paintpower
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posted on September 7, 2001 03:41:22 PM
A newbie ended one of my auctions with BIN and he lives in Puerto Rico. OK, postage is same as US postage so I can figure that. Now he wants to pay me with a personal check. My bank will not allow me to deposit checks unless they are on banks in the US proper and in US funds. Anyone have any experience taking payments from Puerto Rico and have any suggestions for me?
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snowyegret
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posted on September 7, 2001 04:04:37 PM
paintpower, PR is a US commonwealth and they use US dollars. The banks there do credit checks before you can open an account. Email your buyer to find out which bank it is from, and call your bank to make sure they don't charge extra fees.
They are US banks!
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alchemy
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posted on September 7, 2001 04:04:53 PM
Checks from Puerto Rico are in US dollars and use the same system as your checking account.
Let your banker know that PR has been part of the US for over 100 years and they use the US dollar for all transactions.
Checks from Virgin Islands, Guam, Marshall Islands, Alaska, Hawaii, and other non-connected states and territories are in the US banking system.
IMHP - change banks.
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paintpower
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posted on September 7, 2001 04:36:01 PM
Let me clarify this: my bank is not REALLY a bank, it is a state employees credit union. They have NO way to convert monies, so there is no charge, they just don't accept them. I'm not about to change over to a regular commercial bank who wants to charge me a zillion dollars a month fees plus fees every time you ask them a question! I get great interest on my checking account, no matter what my balance, and I never pay over $1.00 per month service charge no matter how low my balance goes, plus loan interest rates that are well below anything you can get from a bank. I don't think I want to go changing banks for one PR transaction!
I've written the buyer to find out more on this personal check. Only problem is that it takes him several DAYS to respond to questions. Took him 2 days just to get his address to me for figuring postage.
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selecto
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posted on September 7, 2001 04:43:54 PM
No problem. Will clear just as any check from any bank in any state.
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snowyegret
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posted on September 7, 2001 04:48:58 PM
No money conversion needed.
US Dollars
from a US bank.
If they can't figure that out, well....
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traceyg
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posted on September 7, 2001 05:27:39 PM
It is 2001 and Puerto Rico has been using US funds for a very long time. It IS a commonwealth. They ARE us banks.
I see from your second note you didn't quite get that. It is the same as taking a check from a U.S. state. I am sure you have the point by now but just in case.
Maybe your buyer is taking so long to get back to you because they can't quite figure out what your concern is . . .
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kolonel22
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posted on September 7, 2001 05:35:14 PM
On March 2,1917 President Woodrow Wilson signed the Jones Act making Puerto Rico a territory of the United States. July 25,1952 the voters approved a referendum proclaiming Puerto Rico as Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Since Puerto Rico is part of the United States they deal in U.S. currency and U.S. Postage Stamps just like we do. Therefore I'll assume you have not yet presented this check to your credit union because if you have, there should be no difference with a check from Puerto Rico than a check from anywhere else in the United States. There is no conversion required and there should be no special fees connected to the transaction.
If you have presented the check to your credit union and they want to handle the transaction as anything else other than a "normal" deposit like any other check from the U.S. find a new bank.
Health & Happiness
"The Colonel"
[ edited by kolonel22 on Sep 7, 2001 05:53 PM ]
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paintpower
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posted on September 7, 2001 05:41:02 PM
Hey Colonel, I don't think I'll switch banks just to satisfy one little transaction as I like my low service fees and no-hassle customer service at my Credit Union. Most of the other outside-the-48 customers have paid me with cash, International Money Orders or BidPay. This will be my first outside the 48 checks.
I haven't got the check yet; just trying to ward off problems before they arise.
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GreetingsfromUK
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posted on September 7, 2001 05:49:28 PM
I know this of message, but anybody had problems with shipping to Costa Rica?
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exexec
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posted on September 7, 2001 05:51:15 PM
Did we lose 2 states and nobody told me??? I'm sure there were 50 (last time I looked)!
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kolonel22
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posted on September 7, 2001 06:06:11 PM
paintpower,
I think the point others and I are trying to make here is there absolutely shouldn’t be a problem with a check from Puerto Rico. Even though they are a Common Wealth their checks shouldn’t be handled any differently than any other U.S. bank transaction.
There really shouldn’t be a need to change banks or be concerned in advance of the check’s arrival. Another words don’t worry about it. I have NEVER had problem with checks from Puerto Rico.
I was just trying to indicate if someone at your Credit Union told you anything but, they probably are not astute enough to know what they are talking about. 
I think at this point you "get it" and understand there is no difference with a check from Puerto Rico than there would be from any buyer in the U.S.
Again, Health & happiness
"The Colonel"
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eleanordew
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posted on September 7, 2001 06:38:41 PM
Credit unions can be weird -- I do most of my banking at a credit union. However, when they wanted to charge me $15 to process a check from Canada even though it was written in US dollars - the excuse was "We are not a full service bank." -- I went out and FOUND a full service bank that didn't charge to process non-US checks.
The bank I use for that service is SunTrust, which is a national bank, I think. I had to open a savings account for a minimum of $300 (or they charged $5 a month for the privilege of holding my money - don'cha just love it??!!).
El
"The customer may not always be right, but she is always the customer."
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ragmop
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posted on September 7, 2001 07:40:02 PM
Since you are not sure if you will have any problem at your Credit Union, why not call them and ask?
Normally Officers and Managers have the power to override many of the rules that are to prevent fraud if they know the member.
I have deposited several personal checks from Puerto Rico at my Credit Union with no problems.
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cassiescloset
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posted on September 7, 2001 10:05:19 PM
I cashed a check last month from Puerto Rico. No problem--it's in US funds.
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commentary
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posted on September 7, 2001 10:13:04 PM
Isn't Canada part of the U.S.? And if Bush gets his way, Mexico will also be part of the U.S.
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paintpower
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posted on September 8, 2001 04:35:13 AM
Thanks everyone for all the info. I said 48 states because in all the time I've been selling on Ebay I've NEVER had a customer from Hawaii or Alaska so I just didn't consider them in my customer base. Out of curiosity I checked a couple other banks in my town about out of US checks and they charge $35.00 to process them.
Buyer is sending check today so guess I'll know in a week or so.
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skaplin
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posted on September 9, 2001 09:06:24 AM
What I do on "questionable" personal checks is bring them to my favorite check cashing place. I loose $5 or 5% depending on which is greater, but I have no hassles with NSF funds or collection thereof.
I usually do this with checks less than #1000, counter checks, or bidders I get a bad vibe on.
The best part is when they write you the bad check thinking it's no big deal, and they get a call from "BIG OLE BUBBA" from the check verification provider. If they don't pay, all the check verification providers pick it up and block their account. It turns into a huge, expensive hassle for them.
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