|
The New
Hampshire Boat Museum is an educational organization focusing on
the boating heritage and life on the lakes and rivers of New Hampshire.
We serve the local community and visitors by presenting exhibits
and outreach programs, events, publications and hands-on activities.
|
Scam Alert...
"We have heard from a number of our clients who are selling their boats privately as well as with www.antiqueboatamerica.com of individuals who attempting to scam sellers of their boats through PHONY CASHIERS CHECKS !!
Here is how it appears to be perpetrated.........
An individual usually from a foreign country responds to an ad for your "Boat for sale". The party offers to buy the vessel for the full asking price and offers to send a cashiers check as payment PLUS an additional amount which is intended as a loan payment of shipping fee. The person now buying the boat later asks that the excess funds be sent back to himself or, to this third party. The cashiers check is presented at your Bank and initially accepted but after clearing this foreign bank will be returned as non- negotiable or bogus !!
Some warning flags to look for are.....
1. The inquiring party asks very few ( if any) questions about the boat itself as to it's condition, etc.
2. You are immediately offered the FULL asking price for the boat or very close to it.
3. A sense of urgency is conveyed in having this transaction completed as soon as possible.
4. Typically the third party requires their funds very fast for any variety of reasons.
There are REAL buyers from outside the country and if you are going to accept an offer, ensure that you take the check to your local bank to verify it's authenticity and ensure that they confirm that the funds are available.
Most financial institutions will require 10-15 business days to clear the funds and it is critical to wait until the bank or financial institution informs you that the money has cleared. An honest buyer will not mind the delay and will understand your desire to be cautious and prudent.
Scammers are also beginning to slightly vary their tactics buy requesting account information such as routing numbers and bank account numbers so as to ( supposedly ) wire transfer funds. DO NOT provide these parties with any information without first checking with your financial institution. Also scammers have offered highly sought after boats for sale at unheard of prices or asking prices too good to be true. The scammer usually is using a Yahoo or MSN account number and instructs the buyer to wire the funds or a
deposit in order to hold the boat.
Unfortunately it would appear that scams like this are very hard to control and police and while the parties may one day be caught YOU do not want to be involved with having your monies amongst them. We are offering this information as a way of protecting YOU and our clients from this type of fraud and stress that you use extreme caution when faced with a potential transaction like the one described above.
We humbly suggest that using an experienced broker may help in identifying situations like these and Antique Boat America has devised a strategy for spotting and dealing with potentially fraudulent situations to ensure our clients are protected.
Should you have any questions, concerns or similar experiences that you would like to share, please contact Peter Mellon at Antique Boat America.com. He may be reached via email at peter@antiqueboatamerica.com or directly by phone at 613-237-5847 extension 609. he may also be reached after hours and on weekends on his cell phone at 613-720-0449.
OPEN: Memorial Day Weekend through Columbus Day –
HOURS: Monday through Saturday 10 - 4 / Sunday Noon - 4
New Hampshire Boat Museum 397 Center St. (Routes 109/28)
PO Box 1195 Wolfeboro Falls, NH 03896
PHONE: 603-569-4554 – EMAIL:
museum@nhbm.org