Updates eBay User Agreement Privacy Notice & Money Back Guarantee. Some Will Hate It!

[gino22]

Ebay also needs to know that I am not Walmart. I am not a corporation. I am not listed on the stock market. I do not have revenues numbering into the billions. I am not a CEO. I have no golden parachute. No 401k. No retirement account. No company provided health insurance. And certainly, there is no company car. My profit margins are slim. Once I buy an item at a yard sale, thrift or auction, and it is defective, there is no magic place that I can send it to, and force the maker to return my money if there is something wrong with it. I am just a guy who is trying to raise a family, and keep a roof over his head. They need to remember that with each new revision of their rules, they continue to create additional and expensive risk for me...selling on their venue is getting more difficult with each passing year.

In no way are they treating us small sellers like Walmart.

Walmart, the fifth largest public company in the world, only gives their customers 30 days on cash returns, and only on specific items.

And of course there is a magic place you can send those defective items to: any one of the gigantic thrift chains that (rightfully) enforces a strict no refund policy, with the tradeoff to the consumer being that the item is obtained at a massive discount.

eBay will either back off on these policies after losing one of their big differentiating factors - unique or deeply discounted secondhand items made available by small sellers - or the market will force these sellers (and their clientele) elsewhere. Unfortunately, this will be a gradual process.

It will be interesting to see how many double-dip shipping charges the big fish can withstand. Maybe they will lobby for change that will ultimately benefit us. I can't see anyone being happy about that kind of added liability when it does not aim to increase their customer base in a meaningful way. Time will tell.

 

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[petecnc]

polices like this with ebay is why i dont keep any funds in my pay pal account, or any funds in my backup funding account either. if they try to take money from me i will be done with ebay anyway. i take a ton of pics and describe my items very accurately. i kind of make my items sound worse than they are, it may hurt my bottom line some but i have never had a return. ive had a few who try the partial refund scam, and i tell them to return for full refund as i will not do partial refunds, i also tell people that say the item is broken or snad to return so i can check my sellers mark. that always ends the conversation. i mark all my items with a marker that only shows under a u v light.

 

[mugsisme]

Did anyone CALL Ebay? I spent an hour on the phone the other night with a rep. I didn't get the email yet, but it was bothering me. I asked her exactly that question, what is to stop a person from renting my jewelery during the holiday season? She basically said, Ebay will determine if they can return it or not. She never answered me if it was used. Maybe I'll move to Etsy.

 

[pat-tekker-cat]

Did anyone CALL Ebay? I spent an hour on the phone the other night with a rep. I didn't get the email yet, but it was bothering me. I asked her exactly that question, what is to stop a person from renting my jewelery during the holiday season? She basically said, Ebay will determine if they can return it or not. She never answered me if it was used. Maybe I'll move to Etsy.

Come on over mugsisme!
If you sign up through my store they'll give me A FREE LISTING! OMG!
Trust me, I'm not pushing for a free .20 cent listing.

Etsy is tricky, as it has to be vintage, handmade, or a supply item. But they fee is only .20 cents a listing and 3% or 3.5% (not sure which one, atm).

I want to go and do some Ebay, but frankly, it just kinda scares me. I don't need headaches with this mess. Maybe I'll consider it for a few items, but not right now.
Good luck to you and call on me if I can answer any questions about etsy for you.

 

[Koffee]

This is interesting, they are really trying to give buyers a severe sense of safely against fraud. I understand this is needed to have a buyer base and it is extremely important when in cyber space. I wonder what there numbers were to put this policy into action. I might end up changing a few things on my pricing especially with heavier Items. I also might limit my over seas sales to under 13 ounces.

They mess with these things all the time if for any reason theirs numbers do not improve they will do something to fix it, at least they have in the past.

Unfortunately for us there is not another alternative at the moment. I have tried etsy as people have mention and I currently use them too. However sales are very slow, I sell almost 300 items on eBay to 1 on Etsy and they can be incredibly strong armed to sellers as just kicking you off the site depending how you deal with returns.

This is just a side note, as a Buyer and seller this last couple of months.

As a buyer I bought two items from two separate sellers, that were selected as being in the United States. I noticed when I got my tracking numbers one was from India and the other China. I kind of thought this was a fraud as they are just acting as a purchasing agent for out of country for business. I called eBay and they seemed fine with this setup.
As a seller these last two months have been really good sales are almost up 50 percent across all categories, from the last few years.

Thank You - Koffee

 

[clovis97]

I could probably name every return that I've gotten on ebay since 1998. They are a very tiny percentage of my overall sales.

Generally speaking, 99.9% of the returns that I have gotten are from crazy people...or people with issues of some sort.

Like the guy who bought a factory printed manual from me, photocopied it from front to back, and then complained to ebay that the valve clearance settings were incorrect in the manual. I talked to the guy on the phone...he was on a power trip over a $14 book. I would hate to see the guy in action at Walmart over a $30 item, LOL.

Or better yet, the woman who bought a sewing extension table from me, just so she could trace it and make her own. Just wow. That's all I have to say...just wow.

I just don't think it is fair. I have 5 star ratings almost all the time, and now, I have to allow for ebay to refund all of the buyer's money, and the shipping too.

I simply don't get it.

