Sold an item listed as paypal only...

[thislittlelightofmine]

...now buyer wants to pay by cheque WWYD??

[thisisyesterday]

tell them to take a hike! if it says paypal only then it's paypal only.

[sixlostmonkeys]

you are under no obligation to accept a cheque, but if you explain that you need to wait until it has cleared before you can send the item then I don't see any reason not to accept it. After all, there are no fees with cheques

[Pingpong]

postal orders are quicker to process than cheques if they don't have a paypal account set up.
I had never used them 'til recently but you just cash them in at the post office.
I'd happily accept postal orders again.
Maybe you could suggest that? (saves on paypal fees for you too!)

[LovelyRitaMeterMaid]

What's their feedback like?

[thislittlelightofmine]

Thanks, I hadn't thought of a postal order, might suggest that, plus getting to the post office is easier than the bank.

Their feedback is ok, I just feel annoyed because I don't believe that they 'didn't notice' that it was paypal only. I always do paypal only so I don't have to bother with banks/post offices etc.

Will contact the buyer and see what they say, thanks again.

[Pingpong]

but if you have to go to the post office to post the item then a postal order is no extra hassle as you get the money as you post it - unless of course you only do courier stuff.
I seem to spend my life at the PO so postal orders are no problem to me.

[thislittlelightofmine]

smac, hadn't thought of that. I guess you don't wait for a postal order to 'clear' you just cash it don't you? duh!!

[CarGirl]

cheques actually can bounce up to 6 weeks after you've banked them anyway - postal orders are much better.

[thislittlelightofmine]

Cargirl I was looking into how long cheques take to clear/bounce and I've found that in 2007 the banks brought in the 2-4-6 system of clearing cheques, see here for details.

It means that if you cash a cheque your account starts to earn interest on the money at +2 days, and +4 days your bank will enable you to withdraw the money from the deposited cheques from the account, even though the cheques could still bounce.

By the end of the 6th day, you can be certain that the cheques will not bounce, and the money from them cannot be reclaimed from the company account without your consent.

I never knew that!

[Flibbertyjibbet]

I take cheques for ebay sales - saves all those paypal fees. I just wait till the cheque has cleared before sending the stuff out. You still get your money so I can't see the problem.

[sixlostmonkeys]

if they send you a crossed postal order you will need to take it to the bank

[suwoo]

I set all my auctions so only people with paypal accounts can bid. You are blocked from bidding if you don't have paypal.

HTH

[thislittlelightofmine]

Suwoo Yes, I've seen how I can block non-paypal bids so will do that from now on.

Flibberty Its not a massive problem, I just think its so rude to bid on an item when you know you can't pay in the requested way. Also, you hear of scams starting like that, though with money transfers usually.

[CarGirl]

I bank with Nationwide Building Society so I don't think I'm covered by the 2 4 6 rule unfortunately.

[thislittlelightofmine]

Cargirl It might be worth asking them. APACS which is the UK trade association for bank payments says that:

The changes, known as 2-4-6, are a major development that will benefit anyone who accepts a cheque, banker?s draft or building society cheque. The changes will apply on all cheques paid in to major banks and building societies in the UK.

(www.apacs.org.uk/07_11_26.html)

If its all major building societies it might cover Nationwide, building societies don't come much bigger.

[Flibbertyjibbet]

I bank with Nationwide and just wait for cheques to clear. If you are not sure how long till the funds are definitely in your account then just ask them, and then tell the seller it will be this many days until you are able to despatch the goods.

[CarGirl]

when I asked the counter staff they told me they could be bounced for up to 6 weeks.........perhaps no-one has told them about the 2 4 6 rule