Seller Protection is something most of us will never need to worry about, but if you make a mistake, it could cost you a lot of time and money. So, here's how to qualify, 100%, for seller protection. If you follow the PayPal terms of service, you will be protected from false claims from dishonest buyers. These protections aren't guaranteed by most other payment services or if you accept your own credit cards. The following text is from PayPal's current User Agreement. I have added notes in bold to teach you exactly how to meet the terms of the Seller Protection Policy. Follow these policies, and you will not have any problems with PayPal disputes. PayPal Seller protection is protection we provide Sellers from Claims, Chargebacks, or Reversals that are based on: * Unauthorized Transaction or * Item Not Received ... 1. Basic Requirements: * You must ship the item to the shipping address on the Transaction Details Page. The address may be listed as Confirmed or Unconfirmed for eBay sales. As long as you ship to the "Seller Protection Address" and the page says "Seller Protection: Eligible" you are fully covered. * You must respond to PayPal's requests for documentation and other information in a timely manner. This is usually 7 days. * The item must be a physical, tangible good that can be shipped. If you are selling something like a domain name or software, delivering a receipt or computer media is a simple way of turning your intangible good into a tangible good. However, the buyer must ultimately receive the intangible good, or you will not be protected even if you delivered the tangible good. * Your primary residence, as listed in your Account, must be in the United States. 2. Item Not Received Additional Requirements: * The payment must be marked "eligible" or "partially eligible" for PayPal Seller protection on the Transaction Details Page. Eligible: All eBay sales. Partially eligible: Off-eBay sales with an Unconfirmed address. Ineligible: I have only seen this on eChecks that have not yet cleared the bank. It changes to one of the two eligible statuses after the eCheck clears. * You must have a Proof of Delivery as described below in Section 11.4. See below. * You must ship the item within 7 Days of receipt of payment. Or, if the payment is for pre-ordered or made-to-order goods, shipment is required within the timeframe specified in your item listing. Make sure you specify that timeframe in your item listing! 3. Unauthorized Transactions Additional Requirements: * The payment must be marked "eligible" for PayPal Seller protection on the Transaction Details Page. If the payment is partially eligible (unconfirmed address + Off eBay transaction) you will not be protected against Unauthorized Transaction claims. You are still protected for Item Not Received claims! * You must have a Proof of Shipment or a Proof of Delivery. See below. ... 11.4 Proof of Shipment, Proof of Delivery, and Signature Confirmation Requirements. "Proof of Shipment" is online or physical documentation from a shipping company that includes all of the following: * The date the item is shipped. * The recipient's address, showing at least the city/state or zip code (or international equivalent). If you use UPS or FedEX, your tracking number counts as proof of shipment. If you use USPS, you can get a Proof of Shipment by printing a SCAN form. Use USPS.com or PayPal MultiOrder Shipping. Or, if you only have Proof of Delivery, you don't need Proof of Shipment. "Proof of Delivery" is online documentation from a shipping company that includes all of the following: * The date the item is delivered. * The recipient's address, showing at least the city/state or zip code (or international equivalent). If the item is NOT delivered (lost in the mail) - you will not be protected! Seller Protection is not a substitute for insurance. If the item is forwarded to another address, you will not be protected. To ensure that the item will not be forwarded to another address, mark USPS packages "Return Service Requested." UPS and FedEx are more difficult to forward, as long as you do not ship under the buyer's account. If you ship Internationally, there will not be any Proof of Delivery with First-Class Mail International, Priority Mail International Flat-Rate Envelopes or Small Flat-Rate Boxes. If the item is worth more money than you are willing to lose, add Registered Mail service on those items or bump them up to weight-priced Priority Mail International. * Signature Confirmation as described below for payments of $250 USD or more... "Signature Confirmation" is online documentation that can be viewed at the shipping company's website and indicates that the item was signed for on delivery. If your payment is $250 or more, you need Signature Confirmation. UPS / FedEx equivalent: In-Person Signature Required. USPS, Domestic: Signature Confirmation. Insurance requires a signature but the signature is not documented online, so you still need Signature Confirmation. USPS, International: This is tricky. Global Express Guaranteed is the only service that is certain to be signed for on delivery and documented online (FedEx delivers them). Express Mail International is documented however the receiving country documents it. Many, but not all, receiving countries display the signature on their own track and trace page. If you use Priority or Express Mail International, you get built-in insurance and they would generally send you a letter with the buyer's signature upon denial, and you can scan and upload, or fax, that document to PayPal and hope for the best. Disputes about insured Priority/Express Mail International shipments are very, very rare so don't worry too much about it. I have heard rumors that some sellers have tried breaking the payments up into smaller payments, and PayPal still counted the total of all the payments combined together as more than $250 and still required Signature Confirmation. So if someone buys more than $250 of stuff separately and you ship it together, get a signature! 11.5 Items/transactions not eligible for PayPal Seller protection. ... * Claims or Chargebacks for Significantly Not as Described. Agreeing to refund upon return is the best way to avoid losing such a claim. If the buyer does not return the item with proof of delivery, the buyer will not be refunded by PayPal. If you dispute the claim, you will need to have some very convincing proof that the buyer's complaint was already explained in your item listing. "As Is" has no meaning on PayPal because the buyer can't inspect the item until it shows up at his or her house. * Items that you deliver in person, including at a retail point of sale. It's best not to use PayPal for in-person pickups due to credit card rules. If you do, collect some documentation such as buyer's ID and signature on receipt to discourage the buyer from filing a claim. * Intangible items, including Digital Goods, and services. * PayPal Direct Payments. * Virtual Terminal Payments. * PayPal Business Payments. * Items that are not shipped to the recipient address. If you originally ship the item to the recipient address but the item is later redirected to a different address, you will not be eligible for PayPal Seller protection. We therefore recommend not using a shipping service that is arranged by the buyer, so that you will be able to provide valid proof of shipping and delivery. This is the policy that I mentioned above, why you do not want the package to be forwarded. If this post helped you, please thumbs-up. Thanks!
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