www.iFourWinns.com

Hello all, new to the forum but been lurking for a year or so. I have had my boat for sale for a couple months and today I got a email from a guy in AL who is interested and I live in MI. I also talked to him on the phone today and things seem legit. I have never sold anything long distance so here is my question, he wants to give me a certified check and I will give him the boat, I will keep the title and we both get a bill of sale. Once the check clears the bank and they sign off I will mail him the title since I have a loan on the boat. Am I correct in thinking I would be safe from any loss since if the check doesn't clear I still have the title and could report it stolen? So, would you do it? If not, what would you do to make this the safest transaction possible. Hopefully this post can help others trying to do the same. Thanks for any replies, and I love the site and all of the pictures you guys post.

Thanks, Eric.

Be very carefull, it is very easy to forge cashiers checks or any kind of check for that matter. I would require him to have his bank wire money to your bank before you let him have the boat. With verified on hand in your bank then I would let him leave with boat and title. Good Luck

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2008 H220SS
VP 5.7 320 HP, DP
2010 Chevy Silverado Z71

Make sure you get your money. I live in IN, bought from PA and AL so far. I sold to a local guy, and then to a guy in TN. With my current boat, I had to wire money into the brokers account before they would release my boat to the transporter.

When I bought I just showed up with a cashiers check and they verified by calling my credit union and off we went.

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2007 358 T-5.7GXi IB
Previous Boats
'08 H240, '08 V318, '04 268, '04 225

Possession is 9/10ths as they say.

Don't let him pull the boat away until you have verified funds in hand or deposited in your bank.

If the check doesn't clear or ends up being fraudulent you can report the boat stolen. However, recovering the boat across state line won't be easy.

That all being said, I think, in general, people are honest. I have bought and sold a few things long distance. Be up front with everything and if you don't feel comfortable with the deal don't go through with it.

You need to control possession of the boat until you have the money.

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Current Operational Boats:
'04-Four Winns 180 Freedom 150 HP Evinrude
'72-Chris Craft Commander 31 Sedan Twin-350Qs

It's easy enough to do a bank wire these days...

Depending on how much the sale is, cash is always good too.

If he's getting a loan and it's a big name bank, can you do the deal at a bank branch?

You mentioned you have a loan... I know when I sold a boat, they kept a local copy of the title (paper form). I just had to go to the main branch (credit union). I gave them a certified check, they called and verified funds, and released the title. It wasn't too bad at all.

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2008 318 Vista -SOLD, but I am still around!
All Night Long, Seattle WA

The part that gets tricky is he wants to meet at the Kentucky/Tennessee boarder or there abouts. So I would not be able to cash the check until I got home. I was thinking if I kept the title until the check cleared the bank and then mailed it to him after the bank could sign off would keep me from getting ripped off. I never thought of doing a wire transfer and think this is the way to go. The bank would have there money and be signed off on the title before I headed south. Thanks for the replys and idea. On a side note I am very surprised someone from AL is considering buying it. It's a H210ss with 43 hrs and am guessing this style of boat is not as popular on the coast and they cant find many used.

Thanks, Eric.

How about getting his full name, birthdate, drivers' license #, and address. Then, for a couple of bucks, you can run him on the internet (without his knowledge) and get a pretty good foundation of how truthfull he's been. If he doesn't want to give you any info, or it doesn't come back as a match, run like hell! Any honest person has no problem giving you their correct info, but a scammer will make any excuse not too......

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2011 Four Winns H260 Frenzy $ea Note
VP 8.1GXi/DP EVC 420HP
2007 Silverado 1500 CrewCab 4x4
Previous:
2002 Four Winns H200
5.0GXI 270HP

That is maybe a little bit over the top. All the guy wants to do is pay for a boat - not marry your daughter. I'd be ready to go to a bank with the seller, but I'd tell him to bugger off if he wanted my personal information up front. It would be a deal breaker for me.

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Richard - FL - 2005 Vista 248

I dont think I will go as far as trying to get a full background check on the guy. I think like RotaryRacer said most people are honest. And either way we do it there is going to have to be some type of trust as in he will have to trust me to send the title and I will have to trust him the check is good. Or if money is wire transfered he will have to trust I will show up with the boat. Also I think talking on the phone with him and we will meet face to face would deter most scammers. They would most likely want the deal done with no type of contact and stay safe behind there computer to rip people off. I do think the deal will be this Saturday and I will keep you posted on what happens.

