Hot Topics:

eBay Return Center: Becoming an Amazon?

What eBay's new policy on return policies will mean for sellers

With the 2012 Spring Seller Update, eBay is introducing a new seller return center. I know there are many eBay sellers who are upset about the site’s changes regarding return policies and see it as part of an “Amazonification” of eBay. I, for one, see this as a positive change.

eBay sellers will be able to begin using the return center in May. I hope I’m one of the first, as I am very excited about this improvement and eager to implement this into my eBay business, Kat’s Boutique.

eBay will start rolling out the return center the week of May 28. It will begin with Top-rated Sellers and gradually roll out to all sellers. Signing up for this will be optional for eBay merchants.

How the return center will work

Once you have specified your return policies, including the length of your return policy (your options are 14, 30 and 60 days), who pays return shipping (you decide), and if you are charging a restocking fee, then you can use the return center to administer all U.S. sales. At least in the beginning, the return center is not going to be able to handle international sales, sales paid for with any payment method other than PayPal, or any category that is not included in eBay Buyer Protection coverage.

When you automate the return process, the number of returns does go up. However, this is offset by the increased security that buyers feel about your listings

The really great thing about this return center is that the process will be fully automated. Your buyer can log in and request a return. You can even issue a Return Merchandise Authorization number, if you’d like. Then if you have chosen to have the customer pay the return shipping, they can print a label from the center that will be charged to their PayPal account. If you have authorized the return, the label will be charged to your account (only after you click to accept the return).

Worth the risk?

Will returns for eBay sellers go up? I am completely certain they will—possibly to the higher percentages that Fulfillment by Amazon sellers experience. Even those numbers, however, generally hover from just 1.5 percent to 3 percent of sales. In my opinion, this is a reasonable number, and one to plan for when setting prices and profit margins.

In my experience, when you automate the return process, making it easier for buyers, the number of returns does go up. However, keep in mind that this is offset by the increased security that buyers and potential buyers feel about your listings when they see your generous return policy with “easy” terms. Based on this increased security, it is almost certain that your sales, as well as your realized prices, will also rise.

Flowing with the market

So back to the question posed in the title. Is eBay’s new return center part of a perceived “Amazonification” of the site? I don’t think so. I believe that, rather than going with the flow of Amazon, eBay is responding to the demands of the overall marketplace.

It is true that Amazon is a huge part of that marketplace, and so it asserts pressure, but so do Zappos.com and many other large Internet retailers. E-commerce was in its infancy when eBay began and, with the lightning pace of change in this industry, it is surprising there have been only two major updates from eBay in recent years.

Customers across the Web are becoming more and more demanding. First was free shipping, which has become a standard of sorts across the Web—albeit with qualifiers of various types applied in various ways (Join our PRIME program, order $50 or more, etc). Now customers are demanding a more uniform and easy return policy. If you want to “blame” any one company for this, I’d point to Zappos.com before Amazon.


294 Comments

  1. argosy says:

    Ebay won’t be happy until they’re squeezing 25% out of your gross.  They’re well on the way.

    Reply
    • Jimbo says:

      They’re already there. I figure by the time I pay eBay fees, PayPal fees, expenses, and income tax, I am losing 30-35% off the top on any item. I can sell in a local auction house for that, and I don’t have to look at e-mails asking “what color are the black shoes you are selling”. As long as they don’t screw over Craigslist, too……………………

      Reply
    • Shaggy_24740 says:

      I been burnt on a buy and a sell, so I support EBAY, But I think the two party feed ack should be back in force with ample space to acctually leave feedback, not some 30 characters or less thing ,,That stinks .

      Reply
    • Margiew623 says:

      True! and profit margin is already low due to competation.

      Reply
    • Trolleyhouse1 says:

      they already are getting more with their shipping commission

      Reply
  2. Jonnie says:

    Absolute Nonsense!!! The returns for small sellers that sell vintage and collectibles will be Devastating! Some things are Irreplaceable and we don’t have the Money that large Sellers have. I intend to tell EBay to take their discount and shove it! This is just one more way for EBay to profit and be the third world dictator that they are!

    Reply
    • Rkical says:

       From the looks of these comments and supportive “likes” it looks like if they cared they shouldn’t be able to “sit down” already.  I’ll be withdrawing from top rated and powerseller status (if they let me, otherwise I’ll just quit right away) as soon as this garbage is going to take effect. Mind you, from the way the announcement on this is written, it seems clear that they are going to start with those two levels and then continue to drop this “bomb” on everyone.

      Reply
    • Crybabiesvintage.net says:

      i agree, we sell vintage items in our ebay store..a lot of women , despite our listing exact measurements and how to take your measurements and how to allow room for fit, will not buy for their size and try to return a vintage dress with seam stress from trying to make it fit.telling us it was not as described.. making a very expensive dress garbage…and we are out all around!…we charge exact shipping and still get charged for  the cost of shipping…every time we turn around there is another fee…

      Reply
  3. Biloxibaglady says:

    As we al lknow over the years ebay looks out for the buyer and for ebay not the seller this is just another of many things to take our profit,kinda like them takeing part of the postage and then saying keep postage cost low, final value fee even on postage,first picture free rest u can pay for is why many of us use auctiva to do listings now that ebay is changing to free photos it still don’t offset our cost of all the charges over the years, small sellers have have a hard time with all the cost,if you sell for .99 + postage, final value fee, listing fee you have jsut paid someone to to buyt it and made nothing,

    Reply
  4. Daffodildeb says:

    It’s a horrible change for anything that can be used and then returned.  Clothes, accessories, or as in my case, audiobooks.  I sell a ton of them–and 2 weeks is plenty of time to listen to one, and then return it.  If I’d wanted to open a lending library, I have done it. 

    Reply
    • An American working man... says:

      I hear ya it’s like a free Redbox !!!

      Reply
    • Dirt-fisher says:

       Maybe you can seal the book and limit returns to “unopened”. But knowing Ebay and their love of the buyer, that will not be allowed. Buyers hold all the cards and I bet they play them….the little seller is done on Ebay

      Reply
  5. SWIFTRIFF says:

     EBAY USED TO BE A GREAT PLACE TO SELL THINGS !   I HAVE 3000 FEED BACKS !  OVER 8 YEARS !  WHEN THEY REMOVED THE ABILITY FOR SELLERS TO LEAVE A NEVATIVE FEED BACK FOR SOME CRIMINAL + UNSCRUPULOUS  BUYERS THAT WAS THE BEGINING OF THE END !  THEN FORCING SELLERS TO ACCEPT ONLY PAY PAL !  THEN CHARGING A COMMISSION FEE ON THE SHIPPING CHARGE !   I GAVE IT UP !  SELL MAOS ALL ON CRAIGS LIST !   SIMPLE, FREE,  NO HASSLES , CASH + CARRY !  : )    
     UPPER LEVEL MANAGMENT  IN EBAY HAS BECOME THE TERMINAL CANCER OF ITS DEMISE ! 

     THEY NEED TO GET DOWN ON ALL FOURS AND LOOK AT IT FROM A SELLERS PERSPECTIVE !  ((( YOU KNOW THE ONES THAT  MAKE THE SITE )))  ?

    Reply
    • Zekebre says:

       Another way to make the sellers life a hardship. It used to be fun to sell on ebay, now it is becoming an expensive hobby. Ebay needs to put themselves in the sellers shoes. I have over 5000 feedback, all positive. But ebay if making it more and more difficult, and more, and more non profitable.

      Reply
    • Jackhuny says:

      I am a seller myself but from eBay point of view, getting more buyer to buy on eBay is a much more important task. You only see bad buyer does damage to you but you have not see how much a bad seller can do to the whole market.

      Reply
      • harleymanrob says:

        I agree, however with the resources Ebay has can’t they find a better way to find the bad sellers without hurting the small time sellers just because they don’t have the sales % to withstand any bad buyers that leave negative feedback even if they get all there money back and the seller pays the shipping too.
        Awful.

        Reply
    • Gcblue86 says:

      I agree & that is why myself and several of my friends quite selling on ebay also, closed out stores. There are a lot of other sites available now. Try Etsy, We have found that to be a great alternative along with Craigs list.

      Reply
    • unhappy powerseller says:

      Totally agree!!

      Reply
    • Jeff says:

      I use Craig’s list too. eBid can be good for coins. $50 fee up front and then you just pay PayPal fees. Don’t know if they allow merchant (credit card) payments. I sell at least one item a day on Bonanza.com. I did pay for the gold membership for a couple months until I learned the ins and outs of it and then switched my membership down and the commission is so low. eBay needs some competition and Bonanza.com will just sync all of your eBay listings to their site and w/the gold membership they optimize the pics, listing, etc. I did this at first but it’s easy once you learn how and you can drop down. I have stuff on Vendio, Etsy, Yahoo stores. Why not, it’s free and the commission is nada. I sell about $50 a day on these sites but Bonanza.com I believe is going to make eBay change because they are much more aggressive in advertising and getting your stuff sold than the other sites. They even download your eBay feedback. Even if you optimize nothing, since it costs nothing to download your BIN listings to Bonanza, it’s foolish not to do so. You will get sales even with a subpar listing and you will gross a better profit b/c the commission is less.

      Reply
    • Mikeysmommy says:

      I very much agree on everything you are saying here. I always worry about selling on Craigslist. Do people come to your house or do you ship everything out?

      Reply
  6. Drew629 says:

    It’s very interesting that you say that the blame should rest on Zappos first, considering that Amazon has owned Zappos since 2009!

    Reply
  7. Nate says:

    I guess eBay may be ok for people with full inventory and stores but if you’re looking to sell used valuable items in small quantities on a relatively secure nationwide / worldwide marketplace the you are SOL. You know the way eBay started and rose to fame. Just like your favorite small band that sold out to pop music and big record deals, eBay has sold out to high volume sellers of new products. That’s ok with me. It’s just that now we need another site for the “too good for a garage sale” items that made eBay famous in the first place.

    Reply
    • Sgrey40 says:

      try yardseller.com..seems to be working!

      Reply
      • Tena says:

        I’ve tried to get on yardseller but their site is very confusing – and no, I’m not a newbie on the computer. I have been selling on Ebay since the 1999 and am very familiar with computers. I would like to use yardseller, but they need to improve the website.

        Reply
      • Kat says:

        The site is up for sale! So that won’t do any good .
        Maybe if we all went over to ebid  it could build up it’s site quickly to be for the smaller specialist seller. We need some other site.

        Reply
    • kat says:

      Well said! I have stropped selling on eBay since the balance went totally to the buyer!
      14 days to return certain item is too long and open to abuse by buyers. Once an item is returned and is not in it’s original condition how are you going to prove it, eBay is not going to go in the sellers favor. Take a GENUINE expensive watch which was returned as a fake, The original was kept and a fake sent in it’s place. eBay did nothing but return the fraudster his money. How do I know? It was my son who sold watch!  Which I know was genuine because I bought it.Also  I have become a substandard seller because 2 buyers bought 2 items each and said my postage was too high on their feedback. They never contacted me to say they were not happy, one I gave a discount to, the other I sent recorded at my cost as I could not get any response from the buyer when asking for payment for nearly 2 weeks.. I have no right to challenge this although I have not ever had any other complaints and my feedback shows what sort of eBayer I am. DOESN’T THAT PROVE SOMETHING IS WRONG. The buyers already KNOW what the postage cost is on the listing, so if they think it’s too much they shouldn’t bid and then complain to eBay.I wonder how may others feel like I do about the unfairness of eBay!

      Reply
      • Rkical says:

         Not much to wonder about the feelings of the unfairness of Ebay towards sellers…these posts are over 95 percent against, the few that are for read like shills or friends of the author and any conversations on the street are increasingly less complimentary over the years of their “changes for the better”.

        Reply
      • harleymanrob says:

        I too have been moved to a substandard seller raiting for giving a full refund for the buyer to open a case to get the shipping returned also… I used Ebay shipping to purchase the shipping label and they made me return the shipping and also let the buyer leave neg. feedback after all of that. Then lowered my seller raiting a few months ago and now the raiting generater that shows the needed level to raze it back is good but they still will not change it back!

        Reply
    • JMC says:

      Nate, you have that in Etsy.

      Reply
      • Sshemerry5 says:

         JMC..Selling on Etsy is not necessarily for items to good for Garage sales..It’s for items that have to be Vintage meaning made before the year 1992. Also for handcrafted items or supplies to make crafts. It’s hard to make a sale too because you compete with international sellers all on one site together. But I do make sales. SheilasVintage on Etsy

        Reply
        • Karen C says:

          Good comment, Sshemerry5 – I’ve also started getting sales on Etsy. It’s not useful for the computer-related items I mostly deal in, but the Vintage category seems to get an increasingly large number of visitors. Definitely they’ve improved in the last year..

          And no one has tried to return an item yet, bless them…maybe because sellers can post 5 photos for free?

          Reply
          • Islandlife4u says:

            any body tried ebid.net????
            i get all the views and NO sales

          • Artgalaxy says:

            me too??? what is with that? who does sell on that site.. it seems lot’s of customers  but no buyers??

  8. Nostalgiabooks says:

    This article is typical of the thinking eBay has when it comes to its target seller…the person who treats eBay as a business.  Unfortunately it does not address the needs of the core “little guy” seller who was eBay’s first customer/seller and is now being squeezed out in terms of long term business planning by eBay.  The time is ripe for someone with deep pockets to emulate eBay’s first 15 years and ignore all “improvements” since then.  Would the hobby sellers flock there?  I think so, as would the buyers who would find more and more varied unique items such as eBay used to have due to low listing and selling fees.  Change and growth is inevitable, look at Detroit’s car industry as a perfect example, and bigger is not always better.  eBay just needs a “toyota” site out there to come in and skim the old business and let eBay follow Amazon down the big seller path.  I’ve been selling and buying on eBay for over 12 years and have seen it all.  I still sell but only bigger items (hah, and how does everyone like the $250 final value fee cap being raised from $100?!  I sell collector coins where I turn and burn silver and gold..and the profit on a $1800 St Gaudens Double Eagle might only be $200…so bye bye eBay for items like this one.

    Reply
    • fedupebayer says:

      I have a business on eBay – alongside a small physical shop and my own website together they are my only source of income. The latest changes are another nail in the coffin for my business, as if a global recession wasn’t enough! It’s not just hobby sellers that this hits, if I stay with eBay I’m going to go out of business within 18 months.

      Reply
  9. Cherylsscrubs says:

    This is not right for sellers!
     I sell medical scrubs and it is very easy for someone to wear them and return them after they are worn. I had a customer wear them with the tags on (must have tucked them in) and then returned them all stained. She said they did not fit her.
    Besides me loosing money I could not even leave her negative feedback.
    Why don’t you start thinking about the sellers, we are the people that pay you every month. My monthly bill from eBay alone is over 300.00.

    Reply
  10. Digitalbarn says:

    I wasn’t going to leave a comment, BUT  I used to sell antiques on eBay and I never sold a ton of stuff at one time, but I have sold a lot of things.  I only use it occasionally now, mainly because the site has changed so much.  The sellers experience is so different.  I’m afraid of Craig’s List because they have to come to you and I’m not wild about that because I work out of my home.  So, I have found  another way to make some extra money and sell only used electronics, used by my family only.

    Reply
  11. Glowgear Plus says:

    I think this is a brilliant idea and I cant wait for it to arrive in Australia. We sell a large number of new clothing items and operate as a business. To simplify the return process and to be able to authorize it is a bonus. I just hope they can incorporate the return items into seller statuses especially for items that are not as described or not what was ordered. I think it could filter out the sellers with no moral standing from the people like us that take pride in what they sell both quality and service

    Reply
  12. Ronneymichelle says:

    The concept of returning an item you’ve “won” in an auction, is just crazy. Sorry, it’s just crazy.

    Reply
    • Salove says:

       You are right – if you purchase an item at a real auction house – the item CANNOT be returned – you would be laughed out of town.

      Reply
  13. Redcanyontrains says:

    Author is wrong. This will be a real burden for small sellers who appreciate the advantages of being a top seller.
    What happens when buyers returns wrong item? At least at a brick and mortar store the retailer can inspect the merchandise before giving the return.
    Who knows what will be returned to a seller.
    More coddling the sellers and cut the profits of the small sellers.
    Allow seller protections for non confirmed deliveries to international countries. That will improve my sales.

    Reply
  14. Lilysmiles4u says:

    I have to go with the comments on this one. The author of this article is obviously a well-respected and worthy Ebay seller and the best way to get your voice out about Ebay is to agree with them. If you sell expensive items, such as the shoes she sells, then you are on your way to success because you can absorb the endless fees.
    I have also been on Ebay for over 10 years, have over 16,000 positive feedback and am a top-rated seller. I tried the free shipping and return policy and was bombarded with requests for returns on clothing that didn’t fit in spite of multiple measurements offered in the listing. The kicker was that the buyers said, “hey, I got free shipping so I want a full refund and I’m not taking a discount for shipping because I never paid for it. Oh, and I’m not paying to ship it back.” I was devastated and overwhelmed when a $20 pair of jeans cost $5 to ship and $5 to get returned because I knew if I didn’t agree to pay for shipping costs, it meant negative feedback which wuld lead to bye-bye top-rated seller, the only way to get a slight advantage in the let’s charge a fee for every possible aspect of the sale. I’m told to keep it simple, stupid. Give free shipping so there is only one cost. Well, why can’t Ebay follow their own advice and charge one fee for a sale? Give free listings like Amazon and charge one price on the final value. They’ve had a lot of listing price holidays so maybe they are getting a clue. As it is,  I feel like I need an accounting degree to set a price.

    Reply
  15. Shinto says:

    It’s only a matter of time until ebarf forces sellers to accept returns.

    Reply
  16. Ramsey_mona says:

    I am a top seller who sells made to order items.  So the changes coming up will cost me my 20% off final value and also top search.  My items weigh over a pound and do not fit in a flat rate box.  The shipping can cost 50% of my item’s price.  Charging final value fees on shipping was bad enough for me.  Ebay wants to tell me how to treat my customers.  Even though my feedback and ratings show that my customers are very happy.  However Ebay as forgot that I am their customer.  I can not leave them feedback or stars.  But I can take my money elsewhere.  I am building my fbmall and etsy.  That is how I am preparing for update.

    Reply
  17. Hollysbabyonebay says:

    This change is marking the end of year round business with eBay for me. I have sold custom made items for nearly 10 years. I am a top rated, power seller with 5000+ feedback. With custom made items, returns for cash just doesn’t work for me. I will be shutting down my store before May and setting up shop on Etsy and a Facebook store. Thanks, eBay, for the successful years but all good things must come to an end.

    Reply
  18. annasalcedo55 says:

    I believe the person who thinks up these new policies has never bought OR sold on ebay.
    Now, if you communicate with your buyers after the sale (maybe thanking them or letting them know when their item/s will be shipped) you open yourself up to low stars. If you DON’T communicate at all, then you will be guaranteed 5 stars! Insanity!
    As far as ebay being like Amazon…I don’t know.  Would that mean that when people buy on ebay they would actually have to pay?  Ebay is the only place where the buyer does not have to pay. And…ebay is o.k. with that, otherwise, they would change it.
    The 14 day return policy is awful!  We are already paying so much more in fees, and now this?  And that’s what makes a top rated seller?  Not someone with over 5000 positive feedback and perfect stars?
    If I treated my buyers the way ebay treats their sellers, I would have been kicked off the site a long time ago.
    Shame on you ebay!

    Reply
  19. Karen C says:

    The problem is, eBay has pretty much abandoned all pretense of being an  auction site for individuals, most of whom historically sold used, vintage, antique, etc. items.

