BANK DRAFTS: How safe are they really?

Question

I have a buyer interested in purchasing my car. He is from Canada and wants to pay by a bank draft, however I am not sure of how a bank draft works and whether I will definately recieve my money. I am also concerned about the length of time it will take for the money to be deposited into my account. Is a bank draft safe? Am I going to get my money? HELP!!!

Answer 1

No counterfit bank drafts, cashiers checks, and money orders are some of the most common scams out there right now. They are very difficult for bank tellers to tell they are fake until they are returned to the bank as counterfite or NSF. These scammers are every where and they are very good. This is an especially common part of the scam where they buy a big ticket item from someone and because they are not from America they can't be caught and prosicuted under our laws! BEWARE OF THIS BUYER!

The safest way for you to be sure you are going to get paid is to have the buyer wire the money to you or bring cash.

Verification is difficut for a banker because most banks do not verify funds they just veryify the account is open...this means they could have gotten a vaild account number (by diving in a dumpster or buying one on line) and when your bank calls to verify they are told the account is open and so the bank sends the check thru and 3 weeks later they find that it was a forged check off someone elses account.

Answer 2

A "bank draft" is a fancy old fashioned name for a check drawn on a bank's own account rather than the personal account of the person you're talking to. What it means is that he paid the money to a bank plus a fee to get the safety of the bank draft. (Note: it should be drawn on Chicago, New York or some other US banking center and payable in US dollars if you are in the US.) Just deposit it into your account like any other check.

It works like a Cashier's Check, Official Check, Traveler's Check or Money Order. It's guaranteed by a third party and a normal way to do an international transaction.

Answer 3

The bank draft is transferred from his bank to your account. This can take about four hours or so, depending on the time of day, early is best.
The actual funds may not be posted to your account until the next day, but you can check with your bank to verify that it was received. Maybe online, if you bank online.

Answer 4

Simply state that if he insists on a draft, that the money must be present prior to him taking the car. Personally, I would want cash or a money order.