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[Brookster]

As you know the beast is for sell and I have a potential buyer but I'm leary about the buyer .The mans' name is John Terry and I'm not sure were he lives . He emailed me and explained that he wants to purchase the bike but doesn't have time to come see it . His bank is mailing a check (DHL) for the agreed amount plus extra to cover the shipping cost .The shipping company Neptune Shipping agency has already emailed me and wants me to send a western union money transfer when my bank has cleared JT's check .
Any advise or warnings !
Sure could use some help !

[da032]

Sounds a little fishy to me.  I would contact the seller back and tell them if they arranged the shipping, then they need to pay the shipping company themself.  It could be on the up and up but I think your right to be leary!  At best get a postal money order, paypal, or cash!

[larry_357]

 I would find out exactly where he lives and then do a search on him and their is a web site for a small few you can find out any info you like.I did that on the granddaughters boy friend and was amazed at what I found out.It tells you how many times they have been married and to whom,any fincial problems and if they have been aressted and for what crimes.If I can remeber the site will pm ya.BTY her bf had been in jail several times for hot checks and child abuse.

[Lone_Wolfe]

WHOOOOOAAAA!

Your bank may clear JT's check when you get it, but be sure to sit on it for a couple weeks to be sure it's not a phoney check! This may not be a scam, but you won't be sure the check is legit for 2 or 3 weeks after you've deposited it. In a scam, your bank may accept a cashiers check and add the money to your account. But then 2 or 3 weeks later when it gets processed and turns up as a bad check your bank expects all the money back. So discuss it with your bank and sit on it for a while. And you need to call the shipping company yourself to verify their existance and tell them you will pay them half of the shipping fee in 2 or 3 weeks, and the other half when they arrive to pick up the bike.

I just bought a bike from a guy in Pheonix. I sent his account a wire transfer from my bank to his bank after I made sure he had the bike for sale as advertised.

Had I sent him a cashiers check from my CHASE account, I was told it would take 2 weeks to clear before he got the funds. So if you accept his check be sure to allow it to properly clear before you go sending any of it to some shipping company!!

Does this shipping company have a website? Do they have a phone number and address in the online yellow pages?

Hopefully it's a good sale for you but be patient and make them aware of the time you need to affirm the validation of the funds!

Good luck!  

[FatDaddy]

IT'S A SCAM!!!!!!!!!

i had a buddy selling his bike and the same scenario where rhe seller would send a shipper and a check. well he sent a counterfiet check and my buddy almost got arrested so stay away from it.

just my 2 cents

[murray_61]

Look at the websites...

DHL Bank's website:  http://www.dhlbankdm1.com
unless of course you meant he was shipping the check by DHL, they are reputable...   

Neptune Shipping Agency's website:  http://www.nsa.com/main.asp

So this guy lives across the ocean?

Everything that requires western union always seems like a scam...

[hooter]

Just my $.o2, but does kind smell fishey or something roten in Denmark so to say. If I took a cashier's check it would HAVE TO BE a bonded check and still wait at least 3 weeks before the shipping company was notified for shipping instructions at his expense of coarse. When they arrive to pick the bike up look at the waybill for a delivery address, name, notification phone number etc. Google the phone # and see if the delivery address corresponds to the waybill. Again go to google and do the address to see where it's going, and then use the white pages (Yahoo) to verify all the above information is jiving. If the guy wants it bad enough, he'd make the trip or pay your price and then pay FOB from there. What you discribed just don't sound right for some reason.  

[hipshot]

Whoah!!!!! Whole lotta alarms going off!!! Call the Secret Service's Fraud Task Force at the Houston office tomorrow and see if this meshes with something they're already working. But whether it does or not, it looks pretty shaky to me. These types of scams, and fraud in general, are increasing at an alarming rate. I'll try to bump you on your cell tomorrow. Tell Carla we said Howdy.

[TX-Techman]

This is most likely an old SCAM:
 
Be very careful and be prepared for very good excuesses. A good friend of mine got into a similar deal on a car.  The buyers story was that he was purchasing the car for a missionary family who was home on furlough for a year.  He sent him the funds for the purchase and shipping and overpaid by around 5K. 

After a couple days communication was going normally and my friend went to Bank of America where the car was financed.  He had inquired at the bank to insure the cashier check was good and the bank confirmed the funds, he paid off the loan, and they released the original title.  Arrangements were made for delivery but just prior to the date the car was was to be picked up he got a call.  The story went that the missionary family was in a terrible accident and that the parents were killed and the kids were all seriously injured and in the hospital.  He requested an immediate refund so that he could help with the medical expenses.  The buyer requested he send the fund via Western Union so that he could get the funds immediately. 

The story was good, he had confirmed the funds with the bank, and based on the information he had recieved from the bank he refunded the full amount. 

A couple of days later he got a call from the bank.  The cashier check had bounced and they were caling to notify him.  They froze his account and re-instated the loan for the car which he had to relist and sell again. 

Fortunately because of the process he had gone through the at the local branch was he able to negotiate with their fraud prevention group.  It took several months but he was finally credited for the mess and BOA wrote off the entire amount.

I would suggest that you only accept Western Union wire transfers.  It is a pain and you have to pickup the cash at at a Western Union location.  But if the guy is strait up this should not be an issue. 

PS:  I suggest you contact your local Police or FBI also to check this out further.
AND DO NOT REFUND ANY MONEY for a Cashier Check.  I would not even trust 15 days to insure the thing is cleared, that is only an estimate and even if you call the company that issued the thing can't confirm anything from my experience. 
 

[Pug]

Dangummit Brookster, just gimme the beast!!!

You'll lose a whole lot less money...

You won't have to wait to see if the check clears...

And I'll tell all the folks on the forum just what a fine feller you really are!

+1 on all the "Whoa'ing" -- this, my friend, is a scam!

 

[skipppy75]

Scam for sure!

when they sent you the feeler email you should have increased your price 2 times and they would have still agreed to it. I did this on my ACE 2 years ago and they said it was a doable price.  Not sure anyone would spend 8k on an ACE with 25k miles and not first check it out.

[Morgan Buchanan]

scam scam scam scam
scam scam scam scam
scamity scam
wonderful scam.....

[j1mmyj4m]

I told Joey last wed, but he doesn't love me enough to take my word.

I've found someone else anyway.

[figowitz]

Isn't it amazing that simple commerce has come to THIS???  Proceed with extreme caution.  Even if the guy is standing in front of you with 'cash' (freshly printed that morning down on Airline!) ...

(If these crooked bastards would do something constructive instead of fraudulent, just think of what might be accomplished for everyone's good.)

[Lone_Wolfe]

scam scam scam scam
scam scam scam scam
scamity scam
wonderful scam.....

Hey Morgan ... Can you hum a few bars of that???