Stung by eBay!

Haych

Quite a few weeks ago I listed a guitar for sale on eBay.  It isn't a very good guitar and for it's value didn't want to bother with finding something to put it in for shipping, so I listed for collection only.

Weeks went by and I had many, many watchers and a few people asking if I would post, some even placing offers (it was listed as BIN or best offer) on condition of delivery to the Highlands or Holland etc.  I declined them all.

Then one chap comes along and places a low-ball offer.  I declined.  Several weeks went by and he messages me to ask if I'll deliver.  My answer is no.  Two weeks later he asks if I'll accept £80 for it.  I tell him I will but on condition of cash on collection.

Several days go by and he writes back stating he thought I was in a different part of the country but he has a friend who lives local who can collect it.  OK, fair enough, but still no offer via ebay.

Another week or so goes by and he writes to ask if I'm still selling.  I reply that it's still there but as it's been so long I might dismantle and sell for parts.  No reply for ages, then after a couple of weeks he writes and asks if his £80 offer is still acceptable.  I write and tell him, yes, but he'll need to submit the offer via eBay.  I also told him that I was intending to remove the listing by last Friday if it didn't sell (I was getting tired of his cat and mouse game and was starting to have other plans for the guitar).

Again, nothing for days and then at the start of last week, a new message, OK, let's do this, my mate can collect over the weekend.  I replied simply that I was around some of the weekend but if he could collect Saturday evening it would be the most convenient and also can you please submit your offer via eBay to end the listing and get things moving. 

Nothing.

So, as I stated I would, I ended the listing last Friday, quite relieved I wouldn't have to suffer the fool any longer.

This morning I wake up to an email from eBay warning me about offering to sell outside of eBay and that final value fees have been charged to my account!

I telephoned eBay and explained that I have not sold the guitar outside of eBay, and that I still have it and offerred to send pictures there and then as proof.  They claim the prospective buyer included his email address in one of his messages (I've been back through them all and couldn't find it) and that soon after I ended the listing, so their bots assumed an off eBay sale and sent the sh!tty email and charged fees to my account.

So I'm now waiting to hear back from second line eBay support as to whether they will accept my explanation and credit the fees back to my account!

Triffick!

TTony

To be fair to eBay, they’re not making as much money these days from people selling stuff there (mainly due to it being so weighted in a buyer’s favour).




So, charging people for *not* selling stuff there seems like a logical extension of their business model.

Haych

TTony said:

To be fair to eBay, they’re not making as much money these days from people selling stuff there (mainly due to it being so weighted in a buyer’s favour).




So, charging people for *not* selling stuff there seems like a logical extension of their business model.

Great, it’s soured my feelings about the platform. I buy far more than I sell but always follow the rules when I do so this experience massively sucks. 

Fuengi

I sold a guitar through eBay, the buyer never paid or replied to messages. Searching his feedback it was clear it wasn't the first time. I contacted eBay, they were so slow to respond or do anything - except for to confirm their charges on the 'sale' - that I stopped my direct debit to them as I would have rather lost my account than pay a commission.

Coincidentally they sorted the issue out pretty quickly.

TTony

(I was being 100% sarcastic about eBay and their business model, just in case that wasn’t obvious in my comment!)

ten77guitar

The trick is to never end listings early. Just change the price to a silly amount no one would ever pay and let it run it’s course. If it’s an indefinite listing I’d still do this and let it run a few weeks after any correspondence before ending. 

Yes I know it’s a bit devious but if they’re charging people who haven’t even sold their item then it’s fair play imo!

Haych

TTony said:

(I was being 100% sarcastic about eBay and their business model, just in case that wasn’t obvious in my comment!)

It didn’t pass me by @TTony

ten77guitar said: The trick is to never end listings early. Just change the price to a silly amount no one would ever pay and let it run it’s course. If it’s an indefinite listing I’d still do this and let it run a few weeks after any correspondence before ending. 
Yes I know it’s a bit devious but if they’re charging people who haven’t even sold their item then it’s fair play imo! While I hear what you say, what’s stopping eBay charging me final value fees if they still decide it falls into the category of selling outside eBay?  I can just imagine putting the price up to a couple of grand and then being charged 10% of that value after ending it because their bots still think it suspicious. 

ten77guitar

The idea is to avoid the listing triggering their bots, which seems to only happen when you end a listing very soon after having correspondence with a buyer. I suppose bumping the price up is a risk if they charge you anyway though but I’ve not heard of it happening when this method is used. In any case, I think eBay will back down in your situation as you can prove you still have the guitar.

skullfunkerry

They did that to me once but to be fair I had sold outside eBay so I wasn't too bothered. I'd be fuming in your situation though @Haych ;

webrthomson

Yet another reason that ebay sucks, what I dont get is if they were less of a bunch of arseholes more people might sell on there?

Hope you get your cash back!

Dodge

I'm no lawyer but I can't imagine how this is legally enforceable.  I don't even think you need to prove you still own it, surely it's up to them to prove you sold it oustide of Ebay to that specific person Ebay introduced you to?

BeardyAndy

Dodge said:

I'm no lawyer but I can't imagine how this is legally enforceable.  I don't even think you need to prove you still own it, surely it's up to them to prove you sold it oustide of Ebay to that specific person Ebay introduced you to?

There will be some small print somewhere that gives eBay the upper hand. I tried once to message someone my email and it was impossible, I think even the use of an email provider flags up so you cant even say "Its a .com hotmail address, my name with a hyphen and a 7 at the end..." they'll still bloody spot it!

Fair play I guess, i'd be pretty pissed if someone came into my shop and started selling their similar product to my customers.

Dodge

BeardyAndy said:

Dodge said:

I'm no lawyer but I can't imagine how this is legally enforceable.  I don't even think you need to prove you still own it, surely it's up to them to prove you sold it oustide of Ebay to that specific person Ebay introduced you to?

There will be some small print somewhere that gives eBay the upper hand. I tried once to message someone my email and it was impossible, I think even the use of an email provider flags up so you cant even say "Its a .com hotmail address, my name with a hyphen and a 7 at the end..." they'll still bloody spot it!

Fair play I guess, i'd be pretty pissed if someone came into my shop and started selling their similar product to my customers.

I'm sure there is, but if challenged, I would imagine Ebay would have to prove that the concidence of someone sending an email address and something being withdrawn from Ebay actually resulted in their loss of fees. 

Interestingly I tend to respond direcly from my email client when I reply to Ebay messages, and fairly recently the seller I was messaging send me a direct email - when I challenged him how he got my email address, he said it was visible in the message somewhere. so their email filtering is far from flawless.