Escrow.com is also playing games with me

[ulasbbtr]

I am having problems with Escrow.com. Here NP, there are two threads one is asking after buyout will Escrow.com become a failure? And in another thread one user has login problems with no support. https://www.namepros.com/threads/escrow-com-is-playing-games-with-me.957155/

My last two transactions with them are problematic with them. And the final one is strange so that I want to share here. I sold a domain at Domainnamesales, under brokerage. Buyer can't manage to initiate a transfer and then accepted push and created account at my registrar. I pushed the domain, buyer received it but didn't change the whois information, I asked the Domainnamesales transfer service to notify buyer about whois information update because from my previous transaction I know Escrow.com won't take any action if the buyer didn't mark the domain as received and didn't change whois information (or put domain under privacy). This is funny because if you sell a million-dollar domain name, and if buyer receives the domain and put privacy immediately this secure Escrow service will make you wait you for weeks or months to prove you are not a fraudster. Anyway, since I know this, I contacted to buyer and ask to mark the domain as received if he has the control. Buyer is a kind person and regrets about the situation and marked the domain as received and I checked also updated whois information. Then, 1-day inspection started, as buyer marked it received whois changed I am expecting no problems. As I expected that inspection passed and then verify funds started as usual. I takes two or three days and Escrow com closed the transaction. I started to wait my payment, it usually takes one day. But after three days with no payment, I see buyer sent a post to Domainnamesales thread because received a mail from Escrow.com which makes confusion at his side about what is going on. This is the thing buyer is posted:

"Hi,

We can only see that the change was made from the seller's name to being privitized. You may need to ask your broker how the domain is transfered to you
Can we release payment to the seller?"

Any help would be much appreciated.

Kind regards,
"

So isn't it strange? If the traditional initiate-receive payment-complete transfer-investigate-close thing doesn't work for Escrow.com why they didn't they change it. Buyer marked received, Escrow investigated everything ok and closed the transfer and after that isn't it strange to go back to the investigation period and creating confusion? Luckily mine is a mid xxx transaction but how can we trust such a service with no transparency and no well-defined rules for bigger transactions? There is big gap about buyer's privatization of domain and it is used as a seller's problem to hold payments and they do nothing about it.

 

[Lily Yang]

So do you have any other better way to make deals?Please recommend them to me.

 

[domeen]

Same thing here, buyer accepted the transfer in escrow!! He manually hit the "accept" button. But escrow still dosen`t belive!!!!!
I mean thats just plain stupidity. Isnt it?

I mean I can get, if a buyer dosen´t hit the "accept" button- If the inspection period passes etc..
Then maybe it would be ok, to ask the buyer if he has got the domain or not.

Now I wrote email to escrow.com said that they are idiots. Thats not nice,but IMO there is no other word for it.

Has all the brain power left escrow.com building? They sold out and left the idiots at freelancer at charge?

I think in few months they have run the company to the ground... Maybe not months but in year.


I mean make some point system for long time sellers/buyers - if the buyer has sold for 10 years and no negative feedback, then he probably is legit buyer/seller!! - You get it?

Escrow has to be fast, I want fast transactions, I don´t want to wait that some escrow.com idiot check for 5 days if the domain has been transfered or not.

I want fast money trasnsfers, I dont want to wait

 

[loredan]

Why don't you guys use Sedo escrow instead? It's only 3% and it goes fast and smooth. I never heard anyone complaining about them so far...

 

[jideofor]

Why don't you guys use Sedo escrow instead? It's only 3% and it goes fast and smooth. I never heard anyone complaining about them so far...

Sedo is no longer just 3% it is now 3%+ some additional fees which I can't remember. I will check my email.

 

[ulasbbtr]

Why don't you guys use Sedo escrow instead? It's only 3% and it goes fast and smooth. I never heard anyone complaining about them so far...

Domainnamesales has Escrow integration and I can't use alternative service there. Sedo escrow is much better as you pointed.

 

[loredan]

Domainnamesales has Escrow integration and I can't use alternative service there. Sedo escrow is much better as you pointed.

Yes, I know ...sorry i misread you post. DNS works with Escrow only

 

[NPer]

I closed two sales so far this month using Escrow.com, and both went smoothly.

Take note of the weekday that inspection period ends, and if it's a broker transaction, they have other steps as well which could add a day or two to the process.

 

[ulasbbtr]

I closed two sales so far this month using Escrow.com, and both went smoothly.

Take note of the weekday that inspection period ends, and if it's a broker transaction, they have other steps as well which could add a day or two to the process.

Hello @NPer the problem isn't their investigation process. First problem is its re-start after closing the transaction and in a manner which confuses buyer as if something fraudulent happened. This is the transaction history, and today they sent email to the buyer asking something like are you sure?

Jul 10 2016 9:55PM PDT
Funds disbursed. Final closing statements sent to all parties.

Jul 5 2016 5:16PM PDT
Inspection period ended, Buyer accepts merchandise.

And the second problem is they have no solution for buyer's privacy protection. When buyer receives the domain, he can do anything and you can do nothing about it. An if buyer puts privacy to the domain you sold, then Escrow gives "error" and holds everything because it is easier for them. If it happened to you in your transactions, you would probably still be trying to explain things to them.

 

[NPer]

Hello @NPer the problem isn't their investigation process. First problem is its re-start after closing the transaction and in a manner which confuses buyer as if something fraudulent happened. This is the transaction history, and today they sent email to the buyer asking something like are you sure?

Jul 10 2016 9:55PM PDT
Funds disbursed. Final closing statements sent to all parties.

Jul 5 2016 5:16PM PDT
Inspection period ended, Buyer accepts merchandise.

And the second problem is they have no solution for buyer's privacy protection. When buyer receives the domain, he can do anything and you can do nothing about it. An if buyer puts privacy to the domain you sold, then Escrow gives "error" and holds everything because it is easier for them. If it happened to you in your transactions, you would probably still be trying to explain things to them.

Hello @ulasbbtr. Sorry to hear about the complications with the sale- as a result of the buyer using privacy before marking the domain as received. The buyer should have marked the domain as received prior to using privacy (or should not have purchased privacy with the transfer) to allow Escrow.com to verify that indeed the domain was received. He could have used privacy once the escrow process came to a close.

Escrow.com is making sure on their end that the buyer indeed has the domain, so that the buyer doesn't come back saying he doesn't have the domain- which is also to your benefit when one thinks of all the situations could unfold with privacy enabled by the buyer. From EScrow.com's perspective, I can understand why they need to make double sure, so that they too are in the clear.

If the privacy was not enabled and the domain was marked as received by the buyer and Escrow.com could confirm whois, it would have been a better situation because then it is just the notification sent to the buyer to ensure that really do have the domain, inspection period lapses, closing statements sent, and you get paid.

I'm sure that once he replies with a "yes" to the "Are you sure?" email sent to him so that they have it officially on record, they will release the funds to you.

A bit of a wait, which is not the best, but hopefully he will respond to Escrow.com directly (not to the broker), and the funds will be released to you.

Congrats on the sale.

 

[Shimmy]

edited: nevermind, i see answer in later post

 

[ulasbbtr]

@NPer There is no problem with Escrow's want to be sure manner about buyer receive the domain. The problem is it should be in the inspection period not after the transaction marked as closed by them. When they do this buyer's reaction will be like in my case. That is :

"Can you confirm that I'm in complete control of ******.com? As I recieved this email and I'm not sure what to make of it "

Not obeying their own transaction rules doesn't add anything to security but only brings confusion.