Is bank transfer safe, as seller?

Juzza12

I'm selling an item on Gumtree and buyer has asked to pay by bank transfer and have me post it.

It will be posted tracked and insured, is this safe to do?

I've found a lot of conflicting info and some of it is a few years old.

theonlywayisup

Gumtree is meant to be face to face = cash.

soolin

Juzza12 wrote: »

I'm selling an item on Gumtree and buyer has asked to pay by bank transfer and have me post it.

It will be posted tracked and insured, is this safe to do?

I've found a lot of conflicting info and some of it is a few years old.

Bank transfer is completely safe for a seller, just make sure you post the day after payment arrives and check your bank to make sure it was a bank transfer and not a cheque being paid in.

Juzza12

soolin wrote: »

Bank transfer is completely safe for a seller, just make sure you post the day after payment arrives and check your bank to make sure it was a bank transfer and not a cheque being paid in.

Thanks very much.

Tunstallstoven

soolin wrote: »

Bank transfer is completely safe for a seller, just make sure you post the day after payment arrives and check your bank to make sure it was a bank transfer and not a cheque being paid in.

Same question as the OP, so thought I would bump this rather than post a new thread.

soolin - what's the idea with posting the day after money is received? Is it because they can cancel the payment within 24 hours? Or for some other reason? Also, does it have to be working/business days? Or is the money is received on a Sunday is it ok to send the goods on Monday?

What happens if someone sends a bank transfer with insufficient funds in their account? I presume the bank come after them, charge them fees, etc. but just thought I'd check whether in this scenario there might be any repercussion on the seller receiving the money?

Cheers

theonlywayisup

With BT, you have to check that the money deposited is cleared, ie if I paid you £100 by BT but paid it from a cheque which I deposited at your account, it could be reversed. If I paid that £100 in cash into your bank, the money is yours. Usually you can see with online banking how the deposit was made (cash or cheque). If not, you can ring your bank and ask. Some banks will ask you to wait until the end of the business day.

Stevie_Palimo

Seagull27 wrote: »

Same question as the OP, so thought I would bump this rather than post a new thread.

soolin - what's the idea with posting the day after money is received? Is it because they can cancel the payment within 24 hours? Or for some other reason? Also, does it have to be working/business days? Or is the money is received on a Sunday is it ok to send the goods on Monday?

What happens if someone sends a bank transfer with insufficient funds in their account? I presume the bank come after them, charge them fees, etc. but just thought I'd check whether in this scenario there might be any repercussion on the seller receiving the money?

Cheers

You will not be able to do a bank transfer with insufficient funds as it will simply refuse it.

Lest say I have £100.00 in my bank and wish to pay you £200.00 if I enter the amount of £200.00 it will simply not allow the payment to happen, Now if I make the payment at £100.00 then it'll go through no issue.

And the 24 hour period would be to make sure the person got the item in a timely fashion, If you paid me £200.00 for an item via bank transfer and then wished to dispute it with me it would have nothing to do with the banks and purely a civil matter between us.

martindow

I think posting the next day is to do with some (rare) reports that BTs have been recalled before the end of the banking day. By the next day the payment is secure, as long as it not a cheque as previously mentioned.

Tunstallstoven

Thanks for the helpful and speedy responses! Much appreciated.

I'm going to give my bank a call just to confirm everything with them. I'm still not sure about this and would appreciate any clarifications:

Seagull27 wrote: »

Also, does it have to be working/business days? Or is the money is received on a Sunday is it ok to send the goods on Monday?

Although saying that, reading through the responses again I'm thinking it would need to be a business day - business day and so Sunday to Monday might not be the best.

One other thing - are bank transfers the same as Faster Payments? I always thought they were, but reading through some other threads I'm starting to think they might be different things. Although that could be because those threads are older....


Cheers

Stevie_Palimo

There is only two types of payments that you are speaking about here bacs, 3 days or so and chaps which is a transfer almost immediate from one account to another, Paying into your account any day or time will not make a jot of difference here unless they did a cheque as every other form of payment cannot be just retracted off there own back.

glentoran99

Stevie_Palimo wrote: »

There is only two types of payments that you are speaking about here bacs, 3 days or so and chaps which is a transfer almost immediate from one account to another, Paying into your account any day or time will not make a jot of difference here unless they did a cheque as every other form of payment cannot be just retracted off there own back.

You are ignoring faster payments, its within two hours (usually immediate) this is not the same as chaps