Is the Buyer allowed to ship a tangible item to the Seller?

[bm95020]

I am considering hiring the same Fiverr Seller that I did a year ago, for a new gig.  Is it allowed for a Buyer to ship/mail a tangible item to the Seller in order to get a better understanding of the project to be completed?

[theratypist]

It is officially established that a seller can ship to a buyer. https://www.fiverr.com/support/articles/360011287938-Gigs-that-require-shipping

For the other way around, an official answer could best be confirmed with Customer Support: https://www.fiverr.com/support_tickets/new

[smashradio]

I'm answering this based on what I believe. I'm not 100% sure, since I haven't asked customer support about this, so I highly recommend that you do so, and consult the terms of service yourself, before making a descision on this. 

With that being said: I think it's OK if that is needed to fulfill the order. If the seller can't do the job properly without receiving the item, and the seller is willing to share their address, that should be ok. 

I say this based on the terms of service, which says: 

• To protect our users' privacy, user identities are kept anonymous. Requesting or providing Email addresses, s***e/IM usernames, telephone numbers or any other personal contact details to communicate outside of Fiverr in order to circumvent or abuse the Fiverr messaging system or Fiverr platform is not permitted.
• Any necessary exchange of personal information required to continue a service may be exchanged within the Order Page.

I understand this is: it's not allowed to share contact information etc. without it being nessasary to complete the order. If it is, that's ok. You still have to communicate via Fiverr and you can't circumvent Fiverr to perform payments of any kind. 

Again, this is my understanding of the terms on Fiverr. I recommend asking customer support before doing anything you're unsure of, especially when that can lead to flags/warnings/bans and restrictions. 

Edit: I see now that @theratypistlinked to an official response to this. That's more useful than my response. :) 

Edit 2: This seems to apply to gigs specifically in some categories that needs shipping. If the gig is not set up for it, I would contact support anyway to confirm before arranging that. 

[bm95020]

Thank you for your opinion on my question. It is still helpful to hear.  Unfortunately, I've searched for more than an hour for contact information to Fiverr directly, to no avail.  I do wish Fiverr had a customer service number, email, etc. which would make life alot easier.  Thank you.

[theratypist]

3 minutes ago, bm95020 said:

Unfortunately, I've searched for more than an hour for contact information to Fiverr directly, to no avail.  I do wish Fiverr had a customer service number, email, etc. which would make life alot easier. 

It's support@fiverr.com or https://www.fiverr.com/support_tickets/new

Hehe, I hope things get sorted out soon! ☺️

[uk1000]

For product photography a buyer can ship a product to the seller:

It might not be the case with other gigs (the gig would probably need to be set up for it/it would need to be really necessary for the gig). And I assume the gig in question isn't set up for it and it isn't vital for the gig so I assume it probably wouldn't be allowed (unless it was a product photography type gig).

I agree you should contact support about it to know for sure. But it might be easier for you/the seller if you just sent them a video clip of the product (and/or photos of it) instead - attaching those files to the order (or in the inbox if you wanted to discuss it before ordering).