"Payment by USPS Money Order Only"

[carlsbad]

I see this in For Sale threads a lot. But I don't stand in line at the post office. I have an ebay business and I'm done with long post office lines. I print prepaid labels and drop them off. I have an account at a UPS store and haven't been to the post office for years. I will say that my post office appears to be one of the worst, with lines out the door after work and on weekends. Plus you have to go there during PO hours.

My Wells Fargo in the grocery store is open 7 days a week, no lines, and free Money Orders. They even give you a free envelope for mailing.

Walmart is open 24/7, short lines. Easy and convenient. The recipient can cash for free at any Walmart or at their bank.

I think there may be some exceptions, but whenever I see a story about a fake MO, it is a USPS MO. I guess you can fight this by going to the Post Office and standing in line to cash it but whenever I get an MO, I just deposit it into my bank.

So I think it would be good for everyone if sellers didn't specify USPS only.

Maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree. maybe there is a good reason I'm missing. But in my 10 years on ebay and over 20,000 transactions, I have never (knock on wood) fell for a scam and of the scams tried on me, fake MO was never one of them.

OK. Willing to listen to why USPS MOs are preferred.

thanks. Jerry

 

[Corey Schwanz]

I've heard, but not verified, that people like USPS Money Orders to avoid being scammed since its issued by a "federal agency".

In theory, I could buy something from someone and send a Western Union (or whoever) money order for it. They send me a message that they received it and will send out the product the same day. In the mean time, I can cancel the money order before its cashed and the seller would be hung out to dry. Supposedly, doing that with a USPS Money Order makes it a federal offense?

That's what I've heard.

 

[chapstix97]

Also you can verify by phone to see its a legit money order

 

[284driver]

Surely you could verify any cashiers check from a bank with a phone call. I work right beside a wells Fargo and send money orders from wf most of the time, even when USPS money order is expected. Feel free to clear before shipping is all I leave in the envelope with the check. The post office is a downward spiraling toilet.

 

[tenring]

Counterfeit USPS money orders are a serious federal crime, thoroughly investigated by their inspectors and FBI. I only use MO's from my bank, cause they are free and never counterfeited.

But if someone sends me a USPS Mo, the bank holds it for 3 days to clear. The reason they gave me is "because many of them are phony".

 

[FeMan]

I do a lot more buying than selling but prefer USPS MO for the reason stated above; Fraud related to their use is serious federal crime, thoroughly investigated by their inspectors and FBI. I have two friends that are FBI agents so I am confident that if you stiff me, I will get justice I send genuine ones and haven't had any issues, save ten minutes in a long line.

 

[rkittine]

Using a USPS Money order makes people feel comfortable because if you get caught abusing it, it is Mail Fraud and a Federal Offense. I prefer PayPal, but also send certified checks as I get them from my bank for free.

It is interesting though that almost always the buyer has to pay before the seller has to ship.

In the past year three people have tried to scam me sending me pictures of what turn out to be other listings on the internet. I personally do a lot of background checking before I send thousands of dollars to someone I do not know.

Bob

 

[mshelton]

I prefer trade in beaver pelt but a paypal gift will do in a pinch.

 

[jdh47]

Paypal charges the seller and USPS charges the buyer.

 

[rkittine]

I am happy to pay the PayPal fee to the seller in order to have PayPal in the middle of the Transaction.

Bob

 

[jonbearman]

I had a guy stiff me,I sent a usps money order and he never sent me squat. I filled out the e-form to the postmaster general and they did nothing.

 

[mikelucas]

Cause you can go to your local PO and show your id unless they already know you and get ready cash in your hands on the spot with no hassle, and if its not a good MO then you will find out on the spot!

 

[rkittine]

Jon,

Where in New York?

For any serious amounts of money I ask for references and call them I also Google the person, ask for their legal address, not a PO Box and check that out too. I forget my Latin but Caveat Emptor I think is the term. Buyer Beware.

Bob

 

[Ggmac]

Usps for me only ! Too many reasons to list since I pick an peck at typing .
Wifes a banker and a personal check is faster , safer than most money orders and no diff than a cert . Check . At least at our bank .

 

[hogpatrol]

It's easily forgotten that alot of our rural brethren don't live anywhere near a Wally World, a bank, or a convenience store but they do live close enough to a post office to use it as a stand in bank for payments either way. Same with UPS or FedEx. They have better service from their local p.o.

 

[rkittine]

I have also wired funds and have shown the seller a copy of the transaction on my bank account and called their bank been told that the funds had made their account and yet the seller still wants to wait until they get a written bank statement. Some sellers need to get into the 21st century. I fly for free and usually want to come and look at anything I am buying over a few thousand dollars and when someone balks at that I really get a bad feeling.

Bob

 

[CJ6]

Cause you can go to your local PO and show your id unless they already know you and get ready cash in your hands on the spot with no hassle, and if its not a good MO then you will find out on the spot!

Well not exactly. I've had to wait up to 3 days for the local post office to "accure" enough cash to cash a couple different PMO's I've had. PS, both were under $1500 and at different times.

 

[ridgeway]

Large money orders are definitely hard to cash at the PO, especially the smaller ones. Best time to go is close to closing if you have a large one to cash. Everyone uses debit anymore and that is the reason the PO does not have cash.

Cashing large MO's at the PO is definitely a plus because no need to involve your personal bank so they can track your cash flow. The two banks I use will cash them no problems, but I head to the PO before going to one of my banks.

 

[digrazir]

Does anyone know what happens if the USPO money order is lost in the mail? Wonder how long it would take to get USPO to replace the money order? Ray

 

[Buzz]

Does anyone know what happens if the USPO money order is lost in the mail. Ray

Yeah. You file a claim, wait forever, and then pray you get your money back at some point.

If you really think the feds are going to investigate when you get screwed out of $500 might want to tune into our fearless leader's speech at 8pm est tonight. I don't care how many FBI friends you have, they're not working that case. Even if you could get them to do something, the US Atty is going to laugh them out of the office. Federal offense sounds scary, but unless there's some sort of political gain or it's a large scam they're not getting prosecuted.