barbkeith
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posted on August 31, 2001 11:00:23 AM
For those of you who accept personal checks, do you deposit them right away or wait until you have enough for the trip to the bank? I have been depositing them right away so they will clear sooner and I can ship faster. Just wondering (I do that a lot). Barbara
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keziak
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posted on August 31, 2001 11:13:34 AM
I usually go every day.
keziak
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gina50
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posted on August 31, 2001 11:14:51 AM
I have been selling on ebay for 2 years now and always accept checks
I used to run to the bank all the time as I received them but decided to go once a week to make life easier.
I never hold checks to clear unless I see ebayer has had neg or neutral feedback.
I have never had a check bounce yet and have 900+ sales !! (crossing fingers here)
As soon as I receive check .. item is mailed right away and I do not leave feedback up front for buyer... I make sure all goes well first.. if their check bounces at least I have the feedback hostage !!
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katiyana
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posted on August 31, 2001 11:15:29 AM
I usually hang on to money orders until I get $20 or more worth then go to the bank. If I get a personal check, I go ahead and take it and any MOs I've gotten to the bank - if the buyer has over 100+ feedback I usually go ahead and ship ASAP with a personal check and don't wait forit to clear to ship...
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yadda36
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posted on August 31, 2001 11:16:11 AM
I used to accept personal checks. I was like many sellers who would ship upon receipt. Most went through fine but there is always a few that may run into problems with. And most of those people will make things right and make sure you still get paid.
The straw that finally broke the camels back for me was when I had a repeat customer (who had bought from me on NUMEROUS occasions) send me a check. I shipped out her items right away as I always did (my mistake)and her check bounced. I tried all methods of contacting her and even had a collection agency go after her. Never got paid and she got her goods.
That was it for me.
I think you are doing the right thing by depositing them right away. Even though you deposit and ship after 10 days or so it can sometimes take up to a month (sometimes longer) to find out if a check bounces.
If I were to ever start taking checks again I would take the extra time to verify funds in someones account.
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doninpa
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posted on August 31, 2001 11:51:52 AM
yadda..Thats all fine and dandy, but why let one bad apple spoil the rest. As soon as you get a chargeback are you gonna stop accepting credit cards....the first time someone stops payment on a money order (it can/does happen) will you stop accepting those as well?
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holdenrex
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posted on August 31, 2001 11:55:48 AM
I deposit almost on a daily basis. It's easy for me since I walk right by one of my bank's ATMs on my nightly walks anyway.
I used to hold checks when I was a newbie seller but it got to be too much of a pain, so now I send upon receipt. I've only had one check bounce - it was a low dollar amount and the buyer wouldn't respond, so I filed NPB/FVF and didn't persue it further.
I don't quite understand sellers who stop taking checks after getting burned by a bouncer or the people who drop credit cards after getting a chargeback. I understand if it's a rampant problem as seems to happen with some particular types of merchandise, but overall I think the ocassional bad payment is a cost of doing business. Recoup if you can, then move on.
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BJGrolle
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posted on August 31, 2001 12:02:13 PM
Yes, and I ship right away without waiting for clearance. I go to the bank about once a week to make a deposit.
http://bjgrolle.freehomepage.com
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tomswift
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posted on August 31, 2001 12:05:51 PM
When I'm doing lots of auctions I deposit them about once a week or so. When I'm in my slow mode as this summer and only doing a few a week I save the checks and once a month I stuff them in an envelope and drop them in the night deposit on my way to work in the morning.
About 50% of my auctions get shipped before the check or money order arrives, depending on how i "feel" about the buyers initial email, especially anything under $25.
- Tim
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snakebait
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posted on August 31, 2001 12:16:43 PM
Checks are my PREFERABLE means of payment besides raw cash.
If the customer wonders where his merchandise is and I haven't received payment, I simply tell him to check his bank statement. This usually results in the person realizing that they forgot to send payment. And no harsh feelings.
Money orders can be a pain because people often lose their receipts.
I hate electronic payments for a reason aside from possible chargebacks. People want immediate shipping, which is simply not practical. I ship twice a week. Period.
I never hold shipping for clearance on checks. I never check for clearance at all. I ship after the check comes in, and frequently dont even cash the check for weeks after the item is shipped! Kinda nice. Getting a return coming in. All I gotta do is return the check!
I've had two rubber checks due to simple errors. Both people made up for them and the charges. This is with over a thousand transactions in two years.
I stick to antiques and collectibles and avoid the K-Mart categories. Much less fraud that way....
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kept2much-07
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posted on August 31, 2001 02:07:59 PM
I love checks. The address is always on them and it sure helps to decipher bad handwriting-especially if the buyer never contacted you. I've only had one bad check and they sent a money order via certified mail within days. The only time I've held checks is for large amounts or small check numbers in the 100's. 95% of the time items are shipped upon receipt. I want to get the goods out of my house and into theirs!
