Seller will not post item to a PO Box address.

[juliejaffa74]

I wanted to buy an item on Ebay and the buyer said they could not deliver to a PO Box which is the address I have used for years. Now after some discussion they will sell me the  item if I pay straight into their Paypal account and not throught Ebay. After that they want my Paypal email address & transaction number. I think this is all a bit suss or am I being over cautious? Anyone got any comments about this? If the item is pay for through Ebay I cannot see the problem with a PO Box address.

[davewil1964]

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@juliejaffa74 wrote:

I wanted to buy an item on Ebay and the buyer said they could not deliver to a PO Box which is the address I have used for years. Now after some discussion they will sell me the  item if I pay straight into their Paypal account and not throught Ebay. After that they want my Paypal email address & transaction number. I think this is all a bit suss or am I being over cautious? Anyone got any comments about this? If the item is pay for through Ebay I cannot see the problem with a PO Box address.

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They could possibly be usng a courier. Most couriers can't deliver to PO Boxes. Paypal payment attracts Paypal protection.

[juliejaffa74]

In several emails with the seller not once was sending the item by courier mentioned as the item was only for a few dollars I doubt they would be using a courier. Good point though.

[davewil1964]

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@juliejaffa74 wrote:

In several emails with the seller not once was sending the item by courier mentioned as the item was only for a few dollars I doubt they would be using a courier. Good point though.

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They may well have taken eBay guidelines as to PO Boxes as gospel. Not understanding that, unlike the USA, in Australia you have to provide the same level of ID proof to open a PO Box as to open a bank account. Not that eBay will ever get past their UScentric viewpoint. Even if they are 'Swiss'.

[lyndal1838]

Is the seller overseas?

Many overseas sellers will not send to PO Boxes either.

As long as you link the paypal payment with the item number  you will hve buyer protection.

[phorum_junkie*]

As long as you select the option that the payment is for goods you have full buyer protection just as if you had paid through ebay. The seller sounds like a bit of a numpty as they don't actualy have as high a level of seller protection for a non ebay payment.

[juliejaffa74]

I bought what I wanted to buy from another seller who took my order without any hassles. Thanks everyone who replied to my for your help.

[viewmont1071]

all the AUSTRALIAN banks online fraud preventative tip pages list PO box deliveries as high fraud risk deliveries. I think the seller has decided to trust their banks help pages rather than gossip on the internet

Australian payments clearing association link below

http://www.apca.com.au/getsmart/online-card-fraud/a001_chapter02_using_low_risk_delivery_practices.h...

Using low risk delivery practices

When preparing to send goods to a customer it’s important that you know what to look for so you can spot when it might be fraud.

The types of things you should look for are:

And if you want to get your goods back, try to get proof that they have been delivered

use of a temporary address such as a hotel or motel

use of a post office box number rather than a street address

an unusual request, particularly from overseas.

http://journal.mtansw.com.au/10/mar/files/Guide_to_safer_smarter_credit_card_payments.pdf

https://www.commbank.com.au/business/merchant-services/accept-online-payments.html

[boggo58]

I think youll find its a crock of S. 99% of the time its just a package that can be delivered, ived had disc brake rotors delivered through the post and they weigh a ton.

 And if you do give them a street address, its aus post that brings the pack to thehouse and if no ones home they leave a card for you to pick it up from the PO anyway.

[jessicadazzler97]

I get this problem as my address is a PO box too. You can try changing your address to the street name with the post office box number underneath, if you get my drift. Always works for me but might be because I live in a small town, and the post office people know if anything comes with my street address, they pop it in my po box anyway.