posted on February 20, 2004 09:10:09 PM
In fact, for this one customer, they're not even in the same country.
This is the first time I've had this happen. The address on the money order is in the UK. The address the bidder insists I ship to is in Pennsylvania.
I reported it to BidPay, as they suggest, and informed the bidder her payment was on hold until I received confirmation from Western Union.
Well, surprise! She got all huffy, demanded her money back, stated that she was in the middle of a transatlantic move (yeah, right) and made the usual nasty personal comments about me that miscreants seem to be obligated to make.
Haven't heard back from BidPay yet. Anyone have this happen?
posted on February 20, 2004 10:19:23 PM
I have it happen once in awhile on domestic shipments and I usually get clearance from Bidpay before I ship. Definitely hold up on shipping if one of the conflicting addresses is out of the U.S. until you get clearance from Bidpay. Maybe it's just my suspicious nature, but the fact that your buyer got huffy when you notified her of this requirement by Bidpay suggests that she may possibly be trying to use a stolen credit card. And I bet if you come clean Fluffy, you'll admit this possibility probably occurred to you within the first 3 seconds of reading that email from her
The light at the end of the tunnel will turn out to be an oncoming train.
posted on February 20, 2004 10:30:57 PM
I had it happen about a year ago with a buyer from Brazil who wanted his package shipped to Canada. He got a bit upset when I told him I had to wait for confirmation. This is what I received from Bidpay within a day.
Thank you for your email.
We want to thank you for pointing this out to us. In most cases, where the buyer is asking for another shipping address, the circumstances are honest and justified.... However, in some cases, we may have some concern over an order and may ask that you not ship the item until we have verified additional information with the buyer.
We have reviewed this buyer's information and do not have any objections to the merchandise being shipped to the alternate address.
I would like to thank you for verifying with us before shipping the item. It is because of sellers like you that we are able to keep the auction community an enjoyable, profitable and honest place in which to do business.
posted on February 20, 2004 10:39:21 PMI bet if you come clean Fluffy, you'll admit this possibility probably occurred to you within the first 3 seconds of reading that email from her
You bet. Her email address was firstname on money order-lastname on money [email protected]. I have to admit it hadn't occurred to me until then that if you wanted to use someone else's credit card, you could make it look more legit by getting a free email address in their name.
Of course, that may actually be her name. I dunno, though. She's been hot to have this thing shipped quick-quick-quick, which from what I have read is a red flag for fraud when there are other reasons to question a transaction.
posted on February 20, 2004 10:54:06 PM
If her credit card and story are legit, it won't take long for Bidpay to verify it and give you the go ahead to ship. Any delay for verification should be so slight as to not cause her any inconvenience. I personally feel that since Bidpay is protecting me against any possible chargeback by a scammer, that I have a moral obligation to do what I can to protect their interests also. Too bad the geniuses at Paypal never gave any thought to treating their users as business partners instead of adversaries.
The light at the end of the tunnel will turn out to be an oncoming train.
[ edited by sparkz on Feb 20, 2004 10:55 PM ]
posted on February 21, 2004 05:49:48 AM
I had the same thing happen quite awhile back. I called Bidpay (800-350-5952). They contacted the buyer & verified the information. All was resolved quickly.
posted on February 21, 2004 08:41:38 AM
I would also get clearence from Bidpay before I would ship, just like u did.
But lately what I have been doing is when the end of auction email comes to me and I see that the buyer is International I send my email with the total due and I state in the email that when You pay with bidpay your address needs to be the same as the shipping address or I can not ship your item until I get clearence from bidpay.
This has been working for me much better then waiting and then finding out the address is different. Just a suggestion!
posted on February 21, 2004 08:53:12 AM
It's always time for more coffee.
I find myself going into public places and stores and wondering why they haven't put in a coffee stand so I can get a refreshing hot beverage while I shop.
Shucks, even my credit union now has one of those Flavia one-shot one-cup machines that will make 9 kinds of coffee, 3 kinds of tea, or hot chocolate for you in about 30 seconds. Pretty nifty.
posted on February 21, 2004 10:22:45 AM
Perhaps I missed something, but I was under the impression that Bidpay (WUAP) couldn't charge anything back after they issed a money order.
I have never had a request to ship to an alternate address, so this has been a non-issue so far.
I know it definately raises red flags, especially when accepting Paypal, but this was the first time I heard of that. I guess I should read the terms of WUAP's service before I continue.
posted on February 21, 2004 10:36:26 AM
It's the seller's responsibility to notify Auction Payments if the bidder e-mails and requests that the package be shipped to another name or/and address. Once the Money Order has been sent there isn't anything much that Auction Payments can do though.
This is from their site:
4. What should I do if a buyer requests that the merchandise be shipped to a different mailing address than your confirmation message had originally listed?
In cases like this, it is important for the seller to notify Auction Payments to ensure that the transaction is not fraudulent. Click on the "Contact Us" button at the top of any page and our Service Assistant will help you to notify us of the change request . Please be sure to include the other address where the buyer would like the item shipped and the Auction Payments order number. A representative from Western Union Auction Payments will answer your email promptly.
posted on February 21, 2004 11:22:02 AM
Fluffy, that happened to me a few times. A couple of buyers were located in the USA and the others outside. I notified Auctionpayments.com (formally bidpay) and they got back to me right away in most cases. If they don't reply to your email, send another one. I usually don't have to send two but sometimes you do. There is a phone number that is "hidden" somewhere on their site. I know I have used it before.
What's great about auctionpayments is that they take responsiblity for verifying the whether the CC is valid or not. I wouldn't ship anything until you have the money order in your hand. (that is, unless things have dramaticaly changed in the last month)
posted on February 25, 2004 10:36:37 AM
Fluff - As far as I see it - you have contacted them and apprised them of the situation and they seem to have not be able to be bothered with it. SOunds to me like it is not a priority. Cash the check. If they contact you tell them that when they failed to respond to your inquiry within the 24 hours their site says (or used to, does it still say that?) you figured it must be ok. That'll teach em
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If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
