Sold! Is it? Do you wait while "the check is in the mail"?

[Cheryl Marchek AKA JM]

When your selling something~ an animal or anything else~ Do you wait while "the check is in the mail"?

I've waited before~ and been burned. Most recently by someone who repeatedly told me he had sent the check~ but had misaddressed it and it was returned to him~ but he assured me had sent it again. I got another opportunity to sell the pair while I was waiting and even wrote and asked him if he did in fact send a money order which he assured me he had..........
Nothing ever showed up, the jerk stopped responding to emails
I lost another opportunity to sell the pair because this jerk had me holding them while the check was supposedly in the mail.

So recently someone wrote me claiming to want to buy another of my snakes. But this guy/girl??? never even gave me a name in any of his/her emails to address him/her by. I didn't get a good feeling~ so I refused to hold the animal while the "check is in the mail" and told the person that the snake would be sold to whomever paid me first. That if someone paypaled me while the "Checks in the mail" then I would return his/her check unopened. I never got another email from this person. Thats okay~ I'm not in some incredible hurry to sell this particular animal.....

But after reading some of the recent BOI posts in which you can't even trust people you think you know to actually have sent a check........how can we hold an animal for a total stranger waiting for a check in the mail?

What do you do?

[lillyorchid]

told the person that the snake would be sold to whomever paid me first. That if someone paypaled me while the "Checks in the mail" then I would return his/her check unopened.

I've been burned a few times with people saying that the check is in the mail and have actually turned people down who were willing to paypal me the money right then and there. What I do now is only take paypal. I figure if you have a checking / credit card account then you can use paypal. Why not just use paypal? So much easier and quicker.

[Clay Davenport]

I will hold an animal while waiting on a payment, but I impose a five day limit. It is not unreasonable to limit it to three days or even require USPS overnight delivery of the funds.
After my established waiting period has expired, the animal is offered for sale again on a first come first serve basis. If the buyer misaddressed the envelope, then that's their problem, I don't consider addressing an envelope correctly to be an action requiring exceptional intelligence or organizational skills.

I've been strung along like that myself, on one occasion, and that was enough for me to establish a set of rules that I would go by in those instances.
If you have a policy in place and the buyer is aware of it then they have no room for complaint if they go beyond the waiting period and you sell the animal.

Of course actual payment plans are something else entirely, but in any such situation where payment is not made in full instantly, then you need a set of established rules that will govern the transaction.
You always have the ability to be flexible and relax the rules if you deem it appropriate on a case by case basis, but you also always have the rules to fall back on to protect you in case after 10 days you sell the animal and then the check shows up.

[Fantasy Boas]

I do hold animals for people who want to send a check/Money order. I request that they send it with a delivery confirmation or a tracking number of some kind and to email me that tracking number within 24 hours of when they told me they would be sending it.
If I never receive any sort of tracking number then the animal goes back up for sale.

[hhmoore]

Gotta love it when the check is in the mail.
What I generally do in that case, if I believe that the money IS actually on its way, is tell the other customer that there is a sale pending...but that I would be happy to contact them in a couple of days if payment isn't received. I have had a customer swear up and down to me that he mailed a payment to me...but I had never provided him with my mailing address, and he was unable to tell me a) where he found it, or b) what it was.

[Wolfy-hound]

I consider the animal "Sold" when I have a agreement with the buyer. I do give a time limit as to WHEN the money must be in my grasp, and fully believe that that should not be extended. I've extended a couple times, been burned each time.
But.. check, paypal, credit card, or pints of blood, if payment doesn't arrive then I usually put the animal back up with a "Buyer backed out", or "Deal fell through". I think it's just part of dealing with selling anything to people.
Dontcha just LOVE bad liars? "I mailed the check to you!" Really? I didn't give you my address... Hmmmmm? HAHAHA> I love it. At least they could make an effort in the lies!
Wolfy

[hhmoore]

My apologies for straying somewhat off topic with this post, but it is related.

In a similar situation, I had spent a considerable amount of time with one customer - to the tune of about 10-12 emails, over 3 days, including some which were fairly lengthy and detailed, and some pictures that were specifically requested - finally, he requested a total price, and told me he would send payment in the morning. The next afternoon, I was contacted by somebody that stated in her opening email that this animal was exactly what she was looking for, requested that I send her a total (shipped) price, and said she would paypal me immediately. I was about to send her a response indicating a pending sale (see my previous post), but decided to try calling the other buyer to confirm that payment was mailed. Imagine my surprise when he told me that he HAD sent it that day...but that he had done some thinking, and $XXX was a better price for him so that was what he sent. ("K?") He had taken it upon himself to apply a 15% discount, and (I guess) ASSumed I would be so happy to have the sale that I would take it. Needless to say, I told him it was not acceptable, and his check would be returned immediately upon receipt. The 2nd party was contacted and, true to her word, I received the payment within 15 minutes of my email.

