Safest way to pay for a private sale online?

[Viper0hr]

Hey everyone, somewhat new to the site but absolutely love it so far and am enjoying "lurking"
I am in the process of buying a rifle from a private seller from Armslist from out of state, and am having trouble finding a good method of payment to prevent/reduce the chance of being scammed. It is a good deal, but not a huge "steal", and he has sent additional pics that match, so it does not seem like he is a scammer, just was curious what everyone would recommend for a payment method to better protect myself since Paypal hates the 2nd. Was thinking of a Postal Money Order as I have heard it is the most likely way to recover funds in the even of a scam.
I was also going to ask for a picture of his DL and a pic of the gun and DL.
Thanks for any help!

 

[FLT]

There isn’t a safe way to send money to a stranger. I sold a pair of Smith&wesson grips to a forum member and he paid with a postal money order. He’s in the Pensacola area and I’m in Tallahassee. After a week I call him and explained that I hadn’t got it , he went to the post office and they told him that he had to wait 60 days before they would check into it. And it would likely be 6 or more months before he would possibly get his money back.

 

[FrankT]

The only place I pay from out of state is Gun Broker or here from a private party...Sounds like you sent before you got the $$ I always wait and clear the $$ before mailing

 

[SAWMAN]

US Postal Money Order . . . for multiple reasons. --- SAWMAN

 

[Viper0hr]

US Postal Money Order . . . for multiple reasons. --- SAWMAN

That is the one I decided on if I did not get a better answer because it is a Federal MO with insurance and needs an actual ID to cash, any particular reason you recommend it? Thanks!

 

[76251]

I sold a rifle a couple of weeks ago off a Armslist ad to someone in Indiana and he sent/wired funds through Walmart. It was easy and painless from my end. Walk up to WM teller and give confirmation number and ID and they hand you the cash.


You could get seller to send it through his FFL and talk to seller and ffl on phone before you send funds. Probably cost a extra 25-50$.
If person is evasive in any way probably should pass on it.

I get a lot of suspect emails through Armslist. Mainly from gmail addresses but not sure how relevant that is.

 

[SAWMAN]

If the deal was "otherwise" a good deal,I would not send anybody a copy of my DL unless he was a FFL. --- SAWMAN

 

[SAWMAN]

ALSO . . . If there is any shady stuff going on, the Feds investigate. Postal fraud is some serious shit. That could be scary. --- SAWMAN

 

[Viper0hr]

ALSO . . . If there is any shady stuff going on, the Feds investigate. Postal fraud is some serious shit. That could be scary. --- SAWMAN

That's essentially why I decided to do a PMO if i go through with it, they seem to carry actually weight if someone scams or frauds you.
Like I said, I don't think the guy will scam me, but I'd like to be as safe as possible.

 

[Welldoya]

Talk to him on the phone and see what he sounds like.

 

[RackinRay]

Use PMO, gives reason to ask for address. Google address and persons name, verification as much as possible. I did this when I was buying black powder pistols in the last phase I went thru with BP.

 

[kidsoncoffee]

Paypal Goods and Services. I've done probably 30 or so online transfers. You at least have an avenue to retrieve your money if the deal goes sour. It HAS to be Goods and services though. It's a 3.5%fee added to the total that the buyer usually covers. Don't send the money friends and family because it isn't covered under paypal protections. It's the only way I'll send money online to people I don't know. I haven't had to use the protections yet, but I know others that have, and they always get their money back.

 

[kidsoncoffee]

I get a lot of suspect emails through Armslist. Mainly from gmail addresses but not sure how relevant that is.

Most people I've sent paypal money to have gmail addresses. It's a fairly popular email service so don't hold it against a buyer if they do have one.

 

[wildrider666]

As I understand it, pypalmis no gun transactions. You get ripped off what do you tell them? You didn't get the $600 TeaSet you paid for? Or you actually violated their no gun policy but you want them to help you get you money back?

There are thousands of fake DLs, Mil ID and other fake ID documents. Expand those IDs to high magnification and look for changes around names and expiration dates, mis-lignment, different sizeor type text and cut and past jobs that don't include the background color or pattern.

All the money you think your going to save will be small compared to getting ripped off for a few hundred at a wack. You may even get the Send half now and the rest after you get it. Because scammers would rather get half rather than nothing.

FTF or deal with a known FFL with great feedback. Iv actually seen scammers copy an entire Gun shops Web site and only changed the contact phone# and email address. I confirmd his when I emiled the real Shop. They had no idea itwas going on.

 

[kidsoncoffee]

As I understand it, pypalmis no gun transactions. You get ripped off what do you tell them? You didn't get the $600 TeaSet you paid for? Or you actually violated their no gun policy but you want them to help you get you money back?

There are thousands of fake DLs, Mil ID and other fake ID documents. Expand those IDs to high magnification and look for changes around names and expiration dates, mis-lignment, different sizeor type text and cut and past jobs that don't include the background color or pattern.

All the money you think your going to save will be small compared to getting ripped off for a few hundred at a wack. You may even get the Send half now and the rest after you get it. Because scammers would rather get half rather than nothing.

FTF or deal with a known FFL with great feedback. Iv actually seen scammers copy an entire Gun shops Web site and only changed the contact phone# and email address. I confirmd his when I emiled the real Shop. They had no idea itwas going on.

I deal in online communities with flair for users that have had frequent verifiable transactions. We kind of self police our users. Scammers get called out REAL fast. And again, everyone has been able to get their money back using goods and services. You can tell paypal you were buying high end stereo equipment or whatever the hell you want. I max my spending to 300-400 because that's all I'm willing to possibly lose online to a bad deal, but do as you please. I can only tell you what my experiences have been and I've had no issues using PP G&S dozens of times. It's no different from our community here. I wouldn't hesitate to deal with the majority of you online using online payment options. It's a collective where we've interacted with each other countless times and can gauge for ourselves if it feels right. Scammers are everywhere. We just gotta do our due diligence to weed them out.

 

[stage20]

If you wire money that's it.
If you go postal money order it can take forever.
PayPal will give you your money back instantly and guy is SOL.
PayPal works both ways. I sold a guy a brand new drill and he claims it was used and PayPal gave him his money and he kept the drill. There is all types out there.
If you have the slightest doubt, find it local or take a drive.

 

[donr101395]

Pay for a gun with PayPal and you're screwed on getting your money back they know it was for a gun. It is on their list of prohibited transactions. All they will do is ban both parties accounts.

Sent from my moto g(7) using Tapatalk

 

[FrommerStop]

I always buy face to face for a firearm and almost always from a dealer. If you are collector I understand finding something rare that you just have to have. For what ever I have to have I can find it in state and in local driving distance.

 

[Jerry]

I don't buy from out of state. I foresee headaches galore. Scams everywhere, hurry up and buy stuff that never gets delivered, or its not anything like the product you ordered.
If it's too good to be true, it probably is.
Buy local and support your own community!

 

[Zeroed in]

I did one online from Texas. The guy seemed screwy, so "I" contacted a FFL in his area. I called the ffl and talked to them about it. They agreed to receive my USPMO and hold it for the seller, do the ppwk, and send to my ffl. Even said they'd check and look over the pistol for me. The lady was really nice and said she wouldn't charge anything for doing this, even tho I offered $50 for doing it.
Other than GB, this is the way I do it.