Buyer can’t buy because of new credit card policy.
Had a buyer say he was asked for credit card while bidding on an item. He only has PayPal ,had to cancel bid. What is going on?
35 comments
Had a buyer say he was asked for credit card while bidding on an item. He only has PayPal ,had to cancel bid. What is going on?
reallynicestamps
·2 years agoI mean really. It's four days. 96 hours.
The Auction was up for nearly twice as long.
Long enough for scatterbrained customers to wander off or buy elsewhere.
If you must get paid immediately, use Fixed Price /Immediate Payment Required and catch those impulse buyers while they are paying attention.
lawnmowerpartsstore2
·2 years agoThis may be your problem with Ebay NOT accepting Paypal payments
https://www.ecommercebytes.com/C/blog/blog.pl?/pl/2023/8/1692666583.html
12345jamesstamps
·2 years agoI won a great auction the other day. It was a great buy. Was I a top bidder?
The bidder under me had 63 bid retractions in one month.....AND 652 bid retractions in 12 months.
I guess if you don't mind retractions on the last day of an auction you can turn it off for those who need to
have a credit card on file. And some might get great auction buys.
reallynicestamps
·2 years agoNo matter what other sellers may think, this was a dumb move on eBay's part.
What other online sites demand that the CUSTOMER show his financials before allowing them to shop?
monica-sells
·2 years agoI am not defending the option...
but to answer your question...
every auction site I buy from....Heritage, Juliens. Iconic, R & R, etc....as well as most that are affiliated with Live Auctioneers......
Nowhere I frequent can I "make an offer" or participate in an auction and not be registered with a payment method....
@reallynicestamps
sextons-sweet-deals
·2 years agoThis was my issue today with ridiculous format.
made an offer on an item this morning. I had that payment junk pop-up to confirm. I selected PayPal. Now the thing is I also have PayPal credit, but that was not an option. I was thinking if I won, I would finalize / confirm the form of payment. I was expecting my 'cart' logo to light up on the top right page.
Luckily the item was low value because the seller accepted, and payment is set based on my offer. Note: I did not know I won until I looked at my summary and then received an e-mail later from PayPal stating 'you have authorized payment to eBay'.
Thank GOD I did not make an offer on an expensive item which my PayPal link to my savings account would not have covered.
I'm sure I would have been hit with fees for NSF by my bank, maybe even PayPal, and these days, probably some type of fee or ding by eBay.
wastingtime101
·2 years agoThe text on the page where you add payment info is clear that you'll be charged if the offer is accepted (or if you win the auction) @sextons-sweet-deals . I guess you missed the fine print.
You can solve your potential problem of your bank being over drafted by going to PayPal and changing your default funding source to your credit card.
sextons-sweet-deals
·2 years agothank you for the information, but this just seems like a trial and error with no real details overall that the buyer and sellers have to learn from and could possibly push buyers elsewhere.
wastingtime101
·2 years agoThis prompted me to look at the help pages and realize there's still no information on auto-pay offers and auto-pay auctions.
I know these features haven't rolled out site wide yet, but there's a broad enough reach at this point that there should be info in the help pages. Can you guys escalate the request for updates to both of the help pages below, and possibly the pages surrounding offers and auctions, as well?
@devon@ebay @kyle@ebay @elizabeth@ebay
https://www.ebay.com/help/buying/paying-items/paying-items?id=4009
https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/listings/creating-managing-listings/setting-buyer-requirements?id=4152
elizabeth@ebay
Hi @wastingtime101, thanks for sharing this. We'll get this passed along to the appropriate team. While we cannot guarantee an update, we'll be sure to follow up if we receive updates.
silverstatetreasureboxes
·2 years ago@sextons-sweet-deals
Yeah that process thru me too. Other day I made an offer and that payment field appeared ( which in itself is no biggie) but I didn't even know if it was accepted or not for quite awhile. No notification, no cart lights, nothing. I finally looked in purchases and there it was all paid for.
