Scam "Buyers"

I simply tell them that Montana State Law required that I have THEIR full legal name and address to fill in the blanks on the Title before I can get it Notarized for transfer (that happens to be the absolute truth, by the way).
Strangely, none of the scammers have EVER given me the required information.
I also tell them that they must send the "cashiers check" to their shipping agent, then HE can cash it and bring me the CASH when he picks up the (whatever).
Again, strangely, they never reply.

I can certainly recognize the scammers but I guess it just isn't worth prosecuting. It is so transparent that it is rather humorous.

That said, my last RV sale, the buyer gave me 2K in cash and 4K in a bank (cashiers) check. After getting the trailer home, he decided it needed more work than he initially thought and put a 'stop payment' on the bank check. I didn't know you could do this but that is what he did and my (ex) credit union deducted from my account and sent the money back. So he had my money, my trailer and my title. It took one call telling him he purchase as-is, with the ability to have the trailer checked out which he didn't do, and he decided it was better to go to his bank and wire the money to me.

Having a lien seems to be a bit of a safety net as they are responsible for seeing that the money goes through correctly. Interestingly, when I bought this MoHo, we were both using the same finance company and the company waited 10 days for their own check to clear. Go figure.

Escargot wrote:
I've bought and sold all of my RVs on Craigslist. When selling, I post the maximum number of photos allowed (24 on CL). My description of my RVs have been detailed and honest. At the end of the description I add a NOTE: Please, no commercial brokers, etc.

They email me via CL's anonymous address which is then forwarded to my own email address. Usually serious private buyers will email their phone number and ask me to all them, which I do.

We then arrange a place to meet. I never give them my residential address. I usually arrange our meeting in a public / active parking lot... bank, city park, etc.

Usually after meeting a potential buyer, one usually gets a Spidey sense of who they, what they're up to, but, either way, I play it safe as a sort of relief for myself, and it usually relieves the buyer as well.

If they're still interested, I arrange to meet them at my bank where the teller can validate their account and if the amount of purchase is available in their account, etc.

This is the smart way to do it. Don't forget to transfer, or take your license plate. Remain as anonymous, (address, phone, e-mail) as possible, until you have a sure buyer. Remind them, that they will need valid insurance at time of sale. Make sure whatever you're selling is clean-don't leave any receipts, or anything with personal info in it.

frankdamp wrote:
We had a scammer show up at the house asking if we were considering selling. I said yes, and he inspected the rig carefully. He then offered $12,500! Not even knowing what the consignment guy thought about it, I told the scammer to get stuffed.

That sounds like a low-baller, not a scammer. Or am I missing something?

Tom N wrote:
What would you report them for???

The check is always counterfeit. You deposit it and then take out the $$$ to give the shipper. Shipper arrives you give him the $$$. You are out the $$$ and your vehicle because the check is a forgery. They try to do this within a couple days of you getting the check in the mail.

I have mine up for sale and for the first week the scammers were texting me. Told them that the only way I accept payment is to wire transfer money to my bank. This was the suggestion of my bank. Never heard back from them.
Don

I had a guy on Ebay wanting to buy my Harley real bad...He emailed me and asked if his Dad could look at it as he was in Daytona Beach. He was in Indiana. I said sure, it's at the Harley Dealer in Ocala having a new rear tire put on and looking it over for me.

His dad went, talked to the service manager, looked at the bike. Then his son called me as I was riding the bike home the next day from the shop. He said I don't want to bid and lose it, I want to click the buy it now price!

But he was afraid of a scam. I still had a lien on it at the local Credit Union!
I had the lady at the credit union call him, gave him a number to call back so he would hear the Credit Union answer the phone and asked for her. She handled it all with him, called me back and told me he just clicked the buy it now, and was going to send $500 PayPal for deposit. he wired the money to the Credit Union, hopped on a plane 4 days later. Had to wait to get the title ready. Picked him up at airport, went to Credit Union, signed title over, took him to my house and away he went! very safe for us both, and best way to handle it!

I've bought and sold all of my RVs on Craigslist. When selling, I post the maximum number of photos allowed (24 on CL). My description of my RVs have been detailed and honest. At the end of the description I add a NOTE: Please, no commercial brokers, etc.

They email me via CL's anonymous address which is then forwarded to my own email address. Usually serious private buyers will email their phone number and ask me to all them, which I do.

We then arrange a place to meet. I never give them my residential address. I usually arrange our meeting in a public / active parking lot... bank, city park, etc.

Usually after meeting a potential buyer, one usually gets a Spidey sense of who they, what they're up to, but, either way, I play it safe as a sort of relief for myself, and it usually relieves the buyer as well.

If they're still interested, I arrange to meet them at my bank where the teller can validate their account and if the amount of purchase is available in their account, etc.

To avoid scammers altogether, put your rig with a reputable consignment dealer. We've just done that. The dealer charges a flat fee of $595 regardless of the price it sells for and will do necessary minor repairs while on their lot, with quotes ahead of time for approval. He waits until it sells, then deducts the overall cost of repairs from what he sold it for. I have approval power over any offer.

We anticipated getting maybe $20,000 for ours in a private sale. The dealer thinks he can get $6000 more.

We had a scammer show up at the house asking if we were considering selling. I said yes, and he inspected the rig carefully. He then offered $12,500! Not even knowing what the consignment guy thought about it, I told the scammer to get stuffed.

If you don't want to be bothered by the scammers, don't list a reply email address with your ads, just your phone number. Serious buyers will call you, the flakes and scammers won't. Good luck!