Seller shipped to wrong address, still I lost claim

[williamvoors]

I made a purchase on eBay Australia and on checkout, selected my current and correct address, which shows on the Paypal invoice.

The seller posted the item to an old address that somehow ended up listed on an e-mail sent by eBay. That address is a different suburb. The item was delivered to the incorrect address.

When claiming through PayPal, I pointed to the fact the tracking information clearly shows that it was delivered to "Suburb A", while my address, correctly chosen on checkout is in "Suburb B".

I lost the claim and also lost an appeal. It was alleged the seller provided valid tacking information. However, the PayPal seller guide specifies that the proof of shipment must show the "recipient’s delivery address, showing at least the state, city and postcode". I have followed that guideline as a seller, and always send to the address listed on the paypal invoice and make sure the suburb is listed.

I also worked with the post office and even managed to get the phone number of the tenant living in my old place, who alleged did not receive any package.

[bruce-linn]

Just delete your old address with Ebay and Paypal and make sure your current address is exact.

[tstore]

That is not possible. When you checkout ensure the new address is your primary address. I buy multi

[tstore]

... Ple items and send to different addresses all the time. You need to ensure the correct address is displayed before checkout out in PayPal.

[davewil1964 · Accepted solution]

---

@tstore wrote:
... Ple items and send to different addresses all the time. You need to ensure the correct address is displayed before checkout out in PayPal.

---

The OP did. The seller sent it to the old address, probably because they sent on the basis of the Item Sold notification, rather than the Paypal payment notification.

Paypal is wrong. Ring them and ask to speak to a supervisor. Point out, politely, that they have proof that the seller sent to the wrong address, so tracking proving this DOES NOT provide seller protection.

If they still won't buckle, tell them you will be taking the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service. That should do the trick, but if not go to the FOS. I think it is www.fos.gov.au

[gillians_gallery]

Actually shipping to either the ebay or paypal addresses are covered by seller protection. It's up to the buyer to keep both addresses current.

[digital*ghost]

---

@gillians_gallery wrote:

Actually shipping to either the ebay or paypal addresses are covered by seller protection. It's up to the buyer to keep both addresses current.

---

The only address that matters is the one the buyer specifies and confirms at checkout, which will then show as the "ship to" address on the payment notification the seller receives. People can have items sent to any address that is not their primary postage address on file with ebay  - from the PayPal UA:

S4.1 You must meet all of these requirements to be eligible for PayPal Seller Protection:

4. The item is sent to the address we specify on the payment notification or "Transaction Details Page" which can be accessed by logging in to your PayPal account;

https://www.paypal.com/webapps/mpp/ua/useragreement-full#Schedule_1_PayPal_Seller_and_Buyer_Protecti...

If the seller did not do this, the buyer should still be eligible for protection, and I would follow davewil's advice.

[davewil1964]

Nope. Protection is provided by Paypal and is contingent on the item(s) being posted to the address provided to Paypal at checkout.

Anybody can, and many do, get items sent directly to the recipient (a gift for example), which is often a one off, and in no way related to the buyer's registered eBay address.

It wouldn't hurt for the OP to make sure there is no trace of the old address anywhere in their eBay settings, but that is irrelevant in this case.

[williamvoors]

Thanks for the reply.

Indeed, I had an old address on my eBay account, as I had moved recently. However, I had deleted all traces from that address from PayPal and made sure the correct address appeared in the PayPal invoice.

I called PayPal again and they claim that the tracking information shows that the item was delivered in a suburb that's within a 15km radius from my address (the two suburbs in question are 5km apart), even though it's not the same suburb. I find that a strange rule as the item could have been delivered anywhere in inner Melbourne and still would fall in a 15km radius.

The seller acknowledged, in a message exchanged through eBay that they sent to the wrong address, but has now told PayPal they sent to the address listed on the invoice. Unfortunately, PayPal claims they don't have access to eBay message logs.

[davewil1964]

It shouldn't matter about message logs. Paypal know the address posted to is not the address you gave. That should be the end of it. I have never heard of a 15km radius being acceptable. Even in the country it wouldn't work.

Paypal require proof of postage to the buyer. At the very least, that proof has to be a postcode, but if more detailed information is provided by the seller in the course of a dispute, I don't believe they would be able to treat it as irrelevant. Does your new address have the same postcode?

Either way, I'd talk to them then go to the FOS. Paypal are very familiar with the FOS - they are often, anecdotally, having to deal with the consequences of ignoring their own policies.