Buyer buys multiple items with different addresses...

[maobserver]

So I have a situation with a buyer who purchased several copies of an item I have available. 

Each one of his purchases are to different names and different addresses and he's requesting no invoice inside the box that shows the price (hint).

I asked him via message why the request for no invoice and why do all 3 of his purchases have different addresses? 

His reply is that they're gifts so I asked him again to confirm that infact that is not his address which he acknowledged. Isn't this against the rules? Ebay specifically states to not ship to a verified address, paypal says the addresses are verified but how can they be if they're 3 different names and 3 different addresses Aside from his persona own info? This seems like he's buying my copies and selling them to people elsewhere which is why he's asking me to not prove price via invoice. 

Seems like a huge risk for me to even consider shipping any of these items specially since they're costly ($150) What can I do?

[je3034]

Ship them. You've already seen the addresses are verified: That's not a requirement; the requirement is that you ship to the address shown on each payment. And you've been told each is a gift (more likely a drop shipment), hence no invoice.

[or_couture]

Buyer pays, you ship. Simple as that.

Don't dig much into that.

I don't see any problem..

[slippinjimmy]

Gift, dropship....who cares? It's a sale, the buyer paid, the no invoice instruction would apply equally to both.

Ebay specifically states to not ship to a verified address

They certainly do not!

PayPal verifies address but it's not required for ANY form of Seller Protection and they verify the BUYER and their primary address (matches bank, credit card) not their shipping addresses of which there can be many. If their registered address is verified then all other addresses they use will also show as verified.

[lex-talon]

I read some of your negative feedback left by your buyers. 

You have a history of canceling orders without buyer consent. If it seems risky to ship all those items, feel free to cancel. But keep in mind: Too many cancellations can lead to serious repercussions. 

[maobserver]

Did you also choose to ignore the part where each of those buyers had unverified addresses with Paypal?

My guess is you chose to ignore that part & chose to leave a non helpful reply instead. 

[ads*and*ends]

I'm trying to piece together assumptions based on little information, please forgive me if I'm wrong.

I absolutely understand wanting to be extra cautious. However, dropshippers who buy with one ID and then have different ship-to addresses are not necessarily scammers. They're trying to keep their eBay account going, not rip people off. If you have received payment, and there is an address on the payment, just ship to that address, with tracking. You are covered if you ship to the address the buyer has in the payment section.

Of the negs you have received, I feel like maybe 1 or 2 of them were because you received a payment from someone internationally? But the shipping address was in the USA? Am I wrong on that?

If I'm not, then you would have been protected to the point of the USA shipping address that was on the payment. Anything outside of that is not your responsibility. Many buyers will be dropshippers with multiple addresses, especially if you have multiples of the kind of item they are selling. Many buyers overseas, have a contacted US based company or maybe even a friend that will have US only shipping items delivered through them. It's ok. Not everything you read in the forums or elsewhere is in any way the norm. Most people are just trying to buy something they want.

I agree with the above post, if you continue to cancel orders because you are overprotecting (I understand your fear) ...you will run the risk of account suspension. Ship to the address on the payment. You will be just as safe in seller protection by doing so, as you would in shipping to any other buyer.

For what it's worth, I completely understand your trepidation, but I think you're assuming the worst possible scenarios just because you are less familiar with them. As long as you do what is required, you should be fine. All we ever hear are the exception to the rule, the horror stories. That is not the norm.

[fashunu4eeuh]

---

@maobserver wrote:

So I have a situation with a buyer who purchased several copies of an item I have available. 

Each one of his purchases are to different names and different addresses and he's requesting no invoice inside the box that shows the price (hint).

I asked him via message why the request for no invoice and why do all 3 of his purchases have different addresses? 

His reply is that they're gifts so I asked him again to confirm that infact that is not his address which he acknowledged. Isn't this against the rules? Ebay specifically states to not ship to a verified address, paypal says the addresses are verified but how can they be if they're 3 different names and 3 different addresses Aside from his persona own info? This seems like he's buying my copies and selling them to people elsewhere which is why he's asking me to not prove price via invoice. 

Seems like a huge risk for me to even consider shipping any of these items specially since they're costly ($150) What can I do?

---

This is the middle of the holiday gift giving season. There is nothing unusual about multiple purchases by one buyer for equally as many addresses. Buyers can add as many ship to locations as they require at checkout. As sellers, we have to be careful that we don’t begin to see a scammer behind every transaction, no matter how innocent.

Assessing risk tolerance is best done prior to listing. Once the sale is made, its too late to pull out of it without consequence.

Selling on eBay isn't for everybody. You might consider a person-to-person venue for cash, particularly for items with higher price points.

