Etsy Address VS PayPal address.

There's a lot of debate on the shipping address issue. 90% of the time both addresses match and no problem. But what happens when the Etsy Address is not the same as the PayPal address?

There is no correct Answer. I'll tell you what Poppy poppyswickedgarden and I do, and the pros and cons of both.

Etsy Address Pro: #1 It has to be entered by customer and chances are it is correct. #2 Keep your customer happy.

Etsy Address Con: #1 You are not covered by PayPal insurance. #2 You might be shipping to the wrong address. #3 You can only use PayPal shipping if you manually edit the customers address.

PayPal Address Pro: #1 You are covered with PayPal protection, buyer or seller if ANYTHING happens to your product after it is shipped. #2 Easy shipping through Pay Pal

PayPal Address Con: #1 You might be shipping to the wrong address. #2 You might loose or anger a customer by contacting them about the problem. (See addendum)

So you've shipped 700 items using Etsy address and never had a problem? Here's a little story. Imagine this happened to you.

You ship to your customers Etsy address. Your package is delivered, but your customer claims they never received it. Maybe a neighbor took it, maybe it went in the neighbor's mailbox. Postal carriers never make mistakes, right? The customer contacts PayPal and they get their money refunded. PayPal takes the money from your account. You are out of the money if you shipped to a different address.

If a buyer has 2 different addresses listed, one PayPal, one Etsy, can you be sure which one they want their merchandise sent to? Not unless you contact them.

You are paying for PayPal insurance. That's right. That fee you pay? It's not just to use PayPal. You're covered by PayPal insurance as long as you ship to the PayPal address. You only need proof, even if you use another shipping service. Click to See 11.3 PayPal Protection for Sellers Eligibility Requirement So why pay for a service you are not going to use?

Here is what I do.

I post a warning on my profile, on my shipping info, and on each one of my listings, that I ship to PayPal Address ONLY. Click to See example I also state it on my sales confirmation email, but at that point the buyer has already paid.

If I notice a different address, I contact the buyer and inform them that I have to ship to the PayPal address for both of us to be insured (never a problem if they are a legitimate buyer)

There are then TWO steps to correct the problem. You need to #1 REFUND the purchase and #2 UNCHECK paid on your sale. Yes you can do this. The buyer goes back into their purchases and pays again with the correct address. The buyer can put in any address on PayPal, even another name and address as a gift. You must explain to the buyer what they have to do.

Remember PayPal insurance covers BOTH the seller AND the buyer. You are doing them a favor if you make sure they have the correct address on PayPal.

See Etsy Thread links for more on this conversation from your peers http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6626948

http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6595924

Search Etsy Forums - Shipping Addresses - for more.

Addendum: All that being said, I JUST had a customer who was infuriated that I insisted on shipping to the PayPal address. She gives a different address all the time on Etsy and she didn't like the inconvenience of repaying. It cost her time and money (no money lost for her). It was a $1.50 supply purchase. These are the kind of people who will have a problem with anything though. It's better to weed them out BEFORE they leave you negative feedback.