So, an older gentleman from out of state contacted me about my truck, and wants to buy it, and said that his son saw my ad here and passed on my contact info to him.

But I'm having a real hard time deciphering if he's just old and doesn't know how to communicate smoothly through text, or If he's a scammer. I'm about 50/50 at this point. I asked him to provide me his son's contact info so I could talk to him and verify he's from this forum and ask his username, but I also wanted to post here and ask about cashiers checks.

He said he's going to send a cashiers check, and after I deposit it and the funds clear, he will arrange transportation back to his state. So my question is, how "safe" is a cashiers check? If I deposit the check and the funds clear, is there a way for him to reverse it or draw back the funds? Obviously I would hold the truck until it clears, I just want to know if there's something I don't know about cashiers checks that would allow him to take the money back.

If it's a real potential sale I don't want to burn it needlessly, but I'm admittedly skeptical, so I'm just trying to do my due diligence here to make sure I'm not getting scammed.

There is a scam where people will send fraudulent money orders and cashier's checks for payment and make them out for more than the amount settled upon. Seller puts the check in the bank, and then the buyer asks for the refund for the overage. The money order or check then gets cancelled somehow, and the seller is stuck for the amount. I don't know if that is what is going on here, but would not be surprised.

drummer0415 said:

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So, an older gentleman from out of state contacted me about my truck, and wants to buy it, and said that his son saw my ad here and passed on my contact info to him.

But I'm having a real hard time deciphering if he's just old and doesn't know how to communicate smoothly through text, or If he's a scammer. I'm about 50/50 at this point. I asked him to provide me his son's contact info so I could talk to him and verify he's from this forum and ask his username, but I also wanted to post here and ask about cashiers checks.

He said he's going to send a cashiers check, and after I deposit it and the funds clear, he will arrange transportation back to his state. So my question is, how "safe" is a cashiers check? If I deposit the check and the funds clear, is there a way for him to reverse it or draw back the funds? Obviously I would hold the truck until it clears, I just want to know if there's something I don't know about cashiers checks that would allow him to take the money back.

If it's a real potential sale I don't want to burn it needlessly, but I'm admittedly skeptical, so I'm just trying to do my due diligence here to make sure I'm not getting scammed.

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I will add too, regarding your bolded question. The funds clearing is more a factor of your relationship with your bank than them verifying funds. I would have a hard time accepting a cashier check from a person I didn't know.

Burdizzo said:

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There is a scam where people will send fraudulent money orders and cashier's checks for payment and make them out for more than the amount settled upon. Seller puts the check in the bank, and then the buyer asks for the refund for the overage. The money order or check then gets cancelled somehow, and the seller is stuck for the amount. I don't know if that is what is going on here, but would not be surprised.

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I'm aware of this scam, but he hasn't indicated anything like this, yet. If I get the check and it's not for the amount we agreed on, I would not go through with it.

TSW2012 said:

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I will add too, regarding your bolded question. The funds clearing is more a factor of your relationship with your bank than them verifying funds. I would have a hard time accepting a cashier check from a person I didn't know.

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I wouldn't just "verify the funds", I would either deposit and hold it in my account til the funds clear, or actually cash it and hold the cash.

My bank is Wells Fargo fwiw.

drummer0415 said:

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TSW2012 said:

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I will add too, regarding your bolded question. The funds clearing is more a factor of your relationship with your bank than them verifying funds. I would have a hard time accepting a cashier check from a person I didn't know.

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I wouldn't just "verify the funds", I would either deposit and hold it in my account til the funds clear, or actually cash it and hold the cash.

My bank is Wells Fargo fwiw.

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That's my point. The funds clearing in your account has almost nothing to do with the check and everything to do with your bank. I deposited a big check last week and bank put a 10day hold. My business partner called same day and it became available immediately due to his relationship. The check could still have bounced even though it showed clear.

TSW2012 said:

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That's my point. The funds clearing in your account has almost nothing to do with the check and everything to do with your bank. I deposited a big check last week and bank put a 10day hold. My business partner called same day and it became available immediately due to his relationship. The check could still have bounced even though it showed clear.

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Understood. Thanks for the clarification.

Would it make a difference if I skipped the deposit step and just cashed the check? As in take physical cash? Could my bank just claw back the money from one of my accounts if they decide the check is bad?

drummer0415 said:

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Could my bank just claw back the money from one of my accounts if they decide the check is bad?

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Yes they could
I have made some terrible decisions when it came to sending and receiving money in transactions that sound sketchy in writing but always went with my gut after a phone call and have never been burned. However, a buddy of mine sold a truck to a guy in person for a cashiers check after a long chat in his driveway and the check turned out to be completely fake, so i guess you just gotta figure out your own personal continuum of faith in humanity vs receiving top dollar

Talk to him on the phone.

The advice to cash the check at his bank is good advice. It can take up to 10 business days for a check to actually bounce so if you're going to accept a cashier's tell him you aren't shipping for 10 days after you deposit it.

The advice to do a wire is probably the best advice. If he's going to the bank to get a cashier's check he can do a wire. Tell him to have someone at his bank call you for wire instructions and send them to the bank, not to him. While we're being paranoid don't email the wire instructions. Have the bank contact send you a secure link and upload the instructions that way.

Wire transfer. It's just about the same level of difficulty for the buyer (meaning it's not hard to do). It's more secure for you as the seller, and a much faster transaction overall.

That's how Bring a Trailer recommends doing it. I've done two transactions through their site that were completed with wire transfers and both went smoothly.

If you are going to do a cashiers check, you have to be present when they draw it at their bank. I would not accept one otherwise; use a wire instead. And "clearing" doesn't mean that much. Items can "clear" but then still get reversed back.

Only two ways I've sold vehicles:
1. Cash over the barrel, in person
2. Wire transfer bank to bank (same bank between us), deal done in person

Its' just as easy to go to the bank and arrange a wire transfer as it is to go to the bank and get a cashier's check. I would never mail a cashier's check so by the time you add cashier's check fee and FedEx cost, that is more expensive than a wire fee anyway.

Ask your bank for wiring instructions to give to him. I would definitely still talk to the son here first. Hopefully he'll post on this thread.