Requiring 4 days for a buyer to pay is way too long

[thin_air_research]

Ebay's rule of waiting for 4 days for a buyer to pay before cancelling is ridiculously long. Should be 48 hours.

[janet9988]

Ebay used to give 2 weeks. 

You should use the fixed price format and require immediate payment since it seems you like to be paid fast.

[soh.maryl]

If you want more rapid payment, you can list with fixed price, immediate payment required.

Not everyone is at their computer or on their phone 24/7.  Sometimes work/family obligations interfere.

For instance, over a weekend, people are not waiting breathlessly to see if they won.  4 days seems eminently reasonable to me.  You are, of course, entitled to your opinion.  

[tryno2]

Guess you weren't here when a LOT of payments were made by mail.

[chapeau-noir]

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@thin_air_research wrote:

Ebay's rule of waiting for 4 days for a buyer to pay before cancelling is ridiculously long. Should be 48 hours.

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I would say 48 hours is more than enough - people need to take SOME responsibility for bidding/offering here - if they have something going, then pay attention.  If it were up to me, it would be immediate with payment method on file. I sell on no other site that leaves sellers just hanging like this.   If eBay wants more people to participate in auctions, they need to fix this.  If they want more people to participate in offers, they need to at least allow the item to remain available to the public OR have immediate payment method on file and also provide a bundling option.

SMDH - I don't know why eBay is so slow with this stuff.

[femmefan1946]

It used to be 48 hours before a US-based seller could open an Unpaid Item Dispute.

But the deadbeat then had 96 hours to pay.

When the new four day grace period ends, the transaction is immediately cancelled.

That's two days sooner .

Although eBay confusingly calls this a Cancellation, the deadbeat still gets a Strike, you get any fees you might have been charged refunded, and the deadbeat cannot leave feedback.

[dryophelia]

Buyers are used to the amount of days they have to pay. If eBay is to change in this matter, it will have to be baby steps so as to not upset the buyer base. 
Until there is a BETTER option, Fixed Price, Immediate Payment Required, is the best there is. 
Change is on the horizon, some buyers are participating in a program that eBay has rolled out in BETA. These buyers must provide a viable payment method before the offer is accepted or the Buy It Now goes through. 
It’s coming, but it’s going to take a long time before all users are in the program. 

[chapeau-noir]

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@dryophelia wrote:

Buyers are used to the amount of days they have to pay. If eBay is to change in this matter, it will have to be baby steps so as to not upset the buyer base. 
Until there is a BETTER option, Fixed Price, Immediate Payment Required, is the best there is. 
Change is on the horizon, some buyers are participating in a program that eBay has rolled out in BETA. These buyers must provide a viable payment method before the offer is accepted or the Buy It Now goes through. 
It’s coming, but it’s going to take a long time before all users are in the program. 

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You've got a good point there. 

[yuzuha]

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@chapeau-noir wrote:

I would say 48 hours is more than enough - people need to take SOME responsibility for bidding/offering here - if they have something going, then pay attention.  If it were up to me, it would be immediate with payment method on file. I sell on no other site that leaves sellers just hanging like this.   If eBay wants more people to participate in auctions, they need to fix this.  If they want more people to participate in offers, they need to at least allow the item to remain available to the public OR have immediate payment method on file and also provide a bundling option.

SMDH - I don't know why eBay is so slow with this stuff.

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It makes sense for auctions at least because a seller may be running multiple auctions with different ending times and a buyer may be bidding on multiple auctions. It would be silly to force them to pay for two of their wins right away when they're also the high bidder on three more auctions that end tomorrow.

[chapeau-noir]

eBay still needs to do something about quicker payment if they want to grow auctions or at least do something about deadbeats.   Auctions could at least by bundled by account in a time limitation.

ETA:  This would still be an opt-in/out by seller.  But as @dryophelia says, they've taken the first baby step on some of this stuff.

[wastingtime101]

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@dryophelia wrote:

Buyers are used to the amount of days they have to pay. If eBay is to change in this matter, it will have to be baby steps so as to not upset the buyer base. 

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I concur. One short year ago the window was 6 days, not 4 days so we're moving in the right direction.

[femmefan1946]

These buyers must provide a viable payment method before the offer is accepted or the Buy It Now goes through.

I really don't think this is a good idea.

Do you have to record your credit card number before you can buy from WalMart?

OTOH- there is an online auction site, mostly doing estate clearances, called MaxSold, which I have purchased from a few times.

In order to place a bid, I have to record my card number.

BUT.

These are local pickups. (Although the company is international).

If I win, my card is charged.

Then I am given a pickup place and time slot of about half an hour.  I'm not sure what happens if I don't show up. It may be a No Refunds situation.

I'm not sure it would work on a site that sells internationally instead of locally.

[katzrul15]

@thin_air_research 

It is a long time.  Especially as it waits 4 full days and then cancel on the 5th day.  I can see if a Buyer is awaiting other auctions of that Seller's to end to combine, but if not, they really need to pay once the auction is over.

As a buyer, I have almost missed paying once.  I had bid on a couple of items and was outbid.  So I went and bought a BIN and while I log into my Seller account every day, my buying account, no so much.

I guess the Seller cancelled the person's bid who out bid me or the bidder cancelled, not sure - regardless, I was then the "winner".  I tried to explain to the Seller that I already bought another one as I was outbid, but they were none too happy, so we paid for the auction one also.  Did not want a strike or an issue and unfortunately, you can bid, get outbid and still win the auction, so if you are a buyer and bidding - you should pay attention to your account.  lol

With all that said.............4 days IS too long!  48 hours might be too short (over a weekend), so maybe 72 hours would be a good compromise.  

[inhawaii]

If that's the way you feel, then don't do auctions or offers.

All of my customers pay me immediately. No waiting. 

[transamcc]

If buyers are required to pay right now, sellers should also be required to ship right now.  Immediate payment required  should trigger same day/next business day required shipping from the seller.