Shipping and Escrow Company

[Jasper4247]

Has anyone used a company called Payward Logistics in the purchase and shipping of a vehicle.

Apparently they hold payment for the seller, ship the vehicle to the buyer, then the buyer has five days to decide whether to take the vehicle.

If so, they release the money to the seller; if not, they come back and pick the vehicle up at the expense of the seller.

Is this company legit?

[gungeey]

At the expense of the seller? They might be legit but those are some lousy rules.

It would be cheaper flying someone out to me so they can look at my car and then they can think about buying it. Maybe. 

 

Hell, maybe I should pick them up at Logan,too.. 🤣 

[auburnseeker]

So I'm going to pay to get it returned to me because the buyer got cold feet.  I don't think so!!!  

 

Like Bill said,  I have bought atleast 5 cars sight unseen.   Will most likely buy my next the same way. 

[TAKerry]

I am wary of anyone wanting to take my money, especially a third party. As was mentioned, IF I am in doubt, a trip to see the car and seller in person is worth the price of admission. If you cannot afford that, than how can you possibly afford losing thousands of dollars?

 

A few years ago I was looking for a used truck. Answered a CL ad. The response was the truck was across the country (in the ad it was supposed to be within a half hr. drive of my house) and I could send the money to an escrow. They would ship the truck to my door if I liked it I would sign off on the payment. IF not they would take it back. Kinda sounds like the same thing to me. In my instance the whole settup was def. a scam. I called the seller out and reported. Same ad appeared in surrounding area CL with different addresses.

[R Walling]

Google the name and see what comes up!    😈☠️

[SC38dls]

Run don’t walk away from a deal like that. Go see the car if you are buying it and work with a bank directly for the the money transfer. If selling be patient for a real buyer to come with cash or willing to work with your bank. Go to the bank and set up the transfer paperwork in advance and most banks will help you without a fee if you are a regular long term customer. It’s a simple transaction as long as you have a clean title.  Both of you will be secure in the transaction. 
dave s 
 

[Matt Harwood]

Total scam. Not terribly common, but still a known scam. They'll even set up a professional-looking website designed to collect your information, perhaps even a credit card number for "membership fees" or as a "backup source of funding." Maybe they just want your password (which is why you should use a different password for all your online transactions). Better yet, some sucker gives them the whole nut thinking it's a legit transaction, and POOF! They're gone. The car never gets picked up, there is no shipping company, nothing like that. Just an offshore scammer with the resources to build a legitimate-looking website and hope to hook a few suckers.

 

Don't do it. Escrow services outside the financial and real estate markets are all BS. They know you're worried about getting ripped off. They're counting on it. And that's exactly when you get ripped off--you're already looking the other way while the real thieves pick your pocket.

 

 

Edited January 25, 2023 by Matt Harwood (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

There is a lawyer that advertises in the AACA national

magazine for handling automotive difficulties.  I believe

that he could work out an escrow arrangement if you need it.

 

The details of the one you mention don't sound legitimate.

[alsancle]

21 hours ago, Jasper4247 said:

Has anyone used a company called Payward Logistics in the purchase and shipping of a vehicle.

Apparently they hold payment for the seller, ship the vehicle to the buyer, then the buyer has five days to decide whether to take the vehicle.

If so, they release the money to the seller; if not, they come back and pick the vehicle up at the expense of the seller.

Is this company legit?

 

As a seller I would tell you to go pound sand.

[Dandy Dave]

Cash is King. Bring a trailer, look the vehicle over and Cash sales sorts out the BS. I would never sell a vehicle that way.  

[Terry Bond]

Google it. Well known scam.

Terry

[Jasper4247]

Thank you for all of the replies. Actually, a friend called me about this because he is considering purchase of a small RV that he came across on the internet. He called the guy who said he posted it on behalf of his mother. He stated that he was selling the vehicle through this escrow and shipping company (Payward Logistics) and explained to him how it works. (He may have misunderstood about the seller eating the shipping costs). But, I never used a setup like this, and advised him to be wary. Thought I would post it here just to see if anyone used this company or something similar. 

I would not. When I bought my 50 Merc, I flew to Texas to inspect it myself.

We are in PA, that RV is in Indiana; not really that far for him to go check it out in person.

The company does have an official looking website and appear to be headquartered in New York. He said he may call the New York Attorney General's office to inquire. I gave my opinion and did my part:it's up to him to decide.

Thank you everyone.

 

[Matt Harwood]

There is no RV. It's bait for the escrow company.

[60FlatTop]

26 minutes ago, Jasper4247 said:

I gave my opinion and did my part:it's up to him to decide.

Many years ago a good friend used to have me service his Commodore 8 Hudson. He would let it sit for long periods of time and I would have a heck of a time getting it started after sitting two years or so. He got it in his head that the car needed an engine rebuild.

