How long is too long to ship?

Never buy an item from an individual by check mailed to them before you get the item. Always insist on COD via certified check or money order - it protects both parties ewspecially the buyer as I know some people are burned when the money is not waiting when the item arrives. It is part of what we risk in the Audiogon format. Have you heard from this individual or company?

At least this guy is answering your e-mails. If he was going to burn you, you wouldn’t here a peep. I know this situation is very frustrating and if your not polite who knows what will happen. One thing I will advise next time is to mail a USPS money order or find out if your bank has a local branch in his town (i.e. Wells Fargo, Bank of America) I generally don't mind checks if I can cash them close by. Otherwise a money order or pay-pal is the best way to speed things up. Of course if you have a moron for a seller nothing you do will speed up the process. Believe me, I've been where you are right now and can sympathize 100%. Hang in there and check your bank to make sure you know when the check clears.

Good luck and remember it's not an exact science:~)

```An email telling you, "check cleared, will ship on... or can't ship until 00/00/0000 because...", would have been considerate. How long could it take? Even for a hunt and peck dinosaur like me, 1 minute max! Computer crashed? Those peculiar oddities hanging on the wall still function, last time it was dialed( Whew did I say dialed? OK I admit it, still have my batphone!)
```Personally,I have a difficult time being nasty, but will, when backed into a corner. I'd tell you good luck, but, I hope luck has nothing to do with it! Let us know the outcome and what excuse was used. Remember, feedbacks tell us all about the Weenies! GOD BLESS!

Well, I just sold an item recently @ this site and my bank was not very helpful in confirming that the funds were good (the clerks quoted the usual 7-10 working days). This is not quite accurate as an NSF notice can take up to 14 days via interstate banks (I once worked for both a major clearings bank and the Federal Reserve Bank). Most banks (even large ones) farm out these processing services nowadays and I have run across officers and even managers who do not have a firm grasp as to how the banking system actually works. My bank attempted to process a check from Greece (drawn on a major NYC bank) without even applying routing numbers to it (which is the same as mailing a letter without an address) and had the nerve to tell me that the check was no good when it came back. Don't know if this is what is happening with your transaction, but believe me it/this does happen. I have had to threaten my bank twice with a small claims court case (and exposure in the LA times) to have money credited to my account (which has been lost due to their errors). They recently racked up a $230 loss (in the past ten months) by being basically incompetent, which I had to fight to get back.

Thanks for replys. He said his bank thought it would clear by the 3rd if it did he would ship next day. I checked with the credit union and it did clear on the 3rd. Yesterday he sent a email saying he would check with his bank. He is about 12 days late on that. So its limbo for me. Will list out come as events dictate. Thanks

I have had good luck contacting Audiogon and getting them involved.
I had the same problem with a fellow who was supposed to ship me a cable. After it didn't arrive after several emails, I got Audiogon to drop him a line, and the cable showed up the following week.
It's a roll of the dice, sometimes.
Good luck.

As a seller, I have to say money orders are highly preferable. To protect myself, i won't ship until a check has cleared. I want to ship as soon as possible, but it's a hassle trying to determine if the funds are really available.

i hate waiting, i feel your pain. i have a similar situation going on right now. i sent the product in good faith, even before i got the money. i received a bank check a few days later. i gave positive feedback and proceeded to my bank. the bank check was made out to somone else. the product was delevered according to ups on the ninth. i cannot get a response from this person at all. it is now the 16th. can a bank check be cannceled by the person who sent it? needless to say my next step is to get audiogon involved. it is hard to be honest sometimes.

kirk930, What was the guy’s feedback like? I'm starting to feel your pain even more than Ninjas. I have had a couple bad deals here but have never been burned for any money. Knock on wood. There is such a thing as stopping payment on a check but I won't mention it as not to make you nervous. Some people are a combination of rude and oblivious, which is to say they don't do a very good job of staying in touch. On the other side of the spectrum there are people who are the absolute best. Try to hang in there, I have been known to call information and get the guys home phone #. Needless to say they are always very surprised to here from the guy they've been ignoring on their computer all week. There are a couple other methods I use but would rather not discuss them in an open forum. Try a phone call. Also, ask yourself was the item really worth committing inter-state fraud over? Now might be a good time to get Agon involved, they will do there best to help. Good luck.

when I sell I state that as a buyer if you dont wish to use a USPS MO, then you must wait 10 days for the check to clear. I would assume that someone who prefers to pay by check rather than a MO or PayPal, isnt too concerned with a timely receipt of the product. From a sellers POV, a check, albeit convenient for a buyer, is a risk to the seller, NSF, stop payments, mail delays, can add up to loss of other sales.

hold tight, the other party may just trying to be cautious.

glen i have tried the phone # . unlisted. his feedback was great. email me with those other methods. does it invole broken legs?