscrupulous seller. My purchases have followed several email exchanges in which I develop a sense of rapport with the seller, but I could be conned.

It seems Raquel wouldn't do business with herself.

I've found AMEX very effective at interceding on disputes. For example, I was stuck in Atlanta having lost my ticket, but the airline was unrelenting in their demand that I buy another one. When I got home, AMEX reversed the charge.

db
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