How safe is western union?

[scm5436]

I rejected an order because it looked a bit dodgy, and suggested maybe they could pay by BACS instead. The customer has come back and said they can pay by western union.

I never used this before, but for some reason I associate it in my mind with fraud (possibly something I've read before?). Does anyone know how safe this is as a method of payment, or indeed how it works?

 

[Eagle]

I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot barge pole.

 

[Fergus]

I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot barge pole.

20 foot one for me !

 

[scm5436]

ok, so is that based on anything in particular? personal experience? 2nd hand experience? general knowledge?

 

[scm5436]

also the customer is saying I would 'draw the cash from my local office'.

So if I actually get cash from a western union 'office' how is that not safe? If I have the cash in my hand then no-one can claim it back if it later turned out it came from a fraudulent source...? I thought even BACS payments and bankers drafts can be clawed back at a later date if fraudulant, so cash seems like a good option - or have I missed something...?

 

[Fergus]

ok, so is that based on anything in particular? personal experience? 2nd hand experience? general knowledge?

Well two people I know who have been caught by the typical nigerian 419 scame type things , the common factor was western union.

I am sure there are thousands of succesful transactions daily with them but you must have been a bit cautious yourself to make your oringinal post.

 

[cycloneuk]

If you get the money before sending then it's very safe, just make sure the money is there before sending anything. I would say that for receiving money it is safe, all the scammers use it because they can't be traced and will use fake names and id to pick money up.

 

[Magsite]

Spammers usually want YOU to pay by western union, not the other way round. You'll be fine, as long as you don't send the goods until you've got the cash from you nearest WU office.

 

[freshpurple]

The way Western Union works is very simple - they go to their local office, give them the money and your name, in return they receive a number. They tell you this number and you just go to your local WU office, give them the number and some proof of ID, then they give you the money in your local currency.

Quick, easy and almost untraceable. Hence why used by lots of scammers to receive payments. I would have thought that as you are receiving money, there is almost no risk to you from this method - of course, they may be using a fake/stolen credit card to do the payment in the first place, but even then, if it goes through you then have the cash in hand as you say so unless you're worried about law enforcement coming after you for that...

AFAIK the fee/commission structure works out quite well for sending small amounts of money overseas - we used it recently to send a small deposit to a Chinese supplier, but we made sure we were in a position to trust them a lot first!

 

[PayVector]

Actually there is a very well known confidence scam using Western Union.

Basically what they will do is say the Money Transaction Control Number (MTCN) code is held with an "Escrow" agent. The escrow agent will have a website and appear to be legit. Escrow agent will confirm they have the MTCN and will only release the password to that MTCN once the buyer has confirmed they have the product. The MTCN will be a valid one for the correct amount or slightly more to pay you for your troubles.

You then send out the goods and the buyer never confirms to the escrow agent that they received the goods. The escrow agent and the buyer are all the same person or group working together.

However saying that if they do wish to pay and are legit I would say not to send anything until you have gone to Western Union and received the cash.

Cash in hand can not be taken back so you are then good to send.

 

[vicky77]

As long as you are sure that you are actually using Western Union, and not some bogus service... and you follow all the guideline and checks... you should be okay.

 

[srusshuggins]

Western Union and Moneygram are Money Transfer companies that send money from one person to another worldwide. Your customer goes to his WU office in his country and pay them the equivalent of the item purchase price. He is given a reference number to give you. Within 30 minutes, you can go to your WU office, supply the reference number and collect your money.

If you're concerned, don't ship your item until you've collected payment.

 

[bestforsextoys]

DON'T USE IT they charged me £60 twice and i waited weeks to get one £60 back dont use it neither to pay china

Austin

 

[TheAlbear]

I would never use it for paying for an item as its untraceable. But for sending money to friend / fmaily round the world it works.

 

[nagehiro]

Spammers usually want YOU to pay by western union, not the other way round. You'll be fine, as long as you don't send the goods until you've got the cash from you nearest WU office.

I agree with magsite as long as you get the money first then it is fine. But be sure the WU sender address is the same with the shipping address. Any discrepancy with this is a potential trouble imho