    I would agree the Return Center makes sense for the increasing number of stores selling new products. However, it makes no sense at all for someone selling, say, an antique framed photo or a 1920s pair of shoe clips. The concept of those items even BEING returnable – unless blatantly misrepresented – is ludicrous. Better for eBay to enforce its policy – which it does not – by requiring photos of the actual item, and banning stock photos except for New items in original, un-opened packaging.eBay ignores sellers who post the same photo over and over again for a vintage item that actually SELLS multiple times. That’s also a pretty clear sign of shill bidding – which eBay likewise fails to act on or prevent unless there is some huge, temporary public outcry.eBay has sufficient computer and personnel resources to stop 90% of policy violations and fraud overnight, considering how easy it is for even a non-member to search eBay and immediately find thousands of blatant, unquestionable violations.All eBay has to do is suspend Sellers for multiple breaches of policy, and shut down their account if they continue repeatedly to engage in what is legally breach of contract, especially when they are also violating one or more laws, particularly Federal law.But eBay has never consistently enforced or policed its own policies, rather has given excuse after excuse why it’s none of their concern, why they are not responsible for removing listings violating Trademark or Copyright (they need not bother unless the rights holder requests it). For example, you can find literally thousands of Top Sellers – supposedly the most reliable and trusted on eBay – who have broken multiple rules for years, and continue to do so – to the point of actual fraud – and no matter how often reported have never been even temporarily suspended.I started a test a year ago, with numerous friends and fellow eBay Sellers, reporting Top Sellers engaging in blatant, egregious violation of multiple eBay rules and terms – fee avoidance, search manipulation, proof of the same item being “sold” multiple times, intentional mis-categorization, outrageous shipping fees, e.g., charging $25 for Flat Rate Priority Small Box which is actually $5.00 including the box; or shipping 10 times the price of a very lightweight item, counterfeit items and trademark violations; blatant, written offers to sell outside eBay, links to external sites selling the same items and others, etc.Then we took turns checking in on those sellers every day.  Not a single one was ever even suspended, much less tossed off eBay, not even for selling counterfeit items from outside the U.S. that were (and still are) in clear violation of Federal law.Can we do anything about it? Not really, because eBay has consistently refused to report policy enforcement, and changes its terms and policies so frequently, they avoid being held accountable by rendering previous violations moot, or claiming, for example, they have no obligation to remove counterfeit items unless the Trademark or Copyright holder – or, I suppose, the Federal Government – contacts them directly.In other words: they acknowledge refusing to enforce policies, and changing them as needed to shove off any responsibility at all for questionable, fraudulent, or illegal practices by Sellers.They care so little for law or their own responsibilities as a Party to the contract betweeb eBay and its Buyers/Sellers, they  have now begun charging a Final Value Fee on REIMBURSED SHIPPING COSTS, rather than enforce the previous Policy against inflated shipping charges and fee avoidance.No other company considers a Seller’s ACTUAL COST for postage and packing materials part of the “price” of the item, or is so arrogant as to take a Final Value or “auction fee” or “sales commission” on a Cost of Doing BusinessThey took this step rather than use the huge number of resources at their disposal to identify and suspend the minority violating the policy..And forget any concept that Feedback scores, or eBay’s past record, mean anything anymore. Large enough sellers, or those with enough money and staff, can now get automatic 5’s – the highest rating – in 2 of 4 Feedback categories. Nor does eBay even ACKNOWLEDGE that Sellers have absolutely NO control over delivery time by USPS, or any shipping service for that matter. Why would anyone trust Seller Feedback, now half of it can actually be bought?On the other hand, Sellers can not even leave NEUTRAL feedback for Buyers. Not even if a Buyer has cheated or defrauded a Seller or Sellers repeatedly. Sellers are required to leave Positive feedback for Buyers – or none at all.Feedback no longer means “Feedback” from the people who are on the other end of the transaction – who actually know whether a Seller or Buyer was good or bad – but whatever eBay decides will result in higher ratings, regardless of reality.When the point is reached where neither ratings nor the hosting company can be trusted to be accurate…it’s time to shop elsewhere.Not to mention, you’ll find MANY items are now cheaper on other sites – eBay is no longer a unique place. It is so far from what it was in the past, it might as well not be eBay. Nor can it seem to figure out what it is now.For these and dozens of other reasons, whether you calculate on trustworthiness or price, eBay is no longer a bargain, not for Sellers OR Buyers. Avoid it unless you have no other alternative, and always shop around first.

    Reply
    • Gerrybrown2007 says:

      Thank you Karen – appreciate your taking the time to write this well-thought out and accurate assessment.

      Rain_bow_rider

      Reply
      • Karen C says:

        Thank you Gerrybrown. I apologize,, however, that all the paragraphing somehow disappeared. Not very readable without it!

        Reply
        • Nostalgiabooks says:

          Interesting.  All these comments in direct opposition to your views, Karen, and the one comment you choose to respond to is a puff comment.  Come on.  How about some well thought out answers to the many issues raised in this thread?

          Reply
          • Tom says:

            Nostalgiabooks, it’s obvious you’re either a paid shill for ebay orhave never sold on said platform.I’ve been selling on ebay for 11 years and if you’d like a well thoughtout answer to the issue it’s called corporate GREED.The reason ebay doesn’t enforce their own policies is based onthe amount of money they would lose if they did so!They’re constantly on CNBC touting profits to appease Wall Streetand their stock price, henceforth senior bonuses and the like.While their on the golf course living the good life, the peopleaffording them that are in essence and equal to the taxpayerthat bailed out our banking system, which is teaming with fraud.On a tangent, I can’t imagine where the Postal Service would be without eBay.Even they’re screaming their broke though all of their free boxesare plastered with ebay’s logo!  So who’s sleeping in bed with who?If ebay were to close every fake Coach, Chanel or Rolex auction alone theirstock price would plummet as profits would fall off a cliff!As with the banking industry, there is none nor never willbe any punishment to deter fraudulent activity, and in the case of ebay,when you can make a ton of money with someone else takingthe risk (the seller), who and why would you stop it?If we could peddle that garbage on the street corner without fear of repercussions we’d all be doing it!  Unless of course you’re a bank.Oh wait, their doing it!Ebay is allowed to get away with this nonsense because they’re sleeping withWall Street, the government and the Postal Service.Nice partners to have on your side don’t cha think? Ebay is a dinosaur, which will never become extinct do to the deeppockets backing it’s existence.

  20. Alicerbean says:

    Just another way for Ebay to squeeze out the little guy. I used to be a Power Seller, selling hard to find,unusual, antique and collectible items. When I started back in 1999 all of my transactions went smoothly, even when there was an occasional problem, the customer and I always managed to resolve it without any of Ebay’s interference, and I had 100% feedback rating. Since Ebay has stuck their nose in with their ever changing policies, I have been ripped off numerous times, lost my Power Seller rating, and so on.  
      Everything about Ebay stinks now…..Its just another E-Mall, with just more of the same NEW, JUNK as WAL-MART and the rest of the big retailers.
       I think they forgot that it was us little guys that made them the big success that they are, and I can’t wait to watch them fall on their face like all of the others. Bye-Bye EBay

    Reply
  21. Davidk111 says:

    Typical ebay cheerleader blog. (it’s the best thing since sliced bread) What a joke! 

    Reply
  22. Herique says:

    Perhaps great for some things but not for formal clothing which I sell.   I used to take returns but the privilege was totally abused — dresses returned worn with stains, tags gone, torn, you name it so I went to no returns and took returns only on an occasional basis which worked perfectly.  This is going to kill my business.  What is ebay thinking — a plate, bicycle, what ever is fine to be returned – not formal clothing.

    Reply
  23. Tom says:

    I am with then other sellers below: I have been selling on Ebay since 1999 and HAVE never had a negative feedback. I take care of my buyers! Yet Ebay seems to care nothing for it’s sellers. Every change is for the supposed benefit of the buyers. I have had it!! You are making it impossible to continue. I am looking (and finding) alternatives. You are making yourselves irrelevant. This article is a joke! Self-serving corporate spin. You are fooling no one.

    Reply
  24. OnEbay says:

    I don’t think customers are being more demanding, I think they are getting more lazy with
    this over appeasing focus group attention.
    More and more web surfers don’t read the ads and therefore have more and more buyer’s remorse and want to return things. ALL SALES ARE FINAL, makes people pay attention more. This kind of positive spin does not make sense to me. Anyone
    who knows how ebay works now, knows, the buyer can have it all and the sellers are always
    the ones who have to give give give. Savvy shoppers know exactly how to work the system.When is ebay going to give it’s paying customers, the sellers, more buyers with programs like
    ebay university. They are going in the wrong direction. They ARE NOT AMAZON! I wish they would sell the company and make a new one to compete with Amazon. They are scaring a lot of sellers, who are also buyers (and always have been) away. Once we leave, we want NOTHING to do with ebay.

    Reply
  25. Jhand says:

    where not a major retailler, where small independent family to many scammer that tried to take advantage of the situation, Seller as no more tools for them, cannot leave Negative feedback for those who take advantage of the system and want it free,If they want to return after 14,30 days well they could go to Walmart,Ebay as sold us out and is forgetting who started the Ebay we use to have fun,fee on shipping charge,cannot leave Negative feedback to bad seller,cannot complaint about bad Buyer with out been penalize   for doing your best,,maybe time for a new site like auctiva

    Reply
  26. Dingus says:

    I’ve had a 30 day return policy since late last year ever since eBay announced that the changes were coming, and it hasn’t really affected my return rate at all. I sell one of a kind unique items and I’m grossing 5 figures a month plus with returns less than 1%. Part of insuring that returns aren’t too high is making sure that you write a good description in the first place with good clear photos so that the buyer KNOWS what they are buying and there are no surprises when they receive it. Also, I state 3 days for shipping but almost always ship in 1 day, and my customers LOVE this! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen items for sale on eBay that are misidentified or misrepresented. I’ve no idea if all of those sellers are crooks, ignorant, or just lazy, but I’m sure that this contributes greatly to their returns. I also buy a lot on eBay, and I like a good return policy because it’s often hard to tell for sure what you’re buying when it’s not well described and/or photographed. Also, sellers on eBay like to complain a lot about the bad buyers on eBay, but I’ve run into a LOT more bad sellers myself. I’ve received things that were sold as genuine vintage items but were actually repros, and lots of things with damage that wasn’t described in the listing. So many sellers think that they don’t need to be polite and businesslike when processing a return, but for me this is the crucial area of customer service, and really shows what a seller is made of!

    Reply
  27. Skalait on ebay says:

    the little guy built ebay to what it is today and they are been pushed out in support of the mega big sellers, because thats where the profit is. what they dont see is that the little guy adds variety that buyers cant find with the big sellers, and once the little guy gets tired of been screwed in every way possible then they will leave and then lets eee what ebay will do to get its market back when the sellers get tired of the same old same old of the big sellers and leave in droves…..

    Reply
  28. Bd says:

    Talk about a fluff piece. Get Real! Any of us smaller sellers simply cannot afford to have precious money tied up in waiting 2 weeks + to see if a customer will arbitrarily decide to return something. It may be fine for you megabuck sellers, but it ain’t gonna fly for the rest of us. It’s bad enough eBay is strongarming us to make onerous changes so they can keep up with Amazon …. What ever happened to Having your own freaking identity???? Does eBay want to become just another Amazon clone? I sure hope not. If I’m selling on eBay, I want to decide if/when I’ll take a return. If a customer complains eBay will ALWAYS side with them anyway, but up to that point, my merchandise, MY return policy.

    Reply
  29. Cherz says:

    I have been with ebay for 14 years and have finally had enough. Gone is the friendly site that allowed me to sell Australian items to international buyers. The site is no longer seller friendly No feedback allowed to be left for buyers, fees on everything, paypal only – the list goes on.
    Unfortunately ebay no longer see any value in the members that helped make the site a success

    Reply
  30. Robevts says:

    I sell vintage music equipment and am concerned with such a liberal return policy for the buyer.  It puts me at further risk of more of the ever increasing scammers and thieves to pillage and swap out tubes in amplifiers, guitar parts etc..  This stuff is also fragile and often heavy and can get damaged being shipped back and forth particularly by lousy packing by someone I don’t even know.  As my feedback reflcts I already stand behind everything I sell and bend over way backwards to keep my buyers satisfied but I can’t go this far.

    Reply
  31. Slr817 says:

    I sell video games, they are going to play them and return them before those 2 weeks are over!

    Reply
  32. Bond007 says:

    Kate Simpson is Dead wrong on indorcing Ebays June 1,2012 return policy. If the sugar on her artical was any thicker Willy Wonker would be out of business!!
    First lets set the record straight Kate. Lands’ End and maybe LLBean were the first to offer Free return shipping and maybe some department stores like Norstroms.
    Tell me how are seasonal items good for this 14 day return? A buyer buys Christmas, Easter, Halloween items,maybe uses them, displays them, then wants to return them.  What is a seller suppose to do?  Keep the item another year and hope another return doesn’t happen?  How about books?  Read it and then return it? Clothing?  Woman are notorious for buying something to go out somewhere and then return it?  For a small person who only has one of a kind items, they will definitely take a loss. Sell something, 14 days later it’s returned. You have lost revenue,time,and the ability to resell the item again? Then pay Ebay again to relist it?  Double standard here Kate.  The only person or should I say Company making money on this is Ebay. You will pay more to list the item maybe 2, 3 or 4 times more depending on the returns.
    Sorry Kate you need to see this in a better light!!

    Reply
    • John316wilson says:

      I agree.  Ebay wouldn’t post my original comment regarding communistic tactics and they probably won’t post this answer but it is clear….they are telling us what THEY want us to think about this not what we really think about it. It is unfair and a terrible thing for sellers. I sold a book on ebay. Nice book…no problems and no “coffee” stains on it.  I got a returned book with Coffee spilled all over it and Ebay sided with the buyer. I had to refund the money and get a different book sent back to me. I do not want items returned.  I put up good pictures and great, honest descriptions.  IF a buyer doesn’t KNOW they want it they shouldn’t bid.  Ebay has not been fair to sellers for some time but this is the straw that broke the camels back. I’m done.

      Reply
  33. Sailor says:

    How about sellers of clothes? What about buyers who think they can wear something once or twice and return it with no risk or cost to them? eBay forces sellers to use free shipping because of the DSR policy so sellers will lose out on shipping costs and in many cases, get an unsellable item in return. No, you are mistaken. This is NOT a good thing and you should think about how many more  sellers will go under because of the Amazonification of eBay. The  suits making these changes are not the ones who made eBay what it was, it was people like me who have been buying and selling on eBay for 15 years. eBay needs to just admit that thye only want the 100 biggest sellers on their site and throw the rest of us out so we can build a better place. The only reason they have not donr do yet is because they know we will finally get together and support a viable alternative.

    Reply
  34. Lavalampshere says:

    Being less than $100.00 in sales away from “top-rated powerseller” status under the current system, the only way I can see to allow 14 day returns is to charge a 100% restocking fee and buyer pays return shipping.
          Isn’t that EXACTLY the same deal eBay is giving us as sellers?

    Reply
  35. bowhunter says:

    This is Non-Sense!! I already PAY !00’s of Dollars to ebay a week that comes out of MY Profit Margin… In alot of cases, after you all charge you listing & selling fees.. then paypal hits me up for another 3% … EBAY Ends up making more than I do on a Item……… I deal in Archery… Mostly Compound Bows… And ebay needs a reality check…. I am supposed to offer 14 days for someone to mistreat, abuse, damage, and possible dry-fire a 1,000.00 bow rendering it complete junk & Take it back?????? LOL… yeah, I dont think so !!  Myself & Friends selling on ebay see’s this as just another way for you ebay to Strip Hard-working… Hi volume Top rated Sellers…. Who is respectable and runs a very positive campaign… out of their measly discount.   Absolutely Ridiculous….!!!

    Reply
  36. harleymanrob says:

    I agree, everyone here has very good points. Now with buyer protection a buyer can choose to start a claim and the seller must return the full purchase price + full shipping fees so the seller actualy pays out of pocket for the original shipping cost. The post does not care if you had to give the buyer all the original fees back and as for restocking fees they say you can charge but you don’t get to accualy charge those type fees as you must return the FULL purchase price + original shipping fees. VERY MISLEADING!!!!!!

    Reply
  37. Rigal Terra says:

    I suppose the return rate will vary by category, but I’ve never had below 8% (30 day returns, 11 years, 100k feedback, sporting goods category)

    The biggest problem now is with the Top Rated requirements I’ll have to move the auctions without a return policy (factory 2nds, returns, ect) to another account.

    Reply
  38. poorman says:

    Although Ebay can complain, they must see the rediculous fees charged by Bidorbuy in South Africa. With Ebay, if a buyer do not want to proceed with a purchase, the seller can agree and his listing fee is paid back. With Bidorbuy sellers just loose their listing fees. Where a seller knows that a bidder is not up to standard the seller cannot block such bidders, leaving it open for bidders to manipulate sellers sales.

    Reply
  39. Nbflea says:

    What I dont understand is if ebay allows you to state a 14 day return policy then why do they allow buyers to open a dispute within 45 days of making payment on an item.
    Shouldnt buyers only be able to open a dispute within 14 days after receiving an item that the seller, with a 14 day return policy, wont accept a return on.
    What ever the sellers return policy is, that is the return policy time frame that ebay should allow a buyer to open a dispute within , otherwise why state 14 days if ebay is giving 45 days.
    This makes no sense,,,,,,

    Reply
    • Kymangor says:

      EXACTLY…Everyone is complaining but in reality buyers can just wait until 44 days have past and open a dispute…so in reality each ebay stores individual return policy is moot

      Reply
  40. not happy! says:

    For us small sellers who want to offer 3 days to buyers to “inspect” their purchase…that’s one thing…but, 14+ days is a “buy, try, and return” nothing good will come of this!!! keep it up Ebay, something else to drive us away! 

    Reply
  41. Jimbo says:

    eBay cannot expect sellers to fully guarantee items that are sold for parts only, or in need of repair. There aren’t these kinds of items available on Amazon, so it makes no sense for eBay to attempt an “Amazonification”.

    How about collectibles? They say items cannot be returned due to buyers’ remorse, but somehow now they can. I have and will sell my items for a bit less money on Craigslist and / or local auction houses, and not have to deal with this nonsense (or the silly questions from buyers who cannot read simple English). And, no returns!!

    Just as MTV started as a music video TV channel, and now is basically a variety show station, eBay started out as a great auction site where one can sell unique USED items for top dollar. Now it’s all about selling NEW made in China garbage for a low “Buy It Now” price. And, sellers, be sure and fully guarantee it too, because if you don’t, buyers can leave you negative feedback.

    Bottom Line: EBAY MAKES MONEY WHEN SELLERS FAIL, AND LOSES MONEY WHEN THEY SUCCEED. WHY WOULD THEY SUPPORT THE SELLERS??

    Reply
  42. Loungingleolady says:

    Absolutely disgusted once again with ebay and its new “policies”. I have been selling my larger more expensive items on Craig’s list and having fun doing it…Something I no longer have, selling on Ebay!

    Reply
  43. Diane says:

    A 14 day return policy on Bullion catagory is CRAZY as buyers will buy and then try to sell if price moves up and then return if price stays the same or drops. The NYSE and any and all Commodity or stock markets do not give 14 day opt out on investments nor do any other investments like Real Estate or collectables.

    Reply
  44. Kevgene says:

    Small time sellers are being hit time and again. It does NOT take 14 – 60 days to see if  items are as described or in good condition, such as a baseball card or article of clothing. As a buyer myself, I ALWAYS check my items as soon as recieved. This allows a buyer to return an item after being used and/or damaged by the buyer. I know people personally that do such things, such as by a certain tool, use it for 2-3 weeks, then return it. All small time sellers are considered crooks. The buyer always tells the truth, and the seller is a liar.
       One has 1000 sales. Out of these, 100 doesn’t bother to leave feedback. Then 1-2 people decide to give pos. but only give so-called two stars on something or give a neg, and there goes your rating to below standard and you suffer because of those couple of buyers. If a buyer does NOT leave feedback, then it should become an automatic pos. feedback after the allowed return period. But the big-time sellers will be against that, because they’re not hurt by a few negs against them. I think most small time sellers will just stop giving a return period altogether, which will hurt them but help the big-time sellers.

    Reply
  45. Spiderman350 says:

    there  are bunches of other auction websites out there, but they dont seem to be hitting what everyone seems to be looking for. a place to sell small amounts of used stuff! I wish I had the knowledge to do it, cuz I definitely have the balls! I must use Ebay as long as I can as it still kinda works for me. I just expect to lose about 15%-18% on everything i sell.

    Reply
  46. Beyond Cynicism says:

    eBay’s management seems to have forgotten that it is, ultimately, the seller who pays their salaries. As a small seller in the UK, we struggle to make a profit these days. Not every listing sells – but we pay regardless. Then, when we do sell, we pay listing fees, final value fees and PayPal fees. There isn’t always a lot left for us.

    We sell second-hand clothes. We already see the (female) customer who buys in time for the weekend and then, on the Monday, informs us that the darling little dress she has just bought is just not right’. We have now got to the stage where we can tell just from the pre-sales communications which customers are most likely to pull this stunt. Why make it easier for them to use my merchandise for free?

    eBay already makes sellers jump through hoops. As a frequent buyer, it saddens me to see the leaflets which come through with almost every purchase now begging me not to leave bad feedback, begging me to get in touch if I have the slightest problem. These are not courtesy leaflets – they are begging ones.

    I, for one, will not be sorry to see the next eBay-like start-up. It’s a shame that sites such as eBid simply do not have the marketing clout to steal significant business from eBay. Perhaps we should start to do their marketing for them?

    Reply
  47. Old_stuff says:

    What a crock……ebay ought to let us set our own return policy. I used to offer returns for any reason, including buyer remorse, trick was they had to notify me within 3 days of receiving their merchandise.  14 days is way too long.  I have just gone through and will offer NO RETURNS….

    Reply
    • fedupebayer says:

      Unfortunately, here in the UK we have to offer a 7 day return period BY LAW. Not good enough for eBay though. I’ll be off soon………..

      Reply
  48. Barbara says:

    Sorry,but as a Seller with over 9000 feed backs and 100%. I don’t accept returns (but am forced to because Buyers know E-Bay will make me) I sell a lot of used shirts that people buy for Vacations & Cruises…..now with a 14 day return policy I am afraid that I will have a bunch of people returning those shirts after they get to wear them & don’t want them hanging in their closets! I will think really hard when it comes to what I sell…..no way will I sell a pair of used Jimmy Choo shoes and know that a buyer could wear them for a special occasion or formal night & return them ! I don’t think a 14 day return should be on used clothes,jewelry or shoes!

