If you block a buyer & they create a new ID to buy your item, what can you do?

[westcoastsewingpatterns]

I recall this happening in the past - Ebay says once they are blocked, they are not allowed to bid/buy anything from you.

I just had a buyer ask too many questions & it raised red flags, so I blocked the person.

They created a new ID and bought the item.

I contacted Ebay (via Twitter) and asked what I could do.   I was told I had no recourse.

Further he said that Ebay has no way to know if two accounts are related (I suggested look

at the name & address?!?!?!)

Long story short, I will have to ship the item (and probably get negative feedback, based on the buyer's feedback left) or not send the item and get negative feedback.

I don't want negative feedback but I'd like to avoid it if possible. It's a low price item.

Any suggestions?

[inhawaii]

If you block a buyer & they create a new ID to buy your item, what can you do?

Block his new ID too.

[nuclearomen]

ebay has no recourse on users creating new accounts, many people have more then 1 account. There really isn't anything you can do except block said accounts... and hope the buyer just gives up from there. 

As for neg feedback - well since currently they didn't leave you any, then don't worry about it for now. Never know, they could wind up leaving up good/postive feedback. If they by chance don't, the only choices you have is 1. respond to feedback (not advised) and explain best you can the situation with buyer 2. Reach out to buyer via ebay inbox (recommended) and try and talk to buyer (with choosing your words and accroach with caution, be nice/respectful is best route) and ask if they will revise their feedback. 3. Do none of the above and let the feedback - pass - on - by. 4. Do none of the above but request feedback revision. - hopefully none those will be needed and buyer either leaves you postive or doesn't leave any at all (best possibility). 

[janet9988]

Cant you use this link to report them????

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/resolving-buyer-issues/reporting-issue-buyer?id=4084

What are the guidelines?

Not allowed

You can't buy with the intent to disrupt a listing.

Here are some examples:

• You can't place a bid that greatly exceeds the value of the item in order to prevent a sale without intending to buy that item
• You can't bid on multiple items listed by a seller unless you intend to buy all of the items
• You can't try to buy or bid on an item if you're on a seller's blocked bidder or buyer list
• You can't use another account to buy or bid on an item if you're on a seller's blocked bidder or buyer list

As a seller, you can report a buyer who bids on a listing without meeting the listing terms.

Important: Buyers who don't respond or don't pay for items are violating the unpaid item policy, not the unwelcome buying policy.

[downunder-61]

If you report the buyer eBay can check the ISP to see if it was indeed a second id ^^^^

[sin-n-dex]

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@westcoastsewingpatterns wrote:

I recall this happening in the past - Ebay says once they are blocked, they are not allowed to bid/buy anything from you.

I just had a buyer ask too many questions & it raised red flags, so I blocked the person.

They created a new ID and bought the item.

I contacted Ebay (via Twitter) and asked what I could do.   I was told I had no recourse.

Further he said that Ebay has no way to know if two accounts are related (I suggested look

at the name & address?!?!?!)

Long story short, I will have to ship the item (and probably get negative feedback, based on the buyer's feedback left) or not send the item and get negative feedback.

I don't want negative feedback but I'd like to avoid it if possible. It's a low price item.

Any suggestions?

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If you only have messages from the first ID, you cannot definitively prove the two accounts are linked. (you can call eBay and ask them to look into it). If they do confirm it's the same person, make sure you get instructions from them on how to cancel the sale.

If I've had to cancel a sale like this (and I had proof that I was correct), I would write to the buyer through eBay messages a message like this:

Dear Buyer,

I've had to cancel your purchase because your ID (xxx) is on my Block Bidders List and you have circumvented that by creating a new ID to purchase from me. I've discussed the situation with (eBay employee) at eBay on call number ### (get the call reference when you call) and they've advised me to cancel your order as problem with buyer's address.

sincerely, Seller

Remember when you send messages to buyers, it's not always for their benefit but rather an audit trail of communication between you and the buyer. You don't really need to send a message like that to your buyer but it will help you get negative feedback removed.

