BEWARE: Cashier Check Scams

[TheReptileEnthusiast]

I'm not sure if this has been addressed here yet, I ran a search on it and came up empty.

Anyone selling herps online should be aware of cashiers check scams that people are trying to pull. Cashiers checks used to be something people trusted, but have now become a way for people to rob sellers online. Here is an example:

A buyer contacts you and wants to buy your $500 snake, paying with a cashiers check. They say they don't trust Fedex and want to use a pet courier service that is very expensive, so they will send you a check for $1000. You are then supposed to send $500 to the courier service. The check arrives, you deposit it and the bank releases the funds after the standard 3 day hold. You think everything is fine since the bank released the funds, so you send $500 to the address of the "courier" which is actually the address of the scammer. The courier never arrives to pick up the animal, and a week later your bank contacts you to inform you the check was a fraud. This scam works because banks releases funds into your account before the check is actually fully processed.

Someone just tried to pull this scam on me, but it seemed weird, and I remembered hearing something about cashier check scams, so I googled it and found this website:

http://banking.about.com/od/security...erscheckfd.htm

When I told the "buyer" I would only accept paypal he suddenly stopped emailing me.

[Ponthieux]

good lookin' out. thanks for the heads up!

[redpython]

i would say anytime anyone wants you to send m oney somewhere so they can pay you, it's prob a scam.

i would also suggest calling the bank that issued any cashier's check to verify it's good.

i've gotten a couple of fake ones over the years...never been taken though.

[hoax]

Thanks for the heads up. I was just thinking the other day about the forms of payment I would be taking.

Mike

[ScottyDsntKnow]

Never sold a snake online but I'm sure I will eventually if I breed. However I've dealt with craigslist and the evilbay a LOT and yeah, if someone wants to do some sort of "I send money here and then you send it there" it is an obvious scam. To protect yourself you really should only take Paypal or Postal Money Orders from the USA and ONLY Paypal for anything internationally. Obviously if you're dealing with someone you trust or KNOW is legit then you could take a personal check and wait for it to clear but for someone online... yeah only the ways I mentioned above.