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I drove an hour and a half to sell something on Craigslist and the buyer had no cash

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SeanR1221

Member
Sucks but it's why I always set the meeting place where I want to meet. No exceptions.

I was selling a fight stick once and the dude was 20.00 short on what we agreed on. I told him we'll drive to the bank and he can get the money or I leave.
 
That seems really inefficient. Why not just pull out your phone and use Internet banking to deposit money there and then? PayPal takes a cut, who wants to carry around large sums of cash and people still use checks? Strange. Nothing wrong with giving someone a bank account number. Come on States.

I've never had a problem with Google Wallet, PayPal, or anything else, which don't apply fees if you use a checking account, and I'd wager both of those (plus Apple's system and everything else) are better than most bank account apps. Also, many bank accounts do charge for transferring money to a personal account from another bank.
 

kaiju

Member
I hope you take this as a lesson learned, OP. Look at the bright side, you're still alive and you didn't get jacked. It could have been far worse.
 

ZeroX03

Banned
I've never had a problem with Google Wallet, PayPal, or anything else, which don't apply fees if you use a checking account, and I'd wager both of those (plus Apple's system and everything else) are better than most bank account apps. Also, many bank accounts do charge for transferring money to a personal account from another bank.

Probably a lot different in the States but there's no way around PayPal fees here, you have to pay for it by credit. Bank transfer fees are 50c if not free and the bank apps are great and quick.
 
Echoing what has already been said, next time agree to meet up halfway. Is there a fast-food restaurant close by? A mall? Those are two good spots. I've heard of people doing exchanges around police stations and in fact, some police stations have places exactly for cases like this.

Sorry that you got screwed over, OP. I hope that you can find someone to sell your stuff to soon. Remember that things could have been much worse as far as CL goes.
 

styl3s

Member
Yeah, never go to their place or anything. Always best to meet somewhere mutual or have them come meet you (in your city not at your place).
I only have 2 rules for Craigslist and i make it clear in the e-mail conversation between the buyer/seller.

1. I will only meet you at the foodcourt in the mall (there is always at least 1 police officer in the food court) and it's pretty much dead center in my city (only a few minutes from my house so it's not wasted time for me) but it's alost middle ground for anyone living on any side of my city and
2. No trades, checks, money orders etc. 100% cash.

From the like decade of using of Craigslist i have never ran into any assholes when face-face but i have e-mailed people who wanted to meet in sketchy locations and sketchy times and form about a 1000 transactions maybe 20-25 never showed up and the first no-show is when i learned to meet close so my time isnt wasted.
 

Apath

Member
Always meet somewhere halfway in public. First rule of Craigslist.

Dumb.
Wrong. People on craigslist are the worst kind of flakes. That or an unusually large percentage of people I'm set to meet up with get into car accidents or have family emergencies.

Choose a place that is no further than five minutes from you, is very public, and has something right nearby you can stop at if they don't show up so you don't completely waste your time.

Can't forget the people who show up $5 short hoping to get a last minute discount. 1) If you do this, go fuck yourself. 2) Meeting somewhere nearby guarantees they're wasting their own time more than yours.
 

Count

Banned
Who wants to be told "it could have been worse" after a situation that still manages to be frustrating and shitty?

But hey, and least Yellowstone didn't blow up on you! Count your blessings you fortunate guy, you.
 

Touch

Member
I would never drive a hour and a half to sell something so small. Maybe if I was selling a car/bike but differently not a game system.

Still pretty shitty situation.
 

Jhoan

Member
Never had a bad experience selling stuff on craigslist either. About 3 years ago or so I sold GTA: Chinatown Wars for the DS. The dude wanted me to come to his place by the projects in East Harlem. I went to the building, he was at the lobby, inspected the case while we had a conversation, gave me the money, I walked away with $20 in my pocket, and that was that.

These days I sell stuff through eBay to save myself the trouble. While the PayPal money doesn't transfer until about 3-4 weeks after shipping it, it's still pretty painless. Although in your case, selling stuff on eBay wouldn't be a viable option seeing how dire your situation is.

Medical bills are definitely no joke as my brother got slapped with one for checking himself into the ER last year because he had a horrible ear pain. He managed to pay it off. Hopefully you can get back on your feet soon OP.
 

Allforce

Member
Craigslist is great. Got a $700 pool table for $200.

ARE YOU CRAZY? ALWAYS MEET IN A FOOD COURT OR POLICE STATION OR STATE PENITENTIARY WITH ARMED SNIPERS LOOKING OVER YOUR EVERY MOVE.

Seriously though I'm with you on this sale, CraigsList is THE way to buy a pool table. So many guys out there who's wives make them get rid of it or who just have it covered in laundry in the basement. Absolute steals and there's always tons of them available, most barely used.

Arcade cabs are another great find on most days, but there's always some twat selling a garbage 60-in-1 MULTICADE for like 2500 bucks.
 

MC Safety

Member
Who wants to be told "it could have been worse" after a situation that still manages to be frustrating and shitty?

But hey, and least Yellowstone didn't blow up on you! Count your blessings you fortunate guy, you.

When you share your tragicomedy on the Internet message board, you should expect a wide range of responses.

In fairness, there have been some true craigslist horror stories. People have gotten hurt, robbed, and killed because of their craigslist interactions. This guy suffered a little humiliation, a little frustration, and learned a valuable lesson. So, yeah, worse things have happened.
 
I feel for you OP with the hurtful and unfortunate situation but why don't you just Ebay the Vita right now? Set it to Buy It Now with a competitive price (go for just a tad lower than the average price of Vitas on there; say ~180 dollars) and surely the Vita will be sold in less than an hour and you'll have the money transferred to you before the end of the night? Via thirty seconds of effort?

