How Long To Wait For Payment?

C

chetchat

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Hi Folks, been a while since I've posted.

This is a first time problem for me and a quick search hasn't found a similar thread yet, so....

I have a customer that says he shipped a bank money order to me 10 days ago for a knife I had advertised. As soon as he said he wanted it and we agreed to a price I posted the knife as sold and later that day he said he shipped the MO. We have several follow-up Emails and the guy seems legit.

BUT, it's been 10 days. In the meantime I've closed and am preparing to ship two other transactions. The last Email I had from him (2 days ago) verified my mailing address (correct). When it seemed the payment was running late I expressed confidence - from this forum I've learned how bad the USPS can be - but now I'm wondering what to do if it hits 2 weeks and still no show. BTW - he's on the Eastern seaboard, not Istanbul.

I'm prepared to wait two weeks to see what shows. After that I feel if he still wants the knife he will need to make alternate arrangements to get me the payment or I feel I have the right to repost the knife and cancel the first transaction. If he makes alternate arrangements (PayPal, another MO Express Mail, etc.) then fine.

If I repost the knife and come to agreement with another buyer, and the original buyer's MO arrives a day or two later, then I feel it's too bad for the original buyer (really) since I've asked if he wanted to make other payment arrangements.

Does this sound correct? I have no animosity with the current customer, I just want to do the right thing should things go that long waiting for the MO. As I said, this is a first time - probably over 50 transactions, all went fine.

Appreciate all of your feedback and experience !


Nick
 
I am in the same boat. I sent a USPS prority to a man and it's been 5 days today and I already have his knife. If he does not get it over the weekend then I am going to send another on Monday. It hard to pay twice but it sure aint his job to come get the money. I think the buyer has the duty to get the seller his cash,no matter what it takes. If you trust the seller enough to send it the first time then you should trust him to send a refund if he ends up getting paid twice. Yall agree on a cut off date and if he can't resend then you have every right to repost. It's a shame and it is not your fault or his, but the fact is we only sell our knives when we need the cash now,not in weeks. I'll cross my fingers for yall and me.

Hey anybody want to make a loan for a few days. :D :D :D
 
I sent out a priority mail envelope with a cashier's check in it for a payment on a knife and took over a week, should have been 2/3 days max. USPS is getting slower all the time. Always get the delivery confirmation so you can see if it has been shipped.
 
IT's easy enough to cancel the delayed/lost money order and buy another without investing any additional money besides .90cents for a USPS MO.IF you don't get it on Monday ask the buyer to cancel the other money order and resend.7-10 working day's is sufficient to get from the east to Florida imho.
 
Agreeing with Tombstone here....for all the faults of the USPS, their M/O system is just about the best on the market.

If his 1st M/O doesn't show by Monday or Tuesday, have him cancel it, and send off another...it should be to you by the end of the week...

It may be that he just didn't have the money, but really wants your knife.

I've never seen it done that way, but I've heard of it here way to many times...

We've used ebay with no problems, but the forums seem to attract more than enough trolls...hate to say. I'm glad you guys reading this aren't trolls...lol ;)
 
Thanks guys! Only problem it was a money order from the customer's bank, and I have no idea what their policy is. I suggested that he have the bank put a "stop payment" on it should it not arrive by Monday.

Another thing I've learned from this forum is to use USPS MOs - both for the quick replacement and should a deal go south and the seller not send the merchandise, the USPS has a reputation for dilligently pursuing folks who use the mails to commit fraud.

AND I use the large Priority Mail envelopes for hefty payments - yeah it's an extra $3, but the chance of it getting lost is a lot less.
 
I TRY TO USE IT ALMOST ALL THE TIME !!!! AT LEAST YOU KNOW IT WILL BE THERE NEXT DAY 2ND DAY AT THE VERY WORST RATES START AT 12.00 PLUS CHANGE THANKS JAXURMAN
 
Is this epidemic or something? I am also waiting on a MO from a buyer that I think is totally legit, and it has been about five business days.........

Thanks for the info TOMBSTONE. I will keep it in mind.
 
I have had this happen to me when I sent a bank money order. Wait a reasonable period of time, and I think 2 weeks is fair, and give him 1 chance to replace expeditiously. He can reverse a bank MO.
It is the buyer's responsibility to make sure payment gets to you in reasonable time - not yours. It's your responsibility to give him a fair chance and to give him fair notice. Let him know you'll wait 2 weeks, if that's your decision, and how long you'll wait for the replacement funds. These things happen and the MO will probably arrive, but you have a business to run. Next time he'll choose Fedex.
 
