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@gtx305 wrote:

 

 

Im thinking either -

 

1. The item he brought is less than $17. But - what a fantastic way to scam sellers. No one pays attention to low priced items... most would just refund to avoid a defect. Scam.

OR

2. Fake name was a dumb idea on his part, and the post office wants photo ID to collect the item and he doesnt have it.

 

My question is - are we able in some way to request Ebay and Paypal to verify the buyers photo ID, proving it matches whats on the address, prior to providing a refund?   seems reasonable to me.

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I think a lot of sellers would pay attention to $17. 😛

Fake name is ultimately irrelevant, unless you send person to person (which means only the person named as the addressee can sign for it). Even if registered, there is no requirement for the person named as the addressee to sign, only proof that they have the authority to receive or collect (which is why anyone at an address can sign for a package...unless a person to person service has been used).

You won't be able to oblige eBay or PayPal to request a buyer's photo ID, and as others have mentioned, the buyer is not necessarily the recipient of a purchase, so not matching isn't going to prove much. 

To clarify what's been mentioned above re: PO boxes - a buyer does not need to use their registered address as their delivery address, and sellers only get the delivery address.

You could request their contact information (they'll receive yours in return), if you want to, and you'll receive their eBay registered details. 

I know lots of little things can trigger suspicions, so early on I developed a standard response and procedure for dealing with INR situations where the package has no formal tracking so that these niggling things don't creep into my replies and put buyers on the defensive; which involves akcnowledging the issue with the buyer, plus letting them know what I'm able to do about it, and when (this includes lodging a formal investigation with Australia Post, and options for refund / replacement - I make sure to let them know I need to pass on all of the adressee  details to Australia Post so that they can conduct the investigation, after which AP will use their internal records to both try and locate the package and look into any processing issues, and that they may try to contact them during the course of the investigation - let them know you're happy to update them on the progress of the investigation as and when AP update you - and do follow through with lodging one 😉 -  it isn't unusual for packages to arrive not long after I've explained all this to the buyer).