9 Ways to Spot A Safe vs. Shady Amazon Third-party Seller

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Know the difference between a safe vs. shady Amazon third-party seller.

When making those purchases, we usually don’t stop and think about who we are buying from, especially if we are buying from Amazon, Walmart and other online eCommerce sites.

In this article, I am covering how to spot the difference between a safe vs. shady third-party seller on Amazon and other eCommerce sites.

Safe vs. Shady Amazon Third-party Seller
Table of Contents

Overview of Third-party Sellers
Safe vs. Shady Third-party Seller

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Table of Contents

Overview of Third-part Sellers

In this article, I am covering how to spot the difference between a safe vs. shady third-party seller on Amazon and other eCommerce sites. The examples in this article will be related to my purchases of coloring supplies, and the information can apply to any eCommerce purchases. [TOC]

Third-party Purchase Experience

Why am I addressing the issue of shady third-party sellers? In the past year, I have made three purchases from third-party Amazon sellers that were less than satisfying. These third-party shippers sold and shipped these purchases, and I paid for the goods through Amazon. Here is an example of those purchase interactions:

New isn’t new, and I’ll give you a 70% refund. I purchased a hard to find out of print coloring book for $55.00. The coloring book description stated the book was new. When I received the coloring book, the cover was bent, and several pages in the book had been colored. When I returned the book, the seller authorized the return and began to bargain that he would only give 70% of the purchase price. When I told the third-party seller that I would be contacting Amazon and writing a seller review, he quickly agreed to the 100% return.

For the remainder of this article, I would like to focus on third-party resellers on Amazon and the ways you can spot shady third-party sellers. The information and suggestions made in the article can be used on all eCommerce sites where third-party sellers can sell. [TOC]

Number of Amazon Third-party Sellers

How big is Ecommerce? I want to share facts that might interest you about online shopping and third-party sellers. Rather than provide statistics for different countries, I will use the United States for this example:

Nearly two-thirds (63%) of every purchase begins with online shopping.

76% of Americans are online shoppers.

62% of Americans make more than one online purchase each month.

Roughly half of all Americans prefer shopping in person but favor the convenience of eCommerce.

Millennials (aged 22 to 37) make 60% of their purchases online.

How many third-party sellers are on Amazon? When we conduct online shopping, there is a 50% chance that we will make our purchases on Amazon. I was very surprised to find out that in 2022 there will be more than 1.9 million active third-party sellers on Amazon.

More than 500,000 are based in the United States. Of the 1.9 million sellers, 200,000 have joined the Amazon Marketplace. These third-party sellers make up 57% of all sales on Amazon. [TOC]

Defining A Third-Party Seller

What are third-party sellers? Third-party sellers are independent sellers who offer a variety of new, used, and refurbished items. A third-party seller uses the Amazon marketplace to sell directly to shoppers/consumers. If Amazon doesn’t fulfill items from the third-party seller, the seller will fulfill your order. In most cases, the seller will also handle their customer service, excluding Amazon Prime items. If you have a problem with an order, you may be eligible to file a claim under the Amazon A-to-z Guarantee. For more information, go to A-to-z Guarantee.

If Amazon doesn’t fulfill items from the third-party seller, the seller will fulfill your order. In most cases, the seller will also handle their customer service, excluding Amazon Prime items. If you have a problem with an order, you may be eligible to file a claim under the Amazon A-to-z Guarantee. For more information, go to A-to-z Guarantee. [TOC]

Are You Buying From A Third-party Seller?

Are you buying from a third-party seller? This is how to distinguish third-party sellers of Amazon products from the inventory of other sellers on Amazon. When you shop on the Amazon website or in the app, there are three ways to identify how a product will be sold and shipped to you:

Sold and Shipped by Amazon: These items have been purchased as inventory by Amazon and sold and shipped to you from an Amazon warehouse.

Sold by Third-Party, Fulfilled by Amazon: These items are owned by an independent, third-party business and shipped to Amazon’s warehouses ahead of time. When you buy them, Amazon ships them to you.

Sold and Shipped by Third-Party: These items are owned by a third-party business and will be shipped to you directly from that third-party business’s location.

In this example: Ships from Amazon, Sold by Remytters

In this example: Ships from Gimue, Sold by Gimue

Look at the ships from and sold buy on the product page just below the “Add to Cart and Buy Now” buttons. In this example, it is sold and shipped by the same company. If the shipper is a third party, check the sell feedback. [TOC]

Purchasing from A Third-party Seller

The steps to place an order with a third-party seller are the same as placing any other order on Amazon.com. You add items to your cart and complete your order through the Amazon checkout process. Payment for your order may be processed immediately or when the order ships. Amazon will send the funds to the third-party seller but won’t share payment information. If a seller asks you to send funds directly to them, don’t place the order and contact us immediately.

