Am I Protected?

[dominic38017]

Perhaps I'm just paranoid, but it's been a rough year!

I just accepted an offer for an item (a replica Star Wars lightsaber) from a buyer who joined eBay the day my item listed and has zero feedback. Red flags! At any rate, he paid through Paypal with a credit card and his 300 dollar payment shows in my Paypal account. His address is verified in Paypal but "the sender of this payment is unverified."

As long as I ship with signature confirmation, am I protected if he disputes the charge? I'm a top-rated seller, if that matters.

Thanks,

Dominic

[mtgraves7984]

Well, I don't cull '0' buyers... they may have joined today because they just found exactly what they want. If the payment is showing in PayPal, you should be okay. Make sure to ship ONLY to the address on the eBay order. I don't know what the 'seller of this payment is unverified' means... sorry.

You aren't required a signature delivery unless it's over $750 (I'd fully insure it), but do what you feel is best.

Good luck!

[simba6]

A new buyer does not mean a scammer.  With any buyer there is real risk selling here. Never sell an item you can't afford to lose.

[nkmipgolf]

"the sender of this payment is unverified."

He hasn't completed the verification process with PayPal. Meaning they haven't added and confirmed their bank account. No big deal.

[aldente28]

The way I see it, there are so many ways for buyers to scam sellers that it doesn't pay to worry about them all.

I have a few rules that I follow religiously: never change anything after the sale, never take the transaction outside ebay, cancel if a buyer requests any of these after the sale. It seems to work out for the most part. I win some and I lose some. Fortunately, most people aren't scammers. If they were, that would be the end.

[fashunu4eeuh]

Hi Dominic, 

Please pardon my contradiction: a new zero feedback seller is not a red flag, and neither is a PayPal unverified status. Not on its own. You have checked that the funds are safely deposited in PayPal and it is time to ship. You are protected by tracking once a package has been successfully delivered, from any Item Not Received claim. As far as the signature confirmation, eBay only requires that for transactions at $750 and above. That is the extent of protection afforded you by eBay. I wouldn't attach the SC to a package unless it was explicitly mentioned in the listing. It sometimes creates hardships for the buyer who may not be easily available to sign. In this case, it affords you no greater protection either. Shipping insurance would be in order for an expensive item. That truly protects your interests. 

As far as your risk is concerned, there is no way to know if the transaction will go south. Judging by actions, so far the buyer has done nothing that creates a red flag. He is a new buyer who may have joined simply to buy your item. But you are obligated to ship. The time to assess one's risk tolerance is prior to listing. Once sold, you have already committed yourself to completing the transaction. There is just no way to know if a buyer is a scammer, whether new account or old, until he tips his hand. Selling online is a calculated risk for all of us. 

But don't get me wrong, it is good to be cautious. Have you experienced many issues with dishonest buyers? In the ten years I have been selling, I have never been scammed and find overwhelmingly that buyers are honest and most transactions go off without a hitch. Completing the sale is, of course, entirely up to you, although canceling a transaction comes with penalties. A defect will be leveled on your account unless the buyer requests the cancellation. Is this buyer overseas? That might give me pause, except i only ship to those countries with dependable postal services.

So if this were my sale, I would ship. If anything happens, I deal with it when it does, and do not worry in the interim.

Good luck and congrats on a nice sale!