Question about bank wire transfer

[bfgun]

Has anyone ever sold anything and the buyer wanted to pay via bank wire transfer? Just wanted to see how risky this is, and whether if the buyer can reverse the charges once the money is wired to your account or not.

Thanks,
B

[Kyocera]

A google search seems to show information favorable to this type of transaction, never have done it though.

[bfgun]

yup, just want to see if there was any way for the buyer to reverse the charges. I know with scammers, they'll do wire transfers via western union or some unknown service, but as for once the money is in your account, what can they do? (if anything)

Anyone else have suggestions or ideas?

[rkawakami]

I've moved money around via wire transfers but it was between "trusted" sources. Basically, what you give the person who is wiring you the money is the details about your bank account. For example, you must tell the buyer your checking account number and the banking institution you have your account with. Is it risky? No more so than accepting a check in my opinion. Why? Your bank probably stamps the check you deposit with whatever account you use. The buyer can ask for a microfiche copy (or get one online) and see those details.

Can the buyer "reverse" the transfer. I'm not a banking expert but I would say not. Once the funds have cleared, they are in YOUR account and the buyer should not have any control over it.

Depending upon your bank, you may incur transfer fees.

[bfgun]

I think it can be a trusted buyer. I'm selling a videophone and the buyer lives in canada. Wants to have Fed Ex pick up the parcel to avoid paying duty fees and taxes. He's offered to pay by check but i'm not comfortable going that route since it's out of the US. But based on his feedback in ebay, he has 20 100% feedback sales. I think i could ask him to fax me a paper stating that he's paying me this amount of money and agrees that he cannot reverse the charges for any reason.
I guess i should contact my bank and see what they have to say too. just wonder if he could say "i made a mistake, wrong account", then could he get the funds back?

[rkawakami]

Seeing how he's the one telling his bank/financial service where to send the money and he's the one providing the details (name of receiver, name of receiver's bank, address of receiver's bank, the receiver's account number), I don't think he can later claim, "oops" .

By all means, contact one of the officers of your bank (not just a teller) and ask them about the details of wire transfers. Be sure it's clear on exactly what information you need to provide to the buyer. If the buyer then asks for more (personal) information about you or your bank account information, then check back with your bank to see if it is a valid request. My understanding is what I mentioned above is all that is required for the transfer to take place.

I would say that wire transfers are just as risky as most any other payment method. Credit card payments can be reversed or challenged. But there are protocols which must be followed. Checks can be cancelled, but from what I know, only before they have cleared. Once the funds are in your account, the buyer has no recourse. If the check bounces you should know that fairly quickly (which is why most people who accept personal checks wait a week before sending). With today's electronic banking networks, I'd be quite surprised if your bank doesn't know right away if you got a rubber check. Of course that is with national (i.e. US) banks. Since your buyer is in Canada, that may be different.

[tfflivemb2]

A little off topic, but if you ship USPS, there wont be a duty fee.

[bfgun]

Doesnt it need to be reported?
I recall shipping something one time and I had to fill out some customs paperwork.

[BillMorrow]

call it a gift and ship using global priority mail for about $8 to $14 depending on size and weight..

a bank wire can NOT be reversed..
never..
unless the bank made an error and then it is usually in limbo, waiting for the correct account numbers..

if the feedback is for similar items then thats good, if for baseball cards or dolls, then beware..

a bank wire is costly..
$25 or so to send.. maybe more in canada..
and usually about $10 to receive..

paypal echeck is better.. or direct cash transfer via paypal..

do not trust a CC unless you know the buyer..

[bfgun]

thanks Bill. Looks like i'll go with the bank wire transfer. The buyer is paying for it and similar items he's gotten feedback on ebay have progressed without a problem. I guess others can use this forum topic when referring to payments by the payee.

thanks everyone.
B

[smugiri]

As a final aside which is worth noting strictly from a "money out of one's pocket" perspective, Canada Post WILL collect duty on behalf of Customs Canada on items with a value greater than about $60 - the border is blurry and Customs Canada makes the final determination. Even more important is the fact that THEY WILL charge customs duty even if the item is a gift if the value is north of the cut-off point.

The main reason for using USPS should be to reduce the amount of brokerage fees on the customs fees. If you use UPS/FedEx, they pay the customs fees in advance for you and then collect them from you at delivery. They however charge a customs brokerage fee for doing this and this fee has typically been equal to the customs amount for the small value items (< $500) I have bought from the US in the recent past.