Eric.

Good luck, trust you're instincts and you'll be fine. But with the same info you would get for a dmv sign off, or receipt, you could have peace of mind. It's a little different selling hundreds or even thousands of miles away and getting a check instead of cash. Hey, if you're not worried about cashing a phony cashiers check, then it's not a problem. I sold my H200 in May to an out of state guy that brought me a cashiers check sight unseen. He drove to my house, handed me the check and I had to ask him if he wanted to take the covers off to check it out! He unsnapped half of the cockpit cover, looked in, said "Yeah, it's as clean as you said it would be, I'm in a hurry, gotta go", and hooked it up and drove off. Total time from arrival to departure was about 12 minutes....didn't even look at the engine! I was prepared to do a full lake run and spend a couple hours with him. I didn't fully celebrate until the check cleared a few days later! But, from the name on his email address alone, I could verify he was who he said he was, living where he said he was, and working where he said he was. Today, cashier's checks are submitted (deposited) into your bank and they are not found out to be fraudulent until several days later. People think that cashiers checks are "gold", but not anymore. I think sellers should do whatever they themselves feel comfortable with.... If someone told me to "bugger off" when I asked his name, address, and dob, prior to accepting a large cash payment, the next sound he would hear is that of a "click" made by me hanging up.

I always call people that don't do their "due dilegence" litagants.

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2011 Four Winns H260 Frenzy $ea Note
VP 8.1GXi/DP EVC 420HP
2007 Silverado 1500 CrewCab 4x4
Previous:
2002 Four Winns H200
5.0GXI 270HP

Have him wire the money to your bank. If you have an outstanding loan on the boat, your bank will probably not sign off & release it without being involved.

I bought my first boat in Washington state and I live in Vancouver, B.C., Canada. The seller's credit union required me to wire them the funds directly as there was money outstanding on a loan. Once the funds had been confirmed, I was able to take the boat & title. It was a bit of trust on my part in that particular situation, but I was confortable with it. Insist your buyer do the same, and that way you are covered.

Or have the buyer hire a Marine Documentation service. This service will handle title/lien seaches and wire transfers. Then everything is above board, and you have a legal paper trail. I used such a service when I bought my current boat, again from Washington state. It cost me $300US. The dealership I bought from was going through some tough times financially, and I wanted to be sure the dealership had clear title on the boat and that no money was owed to a financial institution. I will say it was money well spent!

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2010 278 Vista
5.7 GXi DP

Past:
1999 225 Sundowner
5.7 GSi SX

I bought mine from MIchigan and the two banks just spoke with each other, he had a loan with key bank and my lender just worked with the bank. I would leave it to the pros, not that I dont trust him but cashiers checks (as mentioned above) are easy to forge.

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1999 298 Vista [color=#FF0000]Sold!!!
twin Volvo 5.7GXI

Woody: Pour you a beer, Mr. Peterson?
Norm: Alright, but stop me at one...make that one-thirty

Meet during the week, have him pull the trigger on the wire after he looks it over, grab lunch, verify funds, head home. I sold my boat to a guy in Italy. The agreement was that the boat didn't get loaded onto the ship until the wire went through. Went flawlessly.

Setup an escrow and have them hold the funds until the boat deal is done. This way you are both protected, the funds are verified, and the buyer doesn't have to wire money into a personal account. I am sure there are escrow services in the area or use escrow.com. Before they leave with the boat you make a joint call and have the funds released to you.

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2000 268 Vista "Reely Nauti"
http://www.facebook.com/#!/rivercruiser

I would not be so naive. Criminals are certainly willing meet face to face. They'd be stealing quite a valuable asset. It's easy to get a disposable cell phone and to create a forged cashiers check. Meeting the victim would perhaps only add to the thrill of the crime.

I would never, ever do a trade like that without being able to call the financial institution right then and there during the deal. Bank wire transfers work wonders to eliminate the nonsense of check fraud. Trouble is it won't be "convenient" to do this on a weekend as many banks wouldn't be open. This is something the crooks depend upon. Meanwhile they've got your boat and the likelihood of never being caught.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista