Why is it a problem using my Post Office Box for deliveries? It is safe and reliable.

[muffiemagic]

I am getting so cross with sellers refusing to deliver to my Post Office box for small to medium size items. It is my right as a buyer to nominate where I want my purchases delivered to. Post Offices are trustworthy, reliable and safe and, if I am away for any reason, they will hold parcels for me. Over the last week I have had to have 3 auctions cancelled as the sellers would not deliver as I wished. This is ridiculous.

[lyndal1838]

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@colic2bullsgirlore wrote:

Even the credit card issuers will not allow you to apply for a credit card without supplying a residential address with the

phrase in brackets on the application form (cannot be a po box) next to the registered billing address and ingeneral will

not even mail credit cards to PO boxes due to the high fraud risk.

so for the seller in Australia a PO box can never be the billing address of the cardholder

http://www.hsbc.com.au/1/PA_ES_Content_Mgmt/content/australia/common/pdf/personal/platinum-app-form....

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You cannot apply for a credit card with a PO Box address but that does not stop you having it as a mailing address....they do not have to be the same address.   The bank gets your home address from the 100pts of ID when you open an account anyway.

[harley_babes_hoard]

............And you can post all the irrelevant American sites you like to say why they are not secure. Means zip in Australia. If it was such a darn security risk none of the banks would ever send documents to a PO Box .....but guess what they do.

[harley_babes_hoard]

OP just a suggestion, If you continue to have problems maybe

your name
C/O your suburbs Post Office
100 main street
Your suburb 2500

perhaps just ask your PO first
I know our PO allows it.

[digital*ghost]

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@harley_babes_hoard wrote:
............And you can post all the irrelevant American sites you like to say why they are not secure. Means zip in Australia. If it was such a darn security risk none of the banks would ever send documents to a PO Box .....but guess what they do.

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It's not about the security of the items being sent to a postal address, it's about identity. 

PO boxes, despite the fact that they require ID to acquire, do not give the merchant any identifiable information to cross-reference. That's why it's a higher risk for the merchant than sending to a residential address. The bank already has a residential address to chase up a credit card holder, so they will send sensitive documents where the customer wants. 

[davewil1964]

I would posit that because my residential address has an unsecured, shared letterbox, there is a fair chance that posting to my PO Box is far more secure.

I got something delivered last week through EMS. Even though EMS state PO Boxes aren't valid addresses.

[digital*ghost]

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@davewil1964 wrote:

I would posit that because my residential address has an unsecured, shared letterbox, there is a fair chance that posting to my PO Box is far more secure.

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Once again... It's not about the security of the items being sent to a postal address, it's about identity. 

The form colic posted was from an Australian institution.

Now, ask yourself why an Australian bank is telling its merchant account customers that accepting a PO box as a postage address increases the risk of credit card fraud?

Could it be that they have years of statistical data to suggest those that commit credit card fraud are more likely to use PO boxes? I reckon it could be.

I get that the advice from a bank to a merchant using CC facilities is not necessarily transferable or applicable to a transaction on eBay where the item is paid for using PayPal, but the mere fact that Australian banks advise this means that there is information out there that can ultimately give people the impression that posting to a PO box is not as safe (for them) as posting to a residential address. So, next time someone asks why a seller may not want to post to a PO box, we can avoid all the largely irrelevant fact that it's secure for the buyer.

[harley_babes_hoard]

every time I claim a parcel from the PO guess what I have to show? Yep you guessed it ..............Identification.

[davewil1964]

HSBC is NOT an Australian institution, which might have some relevance.

HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of the HSBC Group, is headquartered in London - http://www.hsbc.com.au/1/2/about/world

In Australia you have to provide 100 points of identification to get a PO Box, the same amount of ID required to open a bank account. Ergo, a PO Box is as safe as a bank account.

[colic2bullsgirlore]

The financial institutions merchant advice disagrees with you and so do the credit card fraud statistics

This is the question in the OPs post

....hint.... You can pick questions in a post by the large rounded line with a full stop underneath it

Why is it a problem using my Post Office Box for deliveries?

Answer: It is a decison of some merchants to not deliver to PO boxes as they 

have decided the risk of card not present fraud outweighs the possible profit

gleaned so it is a problem for you if you want to purchase of those sellers.

You can however purchase off those sellers if you provide a residential

delivery address.

If you would prefer not to because it is inconvenient or you deem it an unacceptable security risk then I cannot see why buyers collectively do not respect the sellers decision who has decided that delivery to PO boxes is an unacceptable security risk or just plain inconvenient but just continue to extol

how safe PO boxes are for buyers

Card not present fraud scams collectively form the major percentage of fraud statistics

http://www.apca.com.au/payment-statistics/fraud-statistics/2013-calendar-year?SchemeCredit,DebitandC...

cards issued in Australia fraud statistics

Card Not Present (CNP)     130,305,849 transactions     $ 219,715,991

St George is that an australian institution?

http://www.stgeorge.com.au/business/payment-solutions/merchant-support/fraud-protection
merchant support

Check the transaction

Be alert for card not present transactions that involve:
Orders shipped to Post Office boxes that may provide anonymity to fraud offenders

NAB are they an Australian institution?
http://www.nab.com.au/content/dam/nab/business/payments-merchants/merchant-assistance/documents/merc...

NAB merchant advice re MOTO (card not present) transactions
Some suggestions to assist you in verifying the cardholder’s identity include:
(d) ensuring all deliveries are conducted by a reputable courier and made to verifiable residential or business addresses only.

Commonwealth Bank are they an Australian institution?
Commonwealth bank merchant advice MOTO transactions
Check 6 Ask for identification on delivery and don’t leave goods at unattended addresses
http://www.apca.com.au/getsmart/

http://apca.com.au/docs/fraud-statistics/Australian-payments-fraud-details-and-data-2014.pdf
Trends

In 2013, card-not-present fraud on Australian cards increased by 20% on the previous year to $220 million. The majority of this fraud (59%)
occurred overseas.

The continuing increase in card-not-present fraud since 2008 needs to be seen in the context of changes in the way Australians use their cards.

According to the NAB Online Retail Sales Index the overall number of online transactions made by Australians is estimated to have increased by 140%
in the four years to December 2013.

This compares to a 68% increase in card-not-present fraud over the same period.

Lastly good ole Ticketek...can any doubters posit a reason as to why ticketek absolutely refuse to post MOTO credit card purchases to a post office box or business address and in fact state if you purchase paper tickets with a credit card remotely (card not present transaction) they will only be delivered to the credit card holders residential address??

[colic2bullsgirlore]

I wonder if this recurring theme using buyer security and convenience as the reason as to why sellers should post to PO boxes is more to do with offence and affront

... ie....

Some buyers  that have posted on this thread are piste off that just because they want to use a Post Office box for

deliveries that they are included in the "scammer count", refused service and have taken offence..... and they are not

scammers at all just cautious when buying online.

The comments in some of the posts appear to lean that way...IMO anyways.....

Don't take it personally because you have been grouped in the high risk trade category, it's just a flow on from the

security descions you have made for yourself online