[Closed] Buying from a forum classifieds via bank transfer

if he was a regular, yes.
if he was a newbie and only posted on classifieds. no.

Call me naïve but more often than not I've trusted people and found things to go smoothly. If there aren't any alarm bells ringing with usernames, dodgily written descriptions, or other forum members calling them out then I'd be inclined to think it would be fine.

Depends on the amount and the history. If they are a regular forum user then I'd be more inclined. A classified only user and it would need to be an amount I'm willing to lose

Only if I’d gone to pick up said item in person, and I was transferring on mobile, instead of handing over cash. All other times I’ll pay PayPal, adding extra for fees if needs be.

Same for everyone, unless they are genuinely friends or family.

Yep, depends upon the amount and the history of the seller.👍

What ton says.

I look upon the STW Classifieds as a bit of a community thing so wouldn't choose to deal with someone who didn't post regularly(?) on the Bike/Chat forums.

.

I would, and would ask for bank transfer or Pp gift if I'm selling stuff myself.
Have been stung in the past selling and taking PP to a buyer who treated the transaction like buying new from a shop.

Was a one off (not on here) but fair rankled.
The vast majority of people are decent thankfully.

Who doesn't have Paypal, especially someone selling stuff online? Tell him to sign up for an account or FO, it takes seconds.

Wouldn’t touch with a barge pole. PayPal goods or nothing.
Doesn’t matter how long their forum history is, I’ve been on forums where long term posters can and do go rogue and it’s even worse in those situations as people stick up for them. Not been on here long but I’ll bet someone has done it on here and STW won’t help you.
Zero chance of getting money back by bank transfer. Only do it if the money is mere pocket change for you.

When I’ve sold something I’ve offered all kinds of payments but I leave it up to the buyer to choose what they want to use - I ask them to pay PayPal fees if I haven’t already factored them into the sale price.

**adds Cougar to list 😉

As many say depending who they are on here, I often ask for BT or PP F&F or cover the fees. I'll quite happily give them my ebay ID and PB name. More often anything on sale here is on the other platforms and probably sells there 1st.

I wouldn't be keen, but you can usually get a feeling for if someone is genuine. However I'm with Cougar, especially if you're trying to sell on a forum it's a bit rubbish not to have PayPal.

you can usually get a feeling for if someone is genuine

And any “I’ve been scammed on the classifieds” thread on any forum starts with a similar sentence. 🤔

If I'm selling then I leave it up to the buyer, cash, bank transfer, PayPal or PayPal gift. I usually factor in postage and fees in what I'm asking.
Can't think of any reason as a seller that someone couldn't trust me. Its two way thing though. I was once asked by someone from the NE to send frame serial number and proof of purchase reciept as he thought the price was too low on a S Works Enduro I was selling.
He lost out on a great deal.
If I'm buying then it would be cash on collection or PayPal and I usually pick up the fees.
There are some on here I would trust.
On Pinkbike its buyer beware as far as I'm concerned.

Yeah I just don't get why no PayPal if you're selling stuff online. Seems to be a regular forum poster.....I have to say that I myself am not. It's £200 so not huge amounts, but certainly not an amount that I'd be willing to risk.

Tend to always buy and sell with bank transfers not had an issue yet. I was more worried about the guy who bought my van for 12k in bundles of £20s. I used to work in a cash office so seen plenty of funny money but still took my time to check them.

All these have been face to face I should add where I have hold of the goods or the buyer has at point of transfer.

I don’t have PayPal and no intention of getting it. Sold a few items on Classifieds, but they’ve all been collection and bank transfers.
Similar to some of the other guys above, if it a forum regular then I’d take the risk for a smallish amount.

Good question..
There's tonnes on here who's name I recognise who I'd bank transfer in a heartbeat.
Others... PayPal with fees ..

I'd go by your own feeling tbh

DrP

I wouldn't buy from @DrP as any bike parts or bikes are likely to have been actually ridden! Unlike most of the people on here, including me, that just have them sat in the garage gathering dust.😁

Ha!
Tru dat!

But....I'm a festidius cleaner, and look after my shizzle.... so.. 🤷‍♂️

DrP

Another one who doesn't do Paypal. I see no reason to involve a 3rd party, who's only reason to exist is to make money out of the transaction. Paypal also seem to have a habit of siding with the buyer when stuff goes wrong, so makes no sense to use as a seller. As a seller I wouldn't use them, so it would be hypocrital of me to then go "only through PP" as a buyer.

