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AIBU?

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Original poster

AIBU to think DH was scammed

226 replies

Cath2907 · 21/05/2018 09:44

We were selling our old car yesterday through autotrader. I took out kid and dog to reduce distractions. DH was dealing. He rang to tell me car was sold for £450 less than advertised but to some lovely people.

I got home later to find they'd had trouble transferring money to our account. He'd seen them set up the transfer on their side but that the payment was delayed until today. Basically he let them drive away without paying.

No money has arrived today. Have emailed them to express concern there's been a mix up and ask them to confirm the details of the transferred money and no answer.

DH said he saw their drivers license, checked it had the same address they'd asked the car to be registered to and overall they seemed a lovely couple. He is sure the money will show up and this is all a mix up. I think they have scammed him and am quite upset and frustrated that he let someone drive away with a few grands worth of our car without actually handing over a penny.

Please tell me I am a suspicious whatsit and this is bound to be a mix up?

OP posts:
Grilledaubergines · 22/05/2018 18:14

Accepting cash for large amounts/paying cash is really not sensible.

Kursk · 22/05/2018 18:22

Grilledaubergines

Why not?

iBiscuit · 22/05/2018 18:23

Had a quick Google and it was suggested that buyers paying in cash withdraw the funds in front of you, so you can see it's legit.

Mrskray · 22/05/2018 18:35

^Had a quick Google and it was suggested that buyers paying in cash withdraw the funds in front of you, so you can see it's legit.^

Is it just as safe to meet them in your branch of bank/building society and watch as they pay cash into your account? That’s what I’ve always done as I assumed the cashier would be checking if the notes were genuine - am I missing something?

Mrskray · 22/05/2018 18:36

...... and, that way they also know you don’t have the cash in the house.

Grilledaubergines · 22/05/2018 18:36

Yes withdrawing in front of you helps. But turning up with a wad of notes and no paper trail isn’t sensible. We all have a responsibility to make as adequate check as we can as to a money trail. With any potential risks of direct transfers, they are still a safer option, unless you can do a bankers draft and most people don’t these days.

Xenia · 22/05/2018 19:10

Thwere is no illegality in paying in cash. I pay in cash at supermarkets, petraol stations and all the time. I don't get paid by customers in cash and businesses running a business selling cars are subject to money laundering rules but it is not illegal to receive cash and can be a lot safer (as long as iti s not fake notes) to get cash in a private sale.

In fact it can be very important taht we all start using cash otherwise it might be abolished which would be very difficult for those who can't open bank accounts or who carefully ration their money each week by just drawing out the cash they need.

Kikidelivers · 22/05/2018 19:25

Cannockcanring

Your friend fibbed to you
Bank transfers can NOT be reversed by the sender.

The sender would have to contact his bank to explain (incorrect bank account details for example) and the bank would the person in receipt of the funds would be contacted.

happygalah · 22/05/2018 22:29

Just make sure that your bank account is not being emptied as they have the account details of it.
if they are dishonest this is a possibility

dementedpixie · 22/05/2018 22:34

How could they empty the account with no ID in the correct name? Even a cheque has the account details on.

Cannockcanring · 22/05/2018 23:09

Your friend fibbed to you
Bank transfers can NOT be reversed by the sender.

No, he did not (what possible reason would someone have to lie about a third party trying to scam them, but failing?).

He didn't lose any money from it, and I didn't say the seller reversed the transfer; we believe the bank accepted the transaction for some reason without full checking, then cancelled it. I don't know exactly what happened, but I do know it happened, I saw the balance showing the sum in the account, then an hour later it was gone without trace.
I don't think you were there!

Cannockcanring · 22/05/2018 23:17

kikidelivers
Here's an example of something similar happening:

www.ukbusinessforums.co.uk/threads/my-bank-reversed-a-bank-transfer-sent-by-a-customer.134234/

Teacher22 · 23/05/2018 06:16

Men like to think well of themselves and this makes them vulnerable. My DH once picked up a car from a garage when they had clearly overcharged him by about half a grand. They also said the car needed another half grands’ worth of repairs. I smelt a rat immediately but he let them have the car and rook us again because he did not want a scene and to challenge a ‘nice ‘ man. My DH valued his reputation as a decent sort too much to be what he saw as rude.

The garage was closed just after this for committing this sort of fraud, non existent repairs, on all its customers.

Being a ‘rude’ woman with a bit of sense and skepticism I would have challenged the bloke and taken the car away. In fact I phoned Trading Standards about it only to read about the scandal in the paper by which time the dodgy garage was bankrupt.

Grilledaubergines · 23/05/2018 09:21

Well if course it’s bit illegal xenia. I’m not sure I’ve seen anyone suggest that, but in paying individuals (strangers) large sums of cash you take a risk. A risk greater that a transaction which has a paper trail. Paying cash in shops is very obviously entirely different.

MacavityWasFramed · 23/05/2018 09:48

Cath2907 - I'm glad it all ended well. If you feel like it, you could always tell the buyer (now that you've got the cash!) that you realised your husband had let them drive away without having actually received the money and you were furiously almost-stabby, and we all thought it was a scam! Might be a "now that it's all fine, let's laugh about it" story, but might also caution them to protect themselves in future.

As an aside, I bought my first new car on Switch - I did a test drive, liked it and said "can I pay by Switch?". The rather bemused salesman agreed rather hesitantly, and as I'd already warned the bank that I might buy a car on Switch that day, they didn't question it. I expect in the future, they'll just scan our brain-chips and debit our accounts accordingly!

FrizzyMcFrizzface · 23/05/2018 11:12

We had to sell our second car when I was pregnant to supplement maternity pay. We sold to a nice middle aged couple who then were awful with me when I insisted that the bankers cheque wasn’t good enough (just handing it over outside our house) and I insisted they come to the bank while I paid it in. They gave me a really hard time about me not believing they were trustworthy, but I didn’t know them from Adam and it was thousands - that we desperately needed! And I would do the same in the future because there are plenty of scammers out there.

toxic44 · 23/05/2018 11:21

TSB are in a right fix at present because of their system changeover, so it could be that. I hope so. It's easy enough to be taken in by a pleasant couple, don't blame DH that much.

ralfeesmum · 23/05/2018 14:46

If it's any comfort, Cath2907, just remember the saying "What you give is what you get" or "What goes around comes around"......this 'lovely couple' will get paid back in the fullness of time - but not in a way they will like!

Ruthlessrooster · 23/05/2018 15:01

And why's that then, seeing as they paid the actual money owed?

Ruthlessrooster · 23/05/2018 15:02

RTFT

fatchilli123 · 23/05/2018 20:50

Phone police and report it and phone your bank to make sure they cannot access your account in any way.

dementedpixie · 23/05/2018 20:54

The money arrived!

iBiscuit · 24/05/2018 09:05

Did they stop the cheque? Wink

RLOU88 · 24/05/2018 12:52

RTFT! The money arrived

SoFake · 24/05/2018 13:11

They didn't stop the cheque. 👀