I deposit checks once or twice a week. I'm lucky! My bank is right beside the P.O.
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packer
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posted on August 31, 2001 02:17:58 PM
I gladly take checks, I ship right away, I usually go to the bank once a week, but its been 2 weeks now since I've been to the bank.
One way I look at it, if I don't have them in the bank then I can't spend them 
3+ years of seller, not a bounced check yet(knock wood).
packer
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bemused
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posted on August 31, 2001 02:22:10 PM
In 1200+ sales I've had maybe 3 bounced checks, two were paid with the bank fee. After spending time on these boards I stopped holding checks since I can't actually hold them long enough to ensure they won't bounce anyway. Also thanks to these boards I know about madagency.com which is where my next bouncer who doesn't make good will go. I leave feedback as soon as I'm paid so I can't use that for leverage, but I think people would be more likely to respond to the threat of negative credit reporting anyway.
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Meya
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posted on August 31, 2001 02:38:27 PM
I take checks, and go to the bank once or twice per week depending on my schedule. I've had over 500 sales in about 3 years, no bounced checks yet.
I say in my auctions that I may hold the item while the check clears. I've only held stuff 5 or 6 times. Those were for higher amounts (over $25) and very low fb bidders. I figure, if you say you might hold the check, it will either prompt a new bidder to get a MO, or it may also encourage the buyer to not pull something.
I think it also has to do with the type of thing you sell. I list mostly household stuff, with a smattering of collectibles and "antiques" also in the kitchen/household catagory.
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uaru
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posted on August 31, 2001 02:52:37 PM
I've held up shipping on one check. The check was for $190.00. The check had a printed address in one state, the bank was in another state, the shipping address offered was in a third state, and the name signing the check wasn't one of the names printed on the check, and it was from a zero feedback user.
The check was good.
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thepackratsattic
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posted on August 31, 2001 03:24:22 PM
To those of you who accept checks (personal AND business)====> THANK YOU! Your auctions are the ones that I am willing to bid HIGHER on, since there is obviously some trust being offered from the seller side.
To those of you with the MO/Cashiers Check/BidPay/Paypal/Yadda-RipOff-Yadda===>
SORRY! If you require me to take MY time and MY money and MY extra gas to go get you an "official" check, (and the FALSE sense of security that goes with it!), it seems that you are saying you have NO trust in ANY eBayer out here in cyberland!
That unstated fact also says we should have the VERY SAME lack of trust in YOUR description, grading, shipping, packing, and timeliness skills.
There will always be a way for people to rip you off....refusing to accept checks is ripping yourself off by limiting your bidding pool!
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mrspock
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posted on August 31, 2001 03:55:18 PM
IT depends on my cash flow If things are tight I deposit daily if my account's healthy, when I get to it Actually i have found checks as old as four months that I never got around to depositing.
I ship everything the same ,cash , mo, check ,paypal all goes out ASAP
I never hold checks
SO far I have not had a bad check on ebay but I'M sure it's coming
We did flea market for almost 15 years and we had a fair number of NSF checks that we collcted and one or two a year that we ate.
Its the cost of doing business and I don't let it bother me you have to look at the overall bottom line.
spock here......
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dman3
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posted on August 31, 2001 04:03:53 PM
I Accept check for payment no problem Rarely hold till they clear,
get to the bank on saturday morning as earily as it opens and I deposit most people get paid friday or have there money direct deposited so I figure there is a good chance for not haveing one be bad this way.
I have only had one check bounce and the buyer made good on it includeing bank fees within 2 day after being notifide.
http://www.Dman-N-Company.com
Email [email protected]
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GreetingsfromUK
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posted on August 31, 2001 05:19:30 PM
I am very happy to accept US$ cheques and have never had a problem. But please be aware that my UK Bank charges me $8 for cashing them and this is in my TOS. This is not my trading name
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mballai
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posted on August 31, 2001 05:51:19 PM
I've had only one bounced check and the bidder made good. Holding checks is very common and very stupid as it adds nothing to the value of a transaction, makes more work, more chances of error and slows down the transaction. Most checks clear the bank by the time the package arrives on their doorstep.
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jeffj318
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posted on August 31, 2001 06:41:30 PM
Hi
I used to hold for 7-10 days and then after reading posts like these some time ago I decided to ship out and cash later.
No problem so far.
JJ
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Eventer
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posted on August 31, 2001 06:50:35 PM
Got a stack of them sitting on my desk as we speak. They'll get to the bank next week.
Add me to the ship now, deposit later crowd. Only one bounced check (so far) and the buyer never made good on it.
After that one buyer, I considered making my TOS stronger & holding checks until the cows came home but decided not to punish all the good buyers for one lousy one.
Most times the items are in the hands of the buyers before I get around to depositing the checks (my bank is not convenient to me now that my daughter is in a different school).
