Thanks for the heads up. Hope you don't mind me putting a hot link in.

Here is a link that might be useful: Robbers Target CL users

im in the process of selling a lawn tractor on there. starting to wonder if its not a scam buyer. he supposedly sent a bankers check....but somehow "overdrafted" so after i cash the check i have to send the excess money back to his shipper instead of him??? he isnt picking it up himself but is sending his "shipper". what do you guys think of this??

I think you are about to get robbed my self. The give away is them sending more than you are asking for.

I would dodge that one, stinks to me. Your bank will cash the check, then if later it is faulty, they will charge the loss to your account.

I hope yetty734 is kidding.

Yetty, if what you say is true, then do not release the tractor until you and your bank are sure that the check is good. Do not return any funds to the shipper! Checks are cleared electronically now days, so a bank can tell you within 24 hours if a check is good. Otherwise they will have your cash and your tractor, and you will be posting on the net, "what happened".

yetty734 - here's another link from smartmoney you might want to check out.

Here is a link that might be useful: A Craigslist Scam

You have received a variation of the "Nigerian Scam! "
do not do what they ask!!!
You will end up in the poor house, they'll have yer gold, and away they will run--never to be seen again. And, if you have shipped anything to them, you will never get it back, nor will you get the money, because they send you a Cashiers Check, with more funds on it than your machine is worth, you cash it at the bank, and 2-3 weeks later, the bank calls with the distressing message that the check is counterfeit, WHEN ARE YOU COMING IN TO MAKE GOOD ON THE FUNDS WE GAVE YOU, ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT THE CHECK WAS GOOD!?!?! WHICH IT ISN'T!
I got one of those letters about 2 Frazier Tillers that a friend of mine was wanting to sell. Same story--they'd even send their associate to help my crate them and get them shipped, at which point, i could give him the balance of the money and all would be good-------yeah, for them, but stupid is as stupid does! I sent them packing!

Everytime I buy something(by mail, on-line or telephone)with a check or sell something(by mail, on-line or telephone)and accept a check for payment the goods stays with the original owner for about 2 weeks or until the check has cleared both banks(the bank the check is written on and the bank that recieves it). Also when the check is for a different amount than the payment - it is returned to sender.(I'm not a bank)
I have never had trouble using these rules.

It's not always the big stuff that these scam artists target. I had someone try it with a $150 matress that I was selling in the local newspaper classifieds. The initial contact was made using one of those "phone for the deaf" services. I played along for a bit but when I started asking questions, they dumped me. It's hard to know who to trust these days!

I have been using Craigslist for about a year and have picked up some really nice equipment this way. Most of the people that I have come in contact with are warm, sincere people that simply didn't bother to fix something, or really needed fast cash. During the Summer was when I got most of my email scams. I got one with a message header from Great Brittain, so I emailed the entire email header with the ip address to Scotland Yard, internet department that I found on their website. They actually took the time to follow up thanking me. If you follow Dateline, Chris Hansen recently did a story with an electronics scam in where the "shipper"
was actually an alleged attorney, but turned out to be a Nigerian local. Chris and the news team had these people so nervous they pulled their operation and moved it to Iran. Can't touch them now.
As it suggests on their website, Craigslist recommends dealing locally, avoiding payment methods such as Western Union, and lose the bank check idea. Most scams are from overseas, and it's fairly easy to tell because they destroy the english language worse than I do. The other obvious tell-tale sign is that they have no idea what you are selling and refer to your product as "the item". Run, don't walk from these people, simply delete their email and move on. The bulk email program utilized by these people won't miss your response, and chances are slim that they'll email you again. Trade safe.

Ebay is by far, the biggest scam house on the planet.
Craig's List is a distant second.

the guy who is likely scamming was informed last thursday that the only way i will except payment is in cash only form, from him, upon pickup. im in the process of reposting

It was reported on the news in Portland a couple of months back about a car sale gone bad. The fake ad guy who was "selling the car" tried to rob his potential buyer of his cash that he knew the buyer had on him. Several G's. If it smells bad, don't eat it!