estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:25:58 AM
I don't know why I'm really confused how to handle this ..... I need to cheerfully refund a few hundred dollars to an eBay bidder who lives in Canada ... If i go to the Post office to purchase a money order to mail to him, should I have it be a regular "u.s. dollars" money order? and that would be cashable by my canadian fella? ... If any of you have had experience with this, please let me know if this is an ok money order to send to canada ... thanks...
Marcia in OHio
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engelskdansk
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:29:49 AM
It is perfectly acceptable to send a US postal money order in US dollars to Canada. It would be cashable at any bank or post office.
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estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:36:13 AM
Wow, thanks for the fast info~! .... heck of a lot faster than if I'd called Post Offices around here [and would've gotten 10 different answers from them too! LOL)  ... ... the gentleman also wants me to ship the money order to him in the fastest way [and told me to deduct that shipping fee from the amount i'm sending to him] .. do you have any good advice for this quandary also?
---Marcia in Ohio
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gs4
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:38:34 AM
If they payed you in u.s. dollars, then refund in u.s. dollars. Most folks do like the color green. Just mail it airmail its pretty fast.
[ edited by gs4 on Apr 10, 2001 08:42 AM ]
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juggheadd
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:41:38 AM
Before you get too excited about this fast info, check with the person who you are sending the refund to. Many banks in Canada will not cash a USPS money order, most will not cash a USPS green money order (only good in the USA), and most banks that will cash a money order will charge the casher a fee unless he has a US account.
wrt post offices, they will cash it, again assuming it is NOT the green one (must be a pink International USPS money order), and only if they have enough money in the till. Advise the receiver that he may have to wait until the end of the day before he can cash this.
Good luck!
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engelskdansk
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:48:25 AM
I have dealt with several banks in Canada and they have had no problems cashing the PINK international postal money orders.
The "international" version costs $3.50 -- be sure you ask for that one.
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estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:49:19 AM
Oh brother~! .... now I know why I'm confused. LOL ........ i guess i will email him to see if he wants a pink, or a green, money order.
Thanks everybody, for your input.
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estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:51:11 AM
thanx, engl ... will do
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estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:52:20 AM
gs4 ---- air mail's good enough, yes?
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retrod
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posted on April 10, 2001 09:00:12 AM
Marcia -- I live in Canada and deal in money orders etc all the time -- Send him a check - it's easier for you and his bank will cash it regardless of what type of account he has --- I cash US checks all the time and never have a problem with the bank -- hope that is helpful --- dee
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estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 09:04:08 AM
dee: just write out a personal check? ... should I indicate "U.S. Dollars" next to the amount I write?
Marcia in Ohio who should maybe just drive to Ontario with this.
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engelskdansk
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posted on April 10, 2001 09:05:15 AM
Your account would already be a US account so there is no need to write out "US dollars".
Regular mail (airmail) should be acceptable to the buyer.
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estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 09:10:08 AM
THANKS EVERYONE ~!!!
Gotta love ya ...
now the only difficulty I face, is the "cheerfully" part of refunding a few hundred dollars LOL...
Have a great day.
--- Marcia in Ohio
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eastwest
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posted on April 10, 2001 09:17:50 AM
HOLD ON HOLD ON
YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOU PERSON AND ASK IF THEY WANT A CHECK???
SECOND NOT ALL MONEY ORDERS ARE CASHABLE IN CANADA...IF THE MONEY ORDER SAYS CASHABLE ONLY IN THE US ON IT ..THEN YOUR STUCK
SOME BANKS WILL NOT CASH IT THEN
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juggheadd
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posted on April 10, 2001 09:46:45 AM
"YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOU PERSON AND ASK IF THEY WANT A CHECK???"
Not me yelling here btw!
You SHOULD contact the person first and ask him about HIS bank policies. In spite of what many banks may do, there are just as many that will not cash a US cheque or they will charge him a fee to do it.
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cdnbooks
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posted on April 10, 2001 09:48:43 AM
Let's see.
