Boat offer from Holland

[colingr]

OK

I have my boat up for sale and I have received an email from a chap in Holland.

We have now exchanged several emails and the upshot is this.

He wants to come over next week to look at the boat and wants to pay cash (euros). He has made a tentative offer which is too low, but that is normal and part of the haggling process.

Now the problem arises in that he would want to pay cash and take the boat away the same day.

I have said no, I would want the funds in the bank and checked before letting the boat go. Also I would prefer sterling.

Am I being over cautious?

He is not acting like the usual scammers in offering over the asking price, or arranging a dodgy shipping company.

 

[Aardee]

What sort of amount are you looking at??

 

[Kipper]

If the sums add up and you can get to a bank to verify the cash is not counterfit it might be possible to do the deal in the day.

How much are we talking about roughly and what are you asking.

Gary

 

[Nick_H]

Only real risk I can see is if the money is counterfeit, maybe there's a way to check it whilst he's there? If it's over £10k you'll have a bit of hassle banking it, but only having to answer a couple of questions, so no big deal really. I'd make sure you have his name and address, and a copy of the sale receipt.

If you do get euro, and it's £10k+, then don't just bank it at normal bank fx rates, ask for an offer from your banks investment arm, or a third party fx house. Most want minimum £25k ish, but some accept less I think.

 

[colingr]

We're talking around the £10k mark, probably a bit less after haggling.

My thought was to drag him to the bank and ask them to verify the dosh.

If I get it in £ I suppose I could hold the money and pass it on to the seller of my next boat

 

[Aardee]

Probably worth pre-warning the bank that you'll be in to verify & pay in that amount of Euros - it may speed the process up a bit.

 

[PCUK]

Tell him you will want to go to the bank to verify the cash while he is there. If he is happy with that then he sounds genuine. I can understand him wanting to take the boat away and not have to make a second trip as I am looking at doing the same with a boat in Ireland.

 

[jimmy_the_builder]

We're talking around the £10k mark, probably a bit less after haggling.

My thought was to drag him to the bank and ask them to verify the dosh.

If I get it in £ I suppose I could hold the money and pass it on to the seller of my next boat

I did exactly this when I sold a motorbike recently, I went to the bank with the buyer and gave them his cash - paid it straight in to my account, all done and dusted.

And as Nick says, if it's over 10k then you'll need some simple supports for the transaction to cover yourself (and the bank) under the money laundering regulations.

But I definitely wouldn't hold on to the cash if it was Euros, just in case it is dodgy - better to go the bank and get it verified before you let the boat go.

Cheers
Jimmy

 

[colingr]

I've emailed him and he is happy to go to the bank with me so he sounds genuine. He is also happy to bring ID as well as his passport to prove who he is.

The bank have confirmed that they are happy to validate the money at the time we bring it in so that when it is paid in there will be no comeback.

All looking genuine so far.

Just need to arrange a date for the deed to be done and to haggle the price

Thanks for all the input, certainly helped to get my mond straight.

 

[alt]

jokerboat - all the boats i've bought in the UK were either cash or Draft

The first boat was £17,500 and I paid in cash sterling - It was the easiest way to do the deal in one day. Both buyer and seller were happy!

The other 2 boats, as they were larger sums, I wouldn't carry the cash on me. So what I did was agree on a price (provided that everything checked out with the boat), then I got a draft in Sterling and in the sellers name. I then emailed the reference number and a scan of the draft to the seller. He then rang the bank to confirm it was real (which it was). I went over, sussed out the boat and handed over the draft. I've done this twice and both times buyer/seller have been happy. There was no risk if I didn't want the boat as the cheque only cost me about €4 so i'd only have been down €4 and the price of the ferry if things didn't go to plan.


Don't be so suspicious, there are genuine international boat buyers out there who don't want to hang around in another country costing them money and wasting time - each of the 3 boats I bought in the UK I drove over, got boat and straight back all in one day

 

[ReneJK]

Also ask him for the receipt the bank gives him when he withdraws the money
that way you can at least trace origin of the cash
Btw , its very common here (Holland) to pay and receive cash for larger (cars, boats , motorbikes etc) items and if your own bank is closed , most of the time there's (international) airports which have banks and can assist

with the GBP this low a lot of my friends are looking at the UK to buy , and every single one is very genuine buyer
heck.. they spend time and money to cross the channel and view whats for sale, that in itself is an indication of seriousness

Good luck on the sale and dont let the dutch haggling get to you

 

[maverickofpoole]

I sold my last boat to an Irish buyer two years ago. He duly arrived we agreed a price then he produced £14500 in cash and said I'll take the boat now. Oh no your not says I, want to ensure its genuine dosh first. So I took the money to my bank where Sue the teller said no problem Martin, weighed the money then put it through the counting machine and deposited the money. She also confirmed to me that the money was now available in my account, didn't seem to check if was genuine and wasn't at all concerned.

If he wants to pay cash let him and bank it same day, no problem but do not let the boat go before the bank verifies the payment as in your account.

Martin

 

[pheran]

Counterfeit Euro notes are certainly not unknown (notoriously easy to forge - far more so than Sterling). Its for this reason that many commercial establishments in the Netherlands will not accept anything bigger than the €100 note. And some, particularly supermarkets, wont go above €50. But as ReneJK says above, cash transactions, often for quite large amounts are common. Two things - be aware there are several levels of checking the authenticity of notes from the 'probably OK' used for smaller values in shops etc to the 'guaranteed perfect' procedures employed in the clearing houses. Secondly, make sure that the notes that your buyer offers are of the smaller denomination - all in €50's would be great. I once naively accepted a very large payment in cash and received a bundle of €500 notes. I can't begin to tell you how much trouble that caused me although it all came right in the end.

 

[colingr]

Thanks for all the above.

I will email him about the smaller denomination thing.

Just have to arrange for him to turn up now.

 

[kingfisher]

Hmmm, that sort of money is going to be paid in large denominations (200 notes of 50€ is a lot to count), so expect 100-200-500 notes. If the money is going to be deposited into a bank account on the day, it should matter what denominations the cash is in.

Cash is always quicker and safer that any sort of electronic transfer. Just make sure the bank certifies the money.

And no, euro notes are not "notoriously easy to fake". There are more euro notes in circulation, so more fake, yes, and more bad fakes (DYI colour laser printer). But a good fake is rare.

 

[sailorman]

Thanks for all the above.

I will email him about the smaller denomination thing.

Just have to arrange for him to turn up now.

also banking a large amount will attract "money laundering" questions from the bank. i thing £3k is the limit with no questions