Make sure you know for sure it's the same buyer (eBay should confirm this before you cancel the sale or send any such messages). If you can't confirm it's the same person (which I don't think you can on your own because you don't have the person messaging you's address info), you will have to ship the order.

C.

[sin-n-dex]

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@inhawaii wrote:

If you block a buyer & they create a new ID to buy your item, what can you do?

Block his new ID too.

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That doesn't help once a sale has happened. The OP has only a choice to get eBay to confirm it is the same buyer (they have their methods, Trust and Safety can usually help with this), or go ahead with shipping the order.

If it's me on a low value item, I would probably be inclined to ship and deal with the fall out when it happens. On a more expensive order where I'm certain I'm being scammed, that's a different matter. I've cancelled a few sales due to scammy behaviour (after verifying information to make sure I was correct).

C.

[westcoastsewingpatterns]

The person that responded on Twitter said they have no way to verify if it is the same account. I know they can. I asked him to just look at name & address. He refused. I sent another message and asked that my concern be sent to trust & safety. I doubt I will get any response.

[westcoastsewingpatterns]

Ebay refused to confirm. He told me that there was no rule about a buyer creating a second ID to circumvent the block.

[eunster1313]

@westcoastsewingpatterns 

You will find this at the bottom of the page.
The burden of proof is (if you have reason to believe).
There are also links there t report the buyer.

1. Put the new user id on your blocked list.
2. cancel the transaction using issue with buyers address.
2. Report the buyer for circumventing your buyer block list so you can be

    protected from bad feedback.

2020 Spring Seller Update - Updates to how you service your customers

https://pages.ebay.com/seller-center/seller-updates/2020-spring/service.html 

[lightlily_arts]

How are you certain that this is the same person?   This is just a question.   You can't really do anything but ship the item.  However, if the buyer leaves you negative feedback then you can report the buyer for a policy  violation because they aren't allowed to create an alternate ID to circumvent your blocked bidders to list and leave negative feedback.  It's called malicious buying.  You quote this policy to the eBay CS when reporting the buyer.

[kennys-kollectibles]

All good points, but ebay doesn't even follow thier own policies, so

much of your good information will not matter in the end. 

We sellers have to walk on egg shells, smile after being scammed, 

don't rock the boat,  and pretend we like it when buyers screw  up our 

auctions.    but buyers can generally break policies for months on end

with no consequences.    See it for years. 

[otow_18]

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@westcoastsewingpatterns wrote:

Ebay refused to confirm. He told me that there was no rule about a buyer creating a second ID to circumvent the block.

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And that's correct, right here, right now, in 2021. eBay already said:

When it comes to Blocked Bidder/Buyer Avoidance or Intent to Disrupt, we do have very strict policies to ensure our sellers are protected. That said, when it comes to the Avoidance piece, we typically do ask sellers to complete the transaction on the buyer's secondary account. We do this because we aren't sure of the buyer's intentions up front and they could merely want the item that bad. Should negative/neutral feedback or defects then occur, we could then look at our options to removing those.

And eBay also said:

If you have concerns with someone attempting to circumvent your blocked bidder/buyer list, we can definitely review and take appropriate action, but we would expect the item to be shipped. We can review feedback related to a purchase if we confirm a buyer has violated our blocked bidder/buyer policies, but do not not advise cancelling the order or otherwise avoiding shipment.

[toysaver]

I've had this happen before.  You can see their locations- city and state in the original eBay message.  It's at the bottom of the email.   It will be more obvious if they live in smaller towns.  I cancel the sale citing something is wrong with the buyer's addesss.  In detail I go on to explain the circumvented block and both ids and locations and the email reference codes from the original questions.

[jonathankirkland]

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@westcoastsewingpatterns wrote:

The person that responded on Twitter said they have no way to verify if it is the same account. I know they can. I asked him to just look at name & address. He refused. I sent another message and asked that my concern be sent to trust & safety. I doubt I will get any response.

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Try ebay's FB instead of Twitter. And maybe try at a different time of day to avoid getting the same doofus.