I'm a grownup. If you're a grownup too, then we can deal amicably.

I'd agree that anything that's too expensive to throw the cash away and with a new/unknown seller, I'd rather meet up in person to exchange - but often (certainly bike stuff) if its that much cash, it's probably going to be awkward to post anyway, so meeting up makes logistical sense too.

Do due diligence, and you'll probably be reet.

@ DrP Nope, you are on ze list my friend!😁

There's about a 400 mile distance between us, so meeting up isn't likely. I think that I'll probably give it a swerve.

Had a similar situation from a different perspective recently.
Selling some road kit on Facebook and I was trying to insist on meeting to do the transaction but the buyer after some lengthy chats just bank transferred £200 and is happy for me to sit on the money until hes paid again in Feb and can transfer the balance outstanding.
Hes taken a whopping risk I guess but lucky for him it wont come back to haunt him in the slightest. He might even get Haribo for being a sound bloke;)

This might be controversial but I'd put some faith in the seller being a subscriber rather than a free user. At least STW know who they are if they don't deliver!

Once upon a time I bought and sold everything on this forum using cheques, low to high values and never had an issue.

I don’t think the world has become any more or less trustworthy and just because PayPal exists doesn’t mean everything else is evil.

Another non-PayPal here. I had to reactivate my PP account when I started selling on ebay but as soon as they went to bank transfer, I deactivated it again.

I've not sold on here for years although in the past I've sold some quite high-value items. Never had any problems with asking for bank transfers. One guy paid cash when I met him in person.

I've been on here since Issue 1 under the same username though so maybe that helps?

I bought something on here a few years ago for around 600 notes and that was with a nervous Bank Transfer lol. Seller was a regular on here so took the punt.

Depends if he’s called Max & lives in Stroud (or said he did), in which case no. Luckily it was only £20 for some pedals.
I’ve since bought some wheels via bank TX which was spot on.

I'm on other forums where PayPal is a waste of time because they won't cover for the goods being sold. Usual requirements are a picture of the goods and a sheet of paper with your username and the date it was taken. That weeds out a lot of scammers and tbh I'm surprised it isn't asked for more often.

Obviously user history comes into it but, again, I found myself selling several hundred pounds worth of goods with zero history. It felt utterly mad and still does but there you go.

If you're buying from me its paypal gift only, and i dont do any other forms.

I've been a regular on here, but also on retrobike, and here 1've 3000+ posts and on retrobike over 20,000, with on RB feedback section some 20 pages of 100% positive ratings.

So I feel at my end this makes me trustworthy, and I'd like that trust returned. If you want to buy from me and will only do paypal goods, then thats not a sign of trust and I'd rather not deal with you.

if he was a regular, yes.
if he was a newbie and only posted on classifieds. no.

+1 sums it up.

When I first joined STW ~2009 I remember buying a bike off here and asking the seller to send a redacted payslip as proof of their name/address which they seemed happy to do. At the time it was a massive amount of money for me but it worked out well.

Now that there are more forums to buy/sell on (STW, ebay, Facebook, pinkbike) there's more stuff being sold and it's easier to find expensive parts nearby. So if I was looking for something I could collect it. I think it's been over a decade since I bought a 2nd hand bike off the forum and had it posted.

Paypal also seem to have a habit of siding with the buyer when stuff goes wrong, so makes no sense to use as a seller.

Completely the opposite to my experience. If as a seller you’ve done everything correctly they will side with you.

I’ve been on forums where long term posters can and do go rogue

Or have their account hacked.

It’s £200 so not huge amounts,

That's relative. Nice to be in that position, I've just subbed a mate £25 as he's (literally) between jobs and doesn't have it for a couple of weeks.

If you’re a grownup too,

Aye, see, therein lies the rub.

When selling on eBay I factor in fees etc into the price. When selling on fora, Marketplace etc I usually ask for PP f&f as there is a severe lack of seller protection otherwise.

I have sold all sorts this way and no buyer has ever had need to complain. Not all sellers are robbing gits just because they ask for BT or whatever in the same way not all buyers are the straight guy in the transaction.

Usual requirements are a picture of the goods and a sheet of paper with your username and the date it was taken

Ah yes, I remember suggesting adding 'safety fruit of the week' or something in photos of the item being sold on here a long time ago. Unsurprisingly it didn't take off but someone bought something from me with apples in each pic.