traceyg
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posted on February 20, 2001 12:40:57 PM new
I was looking at this auction today and they the seller (newbie) is charging a 8.00 fee for check cleanrance. In otherwords if you want to pay by check you must pay an extra 8.00 your other option is cash. I don't expect this seller to be around long. Along with being a rip off I was wondering is the legal?
thanks ahead of time
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Capriole
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posted on February 20, 2001 12:44:56 PM new
two choices...
1) It's an item you cannot live without. So deal with it.
2) Ask safeharbor.
That's what I do.
So far I haven't seen that kind of bogus cr@p in any auctions.
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traceyg
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posted on February 20, 2001 12:57:21 PM new
Already decided not to bid and already asked safe harbor. I am not asking people what to do. I have a mind of my own for what to do. I just am curious what other people think of charging an 8.00 fee for waiting for a check to clear. Myself as you said I think it is cr@p
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reddeer
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posted on February 20, 2001 01:31:14 PM new
It might be crap, but to the best of my knowledge there's no rule against it.
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victoria
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posted on February 20, 2001 03:22:58 PM new
I rarely even hold checks, even for newbies.
Sounds like a variant on the buyers premium.
I'd give this seller a pass.
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marlenedz
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posted on February 20, 2001 03:26:26 PM new
I don't like it and this is off topic but I recently had an insurnace policy that started charging $8.00 a month if I paid by check and $0 if it is deducted out of my checking account.
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vargas
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posted on February 20, 2001 03:26:43 PM new
Maybe it's designed to discourage people from sending checks... you know, the bidders who can't quite understand what "no checks" means?
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traceyg
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posted on February 20, 2001 04:14:48 PM new
If they charged me 8.00 for a check for an insurance policy I would be canceling that insurance. I used to work for an insurance company I know how much money they make on us. Guess checks will be outdated soon but 8.00 for a check to clear until them. . . That would just turm me off as it did in the auction.
I would have bid a few hundred dollars on this auction. It is what I collect but the 8.00 for the check to clean really turned me off. This seller would have been better just to say no checks. However I wouldn't have sent a few hundred dollars in cash either. These are the only 2 payment options. I am supposing the limited payments and the 8.00 for a check to clear is turning off other bidders also because it has one day to go and is only up to about 30.00 and should be way past 100.00 by now and that is the low end of where it should be.
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twelvepole
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posted on February 20, 2001 04:20:22 PM new
So maybe $38 would be a good deal?
I still would report to Safeharbor for clarification.
What about M.O.?
Ain't Life Grand... 
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canvid13
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posted on February 20, 2001 04:43:26 PM new
Hi Folks,
As someone that buys and sells I think you have to look at this.
I as a seller don't take checks anymore. I've had too many hassles from bounced checks and the time to fix these isn't worth the trouble.
I clearly list my terms which on Ebay are Billpoint or Money Orders. I don't take paypal.
Do you know how many folks try to ram paypal and checks at me????
Perhaps this seller is simply trying to discourage the use of checks??
The fact is like an earlier poster mentioned, if you want the item you have to abide by the terms printed.
You could of course always politely email the seller and either to ask for the terms to be changed for you or let them know that you don't like their policies.
A li'l manners go a long way online. I've learned this through experiance.
Happy Bidding!
Jamie
canvid13
MAKE THE CO-OP HAPPEN!!
[email protected]
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borgt
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posted on February 20, 2001 05:34:29 PM new
Are they located in the U.S.?
I know that in The Netherlands and several other countries the banks charge $6 PER check or U.S. money order deposited into an account. There are several European sellers that pass this charge on to the buyer, and there is no eBay rule against it.
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quickdraw29
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posted on February 20, 2001 05:43:56 PM new
A check is pretty convenient for the buyer so I don't see anything wrong with charging a convenience fee. $8 is high though. The guy must have worked at a bank! My bank (BOA) charges $5 monthly for the priveldge of having a checking account and a fee for everytime I use a teller. 
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sulyn1950
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posted on February 20, 2001 06:40:42 PM new
Oddly if I saw that in an auction my 1st thought would be: now here's a seller that positively, does NOT want a check.
Think of all the threads here on AW that have stated even though the TOS said NO CHECKS, there was always someone either wanting to send one or just sending one without asking.
I seem to recall someone suggesting putting a really high SC for checks in the TOS and nobody will send you a check!
Maybe this guy reads these threads????
Or maybe he isn't so new just using another ID.
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capriole
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posted on February 20, 2001 09:36:14 PM new
Tracy,
I'm a farby...far be it from me to tell you what to do.
Those are just some of the more obvious options.
good luck.
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traceyg
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posted on February 21, 2001 07:53:53 AM new
So maybe $38 would be a good deal?
I still would report to Safeharbor for clarification.
What about M.O.? >>
I am not so sure it would be a good deal. Seller has 1 postive (no negs) they are new. However the auction is slapped together and with a 8.00 check charge or cash only it doesn't look like a very trustworthy item. They don't take m.o. or cashiers checks which also makes me wonder.
I as a seller don't take checks anymore. I've had too many hassles from bounced checks and the time to fix these isn't worth the trouble>>>
I been selling on line for years. On my website and thousands of auctions. I have only ever has 2 bounced checks. One refunded me the money plus fees. The other I never heard from. Both were on yahoo auctions. I think that is a great rate for the cost of doing business. Because I take checks and don't charge a wait to clean fee I have more sales. It is good for the botton line. I also don't hold checks until clearing because in reality most of the times that takes 15 to 30 days not the ten that many claim.
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traceyg
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posted on February 21, 2001 07:56:58 AM new
Are they located in the U.S.? >>
To tell the truth I never checked that is a good point. I wouldn't mind paying a fee in a case like that. that is business. The seller in that case should have to absorb the fee. I will have to try to find the auction again and check it out. I know nothing was said in the auction itself but I didn't look at the upper part to see where it was located at.
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mballai
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posted on February 22, 2001 06:00:41 AM new
Other than the shipping charge, fees should be invisible to a bidder. Bidders don't really care what a seller's expenses are.
It probably doesn't matter what feeBay thinks, most bidders would be very turned off unless the seller had a good explanation like a foreign bank charge or a bounced check charge (a CYA) which might be possible.
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