Like I said I do feel for you as the kid was out of line but it sounds like you went for the most long winded and stressful way of going about this as humanly possible.
 

Count

Banned
When you share your tragicomedy on the Internet message board, you should expect a wide range of responses.

In fairness, there have been some true craigslist horror stories. People have gotten hurt, robbed, and killed because of their craigslist interactions. This guy suffered a little humiliation, a little frustration, and learned a valuable lesson. So, yeah, worse things have happened.

Tragicomedy? That's a funny word. Can't say the same for the OP's story though, which is supposed to be anything but funny.

Also, why are you speaking to me as if you're giving out insight? It's like you completely missed the point of my post and what I was taking a jab at.

I've seen threads like this and if I were in the OP's shoes, these "could have been worse" responses would rub me the wrong way. Especially since they happen every other post. I get that people may just be trying to put things into perspective, but it comes across as belittling.

If I experienced the OP's situation and was understandably fuming about it, fat chance I would be at all consoled about the idea that I "could have been stabbed". Given how Craigslist works I'm pretty sure we know the risks.
 
Sounds like this kid's parent did not approve of him buying a Vita, so if he had given him the VIta and then his bank account info, he just would have never been paid. Giving bank account information to make a payment is abnormal in the US. ALmost every person to person transaction is done using a check, cash, money order, or some sort of payment system (PayPal, etc), not transferring money via a bank account. Craigslist is almost exclusively done in cash.

That's what I'm saying I find baffling. I would never take a check from a stranger, it's not worth the hassle if the account doesn't have funds (not to mention having to cash it in). As far as I know Paypal isn't instantaneous either and you can dispute the transaction later. Money order? What century is this?

Also the fact that giving out something as mundane as your account number puts you at risk for identity theft makes me seriously question the security of your banks. It's a non issue here. Instant transaction (which you can even do on your smartphone) for up to about 10 grand is clearly the way to go for stuff above a few hundred bucks.

It's hard to believe a country that's on the forefront of technology on a lot of things can be so far behind in banking.
 

Geneijin

Member
I don't understand why you would make an hour and a half drive somewhere to sell a $200 item. As a buyer, I would make that trip if I really want it. It should not be the other way around.
 

Barzul

Member
I've never had a bad CL experience. I always meet in public places and someone else is always with me. I've heard too many crazy stories. Hope you find a buyer OP.
 
With a bank account and routing number someone could do false EFTs or print fake checks. Even if you got your money back in the end it wouldn't be worth the time/hassle.
 

SaganIsGOAT

Junior Member
It's not funny so much as really unacceptable. Look at it from the Dad's perspective. You are a stranger in his home, asking for gas money from his autistic son.

I fear for the day he does this to someone who doesn't take lightly to his wasting of their time and does something way worse than ask for a little gas money from an autistic young adult. The fact that is being seen as a wrong on my part is baffling to me.
 

Count

Banned
It's not funny so much as really unacceptable. Look at it from the Dad's perspective. You are a stranger in his home, asking for gas money from his autistic son.

What is this? The dad/parents are giving their vulnerable son the agency and means to invite and then (unintentionally) screw total strangers over.

Unacceptable my foot. The parents have plenty of blame for allowing their son to set up such a ridiculous, risky, and powerless situation.

Worst case scenario was that the OP goes home without being compensated for gas. He was originally promised that much and was understandably feeling cheated, so why not ask. The dad chose to be a dick about it and that's on him.
 
The dad doesn't know the op and for all he knows he could be trying to scam his son. He deserves to be compensated but I'm not surprised the dad said no.
 

EGOMON

Member
I feel really bad for you OP I hope you get on your feets real quick, keep checking CL for legit buyers, best of luck.
 

udiie

Member
fuck craigslist.

Shit has gotten so bad in my city from people getting robbed at these meetups that the police set up a special room at the police department for people to do their craigslist trading.
Vancouver?
Ya I've had lots of people here flake the shit out of literally every kind of purchase, and lots of friends talk about having knives pulled on them and such.
 
Should I be laughed at for it?

Look, from what you said, you had realised before hand that the father didn't even know what the son was talking about. What the fuck did you think was going to happened when you asked for money from his autistic son? Of course he was short with you. You were the one not thinking straight. Be it from a lack of money or not, there's always a chance for shit to happen when selling stuff over the internet when you don't see cash upfront. Welcome to the internet.
 

Syriel

Member
TL/DR. Found buyer on CL for my PS Vita. Needed me to drive the hour and a half to him and agreed to pay extra and cash because of my time. Get there and he is autistic and has no cash for me and his dad tells me to leave the property wasting my money and time.

This is a common tactic for CL buyers who want to lowball.

They get a seller to travel a great distance and then "only have some of the cash, so will you take a little less?"

First rule of CL is always negotiate a final price before the meet.
Second rule of CL is NEVER travel far if you are the seller. Make the buyer come to you.
 

FStop7

Banned
What's so funny?

It sucks now but in a few years (if not sooner) it will be one of those experiences you'll look back on and laugh.

Should I be laughed at for it?

Nobody is laughing at you.

You lucky you didnt get killed/robbed. No way I would ever come anywhere to meet somebody in Craigslist.

Oh come on. Craigslist is just as safe as any other form of classified advertising and arguably safer than something like a garage sale because you aren't bringing strangers directly to your home. Just be smart about it and meet somewhere public.
 

terrisus

Member
Darn, I'm really sorry, since I know I had posted right after you posted in the B/S/T thread saying I would've loved to have bought that if I had the money. Really surprised no one else jumped on it, it was a great deal.
 

Tripon

Member
You're dealing with a kid with autism. Sorry, different rules apply. Also, that kid did know what he was doing on some level.
 

JMDSO

Unconfirmed Member
With all the CL horror stories I've just stopped using it.

Sad, because there's always deals.
 
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