Buying a used bike from a private buyer with a Credit Card?

[Mangoat]

Where are you gonna slide the credit card through when you buy it?

 

[mercurial]

It is correct that the CC company will
The catch will be the following : a fee for using the check, usually 3% of the cost of the bike.

Sometimes these fees are capped; I know that with my BofA visa, it was capped to a max of $75 (although in June, that cap will disappear).

There are certain circumstances where, if you know you will have the cash on-hand before the intro APR expires (maybe tied up in an investment?), its a pretty reasonable deal to use the credit card check.

 

[aciurczak]

First of all, why would you be happy to eat a $240 fee when it is just as convenient, if not moreso, to get a cashier's check, which is for all intents and purposes legal tender?

Second of all, accepting a paypal transaction is a terrible idea because your sale is, functionally speaking, no longer on an as-is basis. Once in receipt of the goods, the buyer is perfectly free to dispute the ammt for any reason he or she sees fit (product not as advertised, defects, etc) and then you are forced to go through a huge process to prove to the credit card company that your sale was legitimate and done in good faith; if there is even so much as a scratch on the bike that you didn't mention, the buyer will win at least a partial rebate.

If you are going to accept money that has credit card origins, insist that they take one of the checks that get mailed out monthly, write it to themselves so the cash is deposited in their checking acct, then withdraw the cash in a cashier's check.

I have more than a passing interest in cashiers check fraud, but all I can tell you on record is that your confidence in them is misplaced. Furthermore, Paypal eats the disputed credit card charges. It's on the buyer to try and get Paypal to allow them to be reversed, and that's as likely to happen as finding a 4-leaf clover. Sure it may happen once in a great while, but it's awfully unlikely. Search for any of the people bitching at Paypal's policies, and most of them are complaining about just that (they won't reverse charges without an act of G-d).

 

[mercurial]

I have more than a passing interest in cashiers check fraud, but all I can tell you on record is that your confidence in them is misplaced.

Any sort of paper can be counterfeited; there are additional steps to mitigate the risk, such as cashing the check at the issuing bank. It doesn't get a whole lot more secure than that.

Furthermore, Paypal eats the disputed credit card charges. It's on the buyer to try and get Paypal to allow them to be reversed, and that's as likely to happen as finding a 4-leaf clover. Sure it may happen once in a great while, but it's awfully unlikely. Search for any of the people bitching at Paypal's policies, and most of them are complaining about just that (they won't reverse charges without an act of G-d).

Dude you think you know, but you don't. If I was the buyer and I issued a chargeback with the bank that issued my credit card, paypal would zero out your account in the blink of an eye.

 

[aciurczak]

How do you know the size of my paypal account? (this made more sense before you edited your post, I should have quoted it...)

If I have the paperwork to support the sale (signed bill of sale), good luck getting your credit card company to support your chargeback request. Worst case would be money in suspense while the case goes through. That would suck, but it's unlikely I'd be ultimately out any money.

Like most folks, I prefer dealing in cash for used vehicle sales and purchases, but I've had no issues using PayPal when it made sense for that particular transaction.

 

[Tof-Corey]

I used cash advance to pay for my camaro. $5500 turned into $6800. Major suckage, big lesson learned.

 

[flying_hun]

It is correct that the CC company will know the clear details,

but on the other hand it's not true that blank checks with 3.9% interest do not exist. They get sent to some people and are true, fixed 3.9% for the complete balance, without a time limit. They could be accompanied by an even lower % check but that one will have a time limit.

The catch will be the following : a fee for using the check, usually 3% of the cost of the bike.

The final catch will be (hope you don't fall into that one), if you default, or whatever it means to miss a payment, then the 3.9% rate will disappear, and you'll get adjusted to something much worse, like 9.99% or 12.99 or 21.99, depending on what your card is.

That's exactly how it works with my card issuer. OTOH, my CU is really good about moto loans at rates comparable to cars - even for small amounts.

 

[mercurial]

How do you know the size of my paypal account? (this made more sense before you edited your post, I should have quoted it...)

What, you carry a permanent balance on your paypal account? Pretty stupid since Paypal is not a bank and not FDIC insured. You can get better returns elsewhere anyway.

Paypal will also siphon the money right out of your bank account if you have already transferred it over.

If I have the paperwork to support the sale (signed bill of sale), good luck getting your credit card company to support your chargeback request. Worst case would be money in suspense while the case goes through. That would suck, but it's unlikely I'd be ultimately out any money.

Sorry but you do not know what you are talking about.

Heres what I do. I tell my credit card company that you lied to me, and did not tell me about a defect (scratched fairings, worn transmission, lower compression on engine, etc), violating the express warranty on the product I have purchased. I tell them that the vehicle is, in fact, worth $X less than the product I paid for and assumed I was receiving.

The burdon of proof is not on me; its on you. The bank will automatically side with me, not you. They will take me at my word unless you definitively prove otherwise.

Personally, I would never rip off someone who gave me a fair deal. However, I've dealt with many people who sold substandard things; I warn twice over e-mail, then dispute and never look back. I have never lost a dispute. Paypal whines every time, and tells me they'd rather I use their dispute system, but I refuse to use it since it is far less effective than disputing with the bank.

 

[RhythmRider]

I used cash advance to pay for my camaro. $5500 turned into $6800. Major suckage, big lesson learned.

Hah! That's not too bad, actually. I used a personal loan from CitiBank to pay for my SV650. They lured me with 11% interest over 5 years. What I didn't pay attention to is that the 11% is PER YEAR. $3000 turned into $4650 (55% total interest). For your camaro, that would mean you'd have ended up paying $8525 total.

 

[iehawk]

Those credit card checks are usually not honored at the banks. Be careful.

Also, most of them are issued for balance transfers, not purchase.

They only way I would do it is as soon as the payment is cleared, buyer can have the bike and pink slip.