Question
In light of all of these stories of good sellers getting NARU'd out of the blue, I've been seriously considering setting up a second eBay seller account to enable the seller to continue selling until the NARU mess is cleared up. I know from my readings here and on other sites that some of the folks here have done this. I have some questions/concerns, though, and I hope you can help me out.
It seems as though when eBay suspends a seller, it's not unusual for all of the associated accounts to be NARU'd as well. So the only way a second account would be useful would be if it was not associated with the first account. So I wonder, what exactly makes accounts 'associated'? What do I need to make sure is different about each account to ensure that eBay won't shut them all down?
I'm sure that the easy answer is to have accounts in different family member's names, but I don't have any family nearby, they're all out of state.
And what about Paypal? I'd want my second account to be able to accept Paypal as well. But eBay owns Paypal, so don't they have all that information available to them? So I'd have to have a second Paypal account, right?
Thanks for any help!
Answer
Yes, you'd need another PayPal account. They associate addresses and credit cards, as well. I don't know for sure, but it seems a good bet they would associate bank accounts, too.
I just opened a new account with my usual credit card, and they immediately emailed my other IDs to tell me that card had been used, and that I should contact them if there were any problem with that. Ebay knows all.
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It's scary!
I guess the safest thing to do would be to have completely separate everything - credit card, bank account, mailing address...
But the name would be the same. I guess that would have to be alright, there must be dozens of sellers with same/similar names if you have a common name. Don't you think?
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I'm not really "up" on all the rules, but I'm pretty sure what you're suggesting is outside the accepted rules. They would still be your accounts...using different mailing addresses would mean that some of the addresses wouldn't be correct contact info.
My understanding, if correct, is that if one account is suspended, you're not allowed to use any other account to still do business until the suspended account is reinstated.
I'm sure someone will come along who can explain the exact rules or even post a link to eBay that explains it. I looked around, and couldn't find what I was looking for.
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But the name would be the same. I guess that would have to be alright, there must be dozens of sellers with same/similar names if you have a common name. Don't you think?
This I don't know. Perhaps you could use your middle name or initials or something? A few years back I know many had extra IDs like you're considering...I suspect it would be a lot riskier now, though. Remember, if you're caught it's a permanent NARU.
Still, the way eBay is arbitrarily messing up people's livelihoods...they're going to force their customers to protect themselves somehow. Ebay's behavior is so deeply unfair they shouldn't be surprised if folks fight back.
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I think you should be careful in taking this two accounts for selling approach.
Most problems seem to be resolved within weeks and notice usually includes a warning that you are not to sell using another account.
Even if eBay makes a mistake in suspending your primary account and you have no fault what so ever, the act of selling under a different account is a specific and intentional disregard for their rules and could lead to permanent suspension.
If selling on eBay is an important income source I don't think the risk/reward ratio is worthwhile.
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What you're considering could get you permanently suspended from eBay.
http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/...suspended.html
eBay prohibits users who are currently suspended for trading offenses from registering new accounts or participating on the eBay site using associated registrations. If you suspect that a member trading on the eBay site is connected to a suspended account, report the member by providing the User ID of the suspended member, as well as the User ID that is currently being used.
After receiving your report, eBay will consider the circumstances of the alleged offense. Disciplinary action may result in a formal warning, a temporary suspension, or an indefinite suspension. If a complaint cannot be proven with certainty, it is possible that no action will be taken. Due to privacy issues, eBay will be unable to discuss the result of the investigation.
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You are right Meya......you are not 'allowed' to use any account if one is under suspension.Being found out can lead to permanent suspension
In order to 'get away with it' every bit of information would have to be different and not able to be connected.
In some cases just being associated loosely with a suspended member has gotten people also suspended
If memory serves me right there has been a case of that mentioned here on here.
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As I recall, people used PO Boxes and separate phone numbers so they still had good contact info, right? I'd have absolutely no cumpunction from a moral POV, if eBay's unrectified errors were ruining my business. Riskier now, though.
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Good points about the second account violating eBay's rules.
I guess what worries me is that it seems like eBay is NARU'ing more and more carelessly and getting things resolved takes longer and longer.
Most problems seem to be resolved within weeks and notice usually includes a warning that you are not to sell using another account.
I don't know about other folks here but losing "weeks" of time from selling on eBay translates to a lot of money for me, especially in the holiday season. I suppose I shouldn't worry so much, I haven't ever been suspended, but ack!
I think about getting a website to get away from dependency on eBay, but I sell all sorts of vintage collectibles and there just isn't anyplace or thing to compare with it. Sigh. I'm a worry wart.