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eBay does NOT value sellers anymore - We are getting screwed on returns
3 times in the last 10 days I have had returns marked as "Item not as described" when it the item was EXACTLY as described. The most recent item was listed as "For Parts/Not working". I described the item, its condition and advised I do NOT know whats wrong with it and selling as is. Buyer got it and returned it stating that it not as described because its not working, the top does not come off and a small piece is missing. I suspect the buyer took an internal component they needed and shipped it back. I am not knowledgeable enough on the particular item to verify this.
I get the item back and the top is OFF, that "missing" piece is there and there is another internal piece rolling around that the buyer obviously took off. I record me packing EVERY item and opening EVERY return due to how bad eBay treats us. eBay makes US (sellers) cover original AND return shipping even though the BUYER lied.
This has happened SEVERAL times lately.
What do we do as sellers? Do we start using other platforms that respect us? Do we change our listings to protect us somehow? I am at a loss. 24 years at eBay and it's never been worse as a seller.
kh-stanley1
·1 year agoHi everyone,
Due to the age of this thread, it has been closed to further replies. Please feel free to start a new thread HERE if you wish to continue to discuss this topic.
Thank you for understanding.
ginoniccoli
·1 year ago#ebayscamssellers
We need to gather sellers and organize a class action.
Ebay DOES NOT protect buyers, forces them to refund a buyer without any review of the claim and allows only the buyer to leave negative feedback
blacktopautoparts
·2 years agoWe are experiencing the same thing with returns. Returns are being opened up as if it were our fault and then you get the wonderful customers mention in the comments that the color of the item for instance doesn't match their vehicle. At the end of the day they are making false snad after false snad.
What I have been doing is reporting the buyer that does this garbage at the onset of the return. Then when I get the item back, I take pictures of it and then explain in the return of the customer marking the return as a false snad and use the deduction tool. This is just not only hurting our service metrics but it is also hurting us from a financial standpoint with the returns. It is one thing if we made a mistake or if the customer correctly marks the return, but when they do these things opening up a false SNAD it hurts us all around. I've had these conversations with higher ups for years, but it just is another thing that eBay doesn't want to correct.
kitschy*loot
·2 years ago@guito When it comes to the MBG someone is going to be on the losing end when a not as described case is opened by a liar... and it's probably going to be the seller. Why? Because eBay reps are not psychic and would have no clue who is telling the truth... so it is seen as best to give the buyer the benefit of the doubt unless they have a bad history where dozens and dozens of items never seem to be as described upon arrival... could a buyer just have bad luck and be telling the truth? That's possible if you're buying from people with a bad record on a regular basis...
Imagine if you spent money on an item and it wasn't as described and when you complained eBay just decided to go on the seller's word and whatever video recording they had, and left you SOL? You wouldn't like that I'm guessing.
Your videos don't prove anything. Many have found ways to make videos appear seamless but in reality they were altered, and nobody knows what you did when you stopped recording, and there are a number of other ways to provide tainted video evidence. You might be honest but not every seller is. I ran into a bad one who tried to smear my good name when they were in the wrong. Some sellers do just as much bad as some buyers do.
guito
OP2 years agoWhatever. They should at least LOOK at the evidence and not automatically default to the buyer EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. I know I am honest I KNOW what I sold and it was a FOR PARTS unit that the buyer sent back because it didnt work. Come on.
fashunu4eeuh
·2 years agoTo avoid some return issues, i do the following on my selling ID:
1) Because of the risk like the OP experienced, I no longer list anything that does not work, is missing pieces, or has some flaw (unless it is highly coveted and the flaw is small).
2) As a preventive measure, strictly for the health of my eBay standing, went to Free Returns years ago, long before ebay began pushing for it. It is very rare I get any returns, so the risk is small and the benefit is worth it to protect my account from defects or scammers. (Scammers usually give me a wide berth and turn their attention to easier prey.)
3) I always give my buyers the benefit of the doubt on the rare occasion where a concern arises.
4) I avoid listing items in high scam categories—expensive designer goods, gaming items, computers, tablets, smartphones, small electronics, etc.
5) It takes me much longer to list, but i fill out all the fields on the form, paying special attention to descriptions and Item Specifics. I am a small operation, so this effort pays off for me. Mostly, my listings are fixed price with Immediate Payment Required. (No Best Offer.)
6) My Buyer Requirements are set at their strictest levels.
7) When setting up Shipping Preferences, I exclude counties with civil unrest or war, corrupt custom agencies, poor postal systems. (This isn’t as critical a step in the past since eBay initiated its new international shipping program.)
inhawaii
·2 years agoSo to solve this problem, ebay should just take the seller's word over the buyer's word.
Problem solved.
tobaccocardyahoo
·2 years agoYour story could apply to any platform which allows the sale of used or even new items.
There are crooks out there.
Ebay does not have a court as part of the site, and if it did it could not enforce its rulings on buyers.
Based on what you sell you will have greater or fewer crooks taking advantage of you. You need to improve your margins to absorb the ripoffs.
These crooks will also win credit card chargeback disputes and you will be charged an extra $20 for every credit card chargeback you lose.
And Ebay is still the highest traffic for used crap which may or may not work.
Not a lot of choices available.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoMaybe better descriptions would help.
The first listing I looked at, the description says: "Thank you for looking!"
That doesn't tell me anything about the item or condition.
movieman630
·2 years agoWe just accept it, it's a write off on your taxes, cost of doing business. Every company has loss, it's unavoidable. B&M stores deal with theft of all sorts. Be glad yours is only the occasional dishonest person.