 

We were walking away from my garage and I told him yet another time it didn't need the rebuild. He stopped dead in his tracks and told me "I don't care what you say. I'm not going to let you talk any sense into me!"

 

Now, just read through these replies and ponder what prompted that memory.

[John_S_in_Penna]

1 hour ago, Jasper4247 said:

...He called the guy who said he posted it on behalf of his mother. He stated that he was selling the vehicle through this escrow and shipping company...

The stated arrangement makes me very suspicious.

Scammers don't want you to see the vehicle, and usually

price it so that you'll act quickly without thinking.  

We have seen:

 

---You can't come to see the car:  The seller is crippled,

or far away, deployed in the military overseas, or even

working on an offshore oil platform!

 

---The car is already crated at a shipping center, so

it's impossible to come see.  (No one crates a car

for domestic transport.)

 

---Delivery is free, and once the car is delivered to you,

you can decide whether you like it.  If not, the seller will

pay to have it shipped back to him.  (That's absurd,

because no seller would pay shipping several times,

and usually not even once.)

 

This escrow-and-shipping method sounds like a variation.

But we hobbyists expose the wrong-doers and help to

protect each other!

 

Edited January 25, 2023 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[Terry Bond]

...and I repeat - GOOGLE it!  Well known scam that also includes selling vehicles they don't have!

If the OP and his friend choose to follow through and help the scammer steal more $ it's on them.  We've tried our best to help them prevent a self-inflicted wound.

Terry

[60FlatTop]

Things tend to fall back on the old idea that if you have to ask you probably shouldn't and a red flag had already gone up. I have seen scams and swindles all my life. They are easy to spot.

 

The person I really have to watch out for is myself. And that is for doing stupid things. Ignorance is easy for me to clear away. Stupid things I talk myself into.

 

Two weeks ago I bought a car 300 miles away from me. It was a Facebook listing, a stranger I never met and only pictures of the car. Two conversations and the second one was basically "How do you want the money sent?"

 

I did a $4,000 bank transfer and arranged a transporter. The only outside advice was sending a link to the ad to a friend asking what he thought. "Nice car" was the reply.

 

The key thing I assure myself with, once establishing the car exists, is that I can't suffer a 100% loss. I can recover most if not more than my outlay if the car does not meet my expectations. In this instance the car exceeds them.

 

Early in this century I assessed the risk of buying "sight unseen". I calculated that I could withstand a $3500 loss without having the kids go barefoot or starve. If I bought an $8500 car that I deemed reasonably priced and made a mistake could I recover $5,000. I trust my judgement that I can or any multiple of that. I have bought and sold a few over the 20 years since establishing the policy. No noticeable losses come to mind. At appropriate time (for her) my wife has even told me I am ahead. I think the process of defining the policy is equal to having it.

 

And I always use my screening questions as I have posted before:

 

Buyer’s Questions

1. Do you own the car and have legal proof?

2 Is the paperwork clear and free of liens, unbranded?

3. How long have you owned the car?

4. Is the car currently licensed and insured?

5. Can it be driven on the road, legally, today?

6 Is the car in storage? If so, how long has it been stored?

7. How many miles did you drive it during the last 12 months?

8. Have you done any major work on the car since you have owned it?

9. What and when was the most recent service or repair?

10. If you decided to keep the car what improvement would you consider important?

11. Would you feel comfortable handing your wife the keys and sending her out to pick up a gallon of milk?

Each question has deep indication of the seller's knowledge and to the car's usage. It makes a pleasant and telling conversation.

 

Question 10 can be the clincher. On this recent purchase the seller said he would probably have the right side pinstripe redone if he kept it. I was all in on that answer.

 

Prime directive #1, if you think it is a scam drop it. Do not make any contact with the seller. He is a professional and makes his living scamming. If you pompously tell him he is that message could very well be used to his advantage.

 

[Jasper4247]

I forwarded a Better Business Bureau article to my friend dealing with this exact issue of escrow and shipping companies being scams.

He sent me a text about two hours later stating that he was not going to pursue this any further.

 

60FlatTop - enjoyed the story about your Hudson Commodore 8 buddy.

 

 

[Jasper4247]

Terry,

I did Duck Duck Go it (I never use Google) and that is where I found the BBB article that I forwarded to my friend.

The OP (me) was never going to choose to follow through with anything; just gathering info from an excellent source (AACA members) so my friend could make his own rational choice; and, once again, I thank all of you for your input. 

The OP (me) would never consider buying/owning an RV.     A Hudson Commodore 8 -YES; an RV - NEVER

 

[TAKerry]

If your friend is serious about an RV, go to FLA. There are plenty to choose from at decent prices.

[Jasper4247]

Thanks TAKerry

Florida certainly would be a great place to buy when you think about it.