    Reply
    • Peggysue3 says:

      Barbara, my son and I sell a lot of collectible items, Barbies, action figures and the like.  Most of these are in mint condition and mint boxes.  I can only imagine after 14 days of “looking” over an item I will get one returned that has had the box opened, played with and can no longer be sold as mint!  I thought about the 14 days and have decided if I continue to AUCTION (eBay, look it up!!!) all sales will be final, no returns.  If for some reason I have to accept a return it will be with a restocking fee AND the buyer will pay shipping.
       
      We are not power sellers but I started selling 13 years ago!  It was fun then, now it’s not.  Can we get Meg or Pierre back?  : )

      eBay, listen to what your Sellers are telling you.  Without Sellers there will be no buyers.  Good Sellers WILL bring buyers!

      Recently I got a negative FB, clearly buyers remorse.  I was trying to resolve the issue when she left negative FB.  eBay actually refunded her the money, out of their pocket, she kept my item and I kept the money she paid.  eBay found that I WAS NOT at fault and this negative would not go against my seller ratings.  However, they refused to remove the FB!  How is it fair that I can’t leave negative or at least nuetral FB?  They even told me this person was under investigation!  As a Seller don’t you think that’s useful information!?! 

      It makes me feel like eBay hates their Sellers!  STOP RAPING US WITH YOUR FEES AND RULES!!!

       

      Reply
  49. rosie386 says:

    This woman is obviously trying to pacify ebay sellers who are not happy. And there are many of us. Her words sound as if they are pulled out of an ebay marketing campaign. I also feel there will be negative ramifications and high stress for sellers of antiques, preowned clothing, jewelry, perfume, and so on. With no possibility of leaving negative feedback, and the obvious push we will have to pay for return shipping to “keep the buyers happy” it will put alot of low vloume sellers under. I sell approx 100 items a month at about $6000-$7000 a month and I am considered low volume. The voices of people like me will go unheard and this once popular way to make extra money or , in my case, to enhance sales at my consignment shop, will become intolerable and unprofitable.

    Reply
  50. Infor says:

    buyers will just use it and return it, too tempting for some people

    Reply
  51. Carlos Ribeiro says:

    this is like trowing petrol to stop a fire just    pathetic 

    Reply
  52. Twilburn says:

    I suppose eBay just doesn’t care about the sellers that make them what they are today. Along with myself, I have around 20 friends that “used” to sell antiques and collectibles. We probably listed anywhere from 10-25 items per week each, now a big fat 0. Hopefully someone will start a new site soon so that we can all enjoy our hobbies and the mega sellers can have $bay all to themselves.
    WAKE UP $BAY !!!!!!

    Reply
  53. Dillan says:

    You obviously are not going to bite the Ebay hand that feeds you and your article is biased. I have sold on ebay since 1999. It has gone way downhill for me. Forcing paypal, preventing sellers from leaving negative feedback on buyers, the rates for selling go higher and higher, stupid rules that hurt the sellers. 

    Reply
  54. This new policy is another step by eBay to force out small sellers. I mail out product on the second or third day after  receiving payment and never receive complaints. Only mailing/fullfillment style business could consistently meet this new one day shipping policy and eBay knows it.   That’s why they are implementing it-to force out the little guys who they disdain.

    So Miss Simpson, keep it real because you’ll make no money from your internet endeavors when eBay is dominated only by large business shippers. They could give two hoots about your “expert” opinions.

    Dude! @Moneyinthegarage.com

     

    Reply
  55. Gillenp says:

    This has to be the END of the Beginning OF THE END. In the field of used electronic equipment, it is well known that we suffer from “screwdriver” buyers who will open and fiddle with delicate adjustments or simply maluse through incompetence. Our only redress is to inform buyers that they bid “as seen” and that due to age etc. no warranty is express or implied. Otherwise we can find ourselves accepting returns and making refunds for damaged goods that we are then often unable to return to a saleable condition. If these conditions continue to a logical conclusion then literally thousands of sellers will not find themselves able to continue on Ebay. The new business model seems to be that of a bank conducting a retail sales site without the need to provide any working capital or employ any sales staff or without any expertise in the goods or services offered for sale! This may be a smart move for Ebay/PayPal but is sure to expedite a smart move away by many sellers!

    Reply
  56. Fotoniko says:

    I agree with all the negative comments, Ebay has made it harder and harder for honest sellers to make a profit. Too many new rules and changes to a system that was fine. I lost my power seller ratin gbec of 1 negative feedback by a dishonest consumer, and all my fees ahave gone up. I think ebay should start by lowering all fees and paypal fees. Isn’t it illegal to force us to use paypal?. AMAZON has now become easier and btter for the seller to use.

    Reply
  57. Bestnaturallight says:

     I have had someone buy a vintage item at auction and then try to return it because somebody subsequently listed something similar cheaper as a buy it now. this is a race to the bottom in terms of pricing. The similar item was listed after that seller saw how much i got for my item.

    There is a cycle on ebay where a vintage item is listed and sells.Other sellers researching
    similar items see how much the item sold for, and decide that now is a good time to list a similar item they have. all of a sudden there are 3 similar items listed. because of the sudden influx of these items, each trades for less than the previous one, until the supply is exhausted. Then in a few weeks another seller researches and sees that there are none of these items listed. he lists it and gets a relatively high price because of the current paucity of this item, and the cycle begins again.

    The new return policy will create havoc to this cycle. The first buyer who paid the highest price for the item will try to return the item, because he will see others listed for less.

    Reply
  58. Jmotycka says:

    There are so few deals on ebay, it’s mostly overpriced, or junk.  Shop Amazon, or craigslist for deals.  Selling is also a joke with all of the fees and regulations.

    Reply
  59. Headfeathers3 says:

    I think charging a final value fee to the shipping is completely wrong.  First, sellers lose money through their shipping and then if the seller returns the item and sellers have to return shipping, they lose again. Ebay should set up a program to catch the sellers that charge excessive shipping or at least when seller is reported, do something instead of just slapping them on the hand.  This has hurt all honest sellers.  Having to give buyers no less than 14 days for returns gives the seller the time to use the item and then return it.  It it then no longer a new item and won’t hold the same value.  Taking the TRS title and the 20% discount on FVF makes most TRS discouraged with working this hard and have their hard work slap them in the face.  Why try. It takes work to become a TRS and a Power Seller.  Taking a FVF from the shipping is really stealing unearned money from sellers(making the seller pay for shipping items)  Ebay is out for themselves and nobody else. Most of us smaller sellers sell to get money to pay bills or put food in their house.  Having to offer returns is not helping, but basically hurting.  Ebay should look at the sellers listing on returns.  If the seller does not offer returns, then there should be no claim allowed from a buyer on this. .  

    Reply
  60. Stevnrhodes says:

    I also used to be an eBay power seller. Thousands if positive feedback, etc. but there was a straw that broke this camels back, and that was when they wanted me to take over a $1000 loss, because a buyer claimed to have mailed back a package I never rec’d. when a seller send something over a certain amount (I think it was $250) we had to have signature delivery confirmation to be covered, but I found out that doesn’t apply to buyers returning something. Good thing my PayPal account had been emptied before they tried to zap my money. Screw them! I’ll never sell on eBay again.

    Reply
  61. Rental Shop Owner On EBAY says:

    I sell costume jewelry on this joke of a site and I already have people “renting” my stuff. Now that they will not have to send me an email telling me a lie as to why they have been using the item for the last two weeks and need to return it, my “rentals” will go up well above the 3% they are claiming in this article. I would love to send eBay a necklace that smells of perfume, ear crust on the earrings, and hair tangled in the clasp….only to be told by the customer that it just didn’t look nice with her dress and that she never even took it out of the packaging. I have had it with the excuse that eBay needs to do whatever every other selling site is doing. Why not be different. What is wrong with standing out and not being like other sites. Why not give people options. Let sellers decide what they want or don’t want to do with returns…..and after that the buyer can decide if that is OK with them. If it isn’t move on the the next seller that is offering what you want. Variety was King on eBay now we all blend in together! BORING

    Reply
  62. Tundra says:

    I have been an eBay seller almost from the beginning ( April
    1999 ) and have seen a lot of changes in their policies.  I can’t remember any changes that benefited
    the seller or buyer to a great extent. Every policy change did however boost
    eBay profits and every time at the expense of the sellers. eBay needs to step back and take a long hard
    look at where their profits come from before sellers decide they have had enough and tell them
    “Screw You eBay”!!

    Reply
  63. Sherry251331 says:

    I honestly do not know how Ebay can feel like an honest company when they take part of the postage fee from the seller and then tell us we get marks against us if we dont keep the postage rates low. How is that honest? Ebay used to be so much fun to  sell items on…now the fun is gone and it is very stressful!  The sellers helped Ebay grow into what it is today yet it seems like every change Ebay makes is a blow for the seller and they try to tell us it’s for our own good.  Ebay is tripple dipping by taking fees for selling and then again for making us use Paypal and then again from postage fees too…I am just a small time hobby seller who has been selling for 9 years…it’s killing the fun and profit too, to sell with Ebay and I am ready to just have a big auction and be done with the whole hobby.   Ebay management has definitely forgotton where they started!!!  As a seller …I do not feel important to them at all.  As I look at all my favorite sellers lists almost all have 0 items listed!  Soon mine is going to be that way too!  I have had just about enough of Ebays “changes.”

    Reply
    • guest2 says:

      Ebay pushed me to far also! Telling me HOW to list my stuff… It is my stuff to sell!
      If I do that I will get half the price I want. Not only that they made my auction listing lower in the search so…. I went from selling 20 items to selling ZERO.

      Just another money hungry, out for blood, back stabbing  SHARK COMPANY in my opinion!

      They will get very little business from us from now on !

      Reply
  64. Lagunshy says:

    As all sellers know, Ebay is only for the buyer. I sell makeup on Ebay and have over 6000 feedbacks and all positive. If someone should return a makeup item and it is used, who is Ebay going to believe me or the buyer? The buyer of course, because Ebay doesnt care about the seller! They will always win and Ebay doesnt care as long as the buyer is happy. Doesn’t Ebay realize that if they lose all of the sellers there will be nothing to buy? Then what good is all these changes? Fees are outrageous, the conditions are outrageous and what do the sellers get? a measly amount of free auction listings and a huge bill ! What do buyers get? whatever they want! We have a lot of buyers that are horrible and don’t pay or leave unfair feedback for sellers, why can’t we at least leave a neutral feedback for them? Because Ebay says they take care of that for us, but only the non paying buyers,by giving them item strikes, which takes how many to get them off Ebay? Neutrals don’t hurt their rating , but at least other sellers would know what kind of buyers they are. That is the least Ebay should give us.

    Reply
    • SadButTrue says:

      I agree. I sell beauty products too. We are not allowed to re-sell items which have been used. Why in the world should we have to accept returns? I will just have to raise my prices to account for the discount in fees I will no longer be receiving. In turn, I will have less sales overall 🙁

      Reply
  65. ROB10171228 says:

    great  screw up ebay again or as its called  EVILBAY 

    Reply
  66. Timerush says:

    Can it be true that this author does not know that Amazon owns Zappos?

    Reply
  67. Opinions4u2 says:

    Kat,

    Here is why this new policy is not good for some sellers.

    If you sell old radios, amplifiers or items that have lots of parts and high value this new policy encourages buyers to buy these items and remove the parts they want and then send back the damaged item.

    If you sell precious metal items like coins, gold, silver, platinum or jewelry a buyer can now buy the item, wait and see if silver goes up and then send it back if it does not. The same swap outs that happen to electronics will now start happening on diamond rings and other diamond and precious gem products.

    Increasing costs to sellers is never a good thing. Sellers already have the choice to offer unlimited return time and any other type of return policy. There is ZERO evidence that sales go up when someone offers a longer return time.

    eBay is once again moving away from the people that provide 100% of their revenue in favor of those who provide 0% of their revenue. Long term this will hurt sellers and then eBay.

    Most dealers in the items above have reduced their use of eBay and this will take them off in larger numbers. This new policy encourages bad buyer behavior which is consistent with eBay’s other policies – can’t leave neg feedback for buyers, no penalty for bid cancellations, no penalties for non payment, slow payment.

    I think the few dozen auctions you do a week or month doesn’t really qualify you as an expert in this area and your comments above declare your ignorance.

    Reply
    • Jimbo says:

      When I sell any item that is used (especially electronics), I take a small store pricing label (which cannot be removed without damaging it) and place it somewhere on the item, normally over a screwhole. Then I note on the invoice that “removal of sticker(s) voids guarantee”. If a buyer has honest intentions, and isn’t buying an item to strip parts or swap out a broken unit for another working one, all is OK. I don’t note this on my listings, and have had no problems or complaints. I have only had one attempt to scam me since I have been doing this. It was on an expensive pool cue. The buyer was a professional dealer in these, and told me was bent (it was perfectly straight). I said fine, send back the two pieces with the stickers intact for a refund.

      I got no response for two weeks, until he sent me a neutral feedback. A request was placed to remove it, since I offered him a refund. He said “well, I don’t have the top piece with the sticker on it, but if you give me my money back anyway, I will then remove the bad feedback”. He was reported to eBay for feedback extortion, the comment was removed, and the sale was final.

      As far as returns go, (especially on a new item), I have and will charge a restocking fee at least equal to the original shipping cost of the item. Amazon allows it, and eBay will as well. This will drive out the people who may return an item that they find cheaper elsewhere, since they will have to pay shipping both ways.

      Reply
  68. Rkical says:

    It seems to me that they just don’t want to continue financing their own Buyer Protection Policy. If such is the case, then they are probably experiencing an upturn in buyer claims (most likely frivolous as a seller is out of the game here if their feedback gets too bad), another example of their petty self destructive greed, or both.   This is a devastating policy foisted through more intelligence insulting word speak from Ebay . First losing the ability to leave neg. feedback for the worst buyers, Second, charging fees on shipping “to keep shipping costs low….as if this changes the weight of an item, and now this, open season on sellers by buyers who may just want to temporarily have items, switch parts on musical instruments, electronics, clocks, the list goes on, etc.  Definitely 1,2,3, I’ll be out after 14 years. I will gladly look for other venues, and I do expect that those who sell the unusual, or one of a or few of a kind items will likewise find it necessary to severely limit their ebay exposure. In general, it will no longer be worth the increased risk on listing 20 or so items to sell a few. This new policy will definitely bring a flood of abusers to the marketplace. Thanks Ebay for letting me know before I waste my time making multiple listings for this weekend. Thanks for morphing from the simple workable marketplace you started as into the all controlling Orwellian nightmare you have become.

    Reply
  69. Merylwitch says:

         This to me just says they no longer want the vintage and used item sellers. They just want the same sellers selling the same poop that’s everywhere on the internet. It’s what happens when they put people in charge that have no retail experience whatsoever…..they wind up chasing their tail (emulating Amazon) instead of being the innovator and front runner that ebay used to be (I miss Meg). The most obnoxious thing is the semi-annual return policy changes. I don’t understand the point since ebay doesn’t enforce seller return policies anyway. I’ve been forced many times to accept returns on as described items over a month after they’re received. What do they plan to do for those rare “one of a kind” vintage items that the customer packs poorly for return and winds up getting destroyed in the post?  Would love to see a similar auction site that focuses primarily on used and vintage auctions but if successful ebay would just buy them or crush them in court so I’m not too hopeful about that. My biggest peeve with the site is the lackadaisical attitude taken towards non-payers. There used to be a three strike rule (which for a newbie I felt was even too high), now there is none. I’ve seen buyers that still have accounts that have screwed over 10 or more sellers. When 3-5% of all sales don’t see fruition there is a huge problem. If any of us had a 1-2% complaint ratio we’d be an ebay footnote! 

    Reply
  70. Cmklworczak says:

    I am almost finished with eBay. We need a new way to sell like ebay but be user friendly. I myself was on the phone for over 2 hours with eBay for two differant issuses. The easy one took two hours to get cleared up. They (eBay) was every adimate that they were right, it took 3 people on their end to see that I was right. When I was transfered again after the 2 hours for the next problem I was disconected. Crap Crap Crap……..I do make decent money on the site but not enough to way out all the BS you have to put up with.

    Reply
  71. Crispy Critters says:

    Seriously?  If you’re great sellers, why should this change even give you a moment of anxiety?  If you’re honest in your description and listing, taken the time to pack very carefully, and shipped timely, why would a return be an issue? 

    As a buyer and seller, I’ve had to return far more items than I’ve ever had to accept back.  I think i’ve only ever accepted one thing back, it was an off-eBay transaction, the Buyer had swapped my new item for their used one and then claimed foul.  By the way, PP is a totally different animal for off eBay sales. SNAD doesn’t apply, you only have to prove the item was received. 

    And Sellers, you’re not forced to only accept PayPal, you’re required to offer it.  If you have a merchant account that accepts credit cards, you can use it.  But I buy a lot of stuff online, and when it comes down to entering my credit card information or using PP, I often opt for PayPal.  Why should i spread my CC information all over the internet when I can limit that information to a smaller group. As many companies that get hacked, the alternative is not attractive.  

    As far as the commission on S&H, if Sellers didn’t jack up the S&H to offset the listing fees and make more money, eBay wouldn’t have taken this step.  Let’s face it, a .99 cent listing with $50 S&H is BS right?

    Regarding the feedback – if you deliver the product you advertised, as above, then you shouldn’t have any problem right?  Buyers were terrified of retaliatory negs so they didn’t leave them. But they should have. If a seller drops the ball, lists something they don’t have, sends something packed so badly it could never have arrived intact, and then gives you all kinds of grief because they screwed up, why shouldn’t they get a neg? If a buyer deserves a neg, for non-payment, eBay will give them a slap and you get your insertion and listing fees back. You don’t pay FVFs and it’s only a matter of time before the buyer goes bye bye. What reason, other than non-payment, would a seller have for leaving negative feedback other than retaliation? I find it’s usually the bad sellers who want to leave retaliatory negs when they earned their neg for their own bad conduct.

    I think the policy is a good thing. It’s long overdue. eBay has needed to clean up it’s act for some time. They need to embrace the niche and collectible sellers, and they’re starting to acknowledge that.

    You don’t have to sell on eBay. If you disagree, there are other places you can go. You can even open your own online store for literally a drop in the bucket prices. 

    Reply
    • JMC says:

      “Seriously?  If you’re great sellers, why should this change even give you a moment of anxiety?  If you’re honest in your description and listing, taken the time to pack very carefully, and shipped timely, why would a return be an issue?”You can be the greatest clothing or jewelry seller in the world but there’s a culture of buyers on Ebay that wear the stuff and return it. It’s condoned by both Paypal and Ebay. The rate of returning worn items is increasing!  
      Ever work at a Dept store? Many, many times a month they refuse returns that were obviously worn.  Ebay wants Walmart sellers. 

      Reply
    • DISAPPOINTED! says:

      Well Crispy Critters, your reply declares that you do NOT sell much if any at all. The sellers do NOT have a problem with returns for the right reasons, ex. listing error and even deliberating extenuating circumstances of the buyers, for these issues sellers do not need eBay to intervene.
      The negative FB is NOT about if the seller can leave the buyer a negative, BUT that the buyer will be more responsible in his left FB knowing that he could receive the same in return. A lot of respect comes from fear, that is all about that.
      Obviously you have NOT met up with that dishonest buyer, and believe me there are plenty of them. They will lie, cheat and steal…Get what they want and still leave a negative. I NEVER pleasure in the fact that a seller meets up with one of these miscreants, BUT I sure hope you do! That is if you really sell on eBay!
      Keep your uniformed comments to yourself; it truly is annoying to sellers who have experienced the concerns that have been brought forward!
        

      Reply
    • Lilysmiles4u says:

      You paint with a broad brush. You sound like the kind of buyer I personally dread and expect does return most of what you buy. You are 100% accurate in that there are sellers who do everything or some of what you claim but most of the top-rated sellers got there by NOT being what you describe. I worked in a retail store for over 10 years. I’ve seen people return worn, dirty panties. I  have seen a returned tv box that contained a concrete block. I have seen and been disgusted by the dishonesty of a certain class of people. They cost the retail industry a lot of money and are instrumental in the rise in prices to cover those losses. I have a friend who goes to the store and, because he doesn’t like to try anything on, buys 3 items in 2 sizes and then returns what doesn’t fit or look good. That’s fine when he is the one who has to drive down to return it. Why should I absorb losses for his admitted laziness?

      Reply
  72. Jewellsebay says:

    Who am I to judge something before it happens…but…I think it stinks! LOL
    As for the “Free” shipping…The last time I looked at UPS and USPS statements, it was not free.  Customers are stupid if they think it is.  It HAS to be figured into the cost of the product…I quit giving “Free” shipping for the most part.  My prices are lower…now I can offer true Fair Combined shipping and many buyers are taking advantage of that. It was not fair for the customer in Alabama, Texas etc (closer states) to pay the same as someone in California or NY.  I had to add a big shipping fee to my items assuming they would go to east or West coast…I have to add into my shipping the big Percentage eBay takes and then again for what PayPal takes.  I think it is terrible eBay and PayPal get away with taking part of our shipping costs…

    Reply
    • Rkical says:

       You have the perfect right to be the judge of something before it happens if you are a participant in it…once it happens it is often “too late”.

