Eeeeep! It looks like I've got a serious enquiry about the cello I'm selling, so now I'm having a panic about getting the money side sorted out. Of course this may be highly premature as it may turn out to (i) be fake or (ii) just not go that far, but I'm thinking ahead.
So, I've already decided it is collection only, or I can deliver if the person is within a reasonable distance. I've also said I'll meet 'half way' if they are distant but serious. No couriers, etc, I want to meet the buyer face to face.
I've decided on that because I want to get two signatures from them, one on my copy of a 'sales contract/receipt' and another on theirs! It'll basically say that "I [Maizie] relinquish all claim of ownership of my item to [buyer]" but then also that "I [buyer] have received the goods as described and in satisfactory condition as seen and have no further follow up against [Maizie] should I change my mind or find it doesn't work or my fiance doesn't like it or whatever" (it's being considered as a wedding present to his wife-to-be).

Payment is the real problem I'm having getting my head around...
* Cash: Good in that it doesn't need to clear; Bad in that for the sum I'm talking about, it's likely to be high-denomination notes which are more likely to be couterfeit. Also, most people don't have this much cash laying around ready to use!
* Cheque: Great for sending in the post, getting a deposit in advance (e.g. for balance with cash on collection); Bad because we all know from Watchdog that cheques can clear when you bank them but 'unclear' again later (from November 2007, this will change so that cheques are absolutely clear in six days, but until then you can never be sure!)
* Paypal: Fab for me, whether it's sent as an instantly-clearing payment or one that takes a few days to clear. I would have to upgrade my account as currently I am only able to receive £250 per month. That probably isn't a problem, and in fact my husband may have already had to upgrade himself so I could just use his account. The sender may have to do something to send that much money too.

Overall I favour PayPal for this, but my concern is if the buyer then enters dispute and claims never to have received the goods, received non-functional goods, etc. That's why I'm suggesting the signed receipts as proof that the buyer did receive the item and accepted it as seen. I'd also like to insist on a photo-and-signature ID being available (e.g. his driving licence) so that he can't claim that whoever signed that receipt wasn't him and he's paid for stuff he hasn't got - but perhaps I'm getting a bit draconian and/or paranoid here

Can anyone who has been here before give any advice on what to do? Or what not to do? Thank you!

OK. I think you're wise to be careful. And there are precautions to think about.

First, definitely get the purchaser's name and address. Especially if you're dealing with a cheque or Paypal. A photo ID when you meet them is sensible too. And a signed receipt of funds (by you) and goods (by the purchaser) is also a good idea.

Second, methods of payment and your security:

Cash - All banknotes have a coloured shape on them. Rub that shape against a sheet of white paper and the colour should come off (unless it's a nearly-dead fiver, they sometimes don't). If the colour doesn't come off, don't accept it. Also look for the metal thread through every banknote, and for the watermark. Also make sure someone is with you while you're carting large sums of cash around - and for preference get it into a bank double quick.

Cheques - you do indeed have the risk of a bounce. But instead of an individual's own cheque, get them to give you a bank draft (which is a cheque drawn on their bank's own current account) or a building society cheque (ditto). These are highly unlikely to bounce, as banks and building societies don't tend to want to be accused of fraud.

Paypal - I've only used this for small values. I don't know how secure it is, or what value their risk insurance for users is - if something goes wrong before you can get the cash out, what cover do they offer that you'll get your money back. Would you get all your money back or only a small part of it? Also what are the fees like on Paypal for large sums? If money's involved, I don't tend to trust what I don't know.

Hope some of this helps

Cheers

katyjay

Another option would be a bank transfer - you give the other party your account number and sort code (these are all printed on cheques anyway so you're not giving away any compromising information), they can use internet/telephone banking to transfer the money and it takes 2-3 days to end up in your account.

I think you're right to be careful about this, do remember though that the vast majority of transactions of this type go through without any problems at all, and most people wouldn't dream of trying to scam you, especially for an item which, as you've discovered, isn't that easy to turn into hard cash.

Thanks TSax, on my way home I thought of the bank transfer. I thought it might be like a cheque in that the money could be taken back, but then I realised that for my online/telephone banking, I can only send via bank transfer the amount of available funds, i.e. I can't send more than I've got available, so it couldn't bounce.

Thanks for the other thought too - it hadn't occurred to me that it being a hard-to-sell item makes it less likely for someone to try and scam on it, because then they'll end up with my money plus a 'very pretty paperweight'

How about a Building Society cheque- they can't be cancelled

Just to resurrect this...after several emails, I never heard from the bloke again - he'd decided he only needed the cello (as his wife-to-be had case, bows, etc).

However, today my mobile rang. My phone NEVER rings, and even if it did I'd never hear it in the daytime, as it would be in my handbag in my desk drawer. But today I have the day off and I was walking through town.
It's a different bloke, who wants to come and collect it ASAP as he NEEDS to be able to practice silently, and he's going to do about 3hrs driving to get here to pay cash for it!

Still a bit stunned as it's all only just happened a couple of hours ago, over this weekend I'll sort out my documents as we all discussed above

Can you spot a counterfeit bank note?

Good luck Maizie! Glad you found a buyer after all!

Firstly, there are tips in katyjay's message above.
Secondly, my husband has a snazzy UV thing as part of his job so we can check the notes out 'properly' using that.
Thirdly, the guy works for Lloyd'sTSB so is v.likely to have been credit checked to get his job so can't be completely unreliable.

Great! I hadn't reread the whole post.

Its quite exciting getting an envelope full of 'used tenners' or whatever - we've sold a couple of cars for cash in the last few years. Glad you have found a buyer. Enjoy the proceeds!

Sue

I suggest requesting a Bank Draft when dealing with large amounts of money. It will cost the purchaser a few pounds to arrange it, but when you lodge it to your account your money is readily available to withdraw as the cheque is totally guaranteed. Cash can be subject to so many nasty accidents!... spending it