How Can I take Payment from --TURKEY - now without Paypal there? What will Ebay Allow ?

[watermelonmemories2005]

Hi - I have a very interested buyer on an auction ending Sat. Night- I don't have a merchant account for a direct C/C payment....But he is willing to pay by credit card or whatever else he is able to do.  I see Ebay will not allow wire transfers even - so any suggestions please?

Thank you - Melanie 

[i.am.vivian]

You take PayPal so all the buyer has to do is enter his credit card info at the checkout and it comes off his card and goes into your PP account.  You do not need a merchant account to accept cc payments, PayPal does it for you.

[tobyshitzu]

paypal was forced out of turkey so they cant do that

Probably not worth the effort for either party op

[i.am.vivian]

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@toby**bleep**zu wrote:

paypal was forced out of turkey so they cant do that

Probably not worth the effort for either party op

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Really? Forced?  I agree,  this could end up being more trouble than its worth.  Sending a PP invoice in email wouldn't work then either? 

[tobyshitzu]

yes forced, they couldnt get the required license.  People can only withdraw their money.  That was before the coup

[femmefan1946 · Accepted solution]

The seller cannot suggest any method of payment that does not give the buyer electronic tracking.

But the buyer can suggest anything he is willing to use, with the understanding that he has almost no protection without that electronic tracking.

Which leaves us to the old old tech methods.

Concealed cash. Really insecure for buyers.

Personal cheques. Really really insecure for sellers.

International money orders from the post office which can be cashed at the post office of the seller. Or commercial money orders like (Don't Panic!) Western Union.

These are all slow because they depend on the international postal system and while I don't think Erdogan has arrested the entire Post Office yet...

The Western Union scam involved a faked email that told the seller he could ship because the paper MO was on its way (it wasn't).

If you do want to continue with the transaction, send the customer here for some suggestions he can make to you. 

Or politely tell him it's just not going to work and cancel his bid before he wins.

[watermelonmemories2005]

Hi - Thank-you - Yes defiantely also the coup issues as well - He is right in Ankara (sp?) .

I did see the Western Union, Money order options on Ebay's list of NOT allowed. I can understand that it is frowned upon as it cannot be tracked and proven by either party. Will Ebay penalize me if I go this route?? Also if I find a way to bank transfer or E-Transfer outside of Ebay - cannot I just mark the auction as PAID - like I'd do if someone appeared at my door with cash?

Thank -you for your time.

Melanie

PS - why is there no obvious links to these discussions from any Ebay.ca pages -as in my Dashboard etc. It again took me a half hour to find my way here. I'd probably ask more questions if I could locate it faster and then get the replies - I left this page open and waited so that I didn;t lose the site !! 

[i.am.vivian · Accepted solution]

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@watermelonmemories2005 wrote:

Hi - Thank-you - Yes defiantely also the coup issues as well - He is right in Ankara (sp?) .

I did see the Western Union, Money order options on Ebay's list of NOT allowed. I can understand that it is frowned upon as it cannot be tracked and proven by either party. Will Ebay penalize me if I go this route?? Also if I find a way to bank transfer or E-Transfer outside of Ebay - cannot I just mark the auction as PAID - like I'd do if someone appeared at my door with cash?

Thank -you for your time.

Melanie

PS - why is there no obvious links to these discussions from any Ebay.ca pages -as in my Dashboard etc. It again took me a half hour to find my way here. I'd probably ask more questions if I could locate it faster and then get the replies - I left this page open and waited so that I didn;t lose the site !! 

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To keep eBay a safe place those things like WU and MOs are not accepted and Europe uses money wire transfers alot but if your buyer wants to send you an International Postal Money Order or else Western Union, one of those, the risk is all on the buyer but you are allowed to accept if they suggest it first.  

If it arrives and AFTER you have cashed it and got the money you send the item and mark it paid same as a local pick up.  

Most people bookmark the Discussion pages so they can find it in an instant and not have to hunt.  Otherwise you have to go to the very bottom of the page to find Community and search the seller board from there.  

[watermelonmemories2005]

Thank you very much !  I will get back here and search back threads!  

Melanie

[rose-dee]

To the OP -- One issue to bear in mind, even if the buyer was willing to work out an arrangement to pay by mail (money order) is how long it might actually take to receive the cash and be able to ship.  Once a letter got out of Turkey, you would probably be fine, but would you trust the Turkish postal system to work efficiently after what has just occurred in that country?  

The same would apply to your delivery of the item to the buyer (and eBay's on-time delivery policies).  To be frank, I'm not sure I'd place complete confidence in the postal system of a country that had just undergone an attempted coup.  I imagine there would be a higher risk of loss through theft or mishandling within the Turkish system at this time too.  

What's the value of the item?  Is it something breakable or delicate?  Even if you used Xpresspost for a valuable item, you still ultimately have to be able to rely on the Turkish postal system.  It's your call, but I think I'd cancel the bid and send the bidder a polite note explaining that you can't ship to Turkey at the moment, given the current political situation.  Unless you're a high volume seller, the trouble this sale could generate could potentially wreak havoc with your seller status. 

[ricarmic]

The thing I always worry about in situations like this, is what happens if it does not arrive? How does one refund the buyer.

This is why I've started seriously resisting folks sending me cash because the only way to be sure it gets back in a refund situation is to send it registered, which often costs more than the value of the original amount.... some sales are not worth having....