      Reply
  73. bluesmountain says:

    She says 1% to 3% returns are “reasonable”?  Not in my world and I sell used, collectibles, scarce and often well worn items…..but these are almost never returned.  It seems to me brand new things like this seller’s should have extremely low return rates.  eBay’s newest idea to try to forcce sellers to RENT our items won’t fly with me and I shall continue saying “no returns” while actually allowing returns if someone is truly unhappy, for whatever reason.  I’ve been dealing with people this way for over 12 years and may get “stung” about once a year.  eBay should change its name to Rent-bay.

    Reply
  74. Rainhillrocket says:

      Swiftriff says it all. See comment  below.
    The use of Paypal exclusively was the beginning of the end and they continue to screw the sellers.
    I like many other sellers have switched to other sites which is their loss, they will continue to lose market share.

    Reply
    • Investigate_the_Cause says:

      Please list the venues you use.  The more alternatives that are posted and commented on in terms of their ups and downs and overall viability, the more others will investigate the other venues.

      Reply
  75. cheerylane says:

    I recently sold a ring. I used the online measure for the size. It was too small for a 13, too large for an 11, that left a 12, right? No, when the seller recieved it he stated it was an 11, was not very happy. He said he wouldn’t leave feedback until he was satisfied. He posted it on his site for 5 days, made a $5.00 profit, then left me feedback later. I had a 7 day return policy. He was able to post this on his site and if he didn’t make a profit would have time to send it back. 14 days return policy will allow many more sellers to do this. 7 days is long enough for a buyer to decide whether they want to keep the item, if they are not satisfied.

    Reply
  76. Iluvnh1 says:

    I completely agree that this new “return policy” is wrong, wrong, wrong.  I have received returns of items that were absolutely NOT the item I sent – I got back the junk for my good item, lost the money AND paid for shipping twice!  A few times even got a Negative feedback for my trouble! 

    So ebay charges 4 times for a sale – listing, final value, shipping and PayPal because ebay owns PayPal and they dictate that you can’t accept any other payment!  

    I’m done with ebay! 

    Reply
  77. Tired OF_IT says:

    The only reason we can see why eBay is putting these changes into place is to push the collectible and antique sellers off the site and make it more for the high volume supplier of ‘off the shelf’ kind of items – wholesale or otherwise. Shame on you eBay!! Your growth in the marketplace would never have happened if it hadn’t been for the small seller of one of a kind items. There is no way we can give a buyer 14 or more days for returns – you are putting the seller at risk of having returns for ‘buyer’s remorse’ and many other problems that is NOT the norm with any kind of brick and mortar antique or used merchandise store. All sales are final, in case the eBay management has never been to a real shop. Allowing returns if the description is completely different than telling our buyers ‘you can return it for your money back, without any reason at all’. That’s selling on a ‘TRIAL BASIS’ – who does that in the real world of antiques and collectibles? Certainly not the majority of sellers in those categories. The list of all that is making it more difficult to do business through eBay just gets longer! If the buyer pays they are perfect, no matter how many problems we have with them; use PayPal only which eBay owns only to add to your profit margin not ours as the seller being bullied with charges (and what percent of eBay’s profit was from PayPal again..!?); pay a fee on the shipping cost in spite of lack of control on our part where the person lives or their agreement to the cost…will it end here? We doubt it! Time to put all those fees into a website that treats it’s sellers more as a partner in the business of selling items that cannot be forces into all of the increased fees and forced to accept returns without a reason that includes ‘I changes my mind’ or ‘I need the money I spent back’ or whatever lame excuse any buyer chooses – and even then can leave feedback that can’t be reciprocated for the damage caused by lost time and lost profits. So tired of the greed on the part of eBay – make us stockholders in order to profit from all of the business these changes will bring and maybe we’ll let you continue to beat us up with your fees and lack of common sense when it comes to antiques and collectibles!

    Reply
    • Wandjsouth says:

       I have been selling on eBay for 13 years with 100% positive feedbacks (3500+). Every time I get a new “Newsletter” from them I cringe. I agree with you 100% they eBay wants to PUSH OUT the Antique and Collectible sellers – those who MADE eBay WHAT IT IS!  They could really care less about us. They want the money from the VOLUME sellers. First they BOUGHT out PayPal and started making us PAY to COLLECT OUR money, now they want us to not only SHIP for Free, but give the BUYER 14 or more days to return it? They know when they RECEIVE the item whether or not it is what they wanted – they do not need 14 days to figure that out. I hate what they are doing, but until someone can point me in a direction of an online site that will WORK like eBay, I don’t have much of a choice.  My husband and I have a whopping $1269 a month that we get from Uncle Sam, and without eBay to help with our bills, I would be SOL.  I looked on the Etsy site, because someone had recommended that to me, but I got LOST trying to figure out how or WHERE to POST a listing.  Also, it looked to me as though you SET your own price – it didn’t seem like an “auction” site. Most of my BEST sales on eBay come from items I am “clueless” about – and would have priced MUCH, MUCH lower it I were setting the price. So, I guess I am going to have to give up my “benefits” (lol) as a Top Rated Seller and just keep plugging along.  I am thinking I may give Etsy another look.

      Reply
  78. Nursefrogger says:

    Basically the concept, the Mall opened and Mom and Pop stores are disappearing. I have been selling on Ebay for over 10 years, well before the general public was even aware that Ebay was in existence. 

    My excellent seller record speaks for itself. Why ruin a good thing for me?? Everyone is Happy, except for Ebay. 

    I agree with Swiftriff. Just because a buyer pays for an item, doesn’t make the transaction a positive experience. The Buyer might behave like a human being if they knew their nasty disposition may be exposed in a public forum such as feedback. 

    I will not be conforming and I will lose my Top Rated Seller Privileges. I am a tiny, Just Me, Ebay Seller. I work a full time job, Ebay is not my main source of income. I am not willing to accept returns. This is not buy on trial, Display the delicate, antique doll, have your grand kids play with it, show it off to your friends, and then think I want the merchandise back. This is an Auction. All Sales are Final. 

    With the few items I have accepted back, the items are never packed the same way I packed them. The stuff is literally thrown in box. Where is all the bubble wrap I used???  Buyers don’t think or care that how can I resell this item when you have removed things or the item comes back damaged????  

    Also, one day handling?? My shipping time gets 4.98 stars and I ship twice a week. Everybody is happy with this. My buyers have no problem with this, so why is Ebay ruining this for me??

    With the price of gas and the time consumed during the post office runs, this is almost impossible for most small sellers. Remember, we can’t charge what it really costs to ship. That will ruin our stars.

    Ebay forgets that “The Sellers” are THEIR customers, their bread and butter. Ebay is very unappreciative of all of us small time sellers, here for over 10 Years,  that MADE EBAY WHAT IT IS TODAY. And don’t think the FREE PICTURES are going to be FREE. We will pay more closing fees as is the typical Ebay Way.

    Reply
    • Jabarker says:

      I agree with you.  I have often felt that ebay was more on the buyers side than the seller.  I could never understand that.  I’m not going with that return policy.  In my mind that only give the buyer the opportunity to find an item cheaper somewhere then return yours.  That’s nuts.  As a seller you would have to be totally crazy.  I have 100% Top Seller Rating.  I always list no return accepted.  However, if someone contacts me and there is a problem with something not fitting, of course, I’m going to take it back.  I’m just not going to go out of my way to be miserable.

      Reply
      • Jeff says:

        I started selling on eBay in June, 2011, just part time, but I have my stuff listed on the other usual selling places that charge little or no fees. Half of my sales comes from the totality of the smaller sites. I’m starting to sell a lot on Bonanza.com. They are the one that really is aggressive (in a good way). You can download all of your ebay listings and feedback there. But I’ve had a return policy, had over 1,000 sales transactions. I started selling ’cause I had a bunch of expired Polaroid film that was valuable but then, since I know a lot about coins, I get a lot from an estate lawyer, so I sell those as well. I’ve always had a return policy but nobody has ever taken me up on it out of > 1,000 sales. I had one jackass buyer. He actually befriended me by emailing me and just complimenting my store, I don’t know. He asked if I had any half pennies. I did from an estate, just hadn’t listed them. I listed 5 within a couple days. He gave me good feedback but I know it was him who gave me a 1 on “item as described”. That guy knew based our conversation I would have taken the coin back and paid his return shipping. Just find it odd he wanted to shoot the breeze and become kind of email buddies for a week, then he slams me. That’s the only below 3 rating I’ve had in any DSR category. 

        Reply
    • Gr70213 says:

      I have been a seller on ebay for over ten years as well.  Initially it was my main source of internet sales.  Then changes began to happen that made it just too stressful for a seller.  Now having almost deserted ebay, it appears to me they are simply using sellers to build their own business and that they look for ways to squeeze more out of sellers.  They do this by removing sellers rights and voice.  Sellers are subsidising ebay through increased time, increased risk, increased out of pocket expenses.   I hate selling on ebay now and only use it rarely.  The feed back system is a bad joke.  I am so glad that I made the move away from ebay

      Reply
      • harleymanrob says:

        Yea sounds good, but where did you move your selling to. I to would like to make that move also.

        Reply
        • MrAmazing says:

          We moved to etsy and we get higher prices and 4-5 times the sales volume of our identical listings on eBay. I started on eBay in 1999 when it was fun, and I have more than 10,000 feedback. It seems obvious to me that eBay is trying to become the new Amazon, and had been moving towards that ever since John Donahoe (who has never participated in an online auction) took over from Meg Whitman… I expect that eventually all the small sellers will be squeezed out of the site and eBay will be left with the big guys and the usual sellers of closeout import junk.

          Reply
      • Linda says:

        I totally agree about the stress level that Ebay’s decisions are causing. It’s like having a problem boss again. I went into business for myself to avoid that!

        Reply
    • Marykayn says:

      TOTALLY agree with you! It seems Ebay is phasing out the ‘auction’ style sales.Very sad.

      Reply
    • Axel says:

      Probably because in the UK it’s the law. “No Returns” is not an option here in the UK. To prevent someone returning an item bought on-line here IS against the law, it’s as simple as that I’m afraid…

      Reply
    • Jashill1 says:

      I agree with everything you noted…….  I must have typed this in my sleep….

      Reply
    • D GILL30 says:

      I AGREE ALSO..I HAVE HAD ALOT OF FUN WITH EBAY  AND WILL REALLY MISS IT FOR IT HELP MAKE ENDS MEET..I SELL ALOT OF OLDER VINTAGE ITEMS AND LIKE YOU SAY IT GETS BROKE ..OH WELL WE HAVE TIME TO RETURN FOR OUR MONEY BACK..THATS THAT IM OUT..AND THIS PART OF THE WORLD OR AT LEAST ALL AUCTIONS I GOT TO ARE FINAL ..DOWN THE ROAD THEY WILL WISH IT WAS BACK IN THE DAY..WHEN EBAY WAS FUN….THERES OTHER SITES TO TRY AND WOULD REALLY LIKE TO SEE SOME ONE START A NEW ONE FOR AUCTIONS ONLY NO BULL..SO LONG TO EBAY.

      Reply
    • OutASAP says:

      Totally. Hypocritically using the socially engineering they politically eschew to discourage the diversity that gave them value.

      Reply
    • Bunicula52 says:

      I have never been a seller, but have been a buyer on eBay for 6 years. I no longer choose to buy on eBay unless an item can be found nowhere else. Do you truly believe buyers are the only ones who have nasty dispositions? Do you truly believe that by not being able to give buyers neg FB, they get off scott free. Not so. I seldom give anything but pos. FB & only when the transaction has been truly unsavory. Even so, if I give even one neg. FB, sellers block me from bidding on their items. I’m not talking about the one to whom I’ve given the neg FB, but from sellers with whom I’ve never had dealings whatever. So, buyers are penalized for giving neg FB, even when the neg is deserved. EBay is no longer an enjoyable venue that it was when I first started using it. It is my belief sellers are taking out their frustrations with eBay upon buyers, as they are not as courteous as in previous years.

      Refusing to allow returns or giving refunds is surely a way to prevent bids. If an item is not as it was described, I should have every right to return it. If sellers would be more honest or thorough in their descriptions, returns would be unnecessary. Why should a buyer have to ask questions all the time to discover details, which should have been in the description. Asking a question is an ordeal in itself! Or this new ploy: Look at the photos, they are part of my description(then put up badly taken photos). Listing titles are also frequently misleading. How can something be vintage & new at the same time? Listings constantly say things such as vintage style, just so their items will show up in searches for vintage items. The same is true with trade names. For example: Bakelite era, Selro style or Juliana?, or just throwing in the kitchen sink such as Florenza, Art, Selro? Bracelet. Either sellers are too lazy to do research or they are doing this to get more attention for their items. All of these things are against eBay policies, but are done all the time. And don’t tell me you lose money on returns. The buyer pays to return it and FVFs are refunded. Plus, if the item is returned damaged, you file a claim & keep all of the money anyway.

      I disagree with DSRs & I wrote to eBay several times during the year after they were implemented, even though I’m not a seller. What is the difference between quickly & very quickly? How do you judge communication, if you never had need to contact a seller? Why have 5 choices under condition item was received. It should be, was it received in described condition, yes or no. I never give anything but 5 *s for S&H, as long as I receive an item, I’m happy. EBay should not be involved with that at all.  I always gave 5 *s for free S&H, but now eBay thinks I’m too stupid to make that choice. But, I do give low DSRs to high S&H fees, this is the only way I can complain. I have paid $6 to have a pair of earrings shipped; this is nothing less than robbery. I totally disagree with eBay charging FVF on shipping costs. But, it is sellers need to complain to eBay & not take it on buyers. 

      I agree sellers should all be equal, whether they sell 100 items/yr. or 1,000/yr. All should be treated the same when it comes to fees. But, the fact that they are not is not the fault of buyers. It seems sellers should complain more often to get better policies, rather than blaming buyers for their woes. And, finally(aren’t you glad), buyers are the bread & butter of eBay, not the sellers. If no one bid upon or bought your items, no one would make any money at all. There are rotten apples in every barrel, stop painting all buyers with the same brush. 

      Reply
      • Jgofan says:

         Therefore, since you have never sold on eBay to any degree of regularity, you can’t understand where sellers are coming from with their frustration and opposition to many of eBay’s policies. YOU may be a good sensible buyer, but there are MANY unscrupulous and mean spirited buyers out there that don’t care what unwarranted bad feedback and DSR ratings can do to a seller’s reputation and bottom line (such as Top Rated Seller status and the fee discounts that come with it). And many of eBay’s buyer-leaning policies were implemented merely because a very minute percentage of sellers took advantage of or misled buyers. So instead of dealing with these sellers on a case by case basis eBay’s “across the board” policies encourage bad buyers to abuse sellers. That’s what has sellers angry.

        Lastly, you are badly mistaken that buyers are eBay’s bread and butter. Buyers don’t pay the fees that are the primary revenue stream for eBay. If sellers didn’t list their items and pay those fees, there would be no items to bid on or buy. And sellers have complained to eBay in droves about their polices, which usually fall on deaf ears. Besides, who is painting ALL buyers with the same brush? It’s eBay that has painted all SELLERS with the same brush.

        Reply
      • Jan says:

        I can see what you are saying but I’ve had questions from buyers who don’t read the descriptions and then complain. I get sales that have shipping to Puerto Rico, or Hawaii and Alaska but my descriptions clearly say that I only ship 48 States. I have listings that have all the technical description on a product and I will get questions like does hdmi work or what the size is. Which tells me they don’t scroll down to view the description or check the shipping tab. Also Ebay give us sellers a out of stock tab in cancellation because sometimes an item goes out of stock before you can get it taken out of ebay but when you cancel the order, the customer leaves neg. fb and try to claim that you never had it for sale. Which is a complete lie. I never list unless it’s in stock but being a dropshipper for numerous suppliers, inventory is a daily thing I have to do which is time comsuming. But I will contact the buyer right away as soon as I get notice that the item is out of stock. But I never list an item that is not for sale. Some buyers can be real nasty for the slightest things and now Ebay is giving them more.  

        Reply
      • Dreamgardens91 says:

        EXCUSE ME! THAT IS TRIPE.

        I have to pay for or scrounge up  packing material you’ve ‘bought’ cheaper than even the appropriate packing material costs! I ‘pack the item’ pay for gas to deliver it and upfront pay for posting it’ TIME AND EFFORT ARE NOT INCLUDED IN YOUR EQUATION OF ‘SHIPPING COSTS.’ Those things are not even counted by Ebay. So-I will NOT sell in their marketplace-although I too have purchased there 🙁

        I’d like to be ‘reasonable’ and try to imagine your anger at the ‘shipping and handling costs’ being ‘robbery’ but I think 6 dollars is dirt cheap! How about Pony Express? 

        Reply
  79. what a joke says:

    buyers remore? if people get upset because they visioned there product giving them some soft of fullfillment..and they later decide they dont want it…we sellers have to return everything..this is a joke and this new way is dumb….the sellers are scamming the buyers but not returning the product and getting the mney…ebay. People make a living on ebay..and support themselves with it..now everytime i sell something i have to wonder if ill get a return based on ebay acting like we are a store…trading in real life between people does not have returns..this is ridicouless. ebay is becoming worse..good job…

    Reply
  80. 111trueblue says:

    My father always says, If you want to start a business, just listen to people complain. Figure out a way to solve the problem and that is your new business. If someone started an online business which was like the original Ebay, I’m sure a lot of sellers would jump in a minute.

    Reply
  81. Bob says:

    Why am I not surprised. I have been with ebay for 10 years. During that time, it has gone from a fun, lucrative way to make a little extra money to a frustrating, money grubbing entity. I still sell a few things an ebay occasionally, but not enough to make any difference. So go ahead ebay, screw things up even further, I really dont care.  

    Reply
  82. Sdewey3 says:

    Ok,
    what about ebay’s double dipping style , on shipping, on final value, on pics. on paypal, my goodness..where does it end for a seller? I predict ebay is doomed!

    Reply
  83. Tom says:

    I have quickly scanned the comments and if there is even one that supports this insane return policy I can’t see it. Will this make any difference to the ebay corporate hats? Fat chance. Say hi to AltaVista, Ask Jeeves and all the other internet dinosaurs.

    Reply
  84. Anonymous says:

     The *only* reason for the off the wall return policies, the automated ability for a buyer to make a return and all the other buyer’slanted policy changes is because of Paypal.  Paypal is NOT a credit card company, they are an *acquiring bank* (a term for which the literal word: bank does not apply).  They are a money transfer agency that is termed acquirer or acquiring bank.  What this means is simply they are a HUGE merchant account, licensed by Visa and Mastercard that *allows* them to move money between registered buyers and sellers.   What they don’t tell you is:  the credit card companies they have contracted with (Visa & Mastercard) will crucify eBay/Paypal for chargebacks.  Sooo, they are bending over backward to circumvent a buyer from initiating a chargeback on their credit card because of a dispute with a seller or simply because they want their money back. 

    If you look at the definition of *acquiring bank* or *acquirer* you will note the line:  “The acquirer is a bank or financial institution that serves as the
    merchant services provider – maintaining a direct relationship with the
    merchant. An acquiring bank accepts the risk
    of the merchant’s business (through a thorough evaluation process known
    as ‘underwriting’), provides a merchant account for the merchant to
    accept credit card payment, and manages all transactions regarding this
    account.”

    Soooo, all this hoopla about returns has NOTHING to do with the “Amazonification”of eBay… it has EVERYTHING to do with Paypal being dinged up the whazoo for buyer chargebacks if they don’t devise ways of intercepting those chargebacks and get VERY involved with all the sellers business models.

    Reply
    • JMC says:

      EXACLTY! it’s always about the bottom line. Chargebacks cost Ebay/Paypal money. No better way to intercept or prevent a chargeback than offer an easy return.

      Reply
      • Karen C says:

        Also, I noticed, since I have a PayPal Debit card, they may already have gotten in trouble. 

        The debit card used to link to a Chase checking account, meaning no charge for withdrawals from Chase ATMs. 

        But as of 4 days ago, the Chase ATM started charging a fee.Obviously the debit card is no longer linked to a Chase account, so perhaps Chase is also no longer an acquiring bank? I’m trying to find out what bank PayPal switched members’ debit cards to at least – anyone seen any financial news on PayPal’s arrangements lately? Or ever?

        Reply
  85. Vmccarthy8500 says:

    FYI Amazon owns Zappos.com

    Reply
  86. Jewellsebay says:

    I believe I have a solution for all of us that have to adhere to the 14 day return Policy.
    Be sure to put in the Return Policy, that you will be glad to refund an item with the buyer paying all shipping fees. 20% (or whatever) restocking fees and I believe that will take care of the silly buyer who returns things on a whim.
    Note this as shown above…(When you automate the return process, the
    number of returns does go up. However, this is offset by the increased
    security that buyers feel about your listings)And I am supposed to care about their increased security…if my feedback does not tell a buyer what they need to know…then move on to someone else.

    Reply
    • Netbuyes says:

      The 14 day return policy is temporary. Ebay has already said that they want 30 days and even 60 days in the future.  Its only going to get worse folks.

      Reply
  87. Disappointed says:

    It is ALL about the money! A now GREEDY Self-Serving Corporation who has forgotten how they got to be where they are NOW.
    The little guy was their friend in the beginning, but now they feel that he is beneath what they WANT to present themselves as (?an advanced class?). LOL
    To be a First Class Act is remembering where you came from and gracious towards the reasons/people that got you there. For ANY good idea…advance is inevitable, BUT it is in good interest to fairly balance/incorporate the old with the new! eBay does NOT care to remember THEIR humble beginnings so to put-forth these ETHICAL practices.
    eBay needs to WAKE UP and get off their high horse!

