Paying in cash - how to?

[spikey]

If I wish to buy an item from a private seller and would prefer to pay in cash, is there a way of doing this so that neither party is exposed to the risk of not receiving either their item or their money?  (Both ends of the transaction would be in the UK).

[polybear]

Paypal would be safest (but not gift option/ friends and family) - the seller may well expect you to pick up the fees though.  Plus posting using a secure method with full tracking/ signature/insurance (ideally Royal Mail)

[SM42]

56 minutes ago, spikey said:

If I wish to buy an item from a private seller and would prefer to pay in cash, is there a way of doing this so that neither party is exposed to the risk of not receiving either their item or their money?  (Both ends of the transaction would be in the UK).

 

Collect and pay in person, but that has risks too, especially if a large sum is involved. 

 

Andy

[Michael Hodgson]

Paypal isn't cash!.  It doesnt have a brown paper bag option.

 

If you're talking about buying something on ebay using the folding stuff, some sellers are happy to do that, for those who are collecting in person.  However you run the risk that they may file a fraudulent complaint against you claiming non-payment in order to get the fees back.

Even if you had a recipt for the cash, I wouldn't trust ebay not to classify you as a defaulter.  If you're talking about sending banknotes through the post, it used to be against postal regs, though I don't think that's still the case; you used to be enouraged to use a postal order or a cheque instead.  The postman might get a signature (few of them actually do that these days though) but they don't have any evidence that there was ever any cash in the envelope, so a dishonest seller might dispute it. 

 

A seller may be unhappy to accept cash by post because there is a remote risk thata dishonest buyer could send an empty envelope by registered post and whilst the seller still has the goods, he may have to deal with a complaint by the fraudulent buyer.

 

Cash is only really safe when both parties meet so that the cash and goods change hands simultaneously.  Other methods of payment (with the probable exception of digital currencies like Bitcoin)  leave a documentary record of payment.

[spikey]

Not an Ebay thing, and face-to-face is not an option due to the distance between parties.  I had this vague idea that you could go into a post office, hand over cash, and it would magically get to the seller?   In these particular circumstances (only!) I'm happy to take the risk of the seller getting my cash but not dispatching the goods.  Cash payment is my idea, not the seller's.  It's to do with the maintenance of domestic harmony ...

 

It would be nice to make it work, but I won't cry if it's not feasible.

[franciswilliamwebb]

9 minutes ago, spikey said:

I had this vague idea that you could go into a post office, hand over cash, and it would magically get to the seller?

 

Are you thinking of MoneyGram, which is for overseas only I think?

 

Would buying a postal order for cash and then posting it work for you?

[Andy Hayter]

2 hours ago, spikey said:

Not an Ebay thing, and face-to-face is not an option due to the distance between parties.  I had this vague idea that you could go into a post office, hand over cash, and it would magically get to the seller?   In these particular circumstances (only!) I'm happy to take the risk of the seller getting my cash but not dispatching the goods.  Cash payment is my idea, not the seller's.  It's to do with the maintenance of domestic harmony ...

 

It would be nice to make it work, but I won't cry if it's not feasible.

 

Western Union will do that but I certainly would not recommend it as a way to do business.  Too many opportunities for fraud.

[Colin_McLeod]

4 hours ago, spikey said:

If I wish to buy an item from a private seller and would prefer to pay in cash, is there a way of doing this so that neither party is exposed to the risk of not receiving either their item or their money?  (Both ends of the transaction would be in the UK).

The short answer is 'No'

Apart from the risk of the cash going AWOL, you have no proof of payment.  

 

Even with a postal order you still have no proof of payment.

 

You can always take the risk, or use plastic or paypal.  Bank transfer is also an option which provides proof of payment but without any  protection if the goods fail to arrive.

 

If by 'domestic harmony' you mean that you want to keep the payment secret from SWMBO, then perhaps you have other important issues that need addressed.