I, for example, bought an X22 this last June which was assessed at $60 in duty. UPS paid this then billed me $120 ($60 in duty and $60 for customs brokerage). This changed the balance of the deal from being a great one to being an average one.

If you use USPS/Canada Posts, I think that the customs brokerage fee is a flat $5. Call the companies/Canada Posts and ask to be sure, they will give you accurate numbers.

[zaku]

Wants to have Fed Ex pick up the parcel to avoid paying duty fees and taxes.

this sounds fishy for me..
just as smugiri said, using fedex for sure if u cross the border, u expect to pay much more than using USPS.

not to say yours might be a scam but many of those nigerian scams uses this method that they say like i'll have my fedex or ups pick up the package so u don't pay any shipping.

final words, i'd say yes go with wire transfer.. once it's in ur account, it's yours. or if ur still in doubt, just wait a few days after the cash has been in ur account before shipping it out.

[bfgun]

i'm going to go with the wire transfer and let the buyer handle the shipping charges. it's his problem, not mine. He has a friend that he could come pick up the package from me in person and pay in cash, but i declined and decided to go with this route.

Thanks for everyone's feedback. My main concern was just to make sure that there wasnt a way to reverse the bank transfer if he wanted to. I know with paypal, you can, but with a bank transfer, it would be a bit harder to retrieve it. Checking into this during my lunch break and can provide answers from the bank if people are curious.

Thanks,
B

[skitty4gzus]

if your looking for the most secure way to pay, use paypal through an auction source such as ebay. that way if things go south you can go through paypal to get your money back.

[Dimitri_P]

if your looking for the most secure way to pay, use paypal through an auction source such as ebay. that way if things go south you can go through paypal to get your money back.

Rubbish... Paypal is completely unsafe when it goes to credit cards. Well, it is unsafe, period.

bfgun
Do wire, and you will sleep well. Just make him add $10 to total, because your bank will take that. Wells Fargo takes $10 from my incoming Wires.

[rkawakami]

Rubbish... Paypal is completely unsafe when it goes to credit cards. Well, it is unsafe, period.

I hope you're wrong on that. I'm still waiting for a $150 charge to be credited back to me when the eBay seller never shipped (and then went NARU). I went directly to my credit card company to contest the charge, even though I paid through PayPal. We'll see what happens...

The only other time I had a PayPal/eBay problem, the seller was shill bidding, got kicked off eBay and I got a partial refund (minus $25 of my total payment).

[pianowizard]

Rubbish... Paypal is completely unsafe when it goes to credit cards. Well, it is unsafe, period.

What do you mean by "unsafe"? Are you referring to how Paypal stores our credit card info? Or are you referring to poor protection for the buyer?

About a year ago, I used my Discover Card-funded Paypal to buy a SODIMM on eBay for $75 but didn't receive the item after several weeks. I filed a dispute through Paypal and got only $50 back. Fortunately, I managed to get the rest from Discover Card. So, in this sense, it's safer to Paypal from a credit card than from a bank account. Had I paid from my bank account, I would have lost $25.

[rkawakami]

So, in this sense, it's safer to Paypal from a credit card than from a bank account. Had I paid from my bank account, I would have lost $25.

Which is why I have taken to using my credit card to pay for eBay items ~$100 or more.

[tfflivemb2]

I moved this to Off-Topic, to be fair to sellers in the Marketplace, since this thread keeps getting bumped with responses.

[Dimitri_P]

[DELETED]

I hope you all read and remember what I posted here, I'd rather have it removed than find myself with locked account

[ronbo613]

I use wire transfers, domestic and international, all the time. It's no different than someone walking in your bank and depositing cash in your account. It goes from account to account, so insufficient funds in not an issue. Once the funds are in your account, that's it. I've found this a great way to do business, especially international transactions. It usually costs $10 on each end, takes about 48 hours.
Using credit cards is a good idea for some transactions. I've had a number of disputes with my credit card company, followed the procedure and won every dispute. If a business gets too many charge disputes, the credit card company usually pulls their service, so this is a good way to protect yourself from transactions and sellers you may have problems with.

[Dimitri_P]

There is a chance to loose some money when you give your bank account details to some. Not going to post in public, only PM