Pretty stupid. And they’re right. Look how many people fall for the catfish scams, how many people still answer the telemarketers’ calls, how many people apparently still open the door to solicitors… on the whole, we as a society are stupid/gullible and as long as that’s true there will always be people who prey on that.
Unless you deposit or cash a check at the bank that it is issued from, there is no confirmation that you get back later to say that the check is definitely good and will not later be returned. You are just supposed to assume that, after a long enough time, the check has been paid. But “long enough time” is not defined (funds being made available in your account does not assure you that the deposited check is good).
@twoinanddone - it’s true I was the one that stated that my credit union wouldn’t accept a check for under $1,200 - I was fully yanking the other person’s chain! They bought right in and promptly tripled the number (hilarious!) and that’s when I told them to mail the check to me “at my business address” (the local police station) and notified them that I was a Deputy Sheriff. Poor scammer didn’t catch any of it. I’m curious if my local PD will indeed receive a cashier’s check!
Banks often only allow cashing checks if the person has an account there (which can be deducted if the check is returned unpaid) or if the check is drawn on that same bank (which allows immediate verification that it is genuine and (for regular checks) that there is money in the account the check is drawn on).
Yes. Some of the holds placed on personal checks are quite long, especially those from out of state banks. But for whatever reason , apparently cashier’s check are “cleared”quickly. Banks allow cash to be withdrawn from the account, against a cashier’s check whereas personal checks can be cashed only if you have enough funds to back it in your account. My bank only does a partial hold against my account even with personal checks. In other words, they will honor a portion of the check, increasing each day until fully cleared even if so don’t have funds to back it. I rarely write checks or get them, for that matter, these days. For awhile now. So I was taken aback this past winter when I learned that my work locale still used them heavily.
Would you want to bank somewhere that put a 2 or 3 week hold on every check you deposited? Or just the cashier’s checks? (Even though, when they are legit, the cashier’s checks are more reliable than personal checks).
Most of us have established long-term relationships with banks, and would probably be quite irked if we needed funds and the bank was putting a 21-day hold on the money. (Which is the way things used to work, sometimes, way back when).
^Good point, sigh. We got overdraft protection after my husband’s paycheck bounced, long ago. I was so mad!
I remember, we used to be able to call a bank and verify if there were funds there to cover. The bank could probably do so, or verify the cashier’s check that way.
I’ve always considered Cashier checks tantamount to cash. I have not dealt with them I had to get one for $4! to get an accident report this year, as the police station did not take cash, credit or debit card or personal checks.
Car sold via Craigslist. Met the buyer at the bank…cash only (there is a security guard at the bank). Once the money was deposited in my account, the title was signed, and bill of sale given to buyer. In the bank.
This was our plan all along. A couple of buyers didn’t want to meet at our bank. Phooey to them.
Your bank doesn’t know something is a scam until it hears back from the supposed payer bank. That can be 10 or more days, depending on the problem. Meanwhile, you deposited and thought it was ok.
My fist clue would be someone wanting $600 worth of “stuff” without seeing it in person.
A couple times I’ve had them go through the trouble of sending the check before throwing it away. I figure then I at least wasted some of their time and money.
I think the scammer didn’t catch any of your jokes because they don’t speak English or they don’t even read responses. It’s all automatic. The first big clue is when they call it “stuff” instead of naming the item. Their messages were probably sent to every ad over $100.
When we moved from New Jersey to NC 11 years ago I closed my bank account at Chase in New Jersey and took a $50,000 cashiers check with me to North Carolina. I promptly opened an account at my local Bank of America branch and deposited the $50,000 cashiers check. They told me there would be a 10 day hold on the check! Basically, my money disappeared for 10 days. Meanwhile our movers delivered our stuff and needed immediate payment. I had to get a special “favor” from the branch manager to give me my money to pay the movers. Lesson learned, I guess.
@sushiritto. Did I miss something? Your selling a $60,000 Porsche on Craigslist? ?
Sorry, no. Not to you. Only to people who know the difference between “your” and “you’re” apparently. He was pretty clear that he was screening replies based on grammar, so… Sounds silly to me, but he seemed to think a grammar error was a sure tip off that the response was a scam or the person couldn’t possibly have $60k. “If I’m selling some used wheels and tires for $200, then I’ll put up with the bad grammar/English. I’m certainly not an English professor. However, if I’m selling a $60,000 Porsche, then “Are the stuff available?” is a strong clue that the “buyer” probably can’t afford the Porsche.”
@Knowsstuff Oops, I meant the McLaren is for sale. The Porsche is my beater daily driver. ?
@sushiritto… Figures… Lol…
I find it ridiculous that banks hold onto any check in this age of electronic information. It shouldn’t take 10 days for one bank to respond to the other; what are they using, snail mail? Just like companies can process my purchases on my credit/debit card immediately, but it takes “7 - 10 business days” for them process a refund.
It’s a ripoff - the banks don’t want to give up the “float” that lets them hold onto (or lend out) your money and earn interest for themselves on it.
I agree, @Chedva . I assumed Bank checks, cashier checks, since they are supposed to be like cash, could be instantly verified as such and drawn upon immediately when presented at a bank. That there was additional secure to getting one of these over a personal check. Apparently not
Cashier’s checks only add the assurance that they will not be returned for insufficient funds that personal checks often get returned for. They do not provide assurance against forgery unless you cash or deposit them in person at the issuing bank.
Yes, check clearing is much faster now than before (partly due to electronic images instead of actual checks being passed around). But there is still no indication to the depositor that a deposited check has finally cleared.