    Reply
  88. Ymrxyz says:

     HEY, Kat Simpson (thekatsboutique) . . .
    You got lots of comments , I’d say mostly not in agreement . . .
    would love to hear your reaction . . .

    Reply
  89. Ashlee says:

    I am also an ebay seller I run my own business AJ Future Repairs we repair game consoles, computers, laptops and all mobile phones. I agree with SWIFTRIFF as when I have a bad buyer I sometimes feel the need to leave negative feedback to let other sellers know. This is just one of the things that has been taken away from us. Another thing is that ebay are always very much buyer protection do not care at all about the seller. One last thing they are now limiting how much you can sell. In my mind ebay really need to ask themselves is it all worth it and to take a long hard look at themselves as a company?

    Reply
  90. Kat Simpson says:

    Wow! lots of strong feelings out there about eBay. But then, I knew that. I’ve been a seller on eBay since 1997 and have gone through the ‘it’s the end of the world’ and ‘eBay is forcing me out of business’ routine almost every year since about 2005. I read every comment, BTW, thanks for each and every one – even the ones that were so bad The Online Seller couldn’t approve them, LOL.

    I have been a silver level power seller, a gold level power seller and now am only a bronze on my main ID. I am also a featured seller on Amazon in many categories and yes, LOL, I was aware that Amazon now owns Zappos. 

    What I read mostly below is fear and anger. When you wake up one morning and your business model has been changed that is pretty normal. I remember when I woke up one day and could no longer sell eBooks – I remember when magazine subscriptions became eBay ‘illegal’. Both of those were product lines I sold.  

    However, it’s really time (2 weeks AFTER the announcements), in my opinion, to move past the fear and anger and on to the reality. This is eBay’s sandbox and if you want to play here you must play by their rules.  

    Do I ‘feel your pain’? Yep! Actually, I empathize. Been There; Done That. More than once in fact. However, sitting with you and letting you vent doesn’t help. Not after the first few days. 

    It’s time for business owners to act like business owners. Look at the reality and see how you can make it work for you

    BTW, Bullion is an excluded category on the return policy update – hope that helps a few of the commentators.

    I was actually a cheerleader in high school – I had to cheer for my team even when they made stupid moves LOL. I consider myself an eBay FAN not a cheerleader – ’cause when eBay does something dumb – I fully intend to write about that too. But this change I think is a great move.

    Reply
    • Anonymous says:

       Kat… in some instances you might be reading fear and anger.  In most instances you are reading sellers who are tired of changing their business model to suit eBay’s latest and greatest scheme to control the marketplace so they don’t get penalized by the credit card companies they represent.

      Bottom line for most people is:

      Don’t like the price – don’t buy it
      Lousy pictures – don’t buy it
      Unacceptable Shipping Price – don’t buy it
      Don’t like the return policy – don’t buy it
      Can’t live with a NO RETURN policy (especially on items being discussed on this thread) DON’T BUY IT

      Nobody likes being told HOW to run their business.

      The marketplace truly has to decide its own fate.  Not eBay.  However, eBay couldn’t stand the financial responsibility of credit card chargebacks. in order to avoid this, they have become the policemen.  

      Most sellers thought they were buying a VENUE.  A place to sell their merchandise, in their own way, on their own terms.  Instead sellers are actually paying fees to be TOLD what their business model NEEDS to be.  The only reason for the policies is to intercept a buyers chargeback directly to the credit card company.  (Read that:  going AROUND Paypal, since they are NOT a credit card company, and filing a chargeback directly.)   

      Nothing stops a buyer from doing this right now.  But if ALL buyers started filing chargebacks to the credit card that backs up their Paypal account rather than go through Paypal for dispute resolution it WILL be the complete undoing of Paypal/eBay.

      Reply
    • kat says:

       Most people don’t agree with you and have nothing to ‘laugh out loud’ about Ms. Simpson. Glad you are so amused!

      Reply
    • Jashill1 says:

      Are you sure you do not work for Ebay?  Sure sounds like it…… 

      Reply
  91. LAW says:

    Oh What A Glorious Day Miss Simpson I Also Love IT. I Cant Wait Till They Implement Their Next Rule. You Just Send The Buyer The Item And They Pay You  What They Think It Worth. How Wonderful Ebay Is So Concerned For Their Seller .. You Know They Named A Street After Ebay. IT”S CALLED ONE WAY !

    Reply
  92. Janjems says:

    THIS IS AN EBAY FARSE!  BIG BROTHER TAKING OVER OWNERSHIP OF THE SELLERS MERCHANDISE AND CHOICES. EBAY HAS MADE IT MORE DIFFICULT TO DO ANY SALES ON EBAY. ITS COSTING THE SMALL SELLERS AS WELL AS THE LARGE SELLERS A LOT MORE MONEY THAN THE GENERAL PUBLIC REALIZES.  NEW SELLERS TO EBAY PLEASE KNOW THAT IT WILL BE A VERY DIFFICULT TRIP TO SELL YOUR ITEM UNDER EBAYS CONTROL. THERE IS A PLACE FOR THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SELLERS AND WE ALL NEED TO FIND IT. LETS HEAR FROM SOME OF THE SELLERS…WHERE ARE YOU GOING AND WHY THAT PARTICULAR SITE?

    Reply
  93. Janjems says:

    mY COMMENTS JUST GOT MARKED TO BE APPROVED BY MODERATOR. HOPE THEY ARE PUBLISHED BECAUSE THEY ARE TRUE AND EXACT. LETS GO TO ETSY WITH THE COLLECTIBLES AND THE COSTUME JEWELRY. MAYBE THAT WILL WORK FOR A TIME?

    Reply
  94. onlinelorri says:

    Am  understading this;  If an buyer bids up an auction then has buyer’s remorse he can return it?  If this is so, what good is an auction!

    Reply
  95. Readmefst says:

    During Holiday Events where Costuming is the central theme, wearing a costume is usually for a 1 day event. It is standard business practice during the costume season (Halloween) not to accept returns. Retailers are not in the “rental” business. In addtion, those retailers that are accepting returns may be reselling worn or damaged merchanise as new. We think that ebay should be considerate of the general return policies of an industry wide standard if ebay wants to protect both buyers and sellers.

    Reply
  96. Jon Fields says:

    You’re mad if you believe this is a good thing. I can tell you from experience that it isn’t. I sell mobile phones in the UK (cellphones to you Americans)  and scrapped Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) after just a few months following a huge increase in returned items, many of which had “problems” that could have been easily sorted out if buyers had bothered to contact me first. The important thing to understand with many buyers is that they will “Shoot first and ask questions later”, thus will be more inclined to return an item they think is faulty simply because they haven’t bothered to ask or read the instructions.

    It gets worse. You have lost the outgoing shipping costs to begin with, that’s bad enough with postal prices set to take a huge hike in the UK together with the addition of 20% sales tax. Many items are returned in a sorry state, scratched or marked, or without boxes or with damaged boxes often simply because they were badly packed for the return journey. It’s impossible to resell these at anything like the original price, and many often had to be sold at a loss. The real bad news is that there was no significant increase in sales, and that if you requested a return (of your stock) from Amazon it often took them 3-4 weeks to send it.

    It will all depend on what you sell of course, but for me the returns service offered by Amazon as part of the FBA service was an unmitigated disaster and one of the worst decisions I have made in 27 years in business. When you think about it logically, businesses exist for one reason – to make their owners as much money as possible. So whilst it is good practice to have a decent returns policy, to positively encourage it and shout it from the rooftops really isn’t very clever – but then most of ebay’s ideas in recent years haven’t been very clever either, not for the seller anyway.

    I quit ebay three years ago and will almost certainly never go back. I use it now for selling a few bits of tat occasionally, and for buying now and then, but as a business proposition it’s a complete farce.

    Jon Fields

    Reply
  97. JMC says:

    No offense to the OP, but she sells 8 items a month. Hardly making a profit, if at all, on her store. Try selling hundreds of items a month and then tell us about the extra risk and work involved in several returns a week.

    Reply
    • Kat Simpson says:

       JMC I sell more than 100s of items per month on Amazon and I deal with their return policy limits on a daily basis. What an I tell you? it works. I sell more and I sell for higher prices BECAUSE in large part, the customer service focus and easy returns on the Amazon platform. I am hoping some of the new eBay changes will bring that security for buyers to the eBay platform and help sales for most of us.

      Reply
      • Tom says:

        Can you explain, Kat, why there are so many negative comments to hyour article? Are you the only Ebay Seller that supports your view?

        Reply
        • Kat Simpson says:

           I think I understand that pretty well Tom. Folks have been reacting like this to eBay changes for years. Most folks who sell on eBay are entrepreneurs like myself and dislike having terms dictated to them. Then there are the folks who dislike change of any kind. Also some who are extremely anti-corporation so they can use this for their purposes also.

          Understanding where all the anger is coming from is fairly straightforward. I see it about twice a year from eBay sellers.

          But don’t you think the energy would be better invested in moving your businesses forward? Go build that website, spend the time learning about how to draw customers to it, work on your marketing. If you truly think this change is the end of your eBay career I challenge you to test it. You can make a lot of assumptions about how your customers will behave but no one here seems to have tried it.  I just think it’s time for folks to accept what is coming and move on however they decide to in a positive direction.

          But to stand and shake your fist for over 2 weeks? I honestly think that is a waste of energy.

          Reply
          • Tom says:

            Fairly patronizing Kat. You have no idea whether people commenting here have built their own website or any of the other smug suggestions you made. And “accept what is coming”? Brilliant advice. Like we are powerless to control our own business, life, government or world? I, for one, have had a website since 1997 and do most of my business from it. As for Ebay, I have taken my best customers offline and deal with  them direct. I can offer them lower prices since I don’t have to pay the ever increasing fees and if they ever have issues I can deal with those direct as well, on a case by case basis. Repeat business is the key to success and you sure dont need ebay for that.

  98. etsybound says:

    As a top-rated seller with a very healthy eBay business I  have to disagree with most of the new policy’s that they have implemented. They are making it harder and harder to turn a decent profit. Ever since they started charging FVF on shipping I am losing money on supplies. I sell glass which requires a certain type of packaging and I cant make my money back on it. 

    I also believe all the new rules are a result of a failing business model. I know quite a few sellers who have abandoned eBay for craigslist and etsy.

    The bottom line is the have to generate revenues from us to pay for the new media campaigns they have embarked on, which has not increased by numbers at all.

    Reply
  99. JMC says:

    Etsy is a great site for selling vintage items (20 years or older on Etsy) You do have to know how to take good pictures and write good SEO titles and descriptions but, it’s pretty easy. 20 cents a listing. Each listing is 3 or 4 months?

    Reply
  100. JMC says:

    Someone mentioned yardseller, they are selling their business. What does that tell you?

    Reply
  101. Anonymous says:

    I agree with Nate.
    Kat Simpson is a Education Specialist for ebay and she knows darn well that the new sping policies are the beginning of the launch of Amazonification of e-bay. Reason?  Amazon was rated the #1 e-commerce on The Fortune 500. I can hardly wait to see what their Fall Updates will be, if I stay on there that long. The reason why other imitators of ebay never made it big is e-bay has a ton of BUYERS. I have disabilities, so e-bay was a perfect fit for me as a small time seller of collectibles, I could work enough to pay my medical, prescriptions and bills since disability turned me down. The concern of bait and switch risk is too high.I busted my butt to meet their nearly impossible Top Rated Seller status at the time to get 20% off, was pushed into getting a store, Now that Top Rated is $1000 and everybody gets free pictures, when I called ebay about “what’s the point of having a store?” a Twit replied “Corporate Image”. I’m not a corporate image, just an average Jayne trying to survive in today’s economy. Then when I got hit with a 1099-K for 2011, I about fell out of my chair. Anybody notice they don’t send emails requesting on feedback on their calls to ebay since they announced it? I used to get one every time I called with 48 hours.

    Reply
  102. Get-n-screwed-by-ebay says:

    Ebay buyers are not required to have any responsibility for their own actions.  What ebay is really doing is getting rid of a problem for them and the ebay buyers.  They are getting rid of sellers who say there is a problem.

    We get buyers who demand free stuff, break things and want their money back, want free replacements, they LIE and STEAL, and ebay lets it happen.  Sellers complain to ebay about it, and in return ebay tightens the nuts on sellers.

    Effectively ebay is removing the problem…. not the thieves, liars, and cheating ebay buyers, but the sellers who say there is a problem.

    Reply
  103. Daydream337 says:

    ebays return policy is going to be their demise.

    Reply
  104. Rick Drew says:

    eBay is on the side of the buyer – period. Well, that and their profit$. Charging a commission on SHIPPING?!? Rip-off. If the customer refuses insurance and the package is lost or broken, the seller gets nailed. Rip-off. I’ve been nailed enough by dishonest buyers, and we can’t even leave them feedback or warn people about these crooks. Do you know eBay will EDIT your feedback to make is sound more “friendly” and to give people a “more positive experience” on eBay?!? That’s criminal.

    Reply
  105. Dhskansas says:

    ebay sucks.  It use to a great market place, but now it is a haven for thiefs and ebay is the accomplice.  I wouldn’t waste my time there.  I once was a Gold Level Powerseller, then ebay decided to stab the sellers in the back just one to many times for my liking.

    Reply
  106. Carterpetsupply says:

    Nobody is buying this self serving crap. I am working on a site and trying to move sales elsewhere. 10 years and not one negative feedback. I am giving up. Tired if being screwed.

    Reply
  107. Anonymous says:

    I was pretty proud to become a Top Rated Seller. But with that little symbol comes the right for e-bay to dictate the terms of your sales, what feedback you can give and receive, and how much they are going to take away when you assert your rights. I will never give anyone 14 days to return anyting, especially items that will become worthless once they *try it out* (I sell a lot of pet related supplies). I am more than fair with my buyers and will always work with them if they have a problem with anything I sell. But I will stop selling on e-bay completely before I allow them to control EVERY aspect of my low-profit business.

    Reply
  108. pommystockman says:

    if there was a good alternitive to ebay I think that they would be out of buisness in an instant.
    They are slowly pricing themselves out of buisness and all the buyer orientated changes are making it so unatractive to sellers that they will most certainly dump ebay and go with a better product in a heart beat

    Reply
  109. cooking4aliving says:

    I just wonder how this will affect the sellers that don’t carry stock but that do drop shipping right from their suppliers to their customers.  Will the eBay seller get stuck with the product and have to ship it back to the their supplier picking up further shipping costs especially if you are Canadian and your suppliers are all US.  There is alot to consider before opening up a store again.

    Reply
  110. CAGAappraiser says:

    Ok I will now be a buyer vs seller.I am still adjusting my plans but  here is a rough draft. I will buy a new mower every 14 days this summer mow 25+ lawn each week to the tune of $125.00 average per and return the mowers just because I don’t lke the color. Hmm have to figure fuel cost here.
     I will get a set of tires for each of my vehicles every 30-60 days 60 will be better I get more miles per change this way.
      Aw.thanks eBay…. I always wanted to invest in gold and will now will have at least 14 days for the market to move upward and if it doesn’t and I can’t sell locally at a profit I will just return the items.(This  happened to me recently the LADY had to feed her children and needed a refund while having BIN jewelry totaling well over $6000.00 listed). .
       I attend a Military Ball every year and will have no worries about having my date dressed in the latest fashion with accessories loaded with bling.
       I print quite a bit and will have to get a new printer cartridge every 14-30 days I know all those I see listed have to be defects and will have to be returned.
       And a new twist… Order High Value items , place in local auction with reserve…if it sells make a little $ if not use my new favorite 3 words …..Just Return it……
       Now for the ins and outs get in touch with Walmart or any other returns dept and they will tell you all items are returned to mfr. But with a little searching you too can find these companies that sell LTL and Truck Loads of defective and return items including Health Beauty Aids, Clothing, Tools Equipment and the whole gambit from all retailers including Walmart, Sears, Kmart, Walgreens, etc etc… 
      Anyone have any ideas about getting a vehicle for 60 days I need a Vacation after all this hard work…receiving and sending.. 

    Reply
  111. Mojo says:

    I have been on eBay for 6+ years selling. I started out selling a few little things to make a few bucks here and there.  Now  I am self-employed – a silver level PowerSeller (soon on my way to Gold) and I am also a Top Rated Seller and an eBay Trading Assistant.   Yes eBay makes a lot of money off of me ($1000+/month in fees) but I make a lot of money from eBay.  I work 10-20 hours a week at the most.  I have a few other online sources of income but eBay sales is really what pays my bills.  Im not defending all of eBays policies, but the 14 day return policy is not that big of a deal. I already implemented it and have not seen any significant increase in returns. My buyers seem to be just as happy with their items as they have always been. 

    Reply
  112. Wildebaysales says:

    Yep.  Used to sell 10 to 15K on month on eBay, mostly old currency.  Then, silly changes chased me off.  Fee increases, loss of being able to leave Negative feedback for buyers that basically were Idiots, and those that didn’t pay.  That is the Thanks they gave me for exposing 2 sellers that were complete frauds.   Ebay just got Ridiculous, there was little money and big risk!   Buyers have all the rights, seller has none.  I’m basically a buyer now.  Ebay chased me away from seling there.  Pat M.

    Reply
  113. Themoe says:

    Here is my question for Ebay. Mr Ebay, I am not a company, I am a one man operation that happens to be top rated. So I sell an item and offer this ridiculous new one day shipping. Item ends on a Monday and no payment. Tuesday no payment. Wednesday no payment. I now have to be away for a few days and leave Thursday. Payment comes in Thursday night and no way to ship Friday. Why should I be hostage waiting for payments and ship in one day no matter when they come in to make ebay happy enough to keep my status.  They want us to offer one day shipping then make the buyer pay for the item the same day auctions ends.  Fair is fair!

    Reply
  114. Themoe says:

    Read most of what is being said here and decided to take action. I just closed my ebay store FOR GOOD!!! We sellers have no rights and I will be damned if I will offer 14 day return policies, free shipping and more. I am not here to take risks with my stuff. The playing field is not level and has not been now for a few years.

    Reply
  115. Themoe says:

    Hmm, I wonder if ebay would do something about this “possible” scenario. I sell  a concert ticket and overnight it to the buyer. Concert is in 3 days. A week passes and the buyer lets me know he missed the concert and is returning the ticket for a full refund. According to ebay he has 14 days to return it even though concert is now over. He sends me back “full” ticket. I guess he gets his refund. Great return policy EH!!!!

    Reply
  116. Anonymous says:

    An ebay representative called us yesterday and (we have 2 stores) and we both had a great chat with him. For those that sell commodities such as antique coins and bullion, and monitor commodity trends on kitco, we asked him if we buy stocks and then the market drops in 10 days, do you think our broker is going to allow us to return the stocks at the price we paid for them within 14 days? OF COURSE NOT! He said now he understood why so many coin sellers were upset. Then he said if you have a store, one day handling, those sellers listing as Bullion will be exempt from the 14 return policy, and get their 20%. I told him that State Tax Collection laws vary from state to state, and to avoid charging sales tax to my customers in my state I would have to single list $500 worth of bullion. I told him the big buyers had already stopped buying bullion off of e-bay because e-bay doesn’t give e-bay bucks on bullion purchases. All my bullion selling pals caught on and bailed and got websites a year ago, but kept their e-bay site up to drive traffic to their sites with their feedback cards when you bought from e-bay last year.. On a separate note, if you list any Antique coin in the Coins and Paper Money category, and do not offer the 14 day return, You will get NOTHING off your final value fee. ON THE UPSIDE, for people who sell Antique Gold Coins, you can list those in the bullion category, if you have a store and 1 day handling, you can still get your 20% discount. Sell a few a month, still stay Top Rated, and get your life back instead of busting your butt. And stay under the radar with less than 200 transactions and keep your income under $20,000 to avoid the 1099-K.

    Reply
  117. John316wilson says:

    This is just another bulldozer ebay is running over the seller.  Ebay is all too concerned for the buyer and could care less about the seller. You can call it what you like, say “I believe it will be better for the seller”, quote “Kat” all you like, compare to other sites, whatever, but it still “is what it is” and only non-thinking individuals will let you do their thinking for them. This is NOT better for the seller.  It is done by force rather than giving sellers the options they deserve…..the word communism comes to mind. BUT, Ebay can do this to sellers b/c what it is saying is truthfully what it is doing…….”this is how it’s gonna be, like it or lump it”.  Too bad this is what you are dictated to do or go take a flying leap……..who cares?   NOT EBAY.

    Reply
  118. Priscilla_Blanchard says:

    eBay could care less about the sellers. Like Nursefrogger below, I have been on eBay for over 10 years. I have had numerous unscrupulous buyers who have tried to return items which are similar but NOT the actual item I sent them. I have had buyers leave negative feedback because they did NOT receive the item in the mail the very next day, and on and on and on. eBay says I can leave a follow up…big deal. Then it just becomes “he said…she said”. We cannot warn sellers about these buyers.