Checks, money orders, credit cards, cash, strange color rocks, Rolex watches, heck, I'm a happy camper to take most any form of payment. Did have someone offer me a horse once!
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psyllie
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posted on August 31, 2001 07:38:13 PM
I am happy to receive personal checks, and usually ship the item before taking the check to the bank. So far so good.
I have two RL businesses that are totally dependent upon checks--over the four years my little side business has existed, I have never had a single bad check. In my main business (rental real estate), my tenants have been paying me by check for more than 20 years. I've had maybe 10 or so bounced checks in all that time--which just goes to show that even when you know every single important thing about a person, including their social security number, where they work, and where to find their firstborn lol, some folks will still bounce a check. With one or two exceptions, every tenant made the check good.
Bouncing checks is extremely expensive for the check writer and leaves them open to criminal penalties. I like to think that most people are honest and hate the embarrassment of bouncing a check. But just in case I run into a bad apple, I am tied in to the national credit reporting agencies, I would not hesitate to screw up the credit rating of anyone who bounced a check and kept my goods. That would be in addition to pursuing every remedy available.
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bobarrett
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posted on August 31, 2001 07:49:11 PM
Yes-keep em piled up until I get to the bank.
900+ transactions,all good so far.
No stipulations on feedback,etc. either...
I know I sure hate the hassle of getting a money order for anything I'm buying (a trip to GET the cash,GET the money order,and then MAILING it)
With a check I simply write it out at work and drop it in the mail bin.
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genxmike
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posted on August 31, 2001 07:50:55 PM
I find about 1 in 250 checks bounce and about a third of those people make good on the NSF.
We have a 2 week hold on checks so that we have a chance to stop shipment if it does bounce.
Even with the problems, it is still worthwhile for us to continue accepting them.
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soldat2
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posted on August 31, 2001 07:55:25 PM
We don't advertise as taking checks but if anyone asks I'll take it. No bad ones yet!
We ship daily regardless of the payment method. I don't make daily trips to the bank, once a week normally.
(right now I would just about accept a post-dated check if need be)
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ohmslucy
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posted on August 31, 2001 08:14:16 PM
Hello all,
Do I accept personal checks? You bet!
I see several benefits I, as a seller, get from accepting personal checks - no PayPal charges, buyer knows I trust them, payment is a day or two faster because they don't have to schlepp around getting a M.O., etc. Saves the bidder money, too. Last time I looked, the P.O. charges 90 cents for a M.O.
In my EOA notice I let them know if they want to send a money order it's fine but they don't need to and I'll ship next business day however they pay. I'm considering putting this into my listings so peeps know before they bid.
I've never had a bad check in over two years of selling on eBay and have received hundreds of them. I did hold a check one time - it was one of those goofy ones you get when you first open the account. Drawn on a bank in N.Y., buyer lived in California.
It was for a kinda high dollar amount for a Lakers jacket. So I did hold it for maybe ten days. It was as good as gold and that's when I made my decision to not hold checks.
If I ever do get a bad one, I figure a phone call to the person's local police department will clear it up in a BIG hurry! LOL!
Anyhoo... that's my opinion on personal checks.
Lucy
edited to add that I'm absolutely AWFUL about going to the bank... Lots of times I've gotten feedback from the buyer and their check is still sitting here! Oh well...
[ edited by ohmslucy on Aug 31, 2001 08:15 PM ]
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ohmslucy
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posted on August 31, 2001 08:19:26 PM
Money orders from the post office I cash when I send stuff. Quicker - the clerk doesn't have to fool around with my PayPal Mastercard.
Cheers to all and hope you have wonderful ending bids this Labor Day Weekend!
Lucy
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kept2much-07
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posted on August 31, 2001 08:23:04 PM
I've noticed in my town the people who put NO CHECKS in the garage sale ads are the same people who write the bad checks in town! I know this statement is a little off topic but could it be true too in the auction world?
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yadda36
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posted on September 1, 2001 12:24:23 AM
Not necessarily kept. I have never bounced a check and dont plan on it.
I just prefer not to take checks anymore. The first time one bounced it was only for $25. The second time it was for $600. The last time it was $165. The first two made sure they paid. Although the first two paid it was like pulling teeth to get the money.
The last one screwed me. Thats when I decided not to accept them anymore.
You're right doninpa........I shouldnt let a few bad apples spoil the rest. And I know that things can happen with chargebacks, etc. Right now this is just what I am comfortable with..........
Would I discourage someone from accepting checks?
Heck no! I WOULD tell them to take all the necessary precautions.
Will I go back to accepting checks?
Never say never is my answer to that question. I have tossed the idea around and may start accepting them again someday.
[ edited by yadda36 on Sep 1, 2001 12:26 AM ]
[ edited by yadda36 on Sep 1, 2001 12:27 AM ]
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