Make sure you add every single one of them to your BBL too.
This is also why I don't sell high dollar merchandise, too risky.
kenneth686321
·2 years agoLet me give you a few options - It is your responsibility to understand which options work for you. Sone items are made to be sold on Ebay while other items should be sold elsewhere.
1. Sell locally for cash - Is there a large enough pool of interested buyers?
2. Try another E - commerce site - some have better seller protections, lower fees, less generous return policy, less competition but also less buyers. Ebay is not the only game in town.
3. Open your own website - Minimum fees, no returns but you will have to spend a lot of time and/or money running expensive social media or google ads to be noticed. Money is spent whether or not you make a sale or not.
4. Open your own B&M Store - no return policy, no shipping, no PL fees but high rent, staff and other fixed costs
5. Keep selling on Ebay and suck it up and absorb the cost of returns and fees into your business model. If every seller on Ebay chose options 1-4, there would be no sellers left on Ebay. But ebay will be here long after we are gone.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoYou might not take returns on your own site, but that doesn't mean you be giving refunds.
If buyer pays with Pay Pal or credit cards, they have the same protection as they do here.
redlinear
·2 years ago@guito
Item is damaged, does not work. AS IS, NO RETURNS (No refunds, even it works).
That's how I word it, and I refund just like you.
Some weeks it seems as if nobody reads a description.
I see lots of big sellers of used stuff that don't even have a DESCRIPTION anywhere in their listings. And they sell lots of stuff, and they have really good ratings. And I have no idea how???
I try that and I can't sell anything.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoSome of those bigger sellers probably get negative feedback removed, to make them look good.
luckythewinner
·2 years agoWhat do these recordings accomplish for you?
guito
OP2 years agoMakes me feel good i suppose. At least I know I am doing the right thing.
ittybitnot
·2 years ago@guito
You are not the first, nor will be the last to ask these questions. The eBay system is now automated. The only thing that counts is what the buyer chooses from the dropdown menu when they want to return a product. The reason need not be the truth. There are a set of "reasons" in that dropdown menu that require that a seller front the return costs. It did not take buyers long to figure out which ones triggered a refund/return on the seller's dime.
The buyer pics a choice, then the auto system goes into effect with a clear path to the predictable results. There a penalties for a seller who do not comply with the liar buyer scenario. At the point where the buyer picks that choice, your description doesn't matter, your photos don't matter, nor any messages, or reasons posted in comments from the buyer.
For example, you can post a listing for an antique toy wagon that is missing a wheel. You can put in the title and five places in the description that the wagon is missing a wheel. You can show 5 photos of where there is a space where the wheel should be with big red arrows showing the wheel is missing.....buyer claims "not as described" comments item missing a wheel, or the sweater has a hole in it, or I need the money to by crack... and NOTHING will change. Nobody at eBay cares, and customer service is no longer allowed to intervene no matter what they tell you when you contact them on chat or call back.
thescarletpimpernel
·2 years agoeBay of 2023 is not eBay of past decades. As a seller you are victimized just as the looters walk in and clean out stores. Some folks have decided this can work on eBay now and escape consequences. You haven't ANY recourse. Also be prepared to get trolled by the cult of followers who view this venue as their religion and you dare not criticize. There isn't any solution. Sorry.
guito
OP2 years agoBetween this and the tax man telling me every dollar i sell on here is pure profit, I am about done.
There is a solution though: There are other platforms and we all need to start looking into them.
luckythewinner
·2 years agoYou are the one who tells the tax man what your profit is. Are you not deducting your expenses and cost of goods sold?
guito
OP2 years agoOh I do but it takes lots of paperwork to show them that ... they assume that 30k of sales (and shipping fees) are all profit. They should have a default formula for ebay sales like 50% profit (i dont make nearly that either)
luckythewinner
·2 years agoOh I do
If you take your deductions, the tax man is not "telling you every dollar i sell on here is pure profit". The tax man is telling you that only your profit is your profit.
but it takes lots of paperwork to show them that
I buy all my shipping labels through eBay, so it takes me less than 10 minutes to calculate all my gross income, all my shipping costs, all my eBay fees, and all my returns and refunds. I export my transaction history, load it in a spread sheet, and do a couple sorts and sums.
I document my COGS when I list items, so summing that is as simple as summing the folder full of COGS documentation that I filed away as I sold items throughout the year.
They should have a default formula for ebay sales
They do have a default formula for eBay sales. It is the same default formula they have always had for everyone ... you file a tax return and and take your deductions, or you get no deductions.
erzengelb
·2 years agoWhy do you feel the need to be smarmy with every single poster on here? Is that just how you roll?
buyselljack2016
·2 years agoSome make way more profit, some make way less profit.
Sounds like you are a "flat tax" advocate of sorts.
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoWhy should Ebay be any different from any other platform?
dbfolks166mt
·2 years agoBetween this and the tax man telling me every dollar i sell on here is pure profit, I am about done.
There is a solution though: There are other platforms and we all need to start looking into them.
I did that LONG ago and eBay now only accounts for a little less than 20% of my sales. A lot of the other sites have lower fees, better balance of buyer/seller protections and search engines that work based on what the buyer is searching for and how they are racking and stacking the results.
By far the local forums move the most simply because there is no shipping involved, seldom an issue with the sale since the buyer can see and inspect it ahead of time and most people have multiple payment methods these days: Cash, PayPal, Venmo, Google Pay.......
kensgiftshop
·2 years agoYes, there are other platforms, but they all have their problems to.