Question for the forum. I just organised to buy a piece of hardware from a user at another forum. I am aware of schemes like paypal which allow online sale and exchange of items relatively safely. The deal is this, I get his ATI Radeon 9700 Pro in exchange for my Geforce3 and £170 (retail price on Radeon 9700 Pro is about £270 in the UK just now).

Suggested method for this deal is as below
Not having done a transaction across the net before other than credit card purchases of new hardware from companies, I just want to know if any UK forum users can verify that the suggested method is safe???

Thanks in advance for any replies.

Well I'm not in the UK but I've done many deals like that, all has gone well so far. Usually it's just a question of reliability. Another method would be Cash On Delivery if your postal service has that option.

Thanks for that Mict. The guy also wanted cash sent, whereas I would prefer to send a cheque. Guess a cheque could be cancelled though which might be his worry. I guess I'll go ahead and hope that I don't somehow get ripped off...

Yes that can be very bad. I am currently looking to buy a new mac laptop, and am very worried about getting ripped off. I have been scammed for a good chunk of money in the past and don't wish for it to happen again.

What is all boils down to is whether or not you can trust this person and feel safe doing business with them.

Do you know this guy well?

How about you just meet this guy in person, and exchange right there?

Unless of course, you live on opposite sides of the country...

Perhaps something like a middleman would help?

Escrow is another option, besides COD's.

Couldnt u tell the guy your gonna set a ebay auction for a Geforce3 for 270 quid and he does the same? Will u be covered then ?

I've bought stuff like this before and while I've never used Paypal or anything like that what usually happens is that the seller sends the kit after the cheque has cleared. I wouldn't send cash, (and I would be concerned that he is asking for cash), and I would use registered post or special delivery, just so that there is a record of you sending and him receiving the cheque, and vice versa with the goods. A lot of this is done on good will, and usually through someone like Ebay, where, if he welches on the deal can be flamed for evermore.... I have not yet been conned....

hope this helps