Problems with Amazon selling account

lcc86

HI all,

Not sure if this is the right area of the forum for this but here goes.....

I got an email from Amazon today saying they are changing the way their seller accounts work and I would need to verify my information in order to get a Selling on Amazon account, as this is where seller payments will now come from.

I went onto another computer as I didn't necessarily trust the email, and logged into my seller account independently of this email. I'm being asked to provide my passport information, business information and other information about my business premises. I'm a little concerned by this, I only ever sell books that I've read and have no use for and this seems a little OTT. In fact I only have two items in my entire inventory.

Has anyone else had this message and can they tell me what it means in plain English! I don't really understand why Amazon is changing.

mrcol1000

lcc86 wrote: »

HI all,

Not sure if this is the right area of the forum for this but here goes.....

I got an email from Amazon today saying they are changing the way their seller accounts work and I would need to verify my information in order to get a Selling on Amazon account, as this is where seller payments will now come from.

I went onto another computer as I didn't necessarily trust the email, and logged into my seller account independently of this email. I'm being asked to provide my passport information, business information and other information about my business premises. I'm a little concerned by this, I only ever sell books that I've read and have no use for and this seems a little OTT. In fact I only have two items in my entire inventory.

Has anyone else had this message and can they tell me what it means in plain English! I don't really understand why Amazon is changing.

To sell on Amazon you need an Amazon Payments account now. In order to open an Amazon Payments account they need more info and proof. You can not sell on Amazon now without an Amazon Payments account. Everyone should get this message.

To be honest I can not be bothered to supply my passport to Amazon. Ebay & PayPal have never asked for this information and I sell a lot more through that. I have taken my listings off Amazon and am concentrating on selling on Ebay. I may give them the details if I change my mind in the future but it is unlikely.

celestius

I provided them with the info they wanted last year and started sellling on Amazon, including abroad, now they want more documents for my Amazon Payments Europe account which I really can't be bothered with at the moment!

virgil_tracy

what if you don't have a passport ?

celestius

virgil_tracy wrote: »

what if you don't have a passport ?

You can use a copy of Document Issued by HMRC - tax ref number, Vat number, NI contributions payment...

RFW

virgil_tracy wrote: »

what if you don't have a passport ?

They have a list of required documents that you can choose from. Government documents seem to be their favourites. If you don't have some of them, you can order from HMRC.
I only know of it being a business issue, I wasn't aware this was being applied to private sellers.

If you have any confusion with what is being asked, just contact Amazon. Largely speaking, their customer service is knowledgeable and helpful.

lcc86

It seems like a little overkill for personal customers, I rarely make more than a couple of pounds in profit, I only sell to avoid hoarding! Seems strange if it's for vat/tax purposes given Amazon's registered in Luxembourg, hardly famous for high taxes......

pearl123

Hi,
I'm a individual not a business who has been selling on amazon for a couple of years. I've just had a request for my passport id number from amazon.
I'm no overly comfortable with this. (I'm half inclined to stop selling with them.)
What does everyone else think? Do you think giving such personally information safe?

forgotmyname

As long as it is Amazon and not a phishing scam then you either provide ID or stop using them.

RFW

pearl123 wrote: »

Hi,
I'm a individual not a business who has been selling on amazon for a couple of years. I've just had a request for my passport id number from amazon.
I'm no overly comfortable with this. (I'm half inclined to stop selling with them.)
What does everyone else think? Do you think giving such personally information safe?

They can do more damage with your bank details and credit card details, along with your name and address that they will already have.
Copies of passports are a relatively useless piece of information if stolen. That said, as above, if you aren't comfortable don't do it and don't sell on Amazon.

pearl123

RFW wrote: »

They can do more damage with your bank details and credit card details, along with your name and address that they will already have.
Copies of passports are a relatively useless piece of information if stolen. That said, as above, if you aren't comfortable don't do it and don't sell on Amazon.

I had not considered that they already my bank details/cc etc. I suppose there is not more harm with them having passport id.
Thank you.