 

[mugsisme]

I was thinking it over tonight. The 30 days doesn't go into affect until Nov 1. I am going to have all my high end listing end on Oct 31. If they don't sell, I have idea what I will do. (These earrings that I was counting on are not vintage.)

I can list small ticket items. Things that won't matter if they come back. I am also thinking that it may make sense to just say, Earrings. Let the pictures show the details. Like the weight and hallmarks ... then if a person tries to send it back because the item wasn't like described, well, they are earrings, right That is all I said they are. I've seen auctions where the person puts like "Gold bracelet" with a few horrible pictures and the stupid thing sold! Go figure!

 

[Baltimore]

I think that etsy is a great platform for people like us to sell on. I've never even had to contact etsy customer support, and I've had 1 return in 400 sales, and it was my fault. It only caters to a specific type of product, but if the type of stuff you look for is perfect for etsy (vintage clothing for me) then I'd recommend it to anyone. In june I actually made more from etsy than I did from ebay, but that being said I have a pretty established store with 500+ items. It's not ebay, but if you find cool vintage stuff frequently you should give it a try!

 

[dieselram94]

I have a feeling this policy will be short lived...

 

[Ursus]

I also had a talk with my wife. I had been gearing down my sales anyway over the past year for a number of reasons, mainly a new job position. We now only sell a few hundred dollars a month, gross. At that amount, the changes in policies with eBay this year has led us to feel that maybe it just isn't worth the hassle. I had stepped it down to a truly hobby status from a nice second income stream because it was a nice release of picking and selling, giving me a break from the stresses of life and career. These changes do not seem to reward my giving my time and effort to have a mutually beneficial financial relationship with eBay. As others have said much better than I can, it is a purely profit driven policy. I have nothing against that - I too am driven by profit, both financially and emotionally. I feel kind of like "Atlas Shrugged" where eBay just assumes we will keep giving more and more, assuming that we need them. If you know the book, I think it may be the time I shrug. I have stuff accumulated in the garage and I think I am going to have a big eBay fire sale. I may change my mind, thinking that I may be over reacting. That is quite possible. But I am going to prepare now toward that end.

Well, I have modified my stance somewhat. I am trying to only sell items that may have a lesser chance of returns. Clothes and vintage electronics are going to be high risk items. Any other opinions?

 

[dieselram94]

Well, I have modified my stance somewhat. I am trying to only sell items that may have a lesser chance of returns. Clothes and vintage electronics are going to be high risk items. Any other opinions?

I seem to sell many used pickup truck parts. No returns yet, and can be quite lucrative...

sent from a potato...

 

[Oregon Viking]

I seem to sell many used pickup truck parts. No returns yet, and can be quite lucrative...

sent from a potato...

What brands/years/parts have you had the best luck with?
I now have an 1988 ford F-350 that bit the big one.....

 

[dieselram94]

What brands/years/parts have you had the best luck with?
I now have an 1988 ford F-350 that bit the big one.....

I have only done the Dodge ram second generation. 1994-2002 I love these old trucks, I have dismantled many 1970's Fords back before I ever heard of eBay. I wish I could have sold all those parts on eBay years ago as they are in demand. Your F350 should do OK in parts, is it gas or diesel?

sent from a potato...

 

[dieselram94]

I sell anything I can ship. Scrap the rest...

sent from a potato...

 

[Oregon Viking]

I have only done the Dodge ram second generation. 1994-2002 I love these old trucks, I have dismantled many 1970's Fords back before I ever heard of eBay. I wish I could have sold all those parts on eBay years ago as they are in demand. Your F350 should do OK in parts, is it gas or diesel?

sent from a potato...

351W
ZF 5 speed.
All with 300 thousand + miles

 

[dieselram94]

How is the interior, lights, trim pieces, 4x4?, motor brackets, spring hangers, clutch pedal assembly. You might think about selling transmission, pedals, bell housing, computer, and driveshafts as a kit to swap from auto to stick shift...

sent from a potato...

 

[Oregon Viking]

How is the interior, lights, trim pieces, 4x4?, motor brackets, spring hangers, clutch pedal assembly. You might think about selling transmission, pedals, bell housing, computer, and driveshafts as a kit to swap from auto to stick shift...

sent from a potato...

Thanks..I never thought those were...wanted parts!

 

[dieselram94]

Thanks..I never thought those were...wanted parts!

Sometimes parts you never thought of can bring big money. Dash bezel from 1998-2002 Dodge ram can go for $150.00 and the front door infinity sound speakers can go for $100.00 each! Don't forget your wiring harnesses!

sent from a potato...

 

[Ursus]

Sometimes parts you never thought of can bring big money. Dash bezel from 1998-2002 Dodge ram can go for $150.00 and the front door infinity sound speakers can go for $100.00 each! Don't forget your wiring harnesses! sent from a potato...

I am guessing you buy a truck and then start to part it out. Do you look for running or non running trucks? Sounds like a good interior is something to look for.

 

[dieselram94]

I am guessing you buy a truck and then start to part it out. Do you look for running or non running trucks? Sounds like a good interior is something to look for.

I have only done non running trucks, mostly left over parts from projects. I am not opposed to parting runners but they need to be cheap, and have many unmolested parts. Good interior is a huge plus. Large parts like a bed, doors, and fenders go on Craigslist unless you want to mess with Shipping large items.

sent from a potato...