    Reply
  119. G Lesley says:

    I have been on eBay for 5 years another money grab when will it stop, capitalism isn’t it great ” NOT ” another kick to the seller.I am 100% top seller & I am sick of eBay’s one sided policy’s.

    Reply
  120. Sheesheeshabby says:

    I have been branching out to Etsy and Bonanza. I love the Ebay upload feature at Bonanza. One click and all my Ebay listings are on Bonanza.

    Reply
  121. Retrograde Movement says:

    This is written like someone who has zero comprehension of the selling dynamics involved in listing specialty vintage and used items, which is where eBay garnered it’s success. Leaving yourself open to returns a minimum of half a month after a used and/or vintage item is sold is patently ridiculous. Can you imagine the potential for damage that could occur to these types of items at the buyers hands? And then to give them carte blanche to return an item they damaged after rendering it worthless to the seller is beyond outrageous. And don’t try and tell me that eBay will mediate and rule on the seller’s behalf. eBay rules in the buyer’s favor at least 98% of the time now. eBay has become a sellers nite-mare and a buyers dream, and that is the whole point of these initiatives. Oh, and I have been selling on eBay since 1998 with a 100% positive record and top seller ratings across the board.

    Reply
  122. Sheesheeshabby says:

    As a 13 year seller of vintage clothes and oddities at Ebay I am in full agreement with most of these posts…
    Bottom line is Ebay is a corporation and as a corporation they only care about their bottom line which is returns for shareholders.  
    I am doing OK at Etsy (as well as at Ebay although my Ebay sales are down 50% since the recession) 
    I wonder if everyone here is aware that Etsy now encourages sellers of vintage items (older than 1992 so lots of leeway)
    I also love Bonanza which allows all items with no listing charge and 3% final value fee….cash, checks and Paypal accepted.
    Unless we use these sites as buyers and sellers they will never achieve Ebay status.  So please, please consider alternative sites.  Bonanza allows a one click upload from Ebay so its a no brainer to list there concurrently with Ebay.   Ashevillekat  (At Ebay, Bonanza, and Etsy)

    Reply
  123. Sheesheeshabby says:

    So in other words the author is not even a Top Rated Seller. So none of these changes will affect her. I will also just give up my hard won TRS status and go with the “no returns accepted unless I have failed to describe adequately”.
    Of course, soon Ebay will probably require all sellers to accept 14 day returns or be booted off the site.  

    Reply
  124. Skullzlondon says:

    & another kick up the backside of the poor sellers who are the sole reason they exist. Nazi-ebay, Hitler would love them. I`m a clothing designer & I sell other designers too. So now I am supposed to accept returns? Oh hell No I wont. Women will be buying wearing & returning after an event for a full refund. How convenient for them. I`m happy to accept a return if there`s a problem, but I wont just because after 2 weeks some silly cow decides to try something on & doesn`t like it. Macys has the time & manpower to deal with that sort of rubbish, I dont. Things took a turn for the worse when they stopped us leaving feedback for pond scum buyers who didn`t pay.
    I`ve had several seller friends email me asking me if there`s anything I think we should do. I`m already doing it, getting my own website. I`m done, had enough! I`ll sell used items on ebay only. Friends are using Etsy & Yardsellr.
    Ebay wants the big box chinese/far east companies that sell in huge volume super cheap crap.
    Its sellers like me who`ve been selling on there for 10+ years they dont want.
    One day the mighty will fall, someone please come out with another ebay!!!! Millions will defect overnight! Good luck to those who think the return policy will work, you`ll be spending more time dealing with returns than you will sales.

    Reply
    • Anonymous says:

       You hit the nail on the head “Ebay wants the big box chinese/far east companies that sell in huge volume super cheap crap” They want that warehousing business model.

      Reply
  125. Olena says:

    I thought it just me being picky but now that I have read the contents of these comments I can see how disgruntled people are with Ebay. I noticed that it was becoming an expensive hobby and from the UK I am expected to accept back items that had nothing wrong at all wrong with them and the buyer had simply decided they did not like once it had arrived. We then go through all the flimsy excuses that Ebay will allow for a return. It is nigh impossible to argue as Ebay will come down on the buyers side and you will end up with negative feedback. Yes, the items return poorly packed and just stuffed into a box or bag. Buyers are told to return items with a tracking number and they dodge that one for cheaper postage. The parcel is lost or missing, Ebay grab the money back and refund the buyer BEFORE the item has been returned.  So, money and no item and Ebay keep the selling/listing fees and close the case. They are in breach of their own rules and regulations. I am thinking very hard about moving my selling to a web site and Ebay can wither on the vine for all I care. This year has been a disaster for me and I have had refuse to ship to the USA any more based on the ridiculous buyers demands. Too expensive and time consuming. Time for me to move on. Ebay is not a pleasant experience any  longer and I feel confident enough to move away from their ever changing policies designed to suit themselves.

    Reply
  126. Pfft! says:

    How much did eBay pay you for more of this “smile while I take over your business”  propaganda that they’ve been shoving down seller’s throats since Meggie walked in the door?

    Reply
  127. Cloakanddiamond says:

    This return option benefits The Only Lord eBay, u are covering yourselves you don’t give a Fart!! about the seller, what you are saying to yourselves is where else are the sellers going to go if they don’t agree, Yep! ….I can hear it now, hey want to try yardseller I heard it works.

    Reply
  128. Are they still claiming that ‘eBay is just a venue’ ? It seems now as if every seller works for eBay on a commission only basis, they source the goods, finance the inventory, promote the goods, despatch the goods, take the risks on payment & chargebacks, all according to the laid down rules of eBay who take a guaranteed cut off the sales with a percentage often bigger than the sellers profit. They do exactly the same amount of work for a $1 item as they do for a $1000 item but take a larger $ cut just because the sellers item turns out to be worth more.

    Reply
  129. Anonymous says:

    Auctiva offers a store and the option of processing credit cards without paypal, which I know you already know is owned by ebay. Reading their Auctiva’s customers Q&A, there’s some indication they are trying to  handle the volume of ebay seller bail-outs and still have a lot of bumps in the road to smooth out to run as smoothly as ebay. I was a paypal sucks advocate in the early 2000’s, but they do offer that buyer/ seller protection and that has kept numerous buyers from ripping me off. What’s stupid about this, that even my items were tagged as No Returns, If a customer had bid or bought an item they couldn’t afford in the first place, and the commodities market dropped, as a professional I always initiated a Cancellation of Transaction, and of course, commodities would go back up and I actually made more money by getting the item back. A lot of times it made money on the return trip home. The thought of the leap to credit card processing alone and the hassles that could come with that are unknown territory for me and  disconcerting. I have not looked into Vendio’s offerings yet. I’m moving back to the mountains in Georgia in the fall where Coins, Paper Money & Bullion are tax free. Or I may throw in the towel on Numisimatics and go back to making and selling homemade vegetable soaps, balms and natural care body products, my previous business before this one, selling to local tourist shops. Either way, I will find a way to re-invent myself. I always have and always will.

    Reply
  130. Jfederonich says:

    E-bay is an auction house not just a big store. As a seller my feedback, item descriptions and feedback rating lets customers know they are secure. This is why we work so hard to obtain positive feedback. That extra 1.5-3% return rate would hurt most sellers and items being returned could be just a change of mind or heart. This is not fair to the seller as when a purchase is made with an accurate description and photos a buyer should not be able to just change his or her mind as they found that item cheaper somewhere else ect.

    Reply
  131. Toydelight1 says:

    Another attack on the ebay Seller.  Ebay loves bitting the hand that feeds it!

    Reply
  132. QuiteHappy says:

    I am so glad I left Ebay! What a nightmare! And my sales are up! My profit is up! My fees are down! And my stress level is down! You people are stupid for taking it!

    Reply
  133. sunsetarts on ebaty says:

    I disagree with the 14 day return policy.  Buyers know if they want or don’t want the moment they open the package.  My Vintage jewelry is not a FREE RENTAL with me paying postage both ways.  To put a store like mine behind all the import factories(from China) in listings is absurd & insulting.  

    If there really was a vote among sellers, this idea would have hit the dirt by a large majority.

    I think eBay just tired of listening to the many whiners it gets both ways on returns.

    The One thing I do like, is the send them ( the buyer)  a return lable charged to them ( the buyer)!

    The few pieces that did come back, were false NOTASDESCRIBED & poorly packed & broken.

    EBay should stand up for NO RETURN POLICY where ever it is, and stop with the first in line&&^%$# Stuff.

    Reply
  134. Dee457 says:

    Are you listening this time, EBAY? We are your revenue and you are driving us out!

    Reply
  135. NO EBAY- EVER! says:

    I’m truly sorry but anyone who sells OR buys on ebay needs a good thorough mental exam.

     At NO other internet sales place/site on earth will you be mistreated, stolen from, lied to, backstabbed, ripped off and treated like DIRT by the very company you are PAYING huge amounts of hard cash to as you will on ebay.

    WHY IN GOD’S GOOD NAME ARE YOU PEOPLE DEALING WITH THAT BUNCH OF CRIMINALS??!!

     And as far as the person who wrote this article… SPOKEN LIKE A GOOD LITTLE EBAY SHILL / CHEERLEADER… Who you do you think you’re kidding?

    Reply
  136. Don says:

    Based on the comments I’ve read, sellers are unhappy with eBay and with few exceptions, they look at these changes as robbing profits – and they are right!!  The fact is that sellers need buyers and no other site brings in buyers like eBay.  But, it also needs to be said that there is no site that has more sellers – the competition for sellers is greater on eBay than anywhere else.  The only edge that sellers can pursue is customer service.  I see these new changes on returns as improving customer service for all sellers.  That may be good for buyers but the good sellers will lose their only edge.

    As a seller it is apparent to me that eBay attracts price conscious buyers. With few exceptions, buyers have become accustomed to finding ‘something for nothing.’  For example a Doulton figurine sells for 10 to 20 cents on the dollar and down 50% or more from 5 – 10 years ago.  From the buyer’s standpoint, nothing wrong with that but it is extremely hard for most sellers to provide best price, a 100% satisfaction guarantee and 5 star quality service and make any profit – and in fact, most lose money after figuring in the cost of the item.  Kat Simpson suggests that you adjust your profit margins to accommodate the changes eBay implements.  Profit margins are dictated by the market, not by a seller wanting to cover higher selling costs – particularly in the used or resale market.

    Ultimately, eBay is going to push so many sellers out of business that buyers will give up searching eBay.  Even if you are a seller cleaning out your closets or downsizing, it is simply isn’t worth your time to list a lot of this stuff.  The most absurd thing I see right now is someone selling a book for less than 25 cents, charge $4 for shipping, and end up making nothing and probably losing money after paying selling commissions (list, final, PayPal) and shipping.  You might post a few items over the course of an hour or two but after awhile you figure out your time is worth something.  I know my time is worth more than $1 an hour.  I just pack up books that are worth less than $10 including shipping and give them to the library or charities. There are millions of items on ebay that sell for less than $10 including shipping. I speak only for myself – my time is more valuable than making $1 or $2 an hour in ‘profit.’  You could give the stuff way and the time you save you could take a part-time job at minimum wage job and make much more.  It’s crazy and frankly, I don’t understand it.  But, as a buyer, I love it and I hope that sellers continue working for nothing. 

    Anyway, eBay is not good for most sellers selling small dollar items and eBay makes it so difficult for anyone to make a few bucks that even the most diligent downsizer is going to give-up.  And don’t forget that today’s seller was yesterday’s buyer.  I think that is the number one reason why sales are plummeting – you buy the stuff, only to give it away later.

    Thanks for your time.

    Reply
  137. Shop Lass says:

    As someone who’s just trying to sell things I no longer need or want to dust in my old age, I find it difficult to agree with the author. 

    Since I can’t get out much (for medical reasons), I’m able to enjoy the dialogue I have with my “customers”. My feedback at 100% reflects that there is no substitute for the good customer service I provide. Quality, not necessarily quantity is the key – though I’ve had some “conversations” that last for days. So count me out of eBay’s new “no contact” return policy. 

    I have no desire to “unload” my stuff on anyone who will regret their purchase for any reason – even beyond my 14 day return policy Unless I have incorrectly described an item (which I am careful not to do), or it arrived damaged, my “job” is to ensure that my buyers are happy with their purchase. 

    Requiring buyers to contact me prior to returning an item allows me the opportunity and flexibility to salvage a sale amicably, especially since I have already established a good rapport with my buyers – the very same kind I had when I managed a successful retail store. 

    Returning any item should be a last resort – not something a buyer or seller should treat with such casualness. I can ill afford to pay selling fees to eBay, payment processing fees to PayPal and, what is quite arguably the most egregious fee – eBay’s premium on shipping, just to have customers bounce my items back and forth. 

    Tangent on the shipping fee: If I require a buyer to pay shipping I’m not pocketing any percentage of the actual shipping charges so why should eBay? And if I use eBay’s shipping service, the shipping fee is absolutely no different than if I used the online U.S. Postal Service to print the same label. The entire shipping fee is used to send the package, it is not income. 

    I’ve only sold 61 items since November and while my return policy has mostly been 14 days, no questions asked, not a single buyer has asked to return anything. That said, my sales may not ever get me the so-called eBay “trusted seller” badge and perhaps the author here can afford to find an empty box when something is supposed to have been returned, but I cannot – not even once. Especially since most of what I’m selling is my jewelry.

    So, while I’m still selling on eBay, I continue my search for a better way to sell my trinkets, baubles and things that need dusting.

    End of soapbox!

    Reply
  138. Jashll1 says:

    Ebay Management!!!  Are you Listening?

    Reply
  139. Willneeb says:

    Have a return policy is a simple Ebay ruse.   Regardless the seller’s expressed return policy, Ebay gives every buyer 45 days to change their mind and return an item.  All they have to do is say the item was not as described after they broke it or found it cheaper elsewhere and open a case.  Ebay always sides with buyers as long as they have some creative reason for the return.  I was told recently that even if I expressly told buyers to “not buy this broken piece of junk” in the listing description, the buyer could still return the item by saying the color wasn’t exactly like it appeared in the pictures.  Ebay does seem to be completely shifting to commercial retailers and away from private sellers  who simply cannot put money away for 45 days or longer with their fingers crossed that the buyer doesn’t change their mind about a sale.  When I get paid, it gets spent paying the electricity bill and no longer exists.  Now I HAVE to reimburse shipping for buyers who are lying or have simple buyer’s remorse?  I AM NOT WALMART. I also am a power seller with more than 10 years on Ebay, All of it was small sales of antiques and collectibles. 

    Buyer protection does not warrant these new policies, these are Ebay’s attempt to out-retail Amazon at the expense of their sellers.  Ebay has, by a quick reckoning, made about $20,000 off of me.  I am looking for other options at this point.  

    Reply
  140. kat says:

    EBID 
    PEOPLE STILL DON’T KNOW ABOUT IT.IF WE ALL BANDED TOGETHER AND STARTED PROMOTING EBID  TO ALL OUR BUYERS MAYBE WE COULD GET AN ALTERNATIVE SITE TO SELL ON!  IT SEEMS A GOOD WAY TO GO,  BUT EBID NEEDS MORE BUYERS, WHAT CAN WE DO TO GET IT STARTED, ANY IDEA’S HOW?http://poll.pollcode.com/1h9j_result_page_0

    Reply
  141. Slqmaven says:

    ebay is not seller friendly. with the rising prices of the post office and ebay trying to force you into free shipping, it does now work for all business models. they do not understand my business segment and think one size fits all.

    Reply
  142. Ubid4savings says:

    I understanding the benefits of returns. But it should only be applied to certain items being sold only.  I sell antiques and collectibles. Have you ever seen a return policy in a live auction and or antique shop.  I personally do not know of such a place. TWO WEEKS no way. Not worth getting my 20% discount. Ebay used to serve us, now we are processed and regulated.  They have maxed out and can only make profits by churning their sellers customer base.  The star rating and not being able to give TRUE feedbacks on buyers who are not paying for their items. I have had 3 other accounts. Not a Newbie. Also the fact that they can increase your exposure,also means they can decrease it also. Because of my volume I can tell when I invoice what servers were down, and where they were up. I’m beginning to lose trust in the system.

    Reply
  143. Ubid4savings says:

    Also this gives a loophole for those who buy antiques to resell. Put them right up and if they do not resell ask for a return??????  With antiques, collectibles, and artwork,cannot do it,plain and simple.

    Reply
  144. Islandlife4u says:

    Just not the way a seller needs to do business.  I want to be the only one handling my customers and there concerns not EBAY Management.  There are too many buyers that are not as honest as the seller.  I have seen so many different return situations that do not afford the seller any rights.  This is just another added addition to the many new RULES for sellers.  Kinda getting like the Obama cabinet.

    Reply
  145. Any Seller says:

    What gets me is if you DON’T accept returns, the buyer can still get their money back, including the shipping fees and they DON’T have to return the item.  So, you’re out the money for the item, the shipping costs for the item AND the item.  Damned if you do and damned if you don’t.

    Reply
  146. Montyru says:

    Yes, I agree Ebay used to be great but it is fast going donw hill. Everything is about the buyer these days. The seller does not have any rights any more. I have been selling on Ebay for many years now. I always ship items once cleared payment is received. If it is late afternoon I ship the next day. However in the last month I have received four low ratings for slow shipping. Well hello!!!! I can’t ship any faster than when payment is received. I complained to ebay, stating the facts and that it was unfair to get the low ratings. They just said there is nothing they can do. I have now lost my Top rating through this. Ebay has become the biggest joke out there. And now they are going to make us to accept returns. I sell a lot of party items eg. balloons etc… and returns for these goods are not accepted due to the nature of them (unless of course the product is faulty). Besides that they also remove the cheapest type of store. I am definitely leaving ebay as a seller!!!

    Reply
  147. lexig says:

    I agree with Swiftriff. It seems eBay does not want the smaller sellers, which is who made eBay the success it was. I have been selling for 9 years but I have stopped most of my volume. It is near impossible to break even with all the rules and fees. The forced free shipping and mandatory 14 day return policy is ridculous! Most of the big designer shops have a no-return policy on sale items, which everything is a sale/reduced price item on eBay. For a small seller, it is impossible to offer a 14 day return policy. They might as well call it a 14 day use-it-for-free period. Whoever is making these decisions are complete idiots. Why does it take 14 days to decide if you want to keep an item or not? I sell designer handbags and accessories and this policy will increase my returns several times over, just like the feedback change increased non-payers. Buyers have no responsibility and sellers are taken advantage of more and more.

    Reply
  148. Akmyers3 says:

    I sell cosmetics – I CANNOT accept these back as they might have been tested or risk being damaged in the return mail as well!  But why should I be punished in not getting my 20% refund on fees because I dont offer refunds!  Extremely unreasonable requirements!
    I’m a busy work at home mom who also homeschools – i cannot always ship every day either – I ship 2-3 days a week and my customers still rave about my fast shipping! Now again, I am being punished!

    I have moved to http://www.YARDSELLR.com – started by a former ebay leader
    NO FEES FOR SELLERS!!!!!
    http://yardsellr.com/yardsale/Anne-Myers-Resale-150384

    Reply
  149. willow says:

    We no longer use ebay for selling as with charges, postage cost etc it did not make it worth while anymore & the fun definately went out of it, you can do far more going to a car boot & we can give more to charity also as mission fish does not take most of the donation, wake up ebay management

    Reply
  150. gurlsgold says:

    I have always offered a 7 day return, 3  days for clothing. But now, I am just going to  establish a NO return policy. When
    one sells clothes as I do, a 14 day return is NOT acceptable. Plus,   It will cost me more
    than the 20% discount if I have to pay for the return postage with the automated buyer printing of the label, as well as refunding the postage that I spent sending the item. On some items the shipping is more than $10.00.
    I already refund payments for items lost in the mail, even tho tracking proves I mailed the item, and it is not my fault, but I worry about negative feedback..
     I would
    rather lose the sale than be taken advantage of by customers who work
    the system.  I have had returns or cancelled buys because they have found it cheaper from
    another seller, I have had a swapped similar item returned and claimed
    as the one I sent, I even had one buyer have a 2 day delay on Priority package
    due to winter storms and demand a full refund of 11.50 postage because item was “late”,and I had her negative feedback for a year- my only one in 8 years of selling!!    All I could do is answer her negative feedback, and it brought down the % rating on my dash board.  Another cancelled the pay pal payment with out returning the item,
          20% discount is not worth the agita. If I offer a unique item that the buyer really wants, I don’t believe a no return policy will stop the sale. They can always email me with their concerns and we will work it out.

    Reply
  151. Anonymous says:

    And for dedicated sellers, at least here in Australia – there is even more bad news next month!
    New sellers will be able to list for free – AND be able to apply super-sized photos FREE!!! Whereas the little but quietly constant players like me (and many of us) have to wear the ‘Powerseller’ tag (that is no longer visible anyway) AND the ‘Top-Rated’ Seller label ! And therefore are ineligible to receive any of those benefits. And I don’t know if anyone else agrees – but there really are no benefits to those labels either.Personally I feel used and exploited by eBay.The eBay hierarchy have obviously never been in a position where they have had to choose to sell their own treasures in order to stretch past the bread line!  We sellers help build the business for them, and then we are punished for it! What other business can get away with that unfair treatment?!? If we were employees, we would  resign en-masse! 