If you send a POSTAL MO it MUST be the PINK type. I too would ask your customer if he prefers a check or a MO.
I'd also make sure that you and your customer agree on the amount. If you are refunding a few hundred $ you want to end up with good feedback, not a neg because you didn't refund shipping or the buyer's cost of cashing your check.
Your envelope to Canada with the check needs a $0.60 stamp.
Air mail generally will get to Canada in a week.
And checks written on US bank accounts are in US$. No need to specify that.
Most of this has been said, just thought a summary might be useful.
Bill
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gs4
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posted on April 10, 2001 10:17:03 AM
Just wanted to add that if you do not want to run to the post office or kill a lot of time doing this, You could also pay via bidpay. They will send them the correct money order.
Cost will be close to what you would pay for m.o. if you picked it up yourself, plus your time.
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chiquita
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posted on April 10, 2001 02:17:35 PM
You could just send a Western Union Money order. That is what alot of my US customers send me. I think because they are so confused by the time I explain the whole USPS green/bad, pink/good that they figure its easier not to even go near the Post Office!
Whatever money order you send, just make sure it says "International" and you will be OK.
Bidpay is good, but I believe it costs $5.00 and I know they use Western Union anyway as I just got one in the mail from them not long ago!
No matter where you get the money order it will cost you, so if he is willing to take a check go for it. He may be hesitant though because it can take up to 30 days for a US check to clear his Canadian bank. But if you have a good repoir with him it should be OK.
RitaChiquita
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shrty411
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posted on April 10, 2001 02:27:36 PM
To addanother idea. I bought something from a Canadian seller, and he requested the no green thing. Anyway I work at a PO at an International Airport (DTW) and they didn't have any. SO, I went to my credit union. The money order said International on it and was $1. No problem reported from the Canadian end.
Maria
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engelskdansk
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posted on April 10, 2001 02:39:22 PM
shrty411-- The colour of an international money order is only relevant if it is from the Post Office (their international one is pink; the domestic one is green).
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estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 02:46:42 PM
OK~!!! I did it! ........ after reading all of these helpful ideas, I made a decision and went to Post Office and had a PINK Intl. money order completed for a few hundred dollars ... [i tried real hard to be 'cheerful' about it. LOL] .... it looked like this was perhaps the best avenue to pursue, based on a lot of the input from you ... if I'd decided to email my customer first to see what he thought, I was concerned in THIS particular case, that it would tick the customer off, because 1) i've noticed by dealing with him that he only "gets around to" reading his emails every few days, and 2) i had promised today was the drop-dead-line day that I would send the refund, so i couldn't wait to make this decision, and 3) I had earlier mentioned that it would be a money order, but he was willing to have me do it any way I thought was best. .............. beautiful pink postal money order cost me $3.25 ... and the Air Mail stamp, only 60¢ ....
Hoping this all works out nicely,
Marcia in Ohio
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cdnbooks
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posted on April 10, 2001 03:51:49 PM
Marcia
That should do it
Bill
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estatesalestuff
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posted on April 10, 2001 06:32:40 PM
Thanks, Bill... surely hope so.
"Hoppy" Easter.... Marcia in Ohio
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mikeselis
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posted on April 10, 2001 08:06:21 PM
I accidently bid on an auction where the seller lived in Canada. I didn't even look at the location, just the payment methods. So I wrote a personal check and put 2 stamps on it and low and behold, it cashed and I found the item in the mail a few weeks later. Actually, if you have an interest bearing account it might be to your advantage to do it that way.
A lot of people that I know who live in Canada also have US dollar accounts because it makes it easier to buy things. (they are collectors of items that are only sold by a few firms in the US) They have their accounts at banks in WA, MI, NH, VT, NY...
You would be suprised how much these banks like these people. All they have to do is accept deposits by mail and pay checks. They never have to deal with having a teller which means the bank saves money. Then they mail out the statement to a P.O. box or the Canadian makes arrangements to have it sent to companies that forward mail for a small fee. (Travelling salesmen use this type of service, as do people who are travelling around for months in their motorhome and plan to be in motorhome parks...)
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