[Scott Ashton]

I do hold animals for people who want to send a check/Money order. I request that they send it with a delivery confirmation or a tracking number of some kind and to email me that tracking number within 24 hours of when they told me they would be sending it.
If I never receive any sort of tracking number then the animal goes back up for sale.

A trackable method of sending the payment is definitely a good idea and not only gives the seller re-assurance but protects the buyer at the same time.

Whenever I buy something from someone I don't know/haven't done business with before I send a USPS money order via Registered mail - return receipt. As soon as possible after mailing the payment I forward the tracking number to the seller via email.

I bought an animal from someone in Montana not too long ago and the transaction went great - but it took the USPS forever to get mail back and forth between us. I'm guessing that in Montana they still deliver mail in someplaces via the stage coach.

[NorthernRegius.com]

Not everyone likes or uses PayPal, this includes folks I've bought snakes from. And it's important to note that you should NEVER send personal checks!!! There's info on them that in the wrong hands can be used to defraud you. Postal Money Orders are the next best thing to a merchant account (or PayPal) as both buyer & seller are protected.

Anyone can fedex or even send USPS priority mail & forward the tracking/package# setting a 5 day limit for the funds is very reasonable as most times it only takes 3 days. I prefer using a merchant account or PayPal, but it's good to stay a bit flexible...

Just make sure you are up-front about your limits, when taking alternate forms of payment.

[Cheryl Marchek AKA JM]

thanks for all the opinions guys.
I have held animals before and been paid just as I was told I would be~ but it makes you shy of doing it again once you've lost a sale or two. The particular one that made me a bit shy of doing it again was one that I had spent a considerable amount of time communicating with~ sending emails back and forth before he decided to buy the animal~ but then never really did send the money order. And I did lose another sale during that time~ someone I knew decided he wanted them~ but when I told him I was holding them he bought another pair from another seller and no longer was in need of my pair when I finally gave up on the jerks "check in the mail".

Similar to Harolds off topic on the subject of spending a lot of time working with a potential customer~ Thats another thing that bugs me. Excessive pic requests. I get those~ and 90% of the time the potential buyer will waste my time asking for specific pics of the animal from different angles, on a scale, or on a newspaper to show I have the animal in my possession.......and then inform me the animal is out of his/her price range. What? price was the first thing we covered before I spent all day taking pics of the animal from different angles so you could decide if it's the perfect animal for you!

But I can't really see refusing to do it. The last time this happened to me I got similar emails the very next day from another potential buyer. I was frustrated and rather short with the new potential buyer because I figured he too was wasting my time~ but I sent the requested pics because I already had most of them on my camera from the day before. That guy wound up buying the snake and was a very nice guy......I came out of it feeling bad for having been short with him when I had been so nice to the jerk the day before that suddenly decided he could not afford a snake he spent all day requesting pics of!

[NorthernRegius.com]

...Similar to Harolds off topic on the subject of spending a lot of time working with a potential customer~ Thats another thing that bugs me. ...

This happens ALLOT in my other business, which is health & nutrition. Some questions are for info & others are just stall tactics. Just breathe deep, answer each and after the 3rd question, asking again for the sale is a good idea. Ask some questions back too; it can help to see if they're interested or not. And it gets them to invest some time in the deal as well.

There are so many hats a herper has to wear- properly keeping their animals, breeding procedures, photos, interacting with other folks... it can be a pain at times. But it's so much fun to care for & raise up these lovely animals, and it's great to be doing something we love too.

We will have exposure to both good folks & bad, but I do believe mostly it will be good ones. Some days a trip to the herp room is the best thing for a bad day... who can stay flustered with those adorable faces looking at you? ;)

I hope that check gets there for you soon.

[Cheryl Marchek AKA JM]

Thanks~ but I'm not currently waiting on a check. It's just been on my mind since the guy last Friday who claimed he wanted to send me a check and I refused to hold the animal while it was in the mail. I had a little free time this morning so I thought I'd post and see how others deal with these situations.

I guess I could have been nice and offered to hold the animal~ like I said I'm not in any hurry to sell it~ but this guy didn't even put a name in his emails so after 3 emails back and forth with no name from him I didn't feel inclined to count on him actually following through.

