 Going back to an old account?
Hello again!
A few months ago, I posted about a dilemma I was in. Short recap: Back in 2009 I'd been scammed by a buyer while using my long-held personal account, and walked away from it to avoid being forced into a refund. I opened an account under a false name several months later, and used it with success until a few months ago, when a calamity on my end resulted in a rash of low DSRs and a selling restriction I couldn't beat.
On the advice of the forum, I set up a 'stealth' account. I did everything correctly, EXCEPT that I tried to "cheat" by reusing an existing bank account. This likely was what led to said account's undoing - never got to even list anything.
So this time, I tried to learn from my mistake. New account with yet another ⊗⊗⊗⊗ name, new Paypal to match, new bank account with a new debit card. The account worked fine for several weeks. I bought about ten items, and got some positive feedback.
Then, this week, I tried listing my first item - one lot of used records (LPs, vinyl, you know - all on the up and up). The auction ran for three days with no problems. Then, this morning, I tried to log in and was asked to answer my security question - of which there was none. Tried again, got logged in, and was almost immediately slapped with an MC999, with my listed item cancelled.
Called eBay and got a very helpful woman who sounded like she'd be able to remove the restriction just by confirming my ZIP code and phone number. But when she went to call me back, I fumbled the phone and missed her call. That was that. Called back again, got a woman who got suspicious and wrote some notes on the account before transferring me to the "vetting department" (I knew it was all over then). Hung up, called back, and got yet another rep - a guy who tried to explain to me that I wasn't trustworthy if I wasn't willing to hand over my SSN. So, looks like this account is now toast as well.
THE QUESTION? I'm not ready to go through yet another cycle of stealth account building, and don't want to blow money buying one. It's been four years since my original account got into trouble. SO... do I dare to either log back into my old account (untouched since the original incident) and see if I can get things back on track? OR... do I dare to clear the slate and make another account, covering my tracks from the previous stealth attempts, but using my real name?
I have serious doubts about using my real name again; my gut reaction is that I'd just be wasting my time. But if the account has my real name on it, then perhaps I'd be able to answer any questions that arise and clear the hurdles, in order to succeed long-term. (I'm not doing anything shady - in an ideal world, I'd just like to have my first account back again and ride off into the sunset.)
Thoughts???
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