 

[jamesed]

Easiest way is to get a prepaid visa card or mastercard.  You can get them at Post Offices or Tesco and a number of other shops I think and just top up using cash. Often the card is supplied free but you may have to show ID to get one. Once you've got it you can use it in the same way as any other card, online, paypal etc. with the same security protection. Usually you can manage the cash balance and see payments using a phone app.  It doesn't need to be linked to your bank account.

[J. S. Bach]

34 minutes ago, Colin_McLeod said:

 ...snip... If by 'domestic harmony' you mean that you want to keep the payment secret from SWMBO, then perhaps you have other important issues that need addressed.

Unless it is a gift for SWMBO.

[Colin_McLeod]

3 hours ago, J. S. Bach said:

Unless it is a gift for SWMBO.

 

I thought of that before posting, but I don't see how buying a present the conventional way would be bad for domestic harmony even if the surprise was discovered.   Sending cash in the post then losing it would definitely upset domestic harmony.

[Wheatley]

Whatever the reason it's none of our business. 

 

I can't think of a way of doing it without just posting the cash and trusting the PO and the seller. I did that once with a supplier and it worked out fine (I didn't have a credit card, PayPal hadn't been invented and he only took payments in Canadian dollars)  but it was for about 20 quid which I was prepared to risk. 

[KeithMacdonald]

Are Postal Orders (from the Post Office) still a thing?

 

Edit: oh yes

https://www.postoffice.co.uk/postal-orders

Edited March 25 by KeithMacdonald

[spikey]

Thank you gentlemen,

[jjb1970]

For distance buying I really see no reason to try and work around credit card, debit card or PayPal. You have more security and it's an awful lot easier. If people don't have an account it's worth getting one as e-commerce is now so much a part of life.

[MyRule1]

No one has addressed the second half of the issue. If you get cash to the seller how do you ensure they send the goods? You pay your money sellers says they have dispatched it, item never arrives would the police have the time for the matter?

[009 micro modeller]

On 24/03/2024 at 17:26, Andy Hayter said:

Western Union will do that but I certainly would not recommend it as a way to do business.  Too many opportunities for fraud.

I had to use Western Union once (my debit card was either lost or had had the details stolen/scammed so I’d cancelled it, and later had to ask a family member to send me some cash until the new card came). The amusing thing was that, even though I was using the service in a completely legitimate way, the need to go to a random corner shop and then upstairs to a nondescript room where they handled their Western Union business still made it feel slightly dodgy.

 

On 24/03/2024 at 14:21, Michael Hodgson said:

If you're talking about buying something on ebay using the folding stuff, some sellers are happy to do that, for those who are collecting in person.  However you run the risk that they may file a fraudulent complaint against you claiming non-payment in order to get the fees back.

I’m sure I read somewhere a few years ago about sellers removing stuff from EBay (ending the listing) and selling for cash to local buyers who had messaged them, or something similar, for similar reasons. I suppose for an in-person exchange you could take a photo of yourself handing over the cash in exchange for the items, though I’m not sure this would satisfy EBay etc. if there was a fraudulent complaint. 

 

On 24/03/2024 at 14:21, Michael Hodgson said:

If you're talking about sending banknotes through the post, it used to be against postal regs,

As a bit of a historical aside, before pre-paid postage was introduced (so pre-1840), letters were paid for depending on the number of sheets of paper, which meant they often had to be inspected by holding the envelope up to the light to count the sheets (known as ‘candling’). As the clerks employed to do this were quite badly paid, you can imagine what might have happened to any money being sent in letters inspected by the less honest ones.

 

I was once sent a model railway exhibition plaque through the post (they were made after the show so not given out on the day). The envelope came but there was no plaque - perhaps not coincidentally it had not been packed especially well and would have had the same feel, size and shape as a bank card.

 

1 hour ago, MyRule1 said:

No one has addressed the second half of the issue. If you get cash to the seller how do you ensure they send the goods? You pay your money sellers says they have dispatched it, item never arrives would the police have the time for the matter?

