Because of the way you created @BuySellHashref, each element is actually a SCALAR reference to a HASH reference. That's why ${buysell}->{BuyerOrSeller} works, when a straight HASH ref would be used as $buysell->{BuyerOrSeller}.

The error is generated for the print line, where you try to access $buysell->{PersonID}. Since $buysell is not a HASH reference, that expression causes an error. It would have to be ${$buysell}->{PersonID} instead.
 

Frankly, I don't see what advantage you get from this extra level of references. I would write the code as: 

$SQLBuy = $dbh_metro->prepare(<<"EndOfSQL");
    SELECT *
    FROM BuyersSellers
    WHERE FileNumber = ?
EndOfSQL

$rv = $SQLBuy->execute($filenumber);
while (my $hash_ref = $SQLBuy->fetchrow_hashref) {
    push @BuySellHashref, { %{$hash_ref} };
}
undef $SQLBuy;

$SQLPEOPLE = $dbh_metro->prepare(<<"EndOfSQL");
    SELECT *
    FROM People
    WHERE PersonID = ?
EndOfSQL

foreach (@BuySellHashref) {
    $rv = $SQLPEOPLE->execute($_->{PersonID});
    while (my $hash_ref = $SQLPEOPLE->fetchrow_hashref) {
        $_->{PersonID} = { %{$hash_ref} };
    }
}
undef $SQLPEOPLE;

foreach $buysell (@BuySellHashref) {
    if ($buysell->{BuyerORSeller} =~ /BUYER/i) {
        print "<TR CLASS=$class><TD>$buysell->{PersonID}->{LastName}",
              "</TD></TR>";
    }
}

[download]
It is important to note how I am handling the reference returned by fetchrow_hashref: push @BuySellHashref, { %{$hash_ref} }; This is because of the following caveat from the DBI documentation for the fetchrow_hashref method: 
      Currently, a new hash reference is returned for each row. This
      will change in the future to return the same hash ref each time,
      so don't rely on the current behaviour.

[download]
If you don't create a new hash from the hashref each time, then after the implementation of DBI changes, each element in @BuySellHashref would point to exactly the same hash.

In reply to Re: Dereferencing nested references by chipmunk
in thread Dereferencing nested references by ryddler

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