How Safe Is Money Orders When Doing A Transaction? Money Order > Paypal?

17,236
1,943
Joined
Feb 3, 2006
So I'm doing a transaction on Ebay and they offered to send money order?

Thoughts?
 
Just wait until you recieve the money order, attempt to cash it and if it goes through you're good to go...
 
Originally Posted by raptors29

It's safer if you're receiving one than sending one out.

depends...I get my money orders from my bank and they track them so I know whether or not the money order was cashed or not
 
I've been told there are some fakes out there and if that ever happens:

1) You cash it out
2) USPS finds out it's a fake
3) They come after you for the money

That's why I'm hesitant...Although it appears that they have new MOs (Maybe a new way of avoiding fraud?).
 
Saves you paypal fees and can be accounted for if lost. It is very safe and reliable!
 
i would throw in delivery confirmation on that as well. even when it shows up as being cashed by the seller, they can still be a weasel and not send the item by saying they never got the M/O and that it was "lost". even with the proof, its tough out there.
 
Cash it at the post office, I'm sure there's a way for them to tell if it's legit or not. If you follow all the steps properly on Paypal, most of the time you're good. Make sure the account is confirmed, using signature confirmation and add insurance.
 
learned my lesson the hard way...NEVER sending a money order to a seller again...just too easy for the seller to take the money and leave you with nothing....I think you should be alright tho since youre the seller. Just make sure you get the cash for the MO in your hand before shipping the item
 
Originally Posted by tim teufel

ehh takes too long. i like my money right away

depending on the distance of the buyer, sometimes you get the money in your pocket quicker with money order then with paypal.   

paypal trasnfer to your bank account usually takes 3 days, from when you transfer it out of paypal.

if the person sending the money order lives close by your area, you'll usually get the money order next day,  if they live a few states away  you usually get it in 2 days, and if they live on the other side of the country it usually takes 3 days.

still money order is safer to go when your the one receiving it.   when buying  i would only send them to people i've dealt with numerous times.
 
Make sure it's a postal mo. Dont ship for a while after receiving. I dont take mo's btw. Paypal ftw
 
You would be safer with paypal. If anything freudulant is happening you will get your money or if your ite get lost they will pay you for what its worth. I know sme people who have been victms of money order scams especially on NT
 
counterfeit money orders are hot right now for transactions via the internet (ebay, craigslist, whatever) - i wouldn't accept one unless it was FOR THE EXACT AMOUNT I SOLD MY ITEM FOR AND IT IS AT USPS MONEY ORDER. The way i see it, folks committing fraud want to use negotiable items. see it my way, it's 2010 - who the hell doesn't have paypal and or a debit/credit card? be for real homie before your eyes get poked out and you're the one holding the bag
 
Originally Posted by Luong1209

I've been told there are some fakes out there and if that ever happens:

1) You cash it out
2) USPS finds out it's a fake
3) They come after you for the money

That's why I'm hesitant...Although it appears that they have new MOs (Maybe a new way of avoiding fraud?).
cash it at the bank and wait 10-14 days for it to clear. after that time it will basically be known that it was a legit money order.
 
As long as you can find out that the money order isn't fake and there's no stop payment put on the item you'll be fine. The safest money order to get is probably from the post office cause there's certain ink mark that you can see under black light to make sure the item is legit.
 
in 2010 there really aren't a lot of reasons to be using money orders, ESPECIALLY for biz transactions over the net.  if you think a money order is better than paypal, you deserve any "L's" you get. 
 
Originally Posted by jimmybeanz

in 2010 there really aren't a lot of reasons to be using money orders, ESPECIALLY for biz transactions over the net.  if you think a money order is better than paypal, you deserve any "L's" you get. 

i prefer receiving them   when im the seller because that means i don't get hit with paypal fees, and i always make the buyer send them with a tracking number so they can't complain.

yes people fraud but i prefer receving money orders so i dont have to deal with paypal fees.
 
^^ There's always a big potential of fraud with any transaction either money order or paypal. I dislike money order because you can always dispute the money order and the money would be no good so the receiving end might lose out. If the seller chooses to not send the item you're SOL also. As for paypal people can dispute an item for fraud and what not as well. Either way they're all iffy. I just go with paypal because I can at least dispute that if anything wrong comes up.
 
Back
Top Bottom