Make an offer and paying for

Question

Recently I attempted to make an offer and e-bay wanted to link my payment method to automatically close the deal, should the seller accept - so I backed out. Seams a little intrusive - what if I want to pay by check or M.O. Also, isn't one of the features of PayPal to limit personal data exposure?

It's a new one on me - I think it is a change e-bay should undo.

inceptions · Answer

@dutcher6 eBay stopped allowing payment by check or money order sixteen years ago.

woodland_gnome · Answer

eBay had been "experimenting" with requiring pre-authorization of payment for Best Offers for over a year and a half (started prior to Halloween 2021), adding more and more users into the test group required to do so (sellers can opt their listings out of it; buyers cannot opt out). Too many users were making offers and then not paying when it was accepted, and too many of those were scammers who would try to get the seller to text or email them to get their number/email address to send fake payment messages to.

They have in Fall 2023 officially made it permanent and all buyers are now required to pre-authorize payment for Best Offers they make on listings for sellers who have not opted out of the program.

They started trying it out on auction bids in Spring or early Summer 2023 but that seems to have ended. They have also started experimenting with requiring immediate payment for accepting offers or counteroffers from sellers as of Spring 2024.

lady_madonna · Answer

@dutcher6

Ebay now requires automatic payments when buyers make an offer. The payment comes from the payment source the buyer has on file with Ebay or the payment source the buyer chooses when making the offer.

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Payment for Ebay purchases cannot be made with a check or Money Order.