Death of an eBay seller

[johnnysgoodstuff2012us]

I'm not certain how this should be posted, and if anyone else has a better idea I would be interested in hearing it, but a friend of mine who is also an eBay seller, has died.  I won't mention his name, but his seller ID is Thermionicat radios and more.  He lived in Edgewood NM.  I called eBay to inform them, but of course they simply can't take a phone call as evidence; I just wanted to give them a heads-up on the situation.

Does anyone have experience in these types of events?

Thanks.

[b86fiero]

Sorry to hear your friend passed away.

Perhaps a family member of his (or yourself) could close his account? 

They would need his password to access the account and close it. I recommend this be done using his computer or phone, whichever he used to conduct eBay business. They can end any current listings to avoid sales that can't be shipped. There would probably be store fees due if he operated an eBay store. 

eBay will keep the store open for some time (6 months I believe) to cover any returns from buyers. 

Maybe another seller here can offer additional help.

[solidguitar1961]

A family member would have to contact Ebay and provide a copy of the death certificate .

[yuzuha]

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@solidguitar1961 wrote:

A family member would have to contact Ebay and provide a copy of the death certificate .

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Yep. They won't do anything without an actual copy of the death certificate.

[inhawaii]

Does he still have active listings?

If not, I guess there's not too much harm having his account open.

Sorry for your loss.

[ten_o_nine]

I'm so sorry to hear about your friend's passing. It's understandable that you want to inform eBay about the situation. While I don't have personal experience with this specific issue, I can suggest some steps you can take:

1. Contact eBay's Customer Service again: Explain the situation and ask if there is a specific process or department for handling deceased sellers' accounts.
2. Provide documentation: If you have access to any official documents, such as an obituary or death certificate, you can submit them to eBay as proof.
3. Reach out to eBay's Trust & Safety team: This team handles sensitive issues related to account security and may be able to assist with the process.
4. Check local laws and regulations: As your friend lived in New Mexico, you may need to consult with local authorities or a lawyer to understand the legal requirements for handling his estate, including his eBay account.

Remember to be patient and understanding, as eBay has a responsibility to protect the privacy and security of all account holders. I hope this helps.

[traditonalproducts]

My opinion, The executor of the will, family member that has the password that can close it, or their attorney would have to inform eBay of the passing thus killing the account. Lastly it can just ride out and when there are enough negatives eBay will suspend the account and its finished.

[femmefan1946]

devon@ebay

[tealt]

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@johnnysgoodstuff2012us wrote:

I'm not certain how this should be posted, and if anyone else has a better idea I would be interested in hearing it, but a friend of mine who is also an eBay seller, has died.

Does anyone have experience in these types of events?

Thanks.

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I do.

I was in this situation about a year ago.  A good friend and fellow eBay seller passed away.  

I hope you, or someone you are in touch with, has your friend's eBay password.

I had my friend's password, and with her family's permission, I deleted all her listings.  I was also able to message with her last buyer.  There didn't seem much point in communicating with eBay.  After I deleted all the listings, the account was completely inactive, and eBay will eventually delete it.

If no one has the password, I'd do what was advised above--nothing.  If complaints from buyers accumulate, eBay will refund them and suspend the account, thus killing it.

[After my friend's passing, I left written instructions for one of my relatives instructing them in the process of deleting all my listings.]

[dbfolks166mt]

     Sorry for the loss of your friend. If you know family members and they can access the account you friend has just over 2,900 active listings. Hopefully family members can access the account and end the listings. They should probably also contact the bank where your friend received his eBay deposits and freeze the account to prevent any incoming deposits from eBay or any outgoing payments. 

[slati_2013]

I hope eBay takes note soon because your friend has thousands of listings and buyers are buying daily still. As discussed recently, this is why all sellers should have a plan and/or instructions left somewhere. 

[dbfolks166mt]

I hope eBay takes note soon because your friend has thousands of listings and buyers are buying daily still. As discussed recently, this is why all sellers should have a plan and/or instructions left somewhere. 

     Agreed and I suspect the INR claims will start shortly, the seller is not available to address the claim so eBay will fully refund the buyer and the seller will still get hit with the FVF's. I would suspect that within 30 days if the bleeding has not stopped from the INR's then the sellers metrics will cause them to be rated below standard, the FVF's will be increased and the bleeding will continue or in the best case scenario eBay will suspend the sellers account. 

[devon@ebay]

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@femmefan1946 wrote:

devon@ebay

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Hey @femmefan1946! In this situation here is the following steps a member should follow:

To close this account, we do need you to provide us with a copy of the death certificate.

The simplest way to send this to us is through our document uploader. Copy this link into a new browser to get started:

https://ocswf.ebay.com/mudcwf?deptName=USE2M

Once we receive the information, we'll close the account and write off any outstanding fees. If there's currently a balance on the account, you may receive automated payment reminders until the account is closed. I assure you that you can ignore these.

[b86fiero]

Thank you Devon.

This is information every eBay seller should have, just in case.

[atlasesattic]

I know that browsers save passwords, when I forget a password on my Google browser , I just go there, find the website I'm looking for and it shows what email I use and the password as well...you can try that