I'm the guy waiting on LYSFUN's money order. It arrived today (08/24) and I e-mailed him throughout the five days letting him know it had not arrived and I did not hold him responsible for USPS delays. Just wanted to keep him posted on the progress (non-progress) of the transaction. I express mailed him the knife and he had it last Friday. Sometimes you hit a "glitch" in the USPS system. LYSFUN mailed me a pomo on Monday, priority mail. On Thursday I rec'd an envelope mailed regular USPS (@$1.40) on Monday from Florida. Go figure. I think the key is communication and (if possible) some patience. We finally agreed that if the pomo had not arrived by Saturday then an alternative form of payment would be made (Paypal, etc). Sh*t happens through no control of honest parties. I mailed a #4 knife to Kit Carson via Express Mail that DISAPPEARED off of the tracking system for a week before "suddenly" appearing at Kit's house 8 days later. To say I was stressed and just a little worried is an understatement. Arrange an alternative form of payment, refund-tear up-or send back any duplicit.
 
Not trying to fault the USPS but I sent a first class mail USPS MO, to Oregon from the Midwest for a knife purchase. After 9 days the letter had still not arrived. I purchased another MO, resent it to the seller 2 Day Priority Mail and lo and behold, they both arrived on the same day(4 days later). I was out double the money until he promptly sent one MO back. He had not sent my knife but I think that he thought that I had never sent the original MO until he received it. My understanding was that you had to wait 30 days before stopping payment or reporting a lost USPS MO. I did not want him to wait, so I plunked down the same amount plus additional money for 2 Day Priority Mail.

Recently, I sent a 2 Day Priority Mail MO to California to a new member for a knife purchase, it took about 6 days to arrive. He was so impatient, he e-mailed me every day after 3 days advising that he was going to sell the knife to someone else because my payment had not arrived and he could not understand how the mail could be slow. BTYM, I would never purchase another item from this individual because of his demeanor.

In both of these cases, I had never received the items prior to them receiving the money. This is only 2 purchases out of about 100 that I have made on the forums in about 2+ years. I have been including my telephone number with my shipping address on the e-mail. It makes me feel better to have a telephone number to a live person rather than just an e-mail addy from hotmail or some other front.

Now believe me, their is no one more impatient than me when it comes to receiving their goodies in the mail but unless you take PayPal or deliver the item personally, do not expect instant payment or delivery.

Recently, I purchased some items from a member who I had made a couple of purchases from before. Without my asking, he stated that he would ship the items the same day or the day after at the latest. I sent my payment 2 day Priority Mail and it arrived timely. However, my purchases did not arrive for a week and a half. My seller was honest, but got busy and did not get the items shipped. I was not worried about being ripped off but I was impatient waiting to fondle my new purchases. I did inquire thru an e-mail that went unanswered and a telephone call that was unreturned. Yes, I would still make future purchases from this individual and I do not doubt his honesty. My only wish was that he had kept communication open on what was going on.

USPS 2 Day Priority, unless it requires a signature and tracking number is no safer than the regular mail (and then I wonder). My daughter recently purchased 2 tickets for MatchBox 20 at a reseller premium. He shipped 2 day Priority Mail with Tracking Number. They never arrived, the tracking number shows that they were delivered. I spoke with my regular mail carrier (great person) who told me that the 2 Day was shown as delivered on his day off by a substitute carrier. I was home that day and retrieved the mail minus the 2 Day envelope promptly after it was delivered for the day. My regular carrier stated that he has 40 or 50 of these 2 Day letters a day and they are routinely checked off as delivered. Now, this has a happy ending, the seller being honest and forthright took the time to contact the vendor and have vouchers issued for the lost\stolen tickets.

I have had extreme good fortune in buying from members here. I have asssited and been assisted by members in tracking down wayward sellers here and at EBAY. Honesty and Communication are the keys to successful transactions. Do not run to GBU when an item or payment does not arrive in a day or two. Contact the buyer\seller and try to work out the situation. Include your telephone number with a mailing address. If then you are not successful, ask for help, I along with many other members here will be glad to lend a hand.

sarge :p
 
Sometimes patience is a virtue.
I am a very patient man when it comes to the USPS.
 
I must have really crappy luck. The USPS lost a $425.00 MO a year ago. A $20.00 MO about two months ago. Both of those were regular envelopes. Lost a Global Priority envelope to Australia last August. Lost a book going to Kentucky a few months back... [GROAN]

The one thing I noticed about THIS area is, don't put anything important in a stand alone USPS drop box. My Mailman told me they are considering dropping Saturday Delivery of Mail altogether to cut costs and I think this is carrying over to other areas of their Service as well.
 
It looks like the good people from USPS are on vacation. I recently lost 2 MOs that were sent from US around the same date. The senders had to cancel them (BTW - I was told that cancelling MO is 12.00 USD!!) and resend them as well. On the other side one of 4 packages I sent at the same time travelled to US more than 6 weeks (the other 3 went one week..).. :(

David
 
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