I could see where someone could get into trouble here without prompt notification like we used to have.
iamalwaysright
·2 years agoHaving to finalize the payment if you win after providing a payment method would go against the intention of this setting in the first place. Because there would have to be a grace period between the time you actually won, and the time you "finalize" the payment. What time duration would ebay give buyers to do this? And what happens if a buyer never finalizes it?
The process would be no different than never providing payment methods in the first place. I do agree that immediate notification of offer accepted and payment processed should be given. I didn't know that ebay doesn't notify buyers of this, I would think they should.
wastingtime101
·2 years agoI can only speak to my personal purchases and not what others might be seeing.
I've made offers with auto-pay required. I received an email from eBay saying ORDER CONFIRMED after the seller accepted the offer and auto-pay went into effect.
theteamsetguy
·2 years agoI think 4 or 5 days would be sufficient. Just in case buyer goes out of town, got sick, had a family emergency, and ect.
wastingtime101
·2 years agoBut that's just the existing unpaid item timeline. So your stance is eliminate auto-pay altogether and leave things as they are/were?
Auto-pay offers/auctions was developed because the current policy of giving buyers several days to pay was causing too many problems for sellers.
I haven't expressed my opinion much on auto-pay, but here it is:
Generally speaking I think it's a great change, but there are flaws (one major, one minor) in the way it currently works.
I'm generally (strongly) against auto opt-ins, but in this case I don't disagree with automatically opting all sellers in on their settings page. Those that don't want to use it will be far fewer in number than those that do want to use it.
For those that don't want to use it, eBay did alert sellers to the setting on the buyer requirements page and how to turn it on/off. It's right there in the Seller Update FAQs.
https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/resources/seller-updates/2023-summer/financials
It would have been better to give sellers the buyer requirement opt in/out info in the Winter 2023 update when more buyers were being added and the setting already existed, but at least it was included in the most recent update.
Major flaw in operation: inability to combine shipping. eBay said that option was in the works, but we haven't heard anything on it since it was first announced:
https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/resources/seller-updates/2022-spring/business
If that's eventually released I hope it takes into account sellers that have combined shipping settings already in place and won't rely exclusively on a manual process.
Minor flaw in operation: does not include all payment methods. I list this as minor not because the problem is insignificant, but because I think the percentage of buyers affected by this is probably very small.
reallynicestamps
·2 years ago@wastingtime101
But that's just the existing unpaid item timeline. So your stance is eliminate auto-pay altogether and leave things as they are/were?
Yes. I think that's fine.
But I've actually been working retail (and auctions) for decades. I suspect many of those who get upset about slow payers have little or no retail experience.
Our auction, which continues although the rest of our business was closed when we retired, not only does not expect immediate payment, but prefers that physically present bidders not pay at the time of the auction, but return the next day, since the staff is too busy to pull and process lots while the auction continues.
https://sparks-auctions.com/
theteamsetguy
·2 years ago@wastingtime101 wrote :
But that's just the existing unpaid item timeline. So your stance is eliminate auto-pay altogether and leave things as they are/were?
Auto-pay offers/auctions was developed because the current policy of giving buyers several days to pay was causing too many problems for sellers.
That's correct. I have very few non payers out of the thousands of items I sell on eBay each year. I also suspect the problems of non payers on eBay isn't as big as people think it is. It only seems bigger because the complainers that post here. Sellers that aren't unhappy of the current policy don't come here and post.
As someone that has worked in sales for a long time I believe it is never a good idea to make it harder for a potential customer to make the purchase. Anything like requiring putting up a credit card number before bidding, or offering makes it harder for buyers.
Just like the sellers who post here that they have been scammed make it look like it is more frequent than reality. I would be willing to bet even in electronics the scam rate is way less than 1% of the transactions.
lonebuck-books
·2 years agoAnd how would that be eBay's fault? Use a payment method that will cover the offer/bid amount. If you chose to use a method that could end up in NSF fees, that isn't eBay's fault or the sellers fault. If you need more money in the saving account attached to Paypal, transfer the amount when you make the offer so it is covered if accepted. You can always move it back if the deal doesn't go through.
reallynicestamps
·2 years agoShop.
