Can EFTs be trusted?

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notinterested

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Selling an item and the buyer is going to do an instant eft in front of me. From absa to fnb.

However I see that absa takes an hour or so to process the eft, even if you choose the instant option, if the recipient is new to you, ie. You haven't paid them before.

But I believe that instant efts are irreversible so can I trust them and release the goods once I see the eft go through on their side?
 
Get them to pay beforehand and wait until it reflects. There's simply no alternative to making sure you're not getting scammed.
 
notinterested said:
Selling an item and the buyer is going to do an instant eft in front of me. From absa to fnb.

However I see that absa takes an hour or so to process the eft, even if you choose the instant option, if the recipient is new to you, ie. You haven't paid them before.

But I believe that instant efts are irreversible so can I trust them and release the goods once I see the eft go through on their side?
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Let them eft you into an empty savings account or something. Then when the money reflects, transfer that out to your transactional account so that they cannot reverse the EFT.
 
Mogo said:
Let them eft you into an empty savings account or something. Then when the money reflects, transfer that out to your transactional account so that they cannot reverse the EFT.
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Can banks reverse an EFT? I know they can for CC charges.
 
Ask them to send a proof of payment with the transaction (ie. the bank must send the SMS/email). A screenshot is not good enough nor is anything coming from their cellphone/email.
 
Rickster said:
Can banks reverse an EFT? I know they can for CC charges.
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As far as I am aware it can only be reversed if due process is followed. The bank will contact the recipient to confirm, it'll cost the guy paying money (potentially) to initiate the process etc.
 
Rickster said:
Can banks reverse an EFT? I know they can for CC charges.
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Yes you can reverse an eft, but you will have to go to the bank and fill out some forms and it will cost you about R250 whether the reversal is successful or not, the bank will then contact the recipient for approval, if the recipient says no then you dont get your money.
 
I’ve recently had an eft reversed from my account without being contacted, in fact 2 that were made on the same day were reversed the very next day.

fortunately I knew that it was accidental payments so didn’t query anything. Forgot that I needed to contact the bank about this as it’s a bit worrying that something like that could be done without checking with me first.
 
Mogo said:
Let them eft you into an empty savings account or something. Then when the money reflects, transfer that out to your transactional account so that they cannot reverse the EFT.
Click to expand...

Love it :thumbsup:
 
Smokey mcpot said:
I’ve recently had an eft reversed from my account without being contacted, in fact 2 that were made on the same day were reversed the very next day.

fortunately I knew that it was accidental payments so didn’t query anything. Forgot that I needed to contact the bank about this as it’s a bit worrying that something like that could be done without checking with me first.
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What bank is this? i dont want to bank with them
 
I don't trust instant EFTs. If it's a different bank to mine, they can kick and scream all they want, but they are going to wait at least 24 hours until I can see the money.
 
My business banks with FNB. ABSA is the worst bank for EFT transfers to FNB. It can take 2 hours for an instant payment to come through. Regular EFTs from ABSA can be reversed. Do not trust them. I insist on the funds clearing before handing over goods.
 
Sold a car a couple years back, new owner did a EFT in front of me. Money didn’t reflect for 24hrs, didn’t sleep that night.

Difficult one getting someone to pay upfront for a big purchase.

Otherwise let them view, ask for a cash deposit and wait for funds to clear.
 
jezzad said:
Sold a car a couple years back, new owner did a EFT in front of me. Money didn’t reflect for 24hrs, didn’t sleep that night.

Difficult one getting someone to pay upfront for a big purchase.

Otherwise let them view, ask for a cash deposit and wait for funds to clear.
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Yikes CASH deposit charges!!! :notworthy:
 
Getting an EFT (not a debit order) reversed is not common.
 
jezzad said:
Sold a car a couple years back, new owner did a EFT in front of me. Money didn’t reflect for 24hrs, didn’t sleep that night.

Difficult one getting someone to pay upfront for a big purchase.

Otherwise let them view, ask for a cash deposit and wait for funds to clear.
Click to expand...

Did the same, but the guy did an instant clearance for me. Capitec to FNB. Took less than 1 min to reflect.

We sat at McDonalds. When I saw the money in my account, I moved it over to my credit card (to check it was actually there) and gave him the keys. He drove away in his new car, and I had a paid off some credit card debt.
 
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