Good luck to you, and congrats on your nice sale!

[penguins_dont_fly]

---

@maobserver wrote:

Did you also choose to ignore the part where each of those buyers had unverified addresses with Paypal?

My guess is you chose to ignore that part & chose to leave a non helpful reply instead. 

---

Addresses do not have to be "verified".

All that means is that they do not have a credit card or bank account linked to their PayPal account.

Buyers don't even have to have a PayPal account ... "sender of this payment is unregistered" ... They can checkout with a credit card which is processed by PayPal.

Heck ... Buyers really don't have to have an eBay Account ... they can purchase as a guest.

You got paid ... you ship to the address on the order.

You are covered for INR by both eBay and PayPal with a "Delivered" Scan to the address on the order.

Gift or dropship, doesn't matter. A sale is a sale.

[vintagecraze50]

As long as all the addresses are verified as shipping addresses on his PP account you should be ok. They may be drop shipping your items to others or may be purchasing them as gifts and sending them to others. The key for protection on PP is that the buyer has all the ship to addresses on his account, so you can challenge an Item not received claim properly with PP and win it if they say it did not get delivered.

[penguins_dont_fly]

---

@vintagecraze50 wrote:

As long as all the addresses are verified as shipping addresses on his PP account you should be ok. They may be drop shipping your items to others or may be purchasing them as gifts and sending them to others. The key for protection on PP is that the buyer has all the ship to addresses on his account, so you can challenge an Item not received claim properly with PP and win it if they say it did not get delivered.

There is no requirement that addresses need to be "verified".

A buyer can change the ship-to address directly at checkout.

---

[vintagecraze50]

If you are really worried about this just call PP and have them tell you if all the addresses are covered for INR claims. I always double check on situations like this so I do not spend unwarranted worry time. Bad way to spend your day.

[penguins_dont_fly]

---

@vintagecraze50 wrote:

If you are really worried about this just call PP and have them tell you if all the addresses are covered for INR claims. I always double check on situations like this so I do not spend unwarranted worry time. Bad way to spend your day.

---

The only time a seller is NOT protected is if they change the address after payment or ship without tracking.

There is no need to call PayPal or worry over "unverified" addresses.

The address on the Order is covered for INR. Period.

[vintagecraze50]

 So you are saying that a person can change an address for delivery using their credit card ? guest checkout and then there is a record of where this package was delivered so that protects the seller?

[lacemaker3]

---

@maobserver wrote:

Did you also choose to ignore the part where each of those buyers had unverified addresses with Paypal?

My guess is you chose to ignore that part & chose to leave a non helpful reply instead. 

---

eBay does not require you (or expect you) to ship only to buyers with verified addresses in PayPal, so this is not a valid reason to refuse to ship.

For one thing, in many countries, it isn't possible to get a verified address in PayPal, so this would block buyers in all those countries.

For another, eBay allows (even encourages) buyers to pay without using a PayPal acocunt. These are handled as guest purchases by PayPal, so they obviously can't have verified addresses.

Also, eBay has always allowed buyers to change the shipping address before they pay, and any alternate addresses the buyers uses will not be verified unless the buyer has a bank account for each of the addresses. And, with eBay's new Managed Payments, there are no verified addresses.

I understand your concerns. It is possible, as others have suggested, that these are truly gifts beiing shipped direct to the buyer's family and friends.

However, it is much more likely that these are arbitrage sales, which similar to (but not the same as) dropshipping. Some who is dropshipping, has a contract with a supplier to provide the items, and can therefore have some ability to ensure that the transactions will be completed satisfactorily. (Even so, if the supplier fails, then the dropshipper will take the heat for it.)

An arbitrage seller is selling items at a higher price, and then purchasing somewhere (anywhere) at a lower price to fulfill their sales. If the prices swing the wrong way before they can make their purchase, then the arbitrage seller will either lose money, or cancel the transaction. Most of them try the latter. eBay requires sellers to be able to fulfill their purchases, so if an arbitrage seller cancels sales, then they are not following eBay policy. But, as long as they are successfully completing transactions, then they are following eBay policy. Most websites (including Amazon) have the same policy, but who knows where the arbitrage seller is making his sales. Possibly, on their own website or a forum type of marketplace.

I would just look at this guy as someone who has helped you to get multiple sales of your item, so he has helped you out by providing free advertising and increasing your sales.

Some people recommend including a packing slip that clearly shows that the item was purchased on eBay, from the seller's user ID. Personally, I think that all packages being shipped should have a packing slip, with the contents, sender's address and recipient's address, so that if the package gets damaged, the post office will still be able to identify either the sender or the recipient, and will be able to deliver the package.

You may or may not include the selling price on the packing slip.