    Reply
  152. Ebayripoff says:

    Kat Simpson (the author) needs to get real here. Ebays policy changes only are done to make Ebay more money off the backs of the sellers. DOESN’T anyone realize that Pay pal keeps their fee for ANY refund you make through them ? ? Doesn’t anyone see that this is yet another money maker for EBAY ? ? Ebay is also not going to give you the 20% top rated seller discount on any lisitngs that don’t meet their new requirements. This means MORE buyer abuse! Ebay already took away the powerseller tier discount system a couple years ago, that gave a good seller a discount and a goal to achieve. Now all you need is two buyers in the course of a 3 month period to take away any discount you get !  The more Ebay changes its policies, the more seller unfriendly and greedy they get. Ebay actually pays people to call me and irritate me by trying to go over the new policy changes, as if I didn’t already read them ! ! I told Ebays caller what to do with yet again another policy change that takes more money out of my pocket. Anything that effects my bottom line here, I read. Just like when pay pal came through with their policy change that told me that they were going to now keep their fee when you give refunds ! !
    Ebay thought they could just slip that by us sellers and we would not notice ?

    Reply
  153. I was a top-rated, power seller on ebay. I recently received a notice saying I would be losing my power seller status (I have PEFECT 5.0 in EVERY category BTW), due to insufficient sales numbers. I’m a small seller of small items, usually multiple sales to the same buyers. But feebay only counts different sales to different buyers. IE, if I sell 10 items to one buyer it only counts as one sale WTF. So I was short of my 100 sales for the calendar year, even though sales volume was $7,000 or so. I called them to ask how long I had to come up with the required extra sales I needed, they said 4 days!!!Are you serious! Thanks for letting me know guys…Two days later I recieved a notice saying my top-rated seller status was now gone too.
    No reason was given, I still have perfect 5.0’s in all areas???
    With NO ADVANCE NOTICE, congratulations it’s gone…

    I have not even attempted to sell anything else since then (2 months) and have been trying to figure out my next move/options.
    Glad to see I’m not the only seller who’s fed up with their “buyers only count” tactics.
    Am I wrong or aren’t we sellers the ones paying their bills??
    Did I miss something here?

    Another thing that really frosts my onions is them insisting on a 14 day return priviledge. I previously offered one-day handling and a 7 day return policy on all sales and it worked just fine for me (perfect 5.0’s remember), but they just have to throw their weight around and change the rules CONSTANTLY.
    I feel that until they change the rules to a more fair balance between buyer and seller that my Ebay seller days are DONE.

    I really hate having to start at a zero feedback somewhere else, but I gotta do, what I gotta do.

    Reply
  154. Anonymous says:

     hi there. As the Seller in the UK I would just like to add my £.02 worth in. In the UK a 7 day returns policy is law and some time ago eBay tightened up the  regulations in the UK to reflect this. Now I have to accept returns within the seven-day period. When these regulations came into place like a lot of other sellers was very worried about the possible implications. I need not have worried  because I have seen my sales rise and the business become stronger. My items are not generally fragile or vintage so I can appreciate the point  that this could leave the Seller open to fraud or damage on the return. Having experienced these problems in the UK, sellers often photograph valuable items or vintage items on the day of shipping to prove the condition they were sent out in  sometimes with a video including a screenshot of the computer. Under the UK return policy, the item must be returned in the same condition it was in. I do not know if under the US policy this will be the case, but it is certainly worth you looking into. That way people cannot return damaged or defective items. If the return is damaged in the post-it is the responsibility of the buyer to claim the insurance on the return. You could also specify in your returns policy that a photograph of the item before shipping must be sent to the buyer. that way in the case of vintage or antique items it would prove the condition of the item at each point. Eventually I  found a way through all this to my own benefit  And I wish US sellers the very best with their businesses- Nick

    Reply
  155. Hemicar43 says:

    I started a business on ebay 5 years ago and most of the changes that have occurred since have a negative impact on the sellers. These changes allow buyers to cheat at the sellers expense. We are not big corporations just small mom & pop businesses.  It used to be fun to sell on ebay, now it’s a chore.  We have been threatened with negative feedback if we didn’t go along with whatever the buyer wants.  In our experience ebay never sides with us on buyer issues, we always lose.  This two week minimal return policy is ridiculous.  Just gives the buyer more time to cheat the sellers.  I can understand wanting to appeal to more buyers, but you can’t do it at the sellers expense.  After all we do bring in the customers.  Detailed seller ratings (DSR) more control over the sellers.  We are seriously looking for another site to sell on. 

    Reply
  156. Ldybountiful1 says:

    Zappos.com has an easy return policy because you have already paid for the return when you buy shoes from the site.  Shipping costs are built in both ways, if you check the price of their items against other sites, you will find substantial increases in the final price of their items.   It is the chief reason I NEVER bought anything from them, who wants to pay twice for shipping?

    And I have been selling on ebay for more than  10 years.  Their current practices are outrageous and I am sick of seeing articles posted by “Power Sellers” as to what’s a little 3% charge??  I live on Social Security and food stamps and eBay at one time, made life easier for myself and my unemployed husband, as we  had a place to sell stuff that was legit and make enough money to buy what we needed.  Now we can’t even afford what we need let alone what we want. 

    Reply
  157. MOCKSOCK says:

    “EASY TERMS” BEING THE OPERATIVE WORD- EASY TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OFF .WE ALL  KNOW THE CONNOTATIONS THE TERM “EASY’ HAS.

    Reply
  158. Louie says:

    Ebay is like crack, you get started and you can’t stop even if it is killing you. They continue to raise fees, charge fees on shipping, which costs the seller money on something they are not making money on, and now force us to either offer returns for 14 days and ship within 1 day or pay an additional 20% fee. This has cost me $18000.00. I used to have drop ship from the manufacturer within 3 days but now I have had to buy $18K inventory to have on hand to meet the 1 day shipping requirement. And on the 14 day return, we have to refund the original shipping! Yes you can check the box “buyer pays shipping” but read the ebay buyer protection plan, it says all buyers are refunded shipping, which ebay TAKES from your paypal account. It is one BIG D#*M shame there isn’t some other sales site that competes with ebay.

    Reply
  159. Julie Jones says:

    ebid is the way to go.  I left ebay over a year ago and have never been sorry.

    Reply
  160. coinguy says:

    TIRED OF EBAY SAYING IF THERE ARE NO BUYERS THEN THERE ARE NO SELLERS. EBAY ALSO NEEDS TO REMEMBER IF THERE IS NO SELLERS THEN THERE IS NO EBAY.

    Reply
  161. Kellerx says:

    eBay started down the road punishing sellers years ago.  Since then, their stock started has dropped significantly, now worth less than half of what it once was to shareholders.  Seller desertion, and poor management foresight are going to make this company worthless in the next decade.

    Reply
  162. Islandlife4u says:

    everybody try ebid.net that is where everyone from Ebay I know is trying.  there are people there and tell you they are from ebay and you can import your ebay feedback to ebids.  listings are free, you pay one lifetime membership fee.  And the fee on selling well is a drop in the bucket to ebay 2%!!!!!!!!!!  Go ahead and try it.  I do believe you will like it.  Put it on your ebay listings where you are going.  Go ahead lets make a pack against Ebay.  I know it will work.  The buyers on Ebay already know they can screw you if they want too!  Now they get a giggle cuz Ebay is making it even easier to do.

    Reply
  163. Nodoubtgrrl2002 says:

    Every seller is different and should not be held to the same rules/regulations other than the obvious fair dealing.  Lets take a mall setting.  Other than the hours of operation, the mall does not regulate how each store runs it’s business.  Some stores offer returns, some stores do not and some offer returns on certain bases like time and condition.  Yet they are all at the same venue.  We as sellers are at the Ebay mall and should be able to make our own business policies.  What business is it of Ebays.  If someone purchases something from a store inside a mall and they have an issue later with the store, it’s products or it’s policies, the buyer does not go to the mall security and get them to intervene!  They get their fees no matter what.  Maybe they figure they can double up on the fees by having sellers pay fees twice on the same item.  I sell only clothing and accessories.  I have 100% positive feedback and have been a power/top rated seller for years.  But that doesn’t matter anymore.  I called ebay and asked what about langerie (which I sell alot of).  Am I expected to accept returns on underwear and swimwear?  They said that question has been made aware to them and the are taking into consideration.  But what about the $3000 dolce & gabbana gown I am selling for $700 that someone just wants for one night?  Also, ebay has restrictions on new sellers of designer items and cannot sell until established.  So now buyers and purchase and send back fakes more easily.  They could already do this in the past but now they have a faster way to ship it back.  Yet sellers cannot leave appropriate feedback.  If sellers get more than one report of knock-offs/fakes they would get shut down.  But how are Ebay going to regulate fraudulent buyers buying real and sending back fakes?

    Reply
  164. Koolstuff says:

    Your opinion, regarding Ebay’s new return center are probably correct, for the type of items you sell and the manner in which you sell them.  However, this is another example of Ebay trying to be a one size fit’s all selling platform for all of their sellers.  Unfortunately, not all of their sellers sell the same type of products in the same manner.  For example, if you sell new items only and sell primarily in the “fixed price” format, I would agree, this is a good thing.  With fixed pricing, you can price in the added cost of accepting these higher levels of returns and the cost of fradulent returns (where the item is used, altered, damaged when returned), which makes it unsalable or requiring a deep discount to resell it.  You also may have arrangements with your suppliers to accept these returns as credit against future orders.  However, for someone who sell used items or One of a Kind Items, mainly through the auction format, you cannot price this additional expense into the cost of the item. 

    Ebay operates two distinctly different business’s, although they refuse to acknowledge it.  Operating a Fixed Price, selling platform and an Auction Style platform are NOT the same.  Setting policies that benefit one format but harm the other, is NOT a good long term stragety for success of all your selling partners.  Ebay needs to recognize this and design it’s policies to meet the needs of it’s Seller, while at the same time offering it’s buyers an easy to use and safe format for their buying needs.  Until they address this unique problem, they will continue to have the preception of favoring buyers at the expense of their seller.  The truth is, that Ebay needs it’s Sellers as much as they need their Buyers.
        

    Reply
    • Kat Simpson says:

      Koolstuff – your comment makes a lot of sense and I appreciate you taking the time to share. I, too, feel that eBay has a set up for 2 separate marketplaces if they ever decide to go that way.

      Reply
  165. Tlcreferral says:

    I believe  that  Ebay is placeing  everone in the  same  box, forceing all  sellers  to  accept  returns. Yes I know  I do not  have to accept  returns, but if I  do not I  will  not  remain a top  Rated  seller. I  feel  if you Auction an  item  the  sell should  be final,  I also  believe if you are  selling and  item that expires  No  returns  should d be  required, I  sell Diabetic Test  strips for the most  part, I do not  want an opened  box  of test  strips  back, I cannot  resell  them,  Remember  ebay you made that  rule, Not  that I would   try or  would  want to resell an opened  box.  Change is  good. But you need to look at   the  big  picture Not  all sellers  fit  into   the  same  box.  I have and  always  will   take  care of a customer that  has a problem, simply  because thats  good  business, I beleive that  most  sellers  that  have  been  around  for  awhile  would  agree, without   being policed. Please  do not  group  all  of us  into the  same  lump,  We  do not all  sell items   that would be  acceptable  for a  return   Like  items that   expire. So for  what it is worth  I have chimed in with whats  on  my  mind  take a  second  look  ebay  we  do not all  fit  into the  same  box.

    Reply
  166. Ymrxyz says:

    eBay! Are you listening?
    AUCTIONS: used items, antique, collectible, one of a kind . . .
    FIXED PRICE: New, retail . . .
    Why do you continue to TICK off a valid revenue stream, and a group of people who were largely responsible for the success of eBay?
    POLICIES SHOULD BE DIFFERENT FOR AUCTION SELLERS!
    How hard is that to understand for you MBA pinheads?
    Be FAIR not greedy . . .

    Reply
  167. Wyliescottie says:

     I too have been selling on eBay for many seasons but really had to rely on it since 2008 when my job of 20 years went away overnight! I have been a collector of Vintage goods for over 30 years and have had to sell most everything I worked so hard to amass! The fees alone crippled my sales plus there is no real profit being made on my SOLE possessions and now the Government wants a huge cut as well!!  Get this! I worked hard to earn MY money and paid taxes on my earnings. I used my earnings to buy my Vintage items and had to pay State tax on a majority of those items. Now the Government wants to tax me again as I sell my SOLE possessions which is obviously double dipping!! You do the math. With eBay and PayPal fees, taxes on my earnings plus sales taxes, and now being taxed a second time to sell my SOLE possessions, all together it works out to over 70%!! It is all fueled by greed! The American Dream has turned into a nightmare. The bail out went the wrong direction! The billions should have been distributed back to us the taxpayers so we could have spent OUR $$ on U.S. made products! Problem solved!! Instead my handkerchief is packed and tied to my stick and I am being forced to walk away from everything I worked so hard for. Of course I will be beaten up and robbed as soon as I hit the streets but I see no difference between that and what is happening to us here and now! Don’t you agree?

    Reply
  168. Josephjohnston43 says:

    Very upsetting that  eBay is so large and is like the gas companies just a couple of pennies is like millions in the bank. I cant wait for the future because soon eBay will not be the only easy platform to list on

    Reply
  169. Sugar says:

    I have been on eBay since 1996, in one incarnation or another and have been under this ID since 2002.  In the last few years I have climbed to a Top Rated Powerseller with a Feedback score of 7980.  In talking with eBay about changes, I keep hearing that it is to keep up with Amazon, and I hear from Amazon that changes are to keep up with eBay.  AND WHY?  In many ways, Amazon is terrible for their average smaller ebay sized seller – the Marketplace seller.  Amazon sets the postage costs and takes a huge chunk of that money (more than eBay’s 20%) and often I pay the postage out of pocket. 

    If eBay wants to be Amazon, they should make all the changes and be that way but they run the risk of losing MOST of their sellers because most of them are the so-called small sellers.  I prefer buying as well as selling eBay over Amazon or O.CO or any of the others.  For the longest time, eBay was way different than any of the other places, but shortly, they will lose that distinction as well as many of the sellers that have been their backbone.  I am already thinking about selling my business or just closing down because I can’t live on the 10 or 20 cents per sale I make now and that only because of the discount.  Until I get my billing discount, I am often out of pocket on a sale.  Explain THAT to the IRS and get them to believe you.  EBAY ENOUGH – PLEASE ENOUGH – DO NOT BECOME AMAZON – There is nothing there to strive for.

    Reply
  170. Vharvey says:

    I do not know why you ask for comments. We have told you in no uncertain terms how we feel but I know it will not do any good to complain. You will do as you please anyway. But I do get the feeling that the sellers are tired of being shoved around to please your beloved buyers. I think a lot of your sellers including myself will not have to put up with very long now. There are other, better places to go.  You are losing!!!

    Reply
  171. Dicrocity says:

    We’ve had problems with returns. We sell GLASS jewelry. Imagine someone throwing that into a paper envelope with no padding. I don’t actually have to imagine that, I have SEEN it~!  We’ve also gotten the package back empty.  Ripped envelope, the improperly packed item slips away permanently…. we lose $75 because the customer didn’t insure the contents. So, I join the concern for returns packed poorly, and I wonder if there is a way to guarantee that returns are actually returned in sellable condition.  I love that ebay will stand behind the buyers…. THAT is GOOD for business. How will ebay stand behind the sellers? 

    Reply
  172. I’m an 8-year Ebay member and PowerSeller for most of that time, and like many here, am totally disgusted with the fees and crazy policies, so I’m in the process of LEAVING.  We all need to start giving our business to alternative auction sites.  I joined eBid.  Super low fees, lots of features, and very easy to use.  Check out my eBid store at: http://us.ebid.net/users/TheBargainShack
    Atomic Mall looks like a good site as well.  These alternative auction sites
    don’t have the traffic that FeeBay has yet, so let’s all change that!  Email your buyers and spread the word.

    Good luck to everyone, and screw FeeBay!

    Reply
  173. Anonymous says:

    BEWARE the Scams ARE STARTING!!!
    I was contacted by a buyer yesterday via eBay messages stating that she received her leather vest, but it is a little too small, and wanted to exchange it for a size larger. Checking my sales records, I did not find this person. I went into her feedback profile and found she had purchased this item from another seller who does not offer returns or exchanges. The 14 day or more return policy is going to be the root of more evil than good. I currently offer the 14 day return on many of my items, but like many other sellers, I believe that I am going to lose my powerseller status also. I have added a return stocking fee to my listings and if necessary I will increase that fee to protect myself. (If it works as so many things are against the seller)

    Another person filed a complaint with PayPal for not receiving their item. The item was shipped and UPS made 3 attempts to deliver the item with NO SUCCESS. I sent PayPal everything I had to show that the item was shipped and UPS Tracking numbers, and messages that were sent back and forth from the buyer and myself. The item was sent back to the dropshipper by UPS and I was billed for the return shipping. PAYPAL RULED IN FAVOR OF THE BUYER AND REFUNDED ALL THE MONEY INCLUDING THE SHIPPING FEE. I called PayPal and atleast got the return shipping fee back.

    Another buyer sent an item back without the Return Authorization to the dropshipper, because they found a similar item at WalMart cheaper. They claimed that they didn’t get the item for 5 days after UPS showed it was delivered and the customer had signed for it. Needless to say they only received a partial refund after I deducted all fees and the restocking fee from the sale.

    As a seller for over 8 years, I have seen stupid things that eBay does to its sellers. (I also have made many purchases from other sellers over the years.) But this charging the seller 11% on shipping and 11% for final value fees on buy it now items is insane and going to ruin many small sellers, like me. Check out your monthly invoice. It only shows credits in one lump sum. How do you know that US powersellers are getting that 20% discount. Are we really getting this when we pay 22% now? 22 minus 20 = 2% we are paying above the listing fees, the store fees and PayPal fees. Where are we saving money?

    I am going to give this a try for 30 days with this return policy, but if it becomes an issue, I will go else where. I may even open up my own website.

    As for the Upper Management of eBay, they should be paid minimum wage as there ideas are not worth more than that. NO BUSINESS drives away customers.

    Reply
  174. Cathy Oehler says:

    5820 feedback. Only 1 neg usps 10 days at Xmas. I used to enjoy ebay. Just now a competitor seller left low shipping DSRs on my site. Lost powerseller status,Froze paypal so I can’t access money. Ebay is holding about $1000.00 presently. Lost free listing in store promo, lowered in search. 

    Had hip replaced, need other replaced… lots of pain. Movement currently impaired. Trust and Safety won’t talk about 0.71% “not okay”.  Penalties are overkill, Draconian, perhaps? Have huge customer base, popular seller and items. Need my money held by them!

    I sell on etsy and do well.  Am presently increasing sales there.  I should just shift over to etsy.  Customers would follow I’m sure.  I have absolutely had it with ebay and it’s changes. 

    The return policy will allow purchases to be returned because buyers purchase different collectible from another site and need money to pay for that choice rather than.  A increase surge in “buyer remorse” for collectibles.

    Reply
  175. magicgoround says:

    For a few years, ebay seems to be squeezing out the little seller.  The numerous fees are already diminishing any profit and when taxation becomes involved we will surely be wiped out.  This is only the start.  We need to search for new online selling sites or like me go out and find a part time job…it pays more and doesn’t show favoritism between sellers and buyers.  In addition you are rated fairly…not this remorse negative feedbacks, DSR’s etc…What else can they possibly come up with.  Really having a garage sale seems a better alternative at this point!  

    Reply
  176. PattyinNH says:

    OMG!  You mean I’m not the only one that thinks ebay is for the buyer?????  It’s totally wrong that as a seller we can’t leave negative feedback for all the non-paying deadbeats.  I’m really tired of it!!  I lost my 20% discount months ago because I chose to charge a shipping fee that actually covers the shipping charge and hopefully all the shipping supplies and handling.  Oh, yeah, I’m suppose to work for nothing according to ebay.  Sorry, but I sell to pay my share of living expenses and I’m not going to give these buyers free shipping.  They’re lucky they get combined shipping!!   I would NEVER offer a return policy.  You’re just asking for trouble.  I found as time goes on, there’s more and more deadbeats out there!  Like a previous seller posted….buyers will just be “renting” your items and returning them.  And then they don’t even have to pay the shipping to return the item?????  What’s that all about???  Oh, I could go on and on…….

    Reply
  177. Whatever says:

    Total crap! so a person can buy a piece of art, hang it for a month, get sick of it, and return it making that already struggling artist completely suffer the loss. It’s not right. 
    Ebay totally ruined the art category by taking out the featured option, which kicked off many high profile artists who were having very good success and being noticed, thanks to a lot of jealous artists who complained cause they weren’t getting noticed, ruined it for everyone. Now the higher end artists suffered, many left, and so did the art customers with money!!!

    Reply
  178. Jdoncrafts says:

    Ebay forgot who made them.It was fun 10 years ago but greed, as with all good things, has taken over. Can’t afford it anymore and stress alone kills the fun.

    Reply
  179. I agree with swift – Ebay is going down the toilet – I especially have had several buyers flake and could say nothing. Another issues is they put all your money on hold when you get paid that actually affected all deposits – I stopped using both paypal and ebay since they own both.  OF course they will make it seem good for sellers but this isn’t. If people want it they will buy.  List all items “as is”. 
    There are some great local groups now on Facebook for smaller sellers they can sell in their areas.