Not buy.
One reason I don't shop at Costco is that they won't let me in the store without buying a membership.
We have run auctions for many years, we actually had an online auction on apanet before eBay existed, but there is no need for a customer to give us credit card information to look at the listings, or even, should they show up in person, to examine the lots.
wastingtime101
·2 years agoI don't understand how you're defining shop vs buy.
If shop means to look at listings as stated in your last sentence, you don't need to enter payment info here to do that. In fact, you don't even need an eBay account to do that. Anybody can look.
eBay asks for payment info only when someone wants to place a bid, and placing a bid is a commitment to buy.
iamalwaysright
·2 years agoAside from people who are overly concerned of their identity theft security, it's becoming clearer to me now that the members (sellers and buyers) who have issue with this "payment pre-check" are people who do not feel that placing a bid or offer is in fact a commitment to buy in it's truest sense. What else would be the reason to want to "finalize" after the pre-check?
Having emergency issues can always be handled afterwards as damage control, just as how ebay offers this for sellers.
Many of these members with this mindset include buyers who spam out their bids and offers while only intending to follow thru with the lowest priced accepted one and leaving the others high and dry. It also includes people who in competing sites for instance, who agree to a sale and physically meet up with a seller, but never showing up. It happens to my wife in another site all the time. She says whenever someone says they'll come over and buy the item, it doesn't mean they'll actually come. Basically they are trying to just make sure no one else can snatch it while they still are on the fence.
This ebay change will help eliminate that issue and reinforce what "commitment to buy" means.
wastingtime101
·2 years agoThis is what I've been suggesting to buyers that express concern about eBay storing their payment info:
If security is your concern there is a solution if your credit card offers it. My credit card has a feature where you can log in to your online account and get a dummy number. It's called a Virtual Account Number. My CC even allows me to set an expiration date for that number. I can use that number in place of my actual CC number for any online transactions. It's a security feature. Check with your CC to see if they offer something similar.
iamalwaysright
·2 years agoYes my credit card offers that too. You can even set your own expiration date for that virtual credit card. I suspect that level of security may still not be enough for a few people who are overly concerned.
ittybitnot
·2 years agoThis ebay change will help eliminate that issue and reinforce what "commitment to buy" means.
@iamalwaysright
This change eliminates combined shipping for one price. It makes more money for eBay in that buyers pay more, sellers pay more and discourages many buyers who DO Pay from participating at all. Why would I bid on ten auctions from one seller when I will be paying $60 for shipping when items could be easily combined in one order. Are sellers so afraid of the NPB that they are willing to discourage multiple wins/offers from the same buyer? Is it worth it to the seller to pay $3 instead of thirty cents?
In a time when sales are slow, eBay should just dispense with the buyers that are causing trouble instead of disguising the "New Enhanced Checkout" presented as something good for buyers which they certainly find rather quickly that it is not.
@hardballd222
I don't know the exact date it goes into effect, but PayPal will no longer front a payment from a bank account (for this purpose or others). Buyers that have had their ID forced into this program along with your settings set to the default YES that eBay provided for you, cannot use PayPal Credit, or Pay in 4 either. So maybe your buyer is not lying that they cannot choose their bank account as the funding source on PayPal.
maxine*j
·2 years agoI can tell you that in the mid-1970s, I worked four days a month as a clerk at an auction house. Part of my job was to verify each person's credit card information before handing him his number. No one could bid without a number, and no one could get a number until one of us clerks made sure all was copacetic with his credit card.
The transaction account at Sotheby's requires a bank reference. At Christie's and at Bonham's, a transaction account requires credit card information which is verified. (Bonham's runs the card with a microcharge, for example.)
So, trying to confirm that someone can pay before he's allowed to bid is hardly something new in the auction world.
-
ed8108
·2 years agoNow it's Ebay , along with Sotheby & Christie. WOW !
dbfolks166mt
·2 years agoNo matter what other sellers may think, this was a dumb move on eBay's part.
