Do PayPal really check your suppliers ?

chris187 · #1 09-14-2010

Hey Guys

I got limited for going into an old ebay account and linking my paypal to it so i could sell from 2 ebay accounts instead of one.

My paypal got limited when i listed a item on the other ebay account that i linked to. they asked to see invoices for the last 5 items that i have sold.

I dont have any invoices so i made some up with real companys selling what i sell. I put the real phone numbers of the companys in etc and xxxx invoice number and order.

Do paypal really phone up each supplier and ask them if they know me and tell them the invoice number that i put down ?

If they do im screwed. They ask for invoices and supplier contact info.

Any advice or thoughts ?

Cheers

Another thing

I was on the phone to them about 10 minutes ago and i asked why was my account limited, the guy said there was unusally activity in my account.

I asked him when my account would be turned back on and he said when i had done what they wanted me to. I told him i had and he checked while i waited on the phone, he said right ok we will get in touch with your suppliers and check them.

He also said that they wanted to know more about me and my business thats the real reason why my account was limited. I have had this paypal account for about 5 years. He also said after saying that, that they wanted to make sure i wasnt drop shipping products.

So i asked him again when my account would be back on and he said it could be within a week or 2 weeks and that there would be 2 out comes either the account is back on or it wouldnt be, he then said if i wasnt dropshipping then i have nothing to worry about.

Im not dropshipping but like i said i dont have any invoices and had to make them up. Do you think they will turn my account back on ?

Cheers

**SaiJin** · #2 09-14-2010

OP:

1. Could you please put up the flag for the country you reside in?
2. I have heard that PP does call starting recently. But I can't be sure.
do a search in the forums and tell us what you found.
3. No. Just go a make new accounts.

**aspkin** · #3 09-14-2010

Member since January 2007... wow, an ancient.

chris187 · #4 09-14-2010

Hi

Thanks for the replys, well someone said that they cant check if you are a customer with a wholesaler because its against the law to give out information on buyers, im not sure if thats true are not.

Another guy says it depends on what info you give about your suppliers, well i gave them name of business, website, address, email and phone so i gave them everything.

**SaiJin** · #5 09-14-2010

From what I know they should be allowed to check and suppliers shouldn't be giving out private / sensitive information.

But then again... it's PP and eB we are talking about. They do things they shouldn't.

chris187 · #6 09-14-2010

When i log into my ebay account this message pops up -

We've noticed some activity on your account, and we need your help in verifying some information. We're sorry for this inconvenience, but while we're working things out with you, you'll have limited access to list new items on eBay.

To help us resolve this, please log in to your PayPal account, and go to My Account > Resolution Center, and complete the steps for each requirement.

Thanks for your attention.

I take this is a normal message when your pp account gets limited and then your eb account ?

oompaloompa · #7 09-14-2010

yes its normal.

jeffweico · #8 09-14-2010

I don't know UK law, but many suppliers WILL give out information. This happens all the time. When you fill out an application for business credit, or for a wholesale account at a LEGITIMATE wholesaler, they usually ask for business references. Some suppliers will verify information, others will not.

If eBay thinks your invoices are phakes, then they might check. If they look legitimate, they may not. But whether or not the invoices are legitimate, and whether or not the supplier will give any info, if eBay/PayPal perceive you as a risk, then they will close your account.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised by this. But it has been pointed out to me that eBay/PayPal *ALLOW* dropshipping, and there are even eBay certified dropshippers. But then they don't want you to dropship. Just another eBay/PayPal contradiction.

pod · #9 09-14-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeffweico

I don't know UK law, but many suppliers WILL give out information. This happens all the time.

As always, I trust Jeffs knowledge. But with nothing more then a name and an invoice number, what company in their right mind is going to tell someone over the phone about one of their clients?

I dont know of anyone that would be cool with that. No matter how legitimate your business is. Its risking your clients privacy as well as that clients future business.

I can tell you for a fact that if any company gives out my information to anyone over the phone I will come at them hard and loud. Most if not all companies have privacy policies. Sharing your info would be a breach of this policy. Not sure what you could do about it after the fact, but I like to think companies regard customer information as private

When PayPal calls they can find out if the company actually sells "xyz trinkets", sure. But to ask for details just from an invoice number is too far. And I honestly cant see them opening up that can of worms.

Easy test I suppose. You could always call a supplier and say you are from PayPal and want this information and see what happens.

jeffweico · #10 09-14-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by pod

As always, I trust Jeffs knowledge. But with nothing more then a name and an invoice number, what company in their right mind is going to tell someone over the phone about one of their clients?

Let me clarify. Most suppliers will not verify account details or give out personal information. Most will only verify that you are a client of theirs. For anything else, they usually ask for a letter granting permission to divulge the details with your signature on it. But that is mostly when you apply for credit as a business and they want to determine if you pay your bills on time.

I think if PayPal sees that the supplier is an actual, legitimate business, and they just verify that you are a client, that would be enough for them.

JEM · #11 09-14-2010

unless it is very high risk items, or unless there seem to be a lot of claims on your sales - I don't know what their issue would be with drop shipping, why would they care

pod · #12 09-14-2010

Problem with drop shipping is if the chain breaks the ebay buyer gets caught. Sounds good on paper, but if supplier doesn't deliver and you have the money.... They want the person getting paid to be in charge of the product being sold. Its reasonable really. I've heard of drop shippers dropping the ball badly and seller heading for the hills without everything settled.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeffweico

Most will only verify that you are a client of theirs..

