Is this suspicious?

[Chrissie]

Inspired by recent postings, I recent'y put some articles up for sale on Le Bon Coin.  One of these is a very heavy "coffee table" book of photos for which I was asking only 10 euros.  I asked for contacts by email only and someone came in last night asking what style of payment I required, so I said "cash".  This morning he came back and said he lives a long way away and could I work out the cost plus postage and then he would credit my bank account......

I am always reluctant to give out any details of my bank in case this gives someone access to my pitiful savings!   Not sure how much detail someone needs for a transfer anyway.  Also, I feel it is strange to want to buy a book at such cost - I imagine the postage would be horrendously expensive.  So my instinct is to say no.  But as I have lots of things I could sell and the situation may arise again - what does anyone think?

Chrissie (81)

[NormanH]

He could always send you a 'mandat cash' by La Poste

[Patf]

I would never give bank details in that situation. Ask for a cheque, including postage, and only send it if the cheque clears.

But sounds like a scam to me.

Friends here nearly lost 3500€ to a scammer on Leboncoin - they were buying a van (unseen!) and the seller wanted a La Poste mandate to Western Union . Luckily the post office clerk warned them off.

[PaulT]

Have not got a French cheque actually to hand at the moment but I am sure same as UK cheque. It will have:

Sort Code

Account Number

Account Name

- and a French cheque has the address.

So a cheque contains the account details.

[Gardian]

You're right .................. but the buyer would be sending his / her cheque to the OP.

[Chancer]

Its quite a normal thing to do at least for some enlightened French people and as has been said all the details are carried on every cheque that you issue.

When the money is credited you should be able to see the destinataire bank account and if it is the buyers then just send them the book, it is only €10 after all.

If you end up with a €1000 euro paymeny via Western Union then you shoudl think twice and certainly refuse to refund them the overpayment, I am not sure exactly how that scam works but I dont think the payment is made directly to your bank.

Certainly the type of transfer that has been suggested cannot be revoked.

I can also see their logic in a perverse manner, if I were sending a cheque for €500 I would not worry so much about the cost of the stamp, are you sending the book to them? If they are collecting then maybe they want to close the deal before you sell to someone else who turns up before them.

[nomoss]

Maybe the OP is confusing giving out Bank details with giving out Credit Card details - a somewhat different matter.

The OP is not alone in her suspicions of prospective buyers for items on Le Bon Coin. I have had several french sellers who would only accept cash payment, and that only for collection in person, even though the items were small and easy to post. I phoned one and offered to send a cheque to include postage, and they just flat refused my offer.

I find this amazing - I was the one taking a chance by paying before I received the items.

Presumably they thought they might be cheated out of a few Euros if they didn't get actual notes in their hands.

Or am I missing something? Were the adverts code for some nefarious activities?

Needless to say I immediately lost interest in the items, and wondered why the sellers bothered to advertise them on LBC when they would only sell them locally. They might as well stick them on the board in their local supermarket.

 

[PaulT]

I have been selling off a few things on eBay. Something that will sell for, say, £100, then the effort of wrapping and taking to the post office is OK. Low value items, i.e. £10, especially an awkward shape, I do not want to spend my time wrapping and taking to the PO. Some people moan if the cost of p&p is higher than the postage - they do not take in to account the cost of the wrappings nor the cost of taking it to the PO.

So I can sympathise when people say 'collection only'

[Patf]

[quote user="PaulT"]

So I can sympathise when people say 'collection only'

[/quote]

I bought a piano [:D]

Obviously went to collect it.

[Pommier]

I've sold a few things on Leboncoin and always mention in the advert that it's collect only.

[Chrissie]

I liked the sound of the "mandat cash" but then I noticed that the info sent with every email offer via Le Bon Coin says "Le
virement bancaire par Western Union ou Mandat Cash proposé risque bien d'être
factice.".................

I have given the buyer for the book the details that are on my RIB, and we'll see what happens.  Since then I have been asked to post two very fragile items to other buyers.  [:'(]  I will certainly be putting "collection only" on such things in future!  But I am pleasantly surprised by the interest my things have received.

As an aside, does anyone know where I can buy plain brown wrapping paper?......

Chrissie (81)

[NormanH]

"Le virement bancaire par Western Union ou Mandat Cash proposé risque bien d'être

factice."

But a Mandat Cash is like a Postal order. It comes in the Post and you go and cash it.  If it is fake (and I am not sure how) you just wouldn't send the goods.

At the same time you wouldn't have given out any bank details.

On the other hand there is this scam (In French)

un escroc (E) désire acheter l'objet d'un vendeur (V). E dit à V qu'il

va le payer en mandat cash. E demande donc les coordonnées de V pour

faire le mandat cash. Entre-temps, E met un objet fantôme à la vente

dont le prix est identique à l'objet de V. Un pigeon (P) désire acheter

l'objet de E (totalement factice). E dit qu'il veut être payé en mandat

cash et il donne les coordonnées de V. P fait donc un mandat cash, en

utilisant à son insu les coordonnées de V que lui a transmises E. V

retire l'argent de P en pensant que c'est E qui paye. E repart donc avec

l'objet de V en payant grâce à l'argent de P.

Pour résumer : P a payé un objet factice dont il ne verra jamais la

couleur, V s'est fait payé grâce à l'argent de P et E a récupéré l'objet

de V sans débourser un centime.

On peut croire que la transaction est sans risque pour V (car il se fait

quand même payer) mais à votre avis contre qui P va porter plainte ?

Les seules coordonnées qu'il a sont celles de V.

Rough summary:

Norm wants to buy something from Chris, and says he will pay by mandat cash, and gets his address to send the mandat.

At the same time Norm advertises an non-existent item at the same price, saying he wants to be paid by Mandat, giving Chris's address.

A Mug see the advert (which of course is a bargain) and  offers to buy it

The Mug sends cash to Chris who thinks it came from Norman, so gives him the item.

When the Mug doesn't receive what he has paid for the only address he has is Chris's

The weak link here is of course if Chris knows where Norman lives

However these sort of scams are possible with any sort of money transfer.

With the mandat cash at least you only give your address for payment, not any bank details.

[Chrissie]

Good grief, how complicated (and worrying).  I find it tiresome enough to go through the straightforward business of advertising and communicating and selling (and packing), but these people are obviously driven to make money at all costs.  I guess you just have to take a chance on most people being normal and honest, and write the occasional loss down to bad luck. 

By the way, I will make sure I KNOW where Norman lives!!![:D]

Chrissie (81)

[woolybanana]

Very wise. Seems Norman is up to his old tricks !

[AnOther]

The mere mention of Western Union should instantly set all the alarm bells ringing !

[img]http://www.sourcingcitynews.co.uk/Uploads/ScamAlert5.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.sourcingcitynews.co.uk/Uploads/ScamAlert5.jpg[/img]