Echeque woes

[TossedSaladsAndScrambledEggs]

I have been daft! I sold a load of items recently as we are going away for 2 months and need the cash - and I made sure all the listings were ending over a week before we left so I would have time to send etc.

Anyway, one buyer buys two items and I receive an email saying they have paid by echeque and payment was pending, which was a bugger as I waited and waited, and in the end I posted items a day before we set off as I thought knowing my luck they would pay while we were away (for 2 months). Of course now they are saying they are unpaid rather than payment pending, and I don't seem to have the option to invoice or contact seller, only relist. I have opened 2 unpaid item cases. The value is not great but I feel it is shoddy of this buyer to buy 2 items and bit pay.

Have I done the right thing? I haven't sold that much, but my seller feedback is very positive as I always post quickly, communicate well and charge reasonable postage etc. and I know I was daft for sending items without cleared payment, but I wasn't sure what else to do, if they had just simply not paid for over a week I would have just cancelled sale, but as payment was pending I thought it would clear. Any advice?

Anyone? Bump!

Quick update, buyer just contacted me asking me to close case as she HAS paid and it is showing on her statement. But it is saying unpaid my end! Argh! Is she going to hate me and leave me horrid feedback?!

she can't leave feedback after the case is closed. You shouldn't have sent the items until cheque had cleared, but too late now.

Just wait 4 days and close the case. Nothing you can do.

Do you have to accept the payment? Sometimes this can happen I think?? It might be in limbo? Gone from her account but not in yours iyswim? echeques are a bit weird. I know they take ages. Try asking paypal if you can contact them. I would try messaging buyer too to explain that you do not seem to have the payment in your account and could she look into it too to help you resolve the problem. If she is honest she should want you to actually have the money as she has the goods. Hope it gets sorted. I do remember something about accepting payment but sorry I can't recall the exact details. A PITA transaction for you! I hate those trouble ones.

Thanks for your advice - realise I shouldn't have sent item and just cancelled sale in hindsight, but I just envisaged funds clearing when I was not here to send.

I did originally contact buyer to say an echeque had been sent and I would send stuff after cleared payment and got no reply, it was just that the payment clearance date came and went (day after I had to send) and payment went from pending to unpaid, and iPad/iPhone gave me no other options but to relist or report - there seemed to be no way to send invoice or contact seller.

Anyway buyer has paid now thankfully! I will leave them some gracious feedback and hope they are kind to me!

Oh and what is the point of echeques? She seemed to be aware she had sent one, why would you intentionally send one? Does it just mean you can delay having to pay? I don't understand what they are at all.

it's when the buyer doesn't have a credit card on file, so the payment from their bank account takes days to clear. It often happens when a credit card expires and the buyer hasn't updated their a/c with new details.

www.ebay.co.uk/gds/What-is-an-Echeque-Why-is-it-holding-up-my-purchase/10000000004230610/g.html

Yeah that's what I thought, but the buyer just sent an instant PayPal payment so i can't see why the first one didn't go through, the buyer also said in her email she was not going to send an echeque this time, so it seems she was fully aware she was sending an echeque which seems a bit off as she would have known full well it would delay the payment. I suspect she may have been trying it on, she may have got the goods and cancelled the payment, and only paid when I opened the case - as she didn't respond to any of my communication before I did that, then suddenly she was able to pay instantly!

In general it is usually someone whose card needs updating or someone who is new to ebay and hasn't set up their payment properly yet. If I get one I always message buyer to explain and that it will be a longer wait for them to receive their goods.

so the buyer must have updated her card details since the first echeque payment probably? Paypal does notify you that the payment is going to be an echeque at the time of payment.

Why didn't the first payment clear when it was supposed to then? It was due to clear on the 16th, but then on the 16th status changed from payment pending to unpaid. I did contact buyer as soonas I received echeque to tell them. It seems odd that the buyer only managed to update details or whatever to send proper paypal payment after I had opened case despite being told ASAP that there was a problem with her payment!

insufficient funds in her bank probably

I guess. I feel quite bad about the whole thing now, but if you know you have no money, then you don't bid on two items surely? Anyway all's well that ends well - I seem to have been paid properly this time, let's just hope she doesn't leave me nasty feedback!