I'm not even cool with that to be honest. I think anything above "yes we do sell that zipper" is beyond reasonable information to give to someone over the phone. PayPal is not the IRS or the FBI. They have no right to any of that info as far as I'm concerned.

jeffweico · #13 09-15-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by pod

Problem with drop shipping is if the chain breaks the ebay buyer gets caught. Sounds good on paper, but if supplier doesn't deliver and you have the money.... They want the person getting paid to be in charge of the product being sold. Its reasonable really. I've heard of drop shippers dropping the ball badly and seller heading for the hills without everything settled.

I agree with you, and I understand why they don't like drop-shipping. But DOBA is a certified eBay partner. WHY??? There are so many complaints against them...

I've never used DOBA, but I tried drop-shipping a few years ago. Never worked out for me. There was ALWAYS an issue. Either the price was not right, or the price was good, but shipping times were long, or their communication sucked, or whatever.

On my website, I have a few expensive items that I sell one of every three years or so - I put in the item description that it is a sepcial order item, and the waiting time is 3-4 weeks. I would never try that on eBay. And I am totally upfront about it. But that is not really drop-shipping in the same way that people attempt to do it on eBay.

pod · #14 09-15-2010

I've also seen a few big sellers that have just terrible histories but are going strong. Just the other day I was going to buy an item and the feedback was 5.8% negative in the last year. 5.8% of all feedback negative! Dozens a day.... I couldn't help but wonder how they get away with that no matter how big they are. eBay clearly has rules for some and not others. Money talks to them.

jbluntz · #15 09-15-2010

Ebay and Paypal both allow dropshipping, I've talked to both of them and told them my supplier is dhgate, they said as long as I have a sample of the product I'm selling and don't get any complaints since they both told me some of the products are authentic and some aren't, so they said I'd have to be careful, with a little snicker lol, don't you just love scam companies lol.

chris187 · #16 09-15-2010

Well after sending them the documents yesterday afternoon and phoing yesterday, i got an email from pp at 3.00AM saying my appeal was denied. Fk pp

jbluntz · #17 09-15-2010

Well, let's hope you got plenty more accounts so you can keep it going and make pp work harder, they like that.

chris187 · #18 09-15-2010

Sure whats the point in getting a new account ? sure it will be limited in a couple of weeks and then closed just like my account

jbluntz · #19 09-15-2010

You can usually get alot more than a couple weeks out of em, most of mine usually last at least a few months, it takes practice, paypals a bunch of monkies, they make things difficult so they can raise up the best stealth user's out there, what else is a monkey supposed to do lol.

GreenBean · #20 09-15-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by chris187

Well after sending them the documents yesterday afternoon and phoing yesterday, i got an email from pp at 3.00AM saying my appeal was denied.

What was the actual notice from them?

chris187 · #21 09-15-2010

Email subject line said - Appeal Denied

Dear xxxx xxxxx

For the safety and security of the PayPal network, we often review
accounts for potential risks. After reviewing your account, we have
decided to close it because of security issues.

We are making every effort to minimise any disruption to your business.

If your PayPal account balance is zero, and you have no unresolved buyer
complaints or chargebacks, your account will remain limited.

-----------------------------------
Disbursement options
-----------------------------------

Option 1. If you owe refunds to any of your buyers, you can use the money
in your PayPal account to refund them.

To refund your buyers:
1. Log in to your PayPal account
2. Click "Contact Us" at the bottom of any page.
3. Click "Contact Customer Service."
4. Under "Choose a Topic," select "Sending/Receiving Money."
5. Under "Choose a Subtopic," select "Refund/Cancel a Payment."
6. Click "Continue" and follow the instructions to refund payments.

Option 2. Money in your PayPal account will be held for 180 days. After 180
days, we'll email you information on how to receive your funds.

We regret any inconvenience this may cause.

Yours sincerely,

PayPal

Please do not reply to this email. This mailbox is not monitored and you
will not receive a response. For assistance, log in to your PayPal account
and click the Help link in the top right corner of any PayPal page.

Im just off the phone from 1 of them on pp. The guy said he doesnt have much info all he sees is the email that they sent me and my info on the account.

He also said its more of what i sell, pp thinks im selling high risk items and getting more charge backs so they have shut down my account. He then said if i solf something else on the account i would be fine.

He said something about getting a new pp account but then he said he didnt recommend for some reason, maybe he was trying to say they would leave the account going if i sold some smaller things.

What now ?

How do i get the limit from my ebay account off so i can sell again ? Take the pp account off linked up to the account and open another ? Any advice would be great

thanks

chris187 · #22 09-15-2010

I also said to the guy to phone my suppliers and they can check what i sell, but he said its what i sell thats the problem so i dont think they checked the suppliers info.

I think i have another pp account from a couple of years ago, maybe i could link this to my eb account ? After i delete cookies and change ip and all that of course.

Do you think that would work ? As i was on to eb's live chat and they said come back to them when i have sorted it with pp, so i think i could get going again pretty quick.

What do you guys think ?