[Ed Clark]

I used to maintain a rack with waiting for payments, no more! :ack2:

If someone is serious about buying a snake, an instant paypal payment is not a problem. :yesnod:

I also believe thats its unfair for a buyer to ask that you hold an animal for them while they try to sell their corn snake, leopard gecko, hamster, gerbil or whatever it is they have to sell to raise some cash. its a good idea to have your money in hand when you contact someone to make a purchase!

[garweft]

I've never asked anyone to hold an animal for me. As a buyer I feel annoyed when I contact someone to buy an animal and they say that it is on hold. I am not annoyed with the seller, but instead with the other buyer. I feel if you don't have the money on hand then you shouldn't expect someone to hold off on a sale for you.

Now if they put up a non-refundable deposit, then that is one thing. But to expect someone to sit on an animal because you want it, but cannot afford it, is ridiculous.

[Clay Davenport]

What I generally do in that case, if I believe that the money IS actually on its way, is tell the other customer that there is a sale pending...but that I would be happy to contact them in a couple of days if payment isn't received.
I left this part out of my procedure description, and it's a good point. I never tell other potential customers the animal is sold until it actually it and the money is in hand. I always say there's a sale pending, and offer to let them know first if it doesn't go through.
The vast majority appreciate this consideration and will often go ahead and purchase the animal, especially when it may only be a 2-3 day wait.

[texasnewbie]

I've been on the other end of this.
I made immediate payment for 2 cats through paypal ( $2400 and change) they were meant to be shipped within 7 days. It took over a month of constant phone calls and emails to get her to send them (and it was the threat of getting a plane to New York and visit her that did it) then after they arrived it took another month or so to get the paperwork and I only got that because of starting a paypal claim and again telling her I would fly to New York to fetch the papers if she didn't post them.
I now get about 4 emails a day from scammers offering money orders and checks for a cat I have for sale, I wont hold an animal while the check is in the mail and because I'm worried about scammers and their fake checks, I wont ship until its cleared.

When your selling over the internet, you become a lot more disillusioned about people. :(

[LadyOhh]

I agree that selling over the internet has allowed for more people to become window-shoppers.
I have just found that keeping the animal for people has been sometimes a benefit, sometimes not.
I tend to go with my gut feelings, and usually that tends to work out.

When people just want to see photos and have no inquiries as to the animal's care, wellbeing, or anything of that matter, I usually have my red flags flying. I just answer the questions posed, ask if they have any more, and usually do not have many expectations. :ack2:

It's just so nice to find good customers and real payments.... :thumbsup:

[barbie69]

As a buyer I definately am appreciative of a seller who answers my questions and sends pics and also, yes, is willing to sometimes hold an animal pending payment. I say this as one of the good guys who has never and would never screw anyone though. It is unfortunate that there are always bad people who are willing to take advantage of others good nature and in turn ruin it for those of us who sometimes need a minute to get the funds together for an animal they have their heart set on.
I am not poor and I am not rich, so sometimes I may fall in love with an animal first and then need to figure the financing. I thank anyone who has ever been patient and understanding with me. :)

[darkbloodwyvern]

I've never asked anyone to hold an animal for me. As a buyer I feel annoyed when I contact someone to buy an animal and they say that it is on hold. I am not annoyed with the seller, but instead with the other buyer. I feel if you don't have the money on hand then you shouldn't expect someone to hold off on a sale for you.

Now if they put up a non-refundable deposit, then that is one thing. But to expect someone to sit on an animal because you want it, but cannot afford it, is ridiculous.


I agree with Barbie69's post above, I am sometimes too eager to get the animal, then realize stupidly, as i do many time a day, that i am not a millionaire and i have to make sure i can FEED my purchases. So I do ask for pics and more info and most of the time I don't follow through, apoligies to all who think that is rude, but I am nervous about buying on the net and sometime a snake looks REALLY good in one photo and terrible in another. However, lying about payment or making someone hold an animal when that is not normally their policy is just being a jerk. I always make a deposit on the animals I end up buying & I do my best to let the seller know if the animal isn't quite what i was looking for, thank you, etc... I appreciate the time it takes to get a good image of a snake, since only one out of twenty of my pictures look at all nice and I don't want to waste more of their time if it turns out not to be what i want.
i have been stood up and had good buyers over the internet, so i sympathize when things don't work out. Usually the gut instinct works pretty well for me.

Personally, i would hold an animal for an overnight shipped payment or a tracking number payment, or if they had STELLAR reviews on this site, i would consider holding it. But i think the seller should not be obligated to wait for the buyer to "get one's refuse together" if there are other buyers waiting to snap up an animal or item. It's just the way it works....