eBay

pfost067 · ‎08-17-2019

I sold a banjo for $280. Not a very valuable item and not really a ton of money. The woman messaged me right away saying she was excited to receive it, ya da ya da. Anyway, she has been a member since 2014 and has no feedback.

I check the address provided. It seems to check out just fine, even on google maps.

Im just a bit weary about the sale with her having so much time on eBay but never having purchased anything.

Is there anything I should worry about or am I just being silly?

slati_2013 · ‎08-17-2019

No. Nothing to worry about. Once she paid, you ship. There is not much you can do now anyway. Cancel and you will get a defect. Feedback really does not tell you who will scam you.

lightlily_arts · ‎08-17-2019

I'm always a little leary selling to buyers who have no feedback. But there isn't much you can do because if you cancel you'll get a defect. I went to your listing and this buyer seems to be interested in bidding/buying musical instruments Fold & World only. Some people only buy specifics items. Perhaps in this instance you might consider signature confirmation to make sure it's delivered and do pack carefully.

mam98031 · ‎08-17-2019

AS long as you ship to the address on the PP payment, you are covered under Seller Protection in regards to the address.

FYI, Google isn't always right when researching an address. Especially for new built homes. It takes them a couple years to get caught up sometimes.

You don't need to do all this research on each sale. You will drive yourself crazy and you just need to remember to adhere to the rules for Seller protections in PP and you should be just fine.

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999

lightlily_arts · ‎08-17-2019

The only reason I mentioned the signature confirmation was because as a seller I would be concerned about it being left on a porch. I think that your instrument is worth much more than what you sold it for based on what I read about them on the internet. It would give you a sense of security that it got delivered and again emphasize that it's packed securely as the carriers are so rough in handling.

mam98031 · ‎08-17-2019

@lightlily_arts wrote:
The only reason I mentioned the signature confirmation was because as a seller I would be concerned about it being left on a porch. I think that your instrument is worth much more than what you sold it for based on what I read about them on the internet. It would give you a sense of security that it got delivered and again emphasize that it's packed securely as the carriers are so rough in handling.

Ebay sellers are not responsible for porch pirates or how secure some member's porch might be. That would be the buyer's responsibility to make sure they had a safe place for delivery.

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999

pfost067 · ‎08-17-2019

I actually never worry or have any second thoughts, this one just seemed a bit fishy.

mam98031 · ‎08-17-2019

We all start somewhere. They may have opened the account and then forgot all about it. Or life just got in the way. It doesn't have to be something bad.

mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999

bigdeals.etc · ‎08-17-2019

Full disclosure, there is the possible scam of someone hacking into someone's old dormant account to make a purchase. But even so, as long as you ship to the correct address and have tracking, seller protection will cover you once it arrives at their door.

By the way, I'm totally against using signature confirmation unless the item is sold at 750+. Signature confirmation can end up being just another obstacle for the buyer to receive their item. They might never be home every time the mail carrier comes and might get upset for the package delay. They might never pick it up from the PO (after several delivery attempts) so it will return back to you creating more hassle. Or even they might win an INR case, get refunded, then immediately go claim it from their PO.

nguy_5775 · ‎08-17-2019

I am also a new member but I see the ebay policy is very good and many people believe in the operator, the ability to pay back so sometimes customers don't respond to you

hawkwind5454 · ‎08-18-2019

If a red flag pops up for me, I check out address on Google earth...You get to SEE what structure it is going to. Other than that...As mentioned, all you can do, is ship it out... And possibly invest in delivery signature. At this price point, you might want to consider that.

a_c_green · ‎08-18-2019

@pfost067 wrote:
I check the address provided. It seems to check out just fine, even on google maps.

It should. Keep in mind that even scammers are going to give you a deliverable address, since they want your item as much as any other buyer. The only time I would be concerned about a delivery address would be if a problem occurred when printing the eBay/PayPal Shipping label, and I can't remember the last time that ever happened to me.

I would not pay extra for Signature Confirmation as it gives you no additional seller protection at that sale price beyond what Delivery Confirmation gives you for free, and it can be an extra hassle for the buyer to go and pick it up if they miss the delivery. Just last week I had to go in and sign for a $60 purchase of used bicycle parts. I have no idea what that seller was thinking, and their listing made no mention of it being a delivery requirement.

It's really your buyer's responsibility to have a safe place for delivery, not yours. Just ship to the address you receive with the payment as soon as it's clear to ship.

southern*sweet*tea · ‎08-18-2019

@hawkwind5454 wrote:
If a red flag pops up for me, I check out address on Google earth...You get to SEE what structure it is going to. Other than that...As mentioned, all you can do, is ship it out... And possibly invest in delivery signature. At this price point, you might want to consider that.

So if I go make me a new account and buy something from you, you're going to think I live in a cow pasture. Why?

Because Google is WRONG. Google has our road reversed - my actual house (where I've lived for the past 20 years) is almost five miles away at the other end of the road. Would you cancel my order?

Sorry, but stalking buyers just rubs me the wrong way.

Google is not always right, especially for rural areas.

The easier you are to offend the easier you are to control.

We seem to be getting closer and closer to a situation where nobody is responsible for what they did but we are all responsible for what somebody else did. - Thomas Sowell

ersatz_sobriquet · ‎08-18-2019

What's your handling time?

If I feel any spidey sense or a buyer has zero history, I would wait a couple days and make sure there's no "unauthorized use" chargeback or ebay sending you one of those "don't ship" messages. Recalling a package is expensive.

coffeebean832 · ‎08-18-2019

@pfost067 wrote:
Anyway, she has been a member since 2014 and has no feedback.

Recently I sold something to someone who joined many years ago but never made a purchase- with that account, at least. The transaction was fine and the buyer was happy with her purchase.

There's no way to predict what's going to happen, but if you feel uneasy then do what you think is right for your account.