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Online shoppers fear their personal information is being sold on eBay after mystery sellers have been flogging undelivered parcels still in their packaging.
A number of people have expressed alarm after seeing listings on the auction website which show sellers asking for up to £140 per bundle of items, including anything from electricals to jewellery.
The adverts show pictures of parcels laid out on the floor, with some descriptions claiming customer data has only been removed ‘where possible’ and others admitting they haven’t even opened the mail.
Shoppers worry their personal details be inside on receipts, or order information print-outs that accompany the items.
Kris Ford, who is from Essex and runs a consumer support group, said: ‘[The listings are] frightening to see. The fact people’s personal information can be passed over like this without any real thought is disgusting.
‘The likes of the sellers and Hermes and Royal Mail should make sure those sorts of details are removed from the parcels before they’re handed to any third party.’
Some images show where the seller has scrawled black pen across addresses on the packaging or torn off the labels – but others appear to still have labels on them or even still have the addresses readable under the pen.
Jane Dawson, from Dagenham in London, added: ‘It’s really worrying. If these items really are undelivered how do you know people’s details and invoices aren’t in there as well.
‘People aren’t consenting to have their data shared outside of the delivery service and whoever is selling them items on eBay aren’t part of the delivery service.’
One listing, with bids up to £56, is titled: ’10x bundle of lost returned mail (Royal Mail / Hermes – original packaging),’ and shows items inside including reading glasses, LED lights and hair extensions.
It comes a year after comedian Joe Lycett filmed undelivered items being sold by Hermes at auction houses – with personal details still on some of the parcels.
Delivery companies Royal Mail and Hermes have explained how third-party companies end up receiving parcels that are supposed to be returned to the sender.
When an item can’t be delivered but the sender doesn’t wish to handle admin or shipping fees of the return, they instead nominate firms to sell the item on their behalf.
But both Hermes and Royal Mail say it is left to the third-party companies to remove any receipts or personal data accompanying the items.
A Hermes spokesperson said: ‘Some overseas retailers have a representative (clearance house) in the UK and this [is] where Hermes collects and returns items too.
‘Hermes has no role in deciding what then happens to these returned items – they belong to the retailer – and the retailer or their representative decides on the next course of action.
‘Hermes is not involved and would not legally be able to open these parcels and remove any personal data.’
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: ‘Where we have been made aware of items being sold in this way, in line with our terms and conditions, we also ask these companies to remove any customer details on the sites as well as make no reference to Royal Mail and to black out our branding.
‘These are not items that are in course of transmission by post and would not have reached eBay via Royal Mail. When Royal Mail attempts to deliver items to customers and the items are undeliverable, we return these items to the Delivery Office.
‘In some cases, the customers do not want to collect these items which can often be of low value. When items are undeliverable, our policy is to return such items to the sender or retailer.
‘Certain retailers, sometimes based overseas, may not want to deal with the administrative burden of managing the returns and associated shipping costs.
‘As a result certain overseas retailers sometimes arrange for third-party service providers based in the UK to manage their returns for them.
‘These retailers will then mark these third-party firms as the return address on any packaging. Once the third-party firms receive the items, they sometimes elect to sell these items by auction.
‘Where we have been made aware of items being sold in this way, we ask for these companies concerned to make no reference to Royal Mail on the sites and to black out our branding as can be seen in some of these images.’
Ebay and the Information Commissioner’s Office declined to comment.
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