What other online sites demand that the CUSTOMER show his financials before allowing them to shop?
I participate in a number of online auction sites and all but 1 of then demanded payment information when I signed up for an account. There are some unique differences with those sites that are or would be difficult to implement on eBay.
First the auctions have an ending date for ALL items which is generally on the same day and my payment method is not charged until the entire auction ends and all items that I purchase are invoiced and charged in one payment.
For some site the payment is automatic once the auction closes and I don't have to take any further action. For some I receive an invoice for all items purchased as a check/validation and simply have to confirm the invoice.
Most of the sites are local so everything is local pickup. However, some of the auction houses do ship either directly or through a third party logistics company. I have never used the shipping service so I am cannot comment on how that process or those charges are handled.
The new option is one of those situations of be careful what you ask for, you may get it. Sellers were screaming about the non-payers without considering the potential impacts of requiring buyers/bidders to provide payment information in advance. EBay gave sellers an option of whether to utilize the feature or not and kudos to them on doing so rather than making this an across the board policy.
iamalwaysright
·2 years agoWith all due respect, ones with this policy enabled don't demand that buyers show financials in order to "shop"... it's in order to bid or make an offer. Buyers can still buy it now or fixed priced listings at their advertised prices without any prior financials.
I think it's a smart move, especially because ebay allows the seller to set their own terms here. Like it? Then use it. Don't like it? Then don't use it. The only thing I probably would've done different is leave it disabled by default and announce the setting sitewide for sellers to enable if they please. I recall ebay enabled it as default for everyone, right?
drinkwine1204
·2 years agoI also sell on p#$hmark where all items are set up to receive offers. Buyers have to enter their payment info before making an offer and are clearly told they will only be charged if the offer is accepted. They are a large site and it has been this way for years.
luckythewinner
·2 years agoNo matter what other sellers may think, this was a dumb move on eBay's part.
There has been OVERWHELMING demand for this feature from sellers over the years. It has been one of the top complaints for decades. (This despite the fact that fixed price + immediate payment required pretty much fixes that issue). So it seems that no matter what eBay does, someone here will call them dumb.
What other online sites demand that the CUSTOMER show his financials before allowing them to shop?
Almost every online auction site aside form eBay.
lonebuck-books
·2 years agoNowhere does eBay require a customer to show financials to shop. You can shop to your hearts content without giving any financial info. What eBay is doing is forcing buyers to put up a payment method when they make an offer or bid. That makes total sense. I can't think of one other site on the internet where you can "buy" something and then just not pay for it. Ever been to a real in person auction before? They require you to put up a payment method and your information before you get a bid card. Want to make an offer on Mercari? Put up a payment method before hand or you can't make an offer. Personally I hope eBay makes this a mandatory thing for every seller and buyer. Remove the option from buyer requirements in the sellers menu. It is high time that eBay did like every other store on the planet and made buyers pay when they buy (which is what an offer or bid is, a promise to buy) something.
wastingtime101
·2 years agoThis doesn't make sense because the setting for auto-pay offers and the setting for auto-pay auctions allows buyers to use PayPal as a funding source.
Sounds like your buyer didn't see the PayPal option?
dbfolks166mt
·2 years agoIn response to all the sellers who were complaining about all the non-payers eBay put a new option in place that sellers can use that requires the bidders to enter payment information before they are allowed to make a bid. This is the first that I have heard of the payment information being restricted to only some of the payment methods eBay accepts. A lot of buyers still use PayPal as a payment option and this has the potential to have a very detrimental impact for sellers.
Apparently eBay unilaterally enabled the option for a number of sellers without advance notice and there have bee some postings about adverse impacts for some sellers. Fortunately the option can be turned off in your account settings click on your selling preferences scroll down to the your buyers managing who can buy from you and click on edit
Scroll to the bottom of the page and uncheck one or more of the following.
heckofagame
·2 years agoAccount settings>Selling Preferences>Your Buyers: Managing Who Can Buy From You
Check to see if your boxes are checked.
Buyer Payment Requirements