Preferred or safest payment method???

[FloridaClay]

Definitely cash or Pay Pal unless it is someone you know as reliable. Money orders, certified checks, etc. get forged all the time. And the intermediary stake holder agents are also often bogus. Your buyers can use credit cards to buy when they use Pay Pal, and that will sometimes help a sale. And as for PP, would you rather be out 3% for the fee or 100% from a fake check or money order?

Clay

[fmblizz]

My problem is not really the 3%,, it's the 3% for Paypal that is the problem. I try to avoid Ebay as much as possible due to all their fee's and PayPal is Ebay.

Find it hard to believe that the avenue we have to be guaranteed payment is to receive cash (the obvious) or PayPal..

fmblizz

[rizbone]

I prefer cash, but will write a check if I cannot pick up the item in person. I refuse to use paypal for anything, so not everyone has a paypal account (I have to slow down my purchases somehow). Having said that I do arrange with the seller to take as much time as he needs to ensure the check will clear before he sends the item.

[Roaring20s]

I tried to buy an Exhibition Reproducer from a Craigslist seller in California. I provided all of my contact information up front. I made it clear that he had the upper hand in this transaction. I would send payment and trust that he would ship it to me. I followed up two times over several days. No reply. I sent a final email stating that I would not contact him again and mentioned that every collector would seek out the objects of their desire just as I did and it is a shame that we could not do business.

This was $20 plus shipping and I had little to lose.

But, even with open honest communication, I do not believe that he was fearful. Rather that he did not wish to be bothered in making a trip to a Post Office.

I have bought and sold items under $200 via Craigslist from other states. I always search the internet to double check what I have learned as I deal with them. Luckily they have turned out to be honest people with verifiable information and internet history aligned to the items of interest. Greater value would not sit well with me on this venue, if shipping were involved.

All local transactions must be in cash.

James.

[Cody K]

Just chiming in to say I'm another one who will not use PayPal. My reasons range from politics, to policy, to personal, but I want nothing to do with them. This bad attitude of mine can be troublesome when trying to buy phonograph parts online. Does any seller of phonograph parts have a secure website where I can pay by debit card, or is it PayPal all the way down?

[Phonofreak]

When I buy from Craigslist, I buy locally. I won't buy from anyone from a different state. I always pay cash. When it comes to ebay, I don't use paypal. I got burned with it a few years ago. I use cashier's checks or money orders. I email the seller to see if they accept cashier's checks or money orders. I let them know that it from my credit union. I also let them know that I pay quickly, and have excellent feedback. 99.9% percent of the time, there is no problem. The other .1% are real stick-in-the-mud that won't accept a money order or cashier's check, so I don't do business with them. As I see it, it's their loss, and eventually I'll find the same item later on. I will get it from a seller that takes money orders or cashier's checks. That's my 2 cents and buying policy.
Harvey Kravitz

[soundgen]

Just chiming in to say I'm another one who will not use PayPal. My reasons range from politics, to policy, to personal, but I want nothing to do with them. This bad attitude of mine can be troublesome when trying to buy phonograph parts online. Does any seller of phonograph parts have a secure website where I can pay by debit card, or is it PayPal all the way down?

I used to take credit cards but now use Paypal only as it is cheaper than taking cards via my bank

[Johnny Smoke]

I have used pay-pal since it came out, and have never had an issue. 3% dosent bother me- ya gotta pay for convience!
You can meet some real "winners" when dealing with craigslist.
Alot of the issues I have seen from pay- pal come from Nigeria were the U. S. does not have any agreements to help prosecute the crooks.
When dealing online caution is the rule. I belive most sellers and buyers are honest, but the bad guys are allways there.

[epigramophone]

In recent years, anyone registering as a seller on UK eBay has been required to open a PayPal account (if they do not already have one) and to offer PayPal as a method of payment.

When listing bulky items for collection only, I always specify that cash is the preferred method of payment, but occasionally a buyer ignores this and pays by PayPal. If this happens to you, print an eBay receipt for the item and get the buyer to sign it for your records. An unscrupulous "buyer" might later claim that the item was never collected and ask PayPal to reverse the transaction, so you need to keep that receipt.

As we all know, eBay and PayPal tend to side with the buyer right or wrong, even though the seller pays their fees.

[fmblizz]

Alot of good information out there.

Has anyone ever been paid with an E-Check or does anyone know anything about them??

Blizz