    Reply
  180. Rachelnick says:

    I agree with a returns policy as it does make for better selling with less chance of negative feedback.It puts the onus on the seller to describe items correctly and gives peace of mind to the buyer.BUT, and its a big BUT,What happens when a buyer asks for a return and its all agreed but then demands that you ,the seller,pay for the return postage ?
    This happened to me and the overseas buyer threaten to leave negative feedback if I did not agree.I refused and after much discussion refunded the buyer with agreement that the item would be returned.Guess what no return ,The buyer kept the £40 Armani Jeans and received a full refund with the postage costing me £4 more than the buyer paid.
    Ebay were duly contacted and asked to help…and again yes you guessed it they did nothing..
    If Ebay wish to implement this on sellers then they need to bring back the sellers right to leave negative feedback to warn other sellers of the scammers…     

    Reply
  181. PaybacksABitch says:

    I got screwed by Ebay and their (Unfair to Seller) policies to the point of having to close my store last November.  I have been selling odds and ends recently but will absolutely NOT continue anymore.  Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse…….BOOM!  My plan of revenge you ask?  Simply wait til most of the Mom and Pop sellers are gone, then totally exploit the return process in my favor.  I have a few hundred dollars owed to me from unfairly refunded merchandise that Ebay forced down my throat, and I plan to get every cent back someway, somehow.  Is it fair? NO!  Is it right?  NO!  Do I care about Ebay anymore? NO!!!

    Reply
  182. Gold Level 5 year Seller says:

    Ebay has yet put another slice in the already bleeding neck of the  site…….take about cutting your own neck…I closed my gold level Store down in 2010. I got my own web site and now I pocket 25% more profits and gross sales than the Ebay Store ever did. and you know what I dont have a return policy, well actually I do..there are NO returns, the product I sell is a expendable product, why would I allow someone to use it , then say it did not work , just to return it to get thier mo ney back, to defraud me?

    Ebay went to Hell when Meg left, and yes I have heard about all the storys of this and that that Meg was paid too much and all that ..What has happened since?…The Site went to Hell….
    No I would NEVER use Ebay to EVER sell another item again….they make these new policys like we are fools and blind sheep just following the leader…..They really must think that people are just basically stupid….Watch the Ebay STOCKS take a hit on this one, Damn I am glad I dumped that worthless investment…….Good Luck Sellers , just open up your wallets and check books , give Ebay your bank account info so they can bleed you dry……..

    Reply
  183. Oldfarttractorfarm says:

    ebay is becoming like government the more the regulate the worse the get for us. I,m trying Ebid and liking it.

    Reply
  184. AbbysAromaAttic says:

    Here is my 2 cents…. I agree with most of the previous posts regarding the difficulty on ebay.  I make handmade items and so the 1 day handling time has become nearly impossible for me.  I am sure ebay didn’t even consider the sellers like me when making that change.  But eBay hasn’t been considerate of small sellers like me for a long time now.  I have started moving a lot of my business to ETSY and eBid.net as mentioned below.  It is not ebids.com it is ebid.net.  Correction though you have to pay a one time fee to list there and than free lists it isn’t 100% free as the previous poster stated.   I hope that one day there is a site that can compete with eBay cause it’s obvious a lot of us would leave and go to it!!   I am a top rated seller power seller  and am all for closing my store for the ebay strike that was mentioned below as well.  Anything to get ebays attention is a necessity at this point it’s either they change or I have no choice but to keep phasing ebay out of my business!!  Hope some these comments get back to ebay cause it appears NO ONE IS HAPPY!  LOL Just nutz!

    Reply
  185. Malcolmsmom says:

    It’s about time that eBay starts being fair about things! Bad enough as sellers we can’t leave “Honest” feedback as the feedback page tells us to do but then because some unscrupulous sellers charged $10 shipping for a .99 item and eBay lost out we’re all getting FVF charged on shipping, too!

    Now you can return something for no reason? With 10 years of selling and 10,000 feedbacks as well as Powerseller and Topseller status I thought I had heard it all until someone wanted to return something because it wasn’t “paper towel white” and then the one who complained there were five holes in something but couldn’t send me a photo because they “didn’t have time.” Really?

    The only consolation is that we can charge a restocking fee and they have to pay return shipping but we’ll still lose money as we have to refund original shipping! Unless you did the almost-mandatory free shipping.

    The original idea of eBay as almost an online garage sale – or source of great stuff at good prices – was great. Now they’re thinking they have to be the online Nordies……sad actually.  

    Reply
  186. NOMOREEBAY says:

    I HAVE OVER 1000 FEEDBACKS ON EBAY AND HAVE SOLD WAY MORE ITEMS THEN THAT, IT USED TO BE A FUN PLACE TO BUY AND SELL, HERE RECENTLY BUYERS STARTED TO BLACKMAIL ME, EMAILING ME ASKING FOR PERCENTAGE OF THEIR MONEY BACK OR THEY WOULD GIVE ME A NEG FEEDBACK SO I PAID. WHEN I COMPLAINED TO EBAY- THEY KICKED ME OFF THE SITE, AND SAID I COULD NOT SELL THERE ANYMORE, THEY GAVE ME NO REASON, AND SAID THEY DIDN’T HAVE TO .
    IS THIS AMERICA…ARE YOU KIDDING ME..EBAY DOES THIS TO THEIR SELLERS BECAUSE THEY CAN..

    Reply
    • Kat Simpson says:

      Just for your info NOMOREEBAY – if your buyers have sent you that threat in the ‘My eBay’ messages, you can report it as feedback extortion and be protected from any negative feedback.

      Reply
  187. Danni says:

    I have been with eBay since “the good ol’ days”  I am always surprised to hear how many sellers have such trouble with the evolution of ecommerce.  These changes HAVE to happen for the site to stay viable, there will be no buyers without coming up to industry standards, plain and simple.
    I have had a return policy for years, I sell antiques and collectibles as well as clothing, shoes and household items… do I get returns?  Of course, it is a very small percentage of sales, most of the time the item comes back in resaleable condition and I can turn around and put it back for sale. 
    On Amazon you have no choice about whether to take returns or not – you HAVE to go by Amazon policy.  On eBay you can choose to have a return policy or not, you can even choose the terms 14, 30, 60 day and if you want to charge a restocking fee.
    Each seller has to decide the best way to handle their business… this will mean different things to different sellers but the bottom line is having a return policy increases buyer confidence and thus increases sales!  The small percentage of returns must be weighed against the increase in profits.
    Every retail business has “shrinkage” – meaning returns/theft it is a cost of doing business.  And like or not if you are selling on eBay you are running a business…  if that is not what you wish to do, have a yard sale once in a while!

    Reply
  188. Elaine Labonte says:

     It’s hard to guess how these new things eBay comes up with are going to work out..  Your perspective does make it sound ok.  Thanks for clearing up some details for us.

    Reply
  189. Beth says:

    well personally, I think their new return policy, like so many other policies lately, is better suited to the “new” or commodity marketplace they are striving for, rather than to the vintage/antique/collectibles categories.  I don’t see where it fits in my business since I already accept returns and have for the last 8 years…since I’ve been a full time seller.  I don’t understand eBay’s compulsion to “manage my business” for me. 

    Reply
  190. Housebythefield says:

     Ms. Simpson did a fine job of writing her article, I just don’t agree with the eBay policy.  I haven’t agreed with any of the seller–affected policies in the past 5 years or so.  eBay is not a fun place any more.

    Reply
  191. Lisa Henslee says:

    As long as the returns are returned to the Seller and not to eBay, and eBay fees don’t increase because of this option,  I don’t have a problem with it.  My returns are minimal and I expect them to remain so even with this change.  

    Though I do not currently sell on Amazon, I have friends that do and I hate their return policy.  From what I am told items disappear for way too long in their system, Health & Beauty and Food items are not being returned to the Seller at all.  That should be the Seller’s choice.  Some of the items I have seen returned are damaged in shipment because they just slap a label on the box without packing it.  These Amazon practices have kept me away from selling on their venue.  

    I have also noticed a significant change in the selling of product listings on Amazon by my friends and feel that FBA only seems to be extremely lucrative during the Christmas holidays and costs to sell on Amazon are higher.

    I love selling on eBay.  There are some things I wish they would consider changing, like buyer feedback, free listing fees always, lower final value fees & store fees.  However, so far they haven’t scared me away.  

    Reply
  192. Helen says:

    eBay did a  survey on facebook:  what makes buyers decide to buy from eBay,  only 128 out of 47,000 people said it was “return policy”,  most people said “low price’

    if all the changes eBay makes is to increase sellers cost and ultimately drive up prices, eBay will lose both sellers & buyers. all the changes eBay has made recently only prove eBay is not doing as good as it used to be.

    eBay can not be Amazon, eBay’s intial image was “garage sale”,   its customer bases are very different from amazon. Many Amazon shoppers just dont go on eBay, I sell the same stuff both on eBay & Amzon, my amazon sales prices are so much  higher  than my eBay price since Amazon fees are much higher. Buyers have no problem with it.  –it reminds me of Soho & Chinatwon in New York city,  Soho & Chinatown are divided by Broadway, the same item that priced $45 in soho stores are marked $15 in Chinatown, but soho shoppers just wont go across Broadway and buy in Chinatown…

    it will take another 10 years for eBay to change its image and establish its new identity &  new customer bases.

    Reply
  193. Katarina says:

    Kat Simpson ROCKS!

    Reply
  194. sunsets says:

    Amazon Ain’t Ebay.   

     The world does not need another Amazon, we have one.

    It’s a mistake for Ebay to try to be Amazon.

    Ebay should let the market grow——– seller to buyer……that works. 

    Auction is defined highest bid, item sold as is,  no return.

    If it starts acting like Amazon………I’d rather sell on Amazon….they KNOW WHAT THEY’RE DOING OVER THERE.  They are dealing in basicly new products.

    I’m into Antiques & Vintage…I vote for Ruby Lane

    Reply
  195. Toybrats says:

    Ebay has no competition. They should NOT do whatever the customer wants.  What’s next. A free item. I  mean, why should a bidder have to pay anything.  I am absolutely sick of Ebay but have no choice but to stay since I have a house full of toys to unload. On the contrary, Ebay should be doing stuff to make bidders more responsible. Perhaps charge them a fee for being a deadbeat .   If they abuse the system, they should be tossed off permanently.  Ebay is NOT ZAppos or Amazon.com .  Ebay forgot that.     Ebay needs to go back to it’s origin or perhaps split up into 2 Ebays..  Vintage Ebay for anything over X years  and    NEW CRAP EBAY for all of the new stuff. .    How can a seller of vintage items offer free shipping and 14 day returns. People are going to be buying toys and removing parts and then returning them with less parts/accessories or even replacing the parts with reproduction parts.   I am absolutely livid with Ebay.     I wish that someone would start a company .  Hey Donald Trump, forget about the casinos and that stupid tv show.  How about  TRUMPBAY!    Can someone contact Mr. Trump.

    Reply
  196. Fossil_diver says:

    “…When you automate the return process, the number of returns does go up. However, this is offset by the increased security that buyers feel about your listings…” A false sense of security is not going to help my bottom line. Let’s be honest, in business the bottom line is what’s important. Common sense tells me this new return policy is not going to increase sales and will only increase returns. If a return is legitimate then communication between buyer and seller is important. It helps the seller make improvements in the way they do business and it gives the buyer a sense that they are important enough to the seller for them to spend their time with them to resolve a problem. Having a policy of automated returns is only going to make it easier for people that have buyer remorse or just wanted to “rent” an item. This change will only hurt the bottom line and will not benefit the honest customer. 

    Reply
  197. Dagmo53 says:

    Did you ever think that ebay wants to get rid of all the discounts and is hoping that most sellers will not change and will then lose their power seller discount?

    Reply
  198. showbizalan says:

    I’ve been selling on eBay for many yearss. I have always lost the disputes between  buyers, leaving that decision making the the enormus brain power at eBay. On the other hand, Out of hundreds of cases over the years as a buyer on eBay, only one case has been decide in the seller’s favor by the many fine brainiacs at eBay and Paypal.

    The metod of complete control of the buyers by eBay and Paypal is increasing step by step. Just look what they have implemented over the last year, Things such as holdin a sellers money for 21 days and possibly longer. There are many more things that they have done and are doing. Did you see the June 12, notice. Now they will be the decision makers about giving a buyer part of his money back, when he complains about a product that he bought from you. They are know taking further control over you and your money as a seller. 

    We need some ideas with backing, not just talk about ways to combat these terrible things that eBay and Paypal are doing to the buyers. If you keep your eyse closed and mouth shut it will get worst. We as a group can certainly gather up enough brain power to put eBay in it’s place as a business not a dictatorship.

    Do you trust eBay to Decide who is telling the truth about an item that was shipped to a buyer?

    There are only lying sellers on eBay. All the buyers are honest and truthfull.

    If you have something to comment on about my words, please let me know.

    showbizalan.  

    Reply
  199. Susie says:

    Keep thinking I’m going to sell on ebay, keep backing out. Interestingly, this article makes me feel I should NOT try ebay. It’s obviously written by an ebay shill. As a journalist myself, I find it appalling to read PR like this, when I trust Auctiva to give me real, honest info.

    The proof is in how many sincere, hard-working ebay sellers disagree, with excellent proof and reasoning. And in how many comments were edited by Auctiva. Why should I trust anything this site or Auctiva says anymore???

    Reply
  200. Bryon Miller says:

    eBay tries to be Amazon with every change they make.  I want them to make the change that allows me to make nearly twice as much on everything I sell!  eBay manipulates their own market so your merchandise goes for much less than it is worth.

    Reply
  201. chris says:

    I started on EBAY in 2003 I use to have 700 items on EBAY I now have 12. I sell on craigslist and other web sites now. Ebay is nothing more than greedy and the policies they have are all for the buyer. I have 1260 feedback and all positive but yet a buyer with one feedback has more credibility than I do. I use to be a big promoter of EBAY now I trash them to any one that will listen and recommend craigslist. By the time I get done with the county I liven there will be a lot less EBAY customers. None of my family memebers sell any more and now occassionally purchase items. I tell them use AMAZON now for there shopping.  EBAY’s greed will catch up with them it always does you reap what you sow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

    Reply
  202. Ebaysucks8 says:

    Simpson is an eBay education specialist and Silver PowerSeller

    Reply
  203. Bfdsjkl says:

    Yes….They play Dirty!

    I am the product development manager for an online company. We decided to become a seller on Amazon….BAD IDEA! The only reason that Amazon allows other sellers to participate is to steal good ideas. We have a very niche product, and as soon as Amazon saw how well we were selling, they contacted the manufacturer, and started selling our products…and undercutted our price…UNDER OUR COST from that manufacturer.

    Then they charged US fees to give them this information and steal our marketshare. All in all…we did Millions on Amazon with NO PROFIT!

    AMAZON IS Horrible

    Reply
  204. Harleyholly says:

    I have thousands of + feedback also, but rarely if ever sell on ebay anymore. I’m not Amazon. I sell rare collectable items. I do not sell slash rate pencil thin profit margin chinese made garbage. I do not have the resources to offer free shipping or be limited to $15 on a 4×6 foot painting that costs me $200 to ship. There was a time that ebay was great. The bad eggs got weeded out, and your reputation lead your business. Ebay is now set up for sellers to get screwed with no recourse. I got hit for $1000 when someone complained and supposedly sent back a item. They sent me a brick, Paypal refunded them, I complained to ebay, and they sided with the buyer. I could not even leave feedback anymore to warn other sellers. That was it for me. I can absorb a 5 or 10 dollar item, but not 1000 dollar items. No thanks. Ebay will force out the small timers and hobby folks, and it will simply become another online Walmart.

    Reply
  205. Mandrews1 says:

    only two major changes by ebay !,
     surely when you read of all the hate and discontent directed at ebaypaypal
     do you not think there is something seriously wrong here or are the vast majority
     of complainers wrong.

    Reply
  206. Edie Sears says:

    LoL it is more like 35%+ return rate…

    Reply
  207. Liz says:

    I had a 188 positive feedback and proud of it.  I’m just a small time, stay at home mum seller.  Then I sell a small cupboard ($41).  The buyer comes  to pick it up, inspects it and pays for it.  2 days later he calls and says it is not what he wanted despite the listing clearly stating No Returns.  He thought he still had the right to return an item which was previously inspected and accepted.  It was a 2 hour return drive for him to return it which was even more ludicrious considering petrol costs and time when he could have just onsold it.  I got negative FB.  Despite many conversations with Ebay with this unfairness, it was to no avail. 

    I agree with many other posts here.  I have been with Ebay for 10 years and have seen it get worse and greedier by the day.  Don’t even get me started on PayPal fees which are nothing more than dictatorship and robbery.  I haven’t sold on Ebay since then but have switched to GUMTREE.  All free.  Scrap compulsory PayPal, restore equal FB between buyers and sellers and lower your fees.  Ebay think they can sweeten the pot by introducing free photos.  Big woop.  They upped the FVF to cover the cost.  What used to be a fun hobby to do has caused me nothing but headaches.

    Reply
  208. Liz Van says:

    I had a 188 positive feedback and proud of it.  I’m just a small time, stay at home mum seller.  Then I sell a small cupboard ($41).  The buyer comes  to pick it up, inspects it and pays for it.  2 days later he calls and says it is not what he wanted despite the listing clearly stating No Returns.  He thought he still had the right to return an item which was previously inspected and accepted.  It was a 2 hour return drive for him to return it which was even more ludicrious considering petrol costs and time when he could have just onsold it.  I got negative FB.  Despite many conversations with Ebay with this unfairness, it was to no avail. 
     
    I agree with many other posts here.  I have been with Ebay for 10 years and have seen it get worse and greedier by the day.  Don’t even get me started on PayPal fees which are nothing more than dictatorship and robbery.  I haven’t sold on Ebay since then but have switched to GUMTREE.  All free.  Scrap compulsory PayPal, restore equal FB between buyers and sellers and lower your fees.  Ebay think they can sweeten the pot by introducing free photos.  Big woop.  They upped the FVF to cover the cost.  What used to be a fun hobby to do has caused me nothing but headaches.

    Reply
  209. Paul says:

    Read the fine print, even if you say the buyer must pay for return shipping, that does not apply if the buyer marks the item not at described. At that point even if your policy states buyer must pay for return shipping eBay will charge the label to your account. The potential for abuse is massive and you are going to see the number of not as described incidents increase with buyers looking for a free ride.

    Reply
  210. Liangela says:

    Wow really? As for what people don’t know, I can tell you Ebay operates just like Amazon. Their policies are exactly for helping themselves and buyers. I am a buyer and a seller, and never in my life do I ever have buyer’s remorse when it comes to a small time or private seller. The only time I actually return something I don’t like is when clothing stores that are local do not have fitting rooms which is dumb to begin with. Other than that, if you don’t like something you see on ebay from a small seller, then you shouldn’t be buying it in the first place. If it doesn’t fit, it doesn’t take 14 days to realize that it doesn’t.

    I just started selling on Ebay, but I list the same items in craigslist too. The issue with craigslist is that there are not many local buyers and most replies to posts are spam and scam emails. I got desperate and began selling on Ebay, and I have happily sold many electronic items with no issues so far, and bought several accessories for iDevices and a lot of clothes. The issue with Ebay is I think they purposely designed their website to have a bunch of crap distracting you and confuse you because they have all sorts of fees that I am aware of but don’t understand. The Final Value Fee (or something) is just one I don’t get. What I also don’t get is that if they own Paypal, why must there be Paypal fees for sellers too? Why do they rip me off on shipping also? And why do they randomly deduct so much money from me?

    A firm 9-12% commission from items is reasonable in my eyes, but the rest of the fees are just ridiculous. I get they have to pay workers and make a profit, but I’m sure there are millions of people using Paypal and Ebay daily, and sellers too! So what is the need for the rest of the annoying “fees” I am bumping into? 28 cents here, 50 cents there, $1.28 there, $.2.69 here.. it’s ridiculous! It’s like I sell a $40 camera and lost $15 from it.

    And that 14-day return policy thing is just stupid. Amazon is even worse. From what I remember they give a 30-day return policy for electronics. I sold a $500 tablet that was brand new. The buyer claimed he didn’t know how to use it and returned it saying it’s broken, but it’s completely fine! Not only did he demand his FULL refund and refused the restock fee, but he returns the product with missing accessories AND didnt power off the device while shipping! Also, being that he didn’t say anything for weeks, I used that money for personal things and deposited the rest. I had to BORROW money from a relative to pay back this refund! Amazon did nothing but told me I am obligated to return the item regardless of what the buyer says. So I am not surprised here with Ebay either!

    Seriously guys, don’t even bother thinking your “return policy” is implemented, because it’s not the case and if the buyer used Paypal, you automatically have to accept their return regardless of their excuse. You can use this excuse with Staples or Best Buy all you like, but for small sellers like me who just want to get some cash from random items sold, it’s REALLY STRESSFUL.

    How are you going to sell make up and jewelry and clothes, then have it returned to you? It’s no longer in the “new condition”, so basically you lose. It’s entirely unfair.

    Reply

Leave a Comment