I think this RV thing is his wife's idea that he is desperately trying to suppress😀

I will, however, advise him that FL would be a good place to look. Heck, a trip to FL from PA in Jan/Feb would be a plus.

[TAKerry]

I have 2 brothers that are into the rv thing. I used to take one of them to Daytona for bike week every year. It was there and talking to other rv'ers that I leaned about the advantage of buying one there. There seems to be a glut of vehicles that have been used sparingly and put up for sale. I knew of a couple of guys that bought high dollar 'pushers' for literally pennies on the dollar. To me they are nothing more than a boat on the road. I know enough to not own either!

 

As to the original post, the 'Im holding the sale for a friend, relative etc.' is the same m.o. that I ran across.

[DeAnna Fleming]

I've never used Payward Logistics, but I did need to ship my car once and ended up choosing a company I found through a1autotransport. From their list, I went with United Parcel Service (UPS) because of their strong reputation. My experience with UPS was pretty solid—they're known globally for their efficient and reliable delivery services, and they lived up to that reputation when shipping my car. They're based out of Atlanta, Georgia, and have a knack for handling logistical challenges smoothly, thanks to their use of AI and advanced tracking technology. This made the whole process transparent and reassuring for me. So, if you're looking for a dependable shipping option, I'd recommend checking out some well-established companies. It’s always good to go with one that has proven its worth over time.

Edited March 15 by DeAnna Fleming (see edit history)

[George Smolinski]

On 1/25/2023 at 11:07 AM, Matt Harwood said:

There is no RV. It's bait for the escrow company.

Maybe it’s an invisible RV like Wonder Woman’s invisible plane.

[jdome]

27 minutes ago, George Smolinski said:

Maybe it’s an invisible RV like Wonder Woman’s invisible plane. 

Read the current thread under  Pontiacs Transparent Cars and GenerL Discussion.  Maybe it was an Transparent Pontiac.  Rare  but real.

Edited March 11 by jdome (see edit history)

[1912Staver]

On 1/25/2023 at 10:37 AM, 60FlatTop said:

Things tend to fall back on the old idea that if you have to ask you probably shouldn't and a red flag had already gone up. I have seen scams and swindles all my life. They are easy to spot.

 

The person I really have to watch out for is myself. And that is for doing stupid things. Ignorance is easy for me to clear away. Stupid things I talk myself into.

 

Two weeks ago I bought a car 300 miles away from me. It was a Facebook listing, a stranger I never met and only pictures of the car. Two conversations and the second one was basically "How do you want the money sent?"

 

I did a $4,000 bank transfer and arranged a transporter. The only outside advice was sending a link to the ad to a friend asking what he thought. "Nice car" was the reply.

 

The key thing I assure myself with, once establishing the car exists, is that I can't suffer a 100% loss. I can recover most if not more than my outlay if the car does not meet my expectations. In this instance the car exceeds them.

 

Early in this century I assessed the risk of buying "sight unseen". I calculated that I could withstand a $3500 loss without having the kids go barefoot or starve. If I bought an $8500 car that I deemed reasonably priced and made a mistake could I recover $5,000. I trust my judgement that I can or any multiple of that. I have bought and sold a few over the 20 years since establishing the policy. No noticeable losses come to mind. At appropriate time (for her) my wife has even told me I am ahead. I think the process of defining the policy is equal to having it.

 

And I always use my screening questions as I have posted before:

 

Buyer’s Questions

1. Do you own the car and have legal proof?

 

2 Is the paperwork clear and free of liens, unbranded?

 

3. How long have you owned the car?

 

4. Is the car currently licensed and insured?

 

5. Can it be driven on the road, legally, today?

 

6 Is the car in storage? If so, how long has it been stored?

 

7. How many miles did you drive it during the last 12 months?

 

8. Have you done any major work on the car since you have owned it?

 

9. What and when was the most recent service or repair?

 

10. If you decided to keep the car what improvement would you consider important?

 

11. Would you feel comfortable handing your wife the keys and sending her out to pick up a gallon of milk?

 

 

Each question has deep indication of the seller's knowledge and to the car's usage. It makes a pleasant and telling conversation.

 

Question 10 can be the clincher. On this recent purchase the seller said he would probably have the right side pinstripe redone if he kept it. I was all in on that answer.

 

Prime directive #1, if you think it is a scam drop it. Do not make any contact with the seller. He is a professional and makes his living scamming. If you pompously tell him he is that message could very well be used to his advantage.

 

 

I don't think that over the course of the 38 years my wife and I have been together I have had a single vehicle that I could answer yes to on question 11. All my cars tend to be one person cars. My wife has driven a few of my cars from time to time, but always as last resort.

 

 

 

Edited March 11 by 1912Staver (see edit history)