I would agree with others who’ve generally advised to avoid cash for distance buying/selling online, or at least to do it in a way that’s traceable to avoid the issues mentioned (fraudulent complaints and similar). Can you send a cheque? Though I’m not sure how traceable that would be from an online selling perspective.

[ejstubbs]

1 hour ago, 009 micro modeller said:

I’m sure I read somewhere a few years ago about sellers removing stuff from EBay (ending the listing) and selling for cash to local buyers who had messaged them, or something similar, for similar reasons. I suppose for an in-person exchange you could take a photo of yourself handing over the cash in exchange for the items, though I’m not sure this would satisfy EBay etc. if there was a fraudulent complaint.

 

If the seller removed the listing from eBay and sold the item as a private transaction then neither party would be able to claim redress, fraudulently or otherwise, through eBay.  eBay is very clear about this in its Ts & Cs, and its guidance to sellers and buyers: do the deal outwith eBay and you're on your own.

 

What you may be thinking of is the scam whereby a buyer completes the purchase on eBay paying by PayPal or, more likely these days, directly through eBay, but requesting collection in person.  Having collected the item, the buyer then files a non-delivery claim and very likely gets their money back (given that eBay tends to favour the buyer in most disputes).  To avoid this, sellers can (a) decline/not offer collection in person, or (b) insist on cash on collection.  Taking option (b) means that eBay isn't involved in the financial side of the transaction, so the buyer can't fraudulently claim the money back from them.  The seller and/or buyer could still gather photographic evidence of the in-person transaction - or maybe get a signature on a "received with thanks from...in payment for..." chitty - just in case the other party decides to try something funny.  This is a [sadly not so] rare example where using cash is actually preferable to using electronic payment mechanisms.

 

I have in the past refunded a buyer's PayPal payment precisely because they asked to collected the item in person.  The request for collection in person was perfectly reasonable since they were quite local, but I still insisted on cash payment (as I had stated in the listing) and in that case they were happy to comply.

[009 micro modeller]

1 minute ago, ejstubbs said:

 

If the seller removed the listing from eBay and sold the item as a private transaction then neither party would be able to claim redress, fraudulently or otherwise, through eBay.  eBay is very clear about this in its Ts & Cs, and its guidance to sellers and buyers: do the deal outwith eBay and you're on your own.

 

What you may be thinking of is the scam whereby a buyer completes the purchase on eBay paying by PayPal or, more likely these days, directly through eBay, but requesting collection in person.  Having collected the item, the buyer then files a non-delivery claim and very likely gets their money back (given that eBay tends to favour the buyer in most disputes).  To avoid this, sellers can (a) decline/not offer collection in person, or (b) insist on cash on collection.  Taking option (b) means that eBay isn't involved in the financial side of the transaction, so the buyer can't fraudulently claim the money back from them.  The seller and/or buyer could still gather photographic evidence of the in-person transaction - or maybe get a signature on a "received with thanks from...in payment for..." chitty - just in case the other party decides to try something funny.  This is a [sadly not so] rare example where using cash is actually preferable to using electronic payment mechanisms.

 

I have in the past refunded a buyer's PayPal payment precisely because they asked to collected the item in person.  The request for collection in person was perfectly reasonable since they were quite local, but I still insisted on cash payment (as I had stated in the listing) and in that case they were happy to comply.

Yes. I wasn’t particularly thinking of any attempt to scam the buyer, but situations where they just attempt to avoid paying EBay fees (though I’m not sure you get these back by removing an already listed item so that’s possibly not what I was thinking of either).

[57xx]

On 24/03/2024 at 15:21, spikey said:

Not an Ebay thing, and face-to-face is not an option due to the distance between parties.  I had this vague idea that you could go into a post office, hand over cash, and it would magically get to the seller?   In these particular circumstances (only!) I'm happy to take the risk of the seller getting my cash but not dispatching the goods.  Cash payment is my idea, not the seller's.  It's to do with the maintenance of domestic harmony ...

 

However much the Nigerian Prince/Foreign Minister/ Treasury officer is offering, I'll double it, just send me the cash instead.