Someone I know has sent me a money order. He sent it a little over two weeks ago and it still hasn't been delivered. He lives about 3 hrs away in the foothills of NC. I live in the piedmont. If it still does not arrive to my house within the week, I'm assuming it is the fault of the money order company? I'm also assuming he will have to show a receipt by the money order company. If he threw the receipt away, is he not responsible still for sending my money?

Note: I've never used or seen a money order before, so I don't know how they work. If I never "cash" it, does the money never leave his account? Or is money transferred to it?

2/2/2010 8:46:42 AM

a money order is just a piece of paper worth X dollars. you can get them at a gas station, a grocery store, or a bank. if he sent it to you, then he sent it through regular mail in an envelope. and then it's the fault of the post office for not delivering it, or your friend's fault for telling you he sent it when he really didn't.

or, you say money order and you really mean a money wire/transfer through western union, in which case those things are practically instant and you gotta go to the western union to get your moneys.

2/2/2010 8:50:41 AM

hmm. He said he bought it at a gas station, so I guess it was indeed a money order. I was hoping it would be like if you ship something UPS or FedEx or whatever, they give you a tracking number for it and you can tell where it is online with that tracking number. I don't know if this is the case though.

How do I deal with the post office on this issue?

2/2/2010 8:56:54 AM

basically, your friend bought the money order and after that, it's on him to get it in the mail and send it to you. if he says he put it in the mail you gotta take his word for it. you can't go after the post office for not delivering a piece of mail unless there was a delivery confirmation, and in this case i'm guessing there isn't because it's just regular mail.

your only option is to wait it out. but after 2 weeks, i'd say that your friend is lying and he never put the money order in the mail.

2/2/2010 8:58:53 AM

mother fucker didn't send you any money order.

2/2/2010 8:59:04 AM

^

basically

2/2/2010 8:59:30 AM

2/2/2010 9:01:35 AM

Quote :

"TWW helps me solve a money order question "

and DONE.

/thread

2/2/2010 9:02:48 AM

paypal ftw

2/2/2010 9:04:32 AM

Quote :

"If he threw the receipt away, is he not responsible still for sending my money? "

yes because it is his only proof he bought one, and even then you still dont know if he put it in the mail

2/2/2010 9:09:26 AM

Money Orders come with a receipt. If it is not cashed, it can be re-issued. If this person claims they do not have the receipt, nothing can be done. He will need to re-purchase it.

2/2/2010 9:11:04 AM

^ im pretty sure the fact it comes with a receipt was already established

2/2/2010 9:13:17 AM

Is he Nigerian?

2/2/2010 9:13:19 AM

^ winner

2/2/2010 9:18:56 AM

there goes your inheritance

2/2/2010 9:49:28 AM

if your friend bought a money order (non-usps) and sent it through the mail, he/you are SOL unless he insured the mail. The USPS won't do anything for lost money orders that aren't through USPS. From now on either have money wire or use USPS money orders.

Many times other money order vendors won't do anything for you, but your chances are better if you have a receipt and the order was never cashed.

2/2/2010 9:56:11 AM

How much money are we talking about here? Just curious, because if it was a substantial amount then the friend should have done a better job to ensure safe/secure delivery (i.e. delivery confirmation, insurance, etc etc.)

If he just threw it in a regular envelope and put a stamp on it, the post office will have a bitch of a time tracking it down. And by bitch of a time, i mean nearly impossible.

[Edited on February 2, 2010 at 10:02 AM. Reason : a]

2/2/2010 10:00:36 AM

Part of the idea behind using a money order is that if it is lost or destroyed there is some type of recourse, unlike losing or destroying cash.

2/2/2010 10:07:29 AM

^

exactly. no point in trying to get USPS to find it. The only real way to get it resolved is to go through the company that issued the money order. I would assume that IF it has been cashed, they will know where it was cashed. And they can pursue it with the place that cashed it, since they obviously did not do a very good job at checking the identification of the casher. If it hasn't been cashed, they can issue a new one. (assuming your buddy kept the receipt).

a money order is essentially the same thing as writing a check. the only person who can cash it is the person who it is issued to. if someone else is allowed to cash it, then the fault lies on the location that cashed it.

[Edited on February 2, 2010 at 10:12 AM. Reason : a]

2/2/2010 10:10:29 AM

well with that solved...

now is the time on sprockets when we dance!

2/2/2010 10:14:48 AM

TOUCH MY MONKEY

TOUCH HIM!

LOVE HIM!

2/2/2010 10:15:20 AM

^hahahhahaha

2/2/2010 10:17:25 AM

USPS won't do anything for non-USPS money orders.

2/2/2010 10:17:27 AM

Thanks for the tips. It's not a ton of money: just a couple hundred bucks (but that's alot to me).

Updates: He did put a return address and supposedly they will return it if it is "undeliverable" (possible with the recent bad weather). They did give a tracking number on the receipt. I hope to God he kept it. He's notorious for losing them though.

2/2/2010 10:17:46 AM

Quote :

"now is the time on sprockets when we dance!"

hahahahahhaha

2/2/2010 10:18:12 AM

I used a money order to buy my lawn darts off of craigslist. I bought then off of craigslist and he sent them about the same time I sent the money order. It is sort of a trust system. I could have had him send them, but never sent the money order and gotten something for free.

2/2/2010 10:18:43 AM

Then he is just a stupid seller. You never send anything you sell online until you receive payment for it.

2/2/2010 10:20:47 AM

Money order...with no receipt...that got lost in the mail...

You're gettin jerked around

2/2/2010 10:23:07 AM

This someone, is a complete douchebag. Just sayin.

2/2/2010 10:25:54 AM

Quote :

"They did give a tracking number on the receipt. I hope to God he kept it. "

If he's not lying, then he has the receipt/tracking number for the money order. Which means he still has to mail it to you even if he does get a replacement - and it seems like shipping is the whole issue here.

I think the guy is jerking you around and just not mailing it.

Tell him to do Paypal!

2/2/2010 10:29:45 AM