Safe vs. Shady Third-party Seller

The information and suggestions made in the article can be used on all eCommerce sites where third-party sellers can sell.

Find the Name of the Third-party Seller

When shopping online, you can access third-party sellers. For example:

You can select the seller’s name on Amazon under “Buy Now.”
You can click the seller’s name on eBay under “Seller Information.”
A product sold by a third party at Walmart has the seller’s name listed next to “Sold and shipped by.”

Carefully Review Third-party Seller Information

Click on the seller’s information. You should be able to learn what other items the seller sells, where the business is located, and feedback on the products. Think twice about buying from a seller that sells an assortment of products (e.g., colored pencils, socks, exercise bikes, hamster wheels). It is a sign they are just moving whatever cheap products they think people will buy. [TOC]

Check Third-party Seller Responses

See how the seller responds to customer questions/inquiries. Contact the seller with questions. If you don’t get a response, it is probably a good sign that this seller is not the one you want to buy from. [TOC]

Review Third-party Seller Feedback

Today, shoppers will routinely share their experiences with the product and shipper. Most of my purchases are sold and shipped by Amazon. In Amazon pricing, you are given alternatives for pricing for buying the item you want.

Here is how you can find the seller’s recent history with customers on Amazon: On the product page, find the buyer box on the right-hand side of your screen. Next, look at a line that says “sold by” along with the retailer’s name, which should be in a spot above where you would add the item to your cart. Click that, and you’ll find all the feedback you’re looking for. [TOC]

For example, if you were to click on used books, would find a book used book for $2.99. I am given the ships from and sold by information. In this example, it is HBP-Diamond.

I click on the name HPB-Diamond and am taken to the shipper feedback page, where I see their consumer ratings.

Consider choosing another seller if the shipper has anything below 90% positive in the last 30 days. [TOC]

Confirm the Seller as Authorized Amazon Dealer

Confirm the seller is on the authorized list. All Amazon sellers must follow the Amazon code of conduct and selling. Most brands will have an authorized sales list and a store locator to find where you can find the brand’s products near you. [TOC]

Only Make Payments On Amazon Marketplace

Some third-party sales will encourage you to purchase your desired merchandise outside the Amazon website. They may also add the standard Amazon guarantee, such as “refund your money if not satisfied.” A seller may be doing this so they don’t have to pay Amazon money for sale, or they may be running a scam. Make it a personal rule: pay for items bought on Amazon to avoid problems/complications. [TOC]

Review Amazon “Customer Questions & Answers”

When you are buying items, look for the “Customer questions and answers,” which can be found above the reviews section. In this example, look right below the star ratings. You will see a listing of the “114 answered questions.” Click on it and you will be taken to the listing of questions.

Each question is listed along with the answers and the number of votes telling you how many persons thought the answers were helpful.

Look at the question volume and answers the customers and sellers give. This is a red flag if you see quite a few reviews but only a few questions about the product.

Delete Fake Amazon and Shipper Emails

If you get an email from Amazon, check if they are fake. Be careful of emails that:

Come from an email address that doesn’t end in “@amazon.com”

Contain order confirmations (especially attachments) for items you know you didn’t order (do not open or download the attachments!)

Ask you to update your billing information

Ask you for personal information, including your username or password

Contain links to websites that aren’t part of Amazon or its international derivatives

Contain spelling or grammar errors

If anything looks out of place, delete it. I have never received an email from Amazon besides the purchase confirmation, return confirmation and ads for Amazon-sponsored products. If you are unsure, the email is fake, log into your Amazon account and look at your order history and account settings. If everything is in order, you can conclude that you are dealing with a fake email. Now delete the email. [TOC]

Example of Fake Amazon email:

Hello,

I’m sorry to hear about the problem you’ve had with your AmScope 120X-1200X 52-pcs Kids Beginner Microscope STEM Kit with Metal Body Microscope, Plastic Slides, LED Light and Carrying Box (M30-ABS-KT2-W),Whi.

Please return the AmScope 120X-1200X 52-pcs Kids Beginner Microscope STEM Kit with Metal Body Microscope, Plastic Slides, LED Light and Carrying Box (M30-ABS-KT2-W),Whi to us and we’ll refund you as soon as possible.

Please click on the following link to be brought to your personalized return label and follow the instructions provided:

FAKE URL

I hope this helps. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

We’d appreciate your feedback. Please use the buttons below to vote about your experience today.

Best regards,
Jay
Amazon.com

Make Your Purchase Decision

Evaluate your research. If you have any reason to be concerned about a seller, don’t waste your time. Buy from someone else.

If you liked this article, please share it with others.

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9 Ways to Spot A Safe vs. Shady Amazon Third-party Seller

9 Ways to Spot A Safe vs. Shady Amazon Third-party Seller