As a seller can I ship to a different address?

[def.a.posting.id]

ok I confess I am not the seller my sister is and she just sold an item. 

Buyer wants it shipped to a different address than was on the transaction...

Is this legit?

[def.a.posting.id]

every single instinct I have is to tell her not to

i.e 

buyer did not use best offer option and in a message exchange starts berating my sister?? 

saying I just pay you...you ship to where I tell you?

[nobody*s_perfect]

In order to be protected against a fake "Item not received" claim, a seller must ship to the address that is attached to the payment.  

So if the buyer has not paid yet, she can just change the name and address to her sister's when she pays.  However, if she has already paid then your sister should explain that she cannot change the shipping address now.

[fab_finds4u]

Absolutely you do not ship where the buyer tells you to ship.  You ship it to the address eBay tells you to ship it to, the address that was provided with the payment.  To ship it elsewhere  will void your seller protection. The buyer saw the shipping address when he was making the payment and had the opportunity to change it before he submitted payment.  I would put his name on your blocked bidder list and cancel the transaction citing problem with the buyer's address. There's no way I would continue in a transaction with a bully.  

[soh.maryl]

You know, sometimes those requests to change the shipping address are initiated by someone other than the buyer. 

And, even if you have made sure it is the buyer who made the request, you still have to ship to the address shown to the buyer when she paid.  She was given the chance to change that address before paying.  

[def.a.posting.id]

God Bless you all!!

my sister has some mental health issues and I KNEW this was not right!!

[myboardid]

I change addresses for buyers frequently and in 23 years of selling here I have never had a buyer scam me by asking for such.  That said, I sell items that do not attract scammers.  Also, if any buyer approached me with that wording I would cancel the order immediately using problem with address as the reason.  

[simba6]

The payment would have to be canceled and the buyer has to repay with the correct ship to address.  Otherwise, your NOT protected.

[cellguy215]

DANGER!

It is never safe to ship to a different address. Either ship to the correct address or refund and have them pay again with the correct address.

[donreno95]

What if the buyer wants to pick the item up at the UPS office?  Then ebay or reverb policies prevent safe shipping and pickup especially if buyer feels safer picking up the package at the office versus waiting all day long for the UPS delivery...  And they won't call you to tell you when it's going to arrive.   I have tried to do this numerous times on other online sales venues and they won't hold for pickup until delivery fails.

[a_c_green]

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@def.a.posting.id wrote:

ok I confess I am not the seller my sister is and she just sold an item. 

Buyer wants it shipped to a different address than was on the transaction...

Is this legit?

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Not really; your only Seller Protection against an Item Not Received dispute is to have a Delivered status on the tracking to the City and ZIP you received with the payment. Otherwise the buyer can file an INR dispute and win a full refund.

One other thing to check closely: Is the change-of-address message even coming from the ID of the actual buyer? If not, it's a straightforward scam and the real buyer would know nothing about it. Such messages are sent out in bulk in the hopes that the seller recipients won't doublecheck who is sending the request.

[albertabrightalberta]

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@myboardid wrote:

 Also, if any buyer approached me with that wording I would cancel the order immediately using problem with address as the reason.  

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Playing devil's advocate here, I wonder if the wording of the "request" (or demand) is simply because it's a buyer for whom English is not his/her first language. 

[mangymutt]

I once shipped an expensive photography lens to the address the buyer listed. The buyer actually lived in another country - he then had the recipient forward the lens overseas. He then claimed that the lens was damaged, and returned it back to me - but my shipping company would not honor the insurance claim because it came from overseas. ebay refused to help - so what to do in this case??

[soh.maryl]

It wasn't because it "came from overseas".  It was because your buyer, in effect, used a freight forwarder.  eBay's MBG covers the package on the first leg of its trip, assuming that it's to the buyer's address.  If it's then sent on to a different address, there is no guarantee.  

[senoryason]

Thank you, your comment was very helpful! I was skeptical from the beginning. New account, Dubai address, asking to ship to Delaware via jpeg image with address. Too sketch. Was just going to cancel. Never thought of the buyer being scammed. Turns out it was a different handle messaging me, NOT the buyer. Thank you!