PS and many countries, usually the ones like this that are a problem, don't allow cash to be received in the mail to start with.....

[ypdc_dennis]

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@rose-dee wrote:

To the OP ...

The same would apply to your delivery of the item to the buyer (and eBay's on-time delivery policies).  To be frank, I'm not sure I'd place complete confidence in the postal system of a country that had just undergone an attempted coup.

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Postal systems tend to ignore coups and civil wars (if the post office was reliable to start with). I once shipped (very nervously) to Lebanon a decade back when active shooting was going on -- the package arrived safely.

But your comment about eBay's delivery policies is the real sticking point with selling to Turkey if using postal orders. It can just take too long to do.

[pierrelebel]

KISS - in such instance I request payment in  cash (US$ banknotes).  Never had a problem.

[femmefan1946]

I can understand that it is frowned upon as it cannot be tracked and proven by either party. Will Ebay penalize me if I go this route??

No.

You could accept payment in Canadian Tire Money and eBay would just sigh and shake its head.

Once you mark the payment as made, eBay accepts that you are a grownup and can make your own decisions.

The problems are delivery and trust.

The 'Western Union" scam was very widespread and based on WUs decision to speed up their money transfers by letting the intended recipient know by email that the paper MO, which was all that could be cashed, was on its way. Imagine how quickly fake emails appeared. And of course, WU MOs are often counterfeited.

As is US cash of course, but most people in Canada have handled enough of it to spot possibly phoney bills.

[dinomitesales]

You could also look into using a MoneyGram. It is effectively a wire transfer of money, but I mean once you have the money in your account there's not a lot the buyer can do to get it back if things went south.

Plus it's almost instantaneous - the buyer simply purchases a MoneyGram in their own country, receives a reference number, sends you the reference number, and you go to any Canada Post agent with valid ID to get a cheque printed out for you that you can then deposit at your bank.

[i.am.vivian]

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@rose-dee wrote:

What's the value of the item?  Is it something breakable or delicate?  Even if you used Xpresspost for a valuable item, you still ultimately have to be able to rely on the Turkish postal system.  It's your call, but I think I'd cancel the bid and send the bidder a polite note explaining that you can't ship to Turkey at the moment, given the current political situation.  Unless you're a high volume seller, the trouble this sale could generate could potentially wreak havoc with your seller status. 

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It must be for the PHONAK VIRTO Q70 Hearing Aids, ttl getting close to $200 now, if that is valuable. Probably not breakable and I doubt a high fraud item.  I wouldn't want to ship to Turkey either especially now.  It might work itself out if the bidding goes high enough and someone else wins it. Not the buyer's fault, not if the seller did not block Turkey as a country. 

[rose-dee]

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@i.am.vivian wrote:

Not the buyer's fault, not if the seller did not block Turkey as a country. 

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No, I fully agree, it's certainly not the buyer's fault at all.  Last month Turkey was a reasonably safe place to do business with. 

However, for the posters here who have suggested alternative means of payment from a country that has just gone through a political upheaval, I would say that it's far, far easier to take the risk (however small some may think it is) if you're selling dozens or hundreds of items a month, rather than just a few hundred a year.  EBay has made it so with their various policies.  A lower volume seller simply can't afford even one avoidable issue now. 

This is why my suggestion was to cancel the bid, message the buyer nicely, and then -- probably -- change the seller's preferences immediately afterward to block Turkey as a ship-to country.  

It's true that the problem may solve itself if another buyer wins the auction, but if the Turkish buyer wins, the seller is faced with a practical risk that is now unavoidable and may well have an unpredictable outcome, all of which could have been easily eliminated beforehand.  

Sadly eBay has forced smaller volume sellers to make choices between trying to accommodate potential customers or face potentially devastating eBay punishment.  

[rose-dee]

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@pierrelebel wrote:

KISS - in such instance I request payment in  cash (US$ banknotes).  Never had a problem.

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Am I understanding this correctly?  Are you really suggesting the seller should ask the buyer to send paper money in the mails?  From Turkey at this time?  

I'm sorry to have to disagree, but I think that in the current eBay environment, with the MBG and other policies that keep sellers under strict control, and considering that the OP's buyers may not be as understanding and reasonable as stamp collectors, I think you might actually (have a problem). 

For the OP, this wouldn't be 'KISS'.  It could easily turn into 'PITA', or 'SNAFU', with the resultant hammer of eBay policy coming down on the OP's head ('BANG'). 

[pierrelebel]

"Are you really suggesting the seller should ask the buyer to send paper money in the mails?  From Turkey at this time?  "

YES.

[reallynicestamps]

and considering that the OPs buyers may not be as understanding and reasonable as stamp collectors, I think you might actually (have a problem). 

Philately is very much a 'handshake' business. And stamp collectors are surprisingly connected for such a widespread hobby. Or maybe because it is a widespread hobby.

For the OP, this wouldn't be 'KISS'.  It could easily turn into 'PITA', or 'SNAFU', with the resultant hammer of eBay policy coming down on the OPs head ('BANG'). 

I have to disagree with this.

While the buyer is put at a great deal of risk when sending cash in the mail, the seller is pretty well covered, just as he would be on a pickup and pay situation.

The OP gets the cash (or cashes a money order) and ships with Confirmation of Delivery.

Then he marks the transaction Paid and Shipped.

"This is the captain. We have a little problem with our entry sequence, so we may experience some slight... turbulence and then explode."-- Captain Malcolm Reynolds