Page 1 of Quick Ebay problem need help (sorry)

Hi guys I know I`m new but I need your wisdom :)

I purchased something from ebay the other day.

I paid with paypal and was told it would be sent out recorded delivery.

I then got an email from the seller saying that my address was unconfirmed and that the seller protection was ineligable. They have refunded the money back to me.

The paypal is my sister`s account set up for me years ago when I first started using ebay. My address comes up as unconfirmed.

They said I could pay by cheque or postal order within 5 days - however it will be sent to the same unconfirmed address. So, why is one form of payment ok and the other not when the whole issue of "postal loss" is not answered by cheque or postal order payment?

it`s just paypals rules, confirming your paypal addy is simple enough, if you send a cheque he`ll wait till it clears befor sending you the stuff, thus ensuring he gets his cash.

on stuff under £50 i normaly send to unconfirmed accounts, especially if it`s an "established" ebay buyer.

hope this helps

This item was edited on Thursday, 6th October 2005, 19:13

The thing is it`s not a money issue as they already had the payment - that cleared, then they refunded it requesting a cheque instead. It`s still the same address ... So, why are they prepared to send the item to the same address, still unconfirmed, just by a different - and longer- method of payment?

They are very concerned about "seller protection" - but there will be none if I send a cheque or postal order.

All this for £25 ...

They are very concerned about "seller protection" - but there will be none if I send a cheque or postal order.

the thing about paypal is that the payment is not "instant" although paypal would like to let you believe it is, but in reality if you check your bank acount that money won`t leave your acount for at least a few days, it`s then another couple of days before the seller "actually" posseses the money but you are right, they seem very noobish, all they had to do was wait untill the your paypal payment "fully" cleared, about 5days into there personal accounts, they are gonna have to wait at least that long for a cheque, especially when you gotta post it, then they have to cash it :/ if you wanna post a link to the item we`ll have look to see if it looks cosher :)

I`ve been in touch with the person and we`ve sorted it out. They said pretty much the same thing so I`ll be sending out postal orders instead.

It`s wierd - 5 years of being on ebay and this is the first time this issue has arisen.

Thanks for your help, though. :)

There is a reason why cheque is ok, but not paypal in this situation.

If your address is unconfirmed, the seller is not protected from a chargeback. ie. If the card used to make payment was stolen or cloned, the seller would have the cost of the item deducted from his/her paypal account. This can happen weeks or even months after the transaction.

There is no risk to the seller if they`ve been paid by cheque.

It`s not always possible to get confirmed status for your address, therefore some sellers will make allowances. It depends on the type of item and it`s value.

Cheques can be fraudulent and they can be reversed months later too.

It doesn`t need to be a payment reversal on a stolen credit card. just a regular PayPal chargeback will do it. If it`s delivered to an unconfirmed address the buyer can turn round and say he never received it and PayPal will refund the buyer no questions asked.

The seller, of course, loses his money. And it`s all perfectly legimate under PayPal`s Terms of Service.


All rights reserved. All wrongs reversed.

This item was edited on Friday, 7th October 2005, 01:17

Cheers for the replies :)

It was something that id never had to deal with on ebay before.

Ive bought and sold things on there,had the bouncing checks,missing items all the usual stuff, but this was like `whoa whats going on`,think it was more over reaction on my part.

But(hopefully) its all sorted,going to send postal orders recorded